Amcrest dash cam on sale for $22 on Amazon

Jessie.slimer

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Any news on these yet?
Thinking about using them on a corporate vehicle, and they could easily be messed with.
Wish they had super cap in them instead of battery.
 

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I recently installed two Blueskysea B1W cams as recommended at DashCamTalk

They are pretty barebones and a lot more expensive than $22, but I like the compact size and idiot-proof functionality. The video quality is fine. My only concern is that they'll stop working at some point and we'll have no idea until we need to pull footage that isn't there.
 

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I bought two of the Amcrest. So far I've only temporarily installed one in my F150. Can't say I'm overly impressed. The mount isn't very tight, IE even after cranking down the mounting hardware where the camera, itself, attached to the mount. That results in having to re-aim it each time it's turned on or off. Video seems OK but the dynamic range could probably be faster and better, but then again for $22 what can be expected? I'd say it's better than no camera at all. I'm waiting for a cool day, or even evening, to install the other one in the Mrs Civic.
 

Jessie.slimer

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My mount is really tight. I've been meaning to get some video uploaded. Daytime quality is pretty good, even when facing into sunlight, but night time is just ok. You won't make out license plates unless parked right behind them.

You will see what happened, kind of car, and prove that it wasn't your fault. But if they run, I doubt you will give the police enough evidence to prove who it was.

I agree, for $22 its good for people who were on the fence about getting a dash cam. As long as your expectations aren't too high, you will like it.

It has been reliable so far, but I've only had it for about a month. No shut offs or failures to start up.

I have 2 higher end Blackvue cameras that I keep trying to compare this too, but I have to keep remembering that I only paid $22 for it.
 

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I recently installed two Blueskysea B1W cams as recommended at DashCamTalk

They are pretty barebones and a lot more expensive than $22, but I like the compact size and idiot-proof functionality. The video quality is fine. My only concern is that they'll stop working at some point and we'll have no idea until we need to pull footage that isn't there.
I just grabbed one to try. They were on the list in 2017 and still on the 2020 list. Must be decent to stick around that long.
Thanks
 

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The cheapest I'll go for is the Aukey DR02. I've been contemplating whether or not to upgrade the VIOFO A119V2 to V3. However, I don't like the fact that the angle view went from 160 to 140 degrees
 

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I wouldn't go for a super cheap dashcam tbh. I consider it a critical item and cheap ones might crap out, die to heat. Some don't use high quality capicators instead relying on tiny batteries that fail in the heat.

Also to add, make sure you get a high endurance SD card for dashcam use (and also for cctv). Consumer cards are not designed to handle the heavy amount of rewrites performed for continious video use.

There's a subreddit r/dashcam or dashcams which has lots of info and updated tier list.

Notable mentions are cams from Thinkware, blackview, viofo, streetguardian and others. I'd generally avoid the cheaper junk.
 

Arjun

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I've been using the DR02 on one of my cars for over a year now has not hiccuped even once. In fact, I haven't had the need to reformat the microSD; I do review the videos almost every week to ensure that integrity has not been lost. However, I do agree that this is a Your Mileage May Vary situation as others have experienced problems with the cheaper dashcams. I can confidently recommend VIOFO, but haven't tried V3 myself. I used to have problems in which the time and date stamp would reset, but that seems to have been resolved in newer firmware updates. I should also mention that I've been using non-endurance cards for the last 5 years without issues in these dashcams.

I wouldn't go for a super cheap dashcam tbh. I consider it a critical item and cheap ones might crap out, die to heat. Some don't use high quality capicators instead relying on tiny batteries that fail in the heat.

Also to add, make sure you get a high endurance SD card for dashcam use (and also for cctv). Consumer cards are not designed to handle the heavy amount of rewrites performed for continious video use.

There's a subreddit r/dashcam or dashcams which has lots of info and updated tier list.

Notable mentions are cams from Thinkware, blackview, viofo, streetguardian and others. I'd generally avoid the cheaper junk.
 

Jessie.slimer

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I wouldn't go for a super cheap dashcam tbh. I consider it a critical item and cheap ones might crap out, die to heat. Some don't use high quality capicators instead relying on tiny batteries that fail in the heat.

Also to add, make sure you get a high endurance SD card for dashcam use (and also for cctv). Consumer cards are not designed to handle the heavy amount of rewrites performed for continious video use.

There's a subreddit r/dashcam or dashcams which has lots of info and updated tier list.

Notable mentions are cams from Thinkware, blackview, viofo, streetguardian and others. I'd generally avoid the cheaper junk.
I agree with getting a good one, but some people can't (or won't) drop a couple hundred on a well known dash cam until they realize they should've had one after an event. For those people, I'd rather see them have something vs. no chance at all of having evidence. It might even be a stepping stone into much nicer cameras, like we probably all have done with ip cams.

I bought this one to put in rental cars and an occasionally used work truck that I have. I didn't want to spend Blackvue money again for the much lower use it will be seeing.
 

Jessie.slimer

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I have discovered the first con to this camera. I have a model year 2020 rental car right now that does not have traditional round power/cigar lighter sockets, only USB outlets. The power adapter on this camera is fixed to the cord, and the camera end of the cord is the old style mini USB. There is no way to power this camera unless I get a USB to cigar lighter adapter, or get a seperate USB to mini USB power cord (I threw all mine away years ago when things moved to micro USB). Hell, I don't even think I have a micro USB cable any more since USB C came out.

Just something to keep in mind. Didn't think it was going to be an issue when I saw the mini USB until just now.
 

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I agree with getting a good one, but some people can't (or won't) drop a couple hundred on a well known dash cam until they realize they should've had one after an event. For those people, I'd rather see them have something vs. no chance at all of having evidence. It might even be a stepping stone into much nicer cameras, like we probably all have done with ip cams.

I bought this one to put in rental cars and an occasionally used work truck that I have. I didn't want to spend Blackvue money again for the much lower use it will be seeing.
Yeah this is true. Anything is better than nothing.
Same with CCTV, better to have a single wyze or reolink or ANYTHING rather than nothing at all. Even if just for insurance purposes (for determining fault etc) and not for exact ID.

I got a new 2019 Hybrid so I yolod for a Thinkware dual Q800 Pro setup. Get it once and never have to worry about dashcam ever.
 
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