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No matter what type of vehicle you’re driving, or even how often you drive, a dash cam is a small addition to your setup that can save you a lot of headache later. This small camera monitors the front (and sometimes rear) of your car, constantly filming and saving the footage in case of any accidents or even close calls.
But the criteria is different than just buying any camera. If you’re considering getting one, we’ve broken down what to look for in a reliable dash cam.
What Makes a Good Dash Cam?
Video: The sharpness and clarity of a camera’s video is its main feature. This isn’t just about crisp resolution either – a camera that captures details can make all the difference when it’s someone’s license plate (or even their face) after a hit-and-run. Things like a better bit rate will contribute to quality, as does dynamic range, which adjusts automatically for shots that have contrasting lighting. But the difference after the sun goes down can be literally night and day. A low-quality video at night can look too dim and blurry to really even see anything, rendering it pretty useless if you need to see surroundings in the dark.
Audio: While video is most important, audio quality comes into play too. Voices can sound muffled and distant with a poor microphone, so if you’re looking to record conversations as well, make sure it has a mic that can pick it all up.
Mounting: Suction cup mounts make it easier to move the unit around, and to pop it off to take with you once you arrive at your destination to deter thieves, but it can fall off with changing temperatures. Adhesive is another option, and can greatly reduce vibrations, but is much harder to move once it’s in place. You can also purchase a mount separately if the included one isn’t working for you. Other options include clipping or strapping it to your rearview mirror, though these are rarer to find, and can be more obstructive to your line of sight.
Screen: On-screen notifications are extremely helpful too, alerting you as to when your connection is broken or the SD card isn’t fully in. Some units also include a rear camera, to record what’s happening behind you at all times, and can swivel sideways to capture what’s going on at your driver or passenger window – ideal for a police stop. Rear cameras can be a separate unit that connects through a coaxial or USB cable, wirelessly, or even just a rear-facing lens in the main unit which films you and your passengers as well, making it perfect for Uber and Lyft drivers. Alternatively, some units have no screen at all, and link up through a smartphone app.
Battery: If a dash cam is powered through your car’s ports, why even bother with a battery? The simple answer: to keep the camera rolling after your car loses power or is shut off. Lithium-ion is the go-to since they’re cheap, charge fast, and give you that extra time needed after an accident to review your film or keep recording the scene.
Storage: It’s most likely going to take an SD card, and that’s not always included. Plus look carefully as to where all this footage will be saved. It adds up fast, and usually loop-records over itself, so if you’ll need to save it all for something like work reimbursement, go for one with massive storage abilities like in the cloud.
Resolution and FOV:Cheaper units can have a lens made of plastic instead of glass, causing glare and blur. The number next to an “f” represents the aperture, and lower means a wider view, allowing in more light and ultimately improving clarity.
Recording:Loop recording constantly keeps the camera rolling, and dubbing over itself over and over, unless you get in an accident or want to keep the footage.
Other: Features like GPS (to record speed and position, not give directions), infrared night vision, swivel cameras, and motion detection are available, and a G-Sensor that locks the footage after getting in an accident, so it doesn’t get recorded over – though a too-sensitive one might mistake small speed bumps as a collision and lock the file down. Motion detection can catch vandals as they get close to your car, and even start recording as they approach to nail them in the act.
