How common is dash cam usage? Is it considered essential these days or just a nice thing to have? Has it ever been useful for you in an insurance claim? Do insurance companies ask for or rely on your footage when they make decisions on who is at fault?
Do You Have a Dash Cam?
capslock on 03/02/2021 - 11:02
Poll Options
- 415Yes, front only
- 257Yes, front and back
- 292No
- 23I don't have a car
Comments
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What about Aspro Clear?
I prefer Lemsip Max
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true ozb would buy panamax
That's Rafen bud. It's paracetamol in Panamax.
I use Ibuprofen for hang overs
Yeah, those movies do require medication…
Take 1500mg of L-Cysteine before you start drinking = no more hangovers
not sure if serious, what is L-Cysteine?
@Homr: Absolutely serious. Here is the Finnish study that I heard about on a podcast: https://academic.oup.com/alcalc/article-abstract/55/6/660/58…
Having bought a bag for myself at my local vitamin shop, I've found it to be effective and I've given it to a couple of mates who have also said it has been effective for them.
Obviously there's lots of variables but anecdotally, it seems to help.
@Homr: Ideally before as it apparently assists your liver in processing the alcohol so the sooner it starts working the better, but I've had it after I've come home from an unexpected session and I still think it helped me (that is, I didn't feel as bad I expected I would).
@Homr: Not sure, I got my from my local vitamin/health food store. The woman knew exactly what I was talking about when I asked for it so it's not something weird and wacky that only a few places will stock, but I don't think you'll find it in the multivitamin aisle.
That won't stop my lustful hubby
That’s a RoofCam
Before Dash Cam - buy comprehensive insurance…
If everyone did this MS Paint wouldn't ever get used and we'd have no forum posts to laugh at when "my friend" has an accident where they are so very obviously at fault…
SO NOW DASHCAM + 3RD PARTY INSTEAD?
Yes, waste of money. For past 3 years I haven't got to recordings worthy of bragging :(
Haha both my cars were involved in accidents where a dashcam would have been handy.
After buying a dashcam each time… no further incidents.Maybe mine are accident deterrents or lucky charms.
If I look at it that way then they are definitely a worthwhile investment! :PI think this is the real answer. Dash cams are basically lucky charms and primarily used to record meteor falls
edit: Comprehensive insurance against said meteor falls comes first of course
So true lol, all I've recorded on mine worthy of attention was a meteor fall last year
Haha…I actually recorded a meteorite falling!
Never needed for an accident (touch wood). Recorded plenty of idiots!
But I see them as a must!
For past 3 years I haven't got to recordings worthy of bragging :(
Drive somewhere in Sydney ending with -wood.
I even been to Snowtown and bank was closed :(
I bet you're not referring to Crestwood. Yeah that whole area is bad, used to work around there and it was unusual NOT to get something on the dashcam daily. It's not just that drivers around there are bad, though a fair amount are, a lot of them simply DGAF.
How about ending with -field?
Parafield .. Yes place where even cops cars get stolen 😬
How about ending with pool?
Starting with 'West'.
Drive somewhere in Sydney ending with -wood.
I drive through Eastwood daily and the only things I ever catch on my cam are traffic jams and the occasional tosser. It's worth it to report the ciggie butt tossers though!
https://www.epa.nsw.gov.au/your-environment/litter-and-illeg…
Deem yourself lucky then.
I have a dash cam, and the only thing I regretted is not getting a better one.
… need to get out more …
Really a peace of mind. But also makes you drive better because you don't want to give footage of you doing stupid moves.
Like said above. Comprehensive insurance, if you can't afford that 3rd party (to avoid being in debt) and a dash cam.
I've had front and back dash cams in all my cars for years, long before it became 'trendy'.
Never needed to use the recordings but it's nice to know that they are there just in case.
They're a must IMO. I don't trust anyone these days, the number of scumbag people I see leaving trolleys next to cars/in parking spaces or reversing into cars and driving off at my local shopping centre is sickening. And nice peace of mind that if you are ever involved in an accident you have clear proof of what occured.
