Dashcam

[PeteTP]

Good job Herbie!

PeteTP

[KevH]

As promised here are the photos. The installation is really neat with no visible cables. The cams are actually a Nextbase 380GWX set as you can see from the box so you might get it cheaper outside of lexus. The rear cam is in the passenger corner and you cant see it from outside due to the tinted rear window. The front one is to the left of the mirror and you dont really notice it. It has build it WiFi that connects to an app on your phone to see the live video and all the recording.

Hope this helps.

Thanks

Kev

[PeteTP]

Hello Kev,

Whao! That car looks superb. What’s not to like.

 

dashcam looks like a fine job in all respects. I’m still awaiting a response from Ipswich but will be giving them a nudge imminently.

Hope you have many years of pleasure behind the wheel of that utter beauty.

PeteTP

[PeteTP]

Hello again,

 

Ive heard from Lexus Ipswich and they can/will fit the 380GWX. However I still waiting on the all important price.

 

Keep you advised.

 

PeteTP

[PeteTP]

£349.99 inc VAT fitted and valet the car. That’ll do nicely!

Will provide feedback when fitted.

 

Thank you to each and every contributor; always appreciated enormously.

 

PeteTP

[LenT]

35 minutes ago, PeteTP said:

£349.99 inc VAT fitted and valet the car. That’ll do nicely!

Will provide feedback when fitted.

I’m sure you’ll be delighted - it looks a neat bit of kit.  I’m a great advocate of dashcams as they’ve proved their worth to me.

Being nosey, I just wondered what else you’d decided.  I see it has a rear camera, which is good.  But are you getting it wired up to record with the ignition off?  When parked up, it’s the only way to catch those hit-and-run merchants.

You’ve not mentioned how familiar you are with these systems, so you might have your own views, but it probably comes with a 16GB SD Card.  I would be inclined to buy the biggest SD Card that you can afford and keep the supplied SD Card as a spare.

Apart from the extra capacity it means you’ll get more video files before the system starts to overwrite the older files.  It also gives you a spare should you be involved in an incident.  It means you can remove the evidence containing SD Card and keep it secure while still having a working camera.

Finally, as no doubt the Manual will tell you, you have to reformat the SD Card regularly, depending on usage, not only to avoid it filling up but also because constant rewriting of files invariably introduces errors.

[Herbie]

Just to add to what Len said above, only use 'Endurance' type SD cards as these are specifically manufactured to cope with the constant writing/rewriting.

Personally I only use Samsung Endurance Pro - they have excellent reviews, they're robust, have a very low failure rate and are amongst the best, if not the best cards out there.

I usually buy them from here but it seems they're out of stock of the 128GB ones.

[PeteTP]

LenT,

You’ve raised great points that I confess I had not thought of and/or known about. I see no reason not to heed your advice so I will plan on mimicking your method of operation.

If it’s okay with you may I return to these points with (perhaps stupid) questions as I’m a late entrant to the dashcam market.

TVM.

PeteTP

[PeteTP]

Top man Herbie. I’ve registered for a heads up when they come back into stock.

Id be lost without the facility to access members’ knowledge - brilliant. TVM.

 

PeteTP

[PeteTP]

11 hours ago, LenT said:

I’m sure you’ll be delighted - it looks a neat bit of kit.  I’m a great advocate of dashcams as they’ve proved their worth to me.

Being nosey, I just wondered what else you’d decided.  I see it has a rear camera, which is good.  But are you getting it wired up to record with the ignition off?  When parked up, it’s the only way to catch those hit-and-run merchants.

You’ve not mentioned how familiar you are with these systems, so you might have your own views, but it probably comes with a 16GB SD Card.  I would be inclined to buy the biggest SD Card that you can afford and keep the supplied SD Card as a spare.

Apart from the extra capacity it means you’ll get more video files before the system starts to overwrite the older files.  It also gives you a spare should you be involved in an incident.  It means you can remove the evidence containing SD Card and keep it secure while still having a working camera.

Finally, as no doubt the Manual will tell you, you have to reformat the SD Card regularly, depending on usage, not only to avoid it filling up but also because constant rewriting of files invariably introduces errors.

Morning LenT,

 

Please would you enlighten me on the ‘recording with ignition off’ aspect? Does this mean that it starts recording immediately the car is unlocked? If the car were unlocked for some time, how is the Battery min voltage protected?

 

Apologies in advance if these questions are implausibly stupid! TVM.

 

PeteTP

[LenT]

35 minutes ago, PeteTP said:

Morning LenT,

 

Please would you enlighten me on the ‘recording with ignition off’ aspect? Does this mean that it starts recording immediately the car is unlocked? If the car were unlocked for some time, how is the battery min voltage protected?

 

Apologies in advance if these questions are implausibly stupid! TVM.

