dashcam recommend

spurdog1

am looking to buy my first dashcam. Don't wish to shop halfords, bad experience

are they easy to fit (considering i struggle with DIY)? Any guide on brands, budget price but reliable, no bells and whistles please

Alanp

have just fitted a nextbase piqo camera to my sons gf new car, not hardwired but simple to install , it’s a bit long compared to other dash cams, unfortunately I can’t give any info on how it’s faring as it’s so newly fitted, she had a 70mio cam which was quite good

I know you don’t like halfords, but there’s nothing stopping you having a look at their cameras to see if any fit your requirements and buy elsewhere..

Grumpy_chap

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6656481/dashcam-recommend

Nextbase seem to offer the best dashcams, but I have not reviewed their latest model selections for a while.

Our dashcam was easy to fit using the accessory power (cigarette lighter) socket.

However, if you want the dashcam hardwired, and I do note that you expressed a preference to avoid Halfords, but it may be worth considering the Halfords "we fit" service. They installed our dashcam and did a good job and the price was competitive when purchased as a package from Halfords with the supply and fitting kit. I am unaware of any alternative offering a similar service, but you may be able to find such.

Alanp

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81895339#Comment_81895339

alternatively, you could try a local auto electrician to hardwire your dash cam..

MattMattMattUK

Blackview if you want features and inbuilt cloud upload, Viofo for pure image quality, anything else downwards depending on how much you are happy to spend.

Budget may be a false economy due to poor image quality especially at night or in rain, they will be passable if the other person stops, but if they drive off many of the cheaper ones will be impossible to read the numberplate from.

facade

but if they drive off many of the cheaper ones will be impossible to read the numberplate from.

I heard this amazingly obvious tip last week, so obvious that I hadn't ever though of it! 😯

Read out the registration number of the other car, so the dash cam can record it as audio.

Then if you can't quite make the registration out in the footage, you would likely have enough evidence for a Civil Court, even if the other driver denies it.

mgfvvc

It's pretty easy to plug a dashcam into a 12v socket and stick it to an appropriate point on the screen. This will of course leave you with trailing wires and you won't be able to run the dash cam while the car us turned off. If you want it wired in and your DIY skills aren't the best then try to find a recommended auto-electrician.

Bigphil1474

OP, I just use my phone on a dash mount. Obvious disadvantages, but the big advantage is it cost me about £10 for the mount and that's it. I use a free app. Phone is connected to USB socket so charges while recording. If you are wanting parked up crash detection and rear view, it is obviously no good, but it does me for driving around and the picture quality is good enough, having shared incidents to a couple of insurance companies over the years. I was planning to try it out on that then get a proper cam fitted if I felt the need, but decided I didn't need it.

James2k

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81895570#Comment_81895570

You could say any old plate number, Doesn't make it proof

user1977

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81895784#Comment_81895784

It's evidence. Assuming a civil matter, we're only dealing with the balance of probabilities, not beyond reasonable doubt.

facade

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81895813#Comment_81895813

Just so.

If the registration that you read out at the time that you could have reasonably seen it matches the make, model & colour, and it could be the plate on the video, it is more likely that it was the car in question than that you have memorised thousands of registrations and can recall a suitable one in those circumstances, so in a Civil Court you would have a very good chance of "winning".

Whether it would be enough on it's own for a Criminal prosecution is something for the Police & CPS to worry about, I'm only concerned with recovering my uninsured losses & keeping my NCB.