Have you ever used your footage?
Only to masturbate
@nubzy You mean like this.
In a way I kinda wanted to find some damage as I wasn't too fond of my car at the time.
Yeah, inconsiderate, oblivious (profanity) is what he is. It would have been easier to gather them up and take them to the return on his way into the shops. I publicly shame people who leave their trolleys in the carparks and usually get support from others if they see it. I can't stand it..
Dash cam owner for about 5 years - never really recorded anything worthwhile but for the $150 I spent on the camera I still think it's worth it for peace of mind.
One thing I do note - a lot of people (especially on the Dashcam Australia YT page) think that the dashcam gives them the right to drive quite aggressively and be extremely unforgiving of other road users.
Yes, fair enough, the other driver is signaling into your lane - but why not just be a decent road user and make space for them rather than trying to cause an accident just because you're in the right? Anybody else notice this phenomenon or is it just me?
If the other cars want to move to your lane, isn't their responsibility to give way to you (unless stated by the law otherwise)? I hate drivers who turn on signals for 1 second and then slam into my lane.
Yeah but we all get caught out sometimes e.g. being in the wrong lanes in unfamiliar areas. Rather than accelerating to close the gap, why not be a decent human being and let them in the lane? (I'll caveat that with the fact I have a very different attitude towards letting in taxi drivers - they aren't making "innocent mistakes").
My experience most of the time with Sydney drivers is that it is really poor training and discipline.
TAXIS DEFO CUT EVERYONE OFF
Worse still are the idiots who move first and then signal, even more annoying than those who don't signal at all.
+1. This really annoys me. They've indicators not yolo paddles.
@capslock janitor: Idiots, the lot of them. Zero awareness or consideration. I look like a bit of a loon but I drive right in the middle of my street which has apartments along one side so it gets pretty chockers.
Probably not indicative of the general population - that behaviour causes accidents, so it makes sense that you see it more often in videos of accidents. There would be plenty of people with dashcams who behave intelligently but you don't see those recordings because nothing interesting happens.
Now this 30 second video clearly shows that I am the greatest driver in the world and this same video also shows that I have never made a single mistake while behind the wheel but the other driver clearly bribed the instructor to get their licence and is clearly the worst driver in history and should have the licence immediately revoked.
I wouldn't paint every dashcam owner with that brush.
I suggest it's probably just those people who post and follow Dashcam Australia (and similar) have a righteous mindset, which creates a feedback loop in the community justifying their behaviour.
if they deliberately close the gap that could be seen as contributing to the collision sl percentages would be paid you cant not try to avoid the crash
Yea, I used to slow down for others to move to my lane. However not many ppl helped me when I got caught out. I still try to help these days but not as much as before.
I always let people cut in front of me
It is worth the piece of mind.
We had a small accident which the camera only caught a little of as it was a side collision, but if required it would prove that we were going straight where the other party was turning.
I caught a car with a bunch of stormtroopers hanging out, that would have been Dash Cams Australia material.
I also caught a car lose control and mount the island almost taking out a traffic light, equally funny was the wife's reaction.
I've only had to use it once for insurance but it's pretty funny when the other party shuts their mouth pretty quick about it being "your fault" when you tell them you have the dashcam.
I've had more times when I've recorded something interesting actually, like the time a roo tried to jump over the suv in front of us but tripped over the roof (managed to get to the other side of the road without incident).
Those that have them (and potentially had to use them), what brand do you have, what's the footage like, and do they record whilst off/motion activated etc? Would you recommend it?
I've always put it off because I don't think anything other than a hardwired Blackvue 750/900 front and rear with battery module is the only option worth having, so it's an expensive exercise, especially when multiplied by 2 or 3 cars. Touch wood, never had to claim insurance in a number of years so it's not high on my priority purchases list.So buying multiple cars is affordable but not the dashcams?
I've got one weekender that I've had for over 15 years, then the wife and I have a car each. These were not overnight purchases like a dashcam. I'm just asking if it's worth getting 2 or 3 cheaper cameras so I can put one in each car immediately compared to say the $1500-2500 if I get 3 x 750/900's with PMP's all hardwired, which would likely have to be purchased one at a time due to the higher cost.