 

PeteTP

Not stupid at all Pete.

if you look back to the first page, my third post mentions, and links to, the BlackVue Power Magic Pro.  Later on Herbs adds some very useful detail.

This unit can be switched on or off.  It connects the camera supply to a permanently live supply via the fuse box.  When switched on, it becomes ‘active’ when the ignition is switched off.  It puts the camera into its ‘standby’ mode in which it is consuming minimal current but ready to start recording the instant it detects either motion - back or front in your case - or physical movement, such as a bump or someone getting into the car.  This latter depends on the g-force settings of the camera.

The unit is set to a predetermined level of your choice, so that should the Battery charge fall below this level, it will no longer power up the camera in order to protect the Battery.

A real life situation is: You’ve parked in a car park to go shopping.  While you’re away a car drives in front of yours.  The camera now switches from standby to live recording mode, having been activated by the motion in front or behind.  If nothing occurs, the camera switches off and the power supply reverts to standby.

If it clouts your front wing, the camera starts recording the impact, but because it was In standby mode, it will also record the vital few seconds prior to the actual impact.  

if someone tries to get into the car and rocks it sufficiently to activate the sensors, again the camera can power up to record until the motion ceases.

As I say, this is a BlackVue unit but I see no reason why an auto electrician can’t connect it to your Nextbase.  I’ve looked on the Nextbase site but can’t see a similar unit - although I may have missed it.  What Nextbase does have is an alternative system which is a separate Battery which is charged by the car systems and provides a fixed supply to the camera independent of the ignition setting.

You might find this option more attractive, especially as it’s a Nextbase accessory.

I hope this has clarified it for you.

[PeteTP]

LenT - TVM for the definitive answers. This will keep me occupied today…..and probably beyond! 
 

PeteTP

 

[KevH]

PeteTP - FYI , the Nextbase Cam from Lexus also has the park mode and my one was wired to a permanent live as standard. However I had to activate the park mode using the app on my phone as it was turned off, you can also set the sensitivity of the bump detector as well.

 

Kev

[PeteTP]

Oh how these pearls of wisdom flow! Just wonderful - thank you.

 

PeteTP

[LenT]

40 minutes ago, KevH said:

PeteTP - FYI , the Nextbase Cam from Lexus also has the park mode and my one was wired to a permanent live as standard. However I had to activate the park mode using the app on my phone as it was turned off, you can also set the sensitivity of the bump detector as well.

 

Kev

Yes, as Kevin points out, the Nextbase system may have other similar features.  I can only speak for BlackVue.  However, if you wander over to the BlackVue.com site, their home page has several examples of cameras in parked cars doing their thing.

Should clarify matters for you.

Good luck.

[PeteTP]

Great stuff. Will do.

Cheers LenT

PeteTP

[LenT]

1 hour ago, PeteTP said:

Great stuff. Will do.

Cheers LenT

PeteTP

And another thing….  😀

Actually this page from the BlackVue site explains parking mode in more detail.
 

https://blackvue.com/need-know-blackvue-parking-mode-dash-cameras/

[PeteTP]

👍LenT

 

P

[PeteTP]

Parked mode looks excellent .

PeteTP

[PeteTP]

PS Nextbase not as clever as Blackvue as it appears not to have a buffer enabling recording of images pre-impact whilst in parked mode. Nevertheless, not a show-stopper.

PeteTP

[Herbie]

1 hour ago, PeteTP said:

PS Nextbase not as clever as Blackvue as it appears not to have a buffer enabling recording of images pre-impact whilst in parked mode. Nevertheless, not a show-stopper.

PeteTP

If you look at the PDF file below, the Viofo cameras I've got have two or three parking modes and they were only half the price of either the Nextbase or the Blackview sets 

 

A129 Duo Manual.pdf

[PeteTP]

Thnx Herbie for sharing that. I’ve agreed to the Nextbase and arrangements are in place. Anyway, I was not so much as expecting a ‘parked mode’ or the like! 
 

PeteTP

 

 

[PeteTP]

For those that may be interested, dashcam fitting booked for 20/9. 
 

I will let you know when it’s done and my opinion of this much praised innovation.

 

PeteTP

[Arnett]

On 9/1/2021 at 10:34 PM, KevH said:

installation is really neat with no visible cable

Lexus Ipswich is my local Lexus also, I have never purchased a dashcam and install from them. BUT when I have taken the cars in for a service  (or a test drive as im bored) I have always come back to find my car fully cabled up for free and the work is always flawless. I rate the Ipswich dealer quite highly, the sales staff are not remotely pushy or even "typical" car salesman. The environment inside is pretty chill aswell. 

 

[Herbie]

1 hour ago, Arnett said:

I have never purchased a dashcam and install from them. BUT when I have taken the cars in for a service  (or a test drive as im bored) I have always come back to find my car fully cabled up for free and the work is always flawless.

So, they just randomly decide to run a cable in your car without asking your permission or even asking if you want it???