Hi All,    I'm looking at getting a Dash Cam for my Skoda Superb and looking for any recommendations,  hard wired or plug into lighter socket.

I recently bought a ORSKEY Dash Cam 1080P Full HD Car Camera DVR from a large high-profile on-line sales company for just under £33. (I am new on here and don't want to break any rules, so I hope you can guess where I got it from.) I have owned 3 other dash cams, but am particularly pleased with this one. I have recently been touring around Ardnamurchan and the West Highlands of Scotland, and purchased this dash cam with the intention of recording our scenic road trips rather than to record traffic incidents. I am pleased to report that it fulfilled this purpose admirably. It seems to be well-made and records high quality video. I plug it into the lighter socket of my Octavia Scout, but see no reason why it couldn't be hard wired if desired.

3 hours ago, OldBoyScout said:

 (I am new on here and don't want to break any rules, so I hope you can guess where I got it from.)

 We can be picky (occasionally) but it looks like yours came from Amazon - just to save other people searching!

 

There are quite a few dashcam threads on the forum so either use the search facility (which might actually be temporarily removed) or https://search.briskoda.net

 

 

I have 4 x Nextbase dashcam; mixture of 312 & 412GW’s all proving to be very reliable and both have WiFi connectivity which makes them easy to view when parked up etc.

 

Halfords had the 412GW for around £89 the other week, they were around £129 when they first came out.

46 minutes ago, Defenderben said:

I have 4 x Nextbase dashcam; mixture of 312 & 412GW’s all proving to be very reliable and both have WiFi connectivity which makes them easy to view when parked up etc.

 

Halfords had the 412GW for around £89 the other week, they were around £129 when they first came out.

 

Thanks

I've had a Transcend Drivepro 220 with wifi and gps for a few years now.

 

Works well and I've had no problems with it. Worth the money over some of the Chinese no name brands.

I assume the cheaper ones have moved on now and might be worth looking at. When I had one the power supply leaked EM and affected the radio quite badly.

Seems it is difficult to recommend a dash cam for somebody else, as different people may be looking for different things. Other posters have mentioned name brands, but these will always carry a premium price. Some people may find WiFi useful, but I have always got on OK without it, and never even thought that I might have a need for it. However, I had a cheap dash cam previously which was rendered useless when I inserted the SD card with too much force and it disappeared into the body of the camera. If having WiFi had saved me from needing to remove and replace the SD card so often, the camera might not have suffered that damage.

 

If anybody is interested in the Orskey dash cam that I mentioned previously, I see it is also available with an additional rear view camera for under £40.

 

About 3 years ago I was involved in a road traffic incident where I do not feel that I was at fault. I was using a dash cam similar to the aforementioned Orskey, i.e. front facing recording only. Unfortunately the other vehicle hit mine side-on where it was out of camera shot. I argued that my dash cam showed that I was driving correctly, and the other car had been in camera shot shortly before the collision, but the insurance co. would not accept this as evidence, and I ended up with partial liability.

 

For me the best part of having a dash cam is being able to easily record the scenery when we go out touring in the car, and my wife no longer needs to hold an unsteady old camcorder up to the windscreen.

 

I'm not posting this as recommends of my camera but more so about 'Lessons Learned'.

 

I have a Roadhawk DC2 fitted up front with GPS and the ability to record whilst parked. ATT (over 5 years ago) it cost around £200. It came with a 12v lead, but I paid for it to be hard wired in. Its fitted with a 128Gb SD card. It doesn't have a screen nor Wi-Fi. 

 

I have a Transcend Drive pro 200 hard wired into the rear. It cost around £80, is fitted with a 32Gb Micro SD card which is the largest it can be fitted with. It comes with a screen and Wi-Fi, but not GPS or the ability to record whilst parked up. The optics, especially at night, are far better than my Roadhawks. 

 

A lot of people dismiss GPS, it's not just useful to show where an incident took place, but it also ensures the date and time of the recordings are correct, and both cameras are in sync. 

 

The higher resolution the recording the bigger the memory card you'll require. The 32Gb in my Transcend is fine for my short daily commute, but begins to overwrite fairly quickly on long journeys, so could be next to useless when actually required. 

 

Never used the WiFi facility in 'anger', more so to sync its clock with my phone, so cannot really comment on its use ability or as a 'must have' feature. 

 

 

I've been using a VicoVation OPIA II for the last 2 years with no complaints. I have it permanently installed with the GPS module and a battery monitor. At the time I was looking it was just after I'd been involved in a collision where having the dashcam would have helped fill in gaps in various people's stories and I wasn't worried about cost. The OPIA II was coming out on top in most of the reviews I read so I went for that. It did kill the SD card in about 18 months, but given the punishment its going to get in this application I can't really complain.

 

The GPS feature allows you to stamp the video with position or speed or both which is handy if you're worried about having the speed stamped on the video in the event of a collision. Accelerometer and full GPS data are written to a separate file to the video and can be played back with VicoVation's player.

 

My two main gripes are that the accelerometer seems overly sensitive to car doors being slammed shut, even on its least sensitive setting, it doesn't support a rear camera which is something I've been thinking about getting.

Edited 19 June, 20196 yr by chimaera

Roadhawk has always been pretty poor quality in video terms. I took it out in the end and put it in a drawer somewhere. Never been out since, in fact it might have got thrown out.

 

I paid £200 for it at the time, left a bad review of it on the Roadhawk website which was deleted despite it being honest, it sort of speaks volumes about the integrity of that company, in that it can't handle criticism.

 

Got a Nextbase 612GW in the boot awaiting wiring in but lack of funds stop that being fitted for the time being.

On 18/06/2019 at 20:30, OldBoyScout said:

If anybody is interested in the Orskey dash cam that I mentioned previously, I see it is also available with an additional rear view camera for under £40.

 

I've been in the market for a new dash cam for a few days now since my current one has been acting up.

 

Is there any chance you could take picture of the charging cable, ideally the end that goes into the camera, or confirm if it's a micro usb? I already have a micro usb hardwire kit fitted so don't want to purchase another. 

 

TIA

 

Courty the Orskey has a USB mini B 5 pin connector, not micro USB, so doesn't match your kit.

 

If you really like the Orskey dashcam, you could always see if you can get a Micro USB Female to Mini USB Male adapter.

 

I done it in reverse when I upgraded from my Transcend DrivePro 200 mini USB to a Transcend DrivePro 230 micro USB. I upgraded as this model has GPS (for more accurate timekeeping), a Park Mode and can take a 128Gb memory card (my current model is limited to 16Gb);

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B071K9QYC7/ref=cm_sw_r_em_apa_i_z5DiDb7RN4YG2

 

 

I don't know how this compares to other offers, but D M Keith say they have a special offer on Nextbase 512 front and rear cameras at £299 fully fitted.

 

https://www.dmkeith.com/offers/nextbase-512-dual-camera-offer/34934/seat/offerdetail.aspx

On 26/07/2019 at 10:06, OldBoyScout said:

I don't know how this compares to other offers, but D M Keith say they have a special offer on Nextbase 512 front and rear cameras at £299 fully fitted.

 

https://www.dmkeith.com/offers/nextbase-512-dual-camera-offer/34934/seat/offerdetail.aspx

Halfords have the Nextbase 522gw (significant upgrade on 522 - I know as I own both) for £119, plus the rear cam for £24.50 (half price) and will fit both (including hardwire kit cost) for £50. Significantly cheaper option if anyone’s looking!

 

Just buy your micro SD card from somewhere else. 128gb u3 card on amazon for about £27. 

To answer OP question, I highly recommend the Nextbase cams and think the 522 is the best option.