I've got Thinkware, Blackvue and Viofo. The Viofo is 95% as good image wise but 20% of the price but I prefer the other two as they're more compact. They can all be set up to record when parked.
I’ve had 2 x Viofo 118c for 5 years on an older car. Have witnessed near misses against me but thankfully no accidents I’ve been involved in nor ones I’ve witnessed happen. $55 each.
Last year I had Blackvue 900s installed in my new car and it works great as it’s got powermagic pro too. $520.
Some of them (e.g. Viofo, probably many others) can be easily removed from the mount, so you could swap to your rarely-used car when needed.
I think front-facing is sufficient - anyone hitting me from behind will be presumed to be at fault anyway.
anyone hitting me from behind will be presumed to be at fault anyway
True. If they accuse you of reversing you can still use the front camera to prove them wrong.
I think front-facing is sufficient - anyone hitting me from behind will be presumed to be at fault anyway.
Rear is more useful for hit and run, parking incident, record of road rage if you need to go to the cops etc. For the minimal extra cost a rear cam is well worth it IMO.
Vantrue N2 Pro in one car, Vantrue S1 4K in another. Hardwired both to the car battery with Dash Cam Hardwire Kit. That way they will keep recording while the car is not running, but won't kill the battery so I still can start the car in the morning or after long shopping. Both have "parking mode" where they stop recording if no movement is detected - saves space on SD card. Both have a G-sensor.
After having both - I'd recommend S1 as it has a separate back camera that mounts at the back of the car. N2 Pro has the second camera, but it records what's in the car, not what's behind it; good for Uber/taxi drivers.
Thanks, the S1 looks like a good option with the hardwire kit.
Going by the description, it records front only in 4k 24fps or 1080p 60fps or front/rear at 1080p 30fps? Which do you use and why?
To get the footage, do you just take the SD card out and transfer to PC or is there another way?I record both in 1080, the highest res I can get.
I just take SD card out to read it from laptop. But I think you could connect to the dash cam with a USB cable as well to get the footage.
I've got a van top H610 - these are "mirror dash cams" and have an always on screen that goes over your rear view mirror.
Cost about $200 for the unit and a further $300 for professional installation.
The dash cam is nice but I mostly wanted the digital rear view mirror so that I could see out the back especially when the boot is fully loaded.
On a couple of occasions after having minor collisions the other driver's attitude has changed rapidly when I mentioned that the entire incident has been recorded. Suddenly they are way more cooperative when handing over details. I once had someone claim that they didn't have their indicator on which was clearly visible in the video footage. IMO if you drive sensibly dash cam is invaluable.
Not only do I have dash cams in both my cars I have front and rear cameras on my bike.
Motorbike or bicycle?
Bicycle. They are combination light and camera.
Oh nice! My brother wears one on his helmet but nothing looking behind.
The amount of crazy clips he sends me (Syd) is insane..
Is that the Fly6 and Fly12?
Yes
LEGENDS
Yep, I've had them over a decade now. Front and rear in every vehicle, wouldn't drive without them these days (of course I did work in a area of Sydney that IMO has the worst drivers around).
Yeah I'm really bad - I want one, I just loath the thought of installing it. Cos I don't want cables hanging erry where
You can tuck a lot of the cabling into the plastic trim and rubber seals around the top of the windscreen/door hinge area.
Alternatively, can be hard wired into the fuse box but you may want that done by someone with a bit of know-how
True, that!
I bought a cable to power from the OBD port, it was a lot easier than going from the fuse box.
Or you can buy a small fuse tap for a few bucks on ebay
GOT LINK PLZ?
Problem with those is if you use a dealer for servicing they may unplug the dashcam to update the computer or for diagnostics. Some cars do have two OBD ports though, the one that's usually easily accesible and another hidden up under the dash somewhere. Worth checking if you're going to use one of those.
If you do not want headache buy dashcam.