Cheap dash cam- score!

[phaetn]

Inspired by Spiderdan who had one of these cams for our group trip to Raduno Montebllo, I decided to buy one today.

Here's a vid of my commute home (at one point following by a traffic cop looking for speeders on the river parkway):
https://vimeo.com/107553070


The 4Sight Dash Cam Pony is on sale for $100 at Candian Tire and records in HD1080P. It's designed for security, recording accidents, etc. It has quick windshield mounting and can be easily swiveled 360 degrees. It will even suction well to flat bodywork (thinking a hood or trunk shot). No mic input, so will have to shield the mic opening with some foam or something to reduce wind noise -- it's okay when on dash, but it will be terrible if exposed directly to wind.

Not a GoPro by any means, but it is definitely is a good deal. It even has a 1.5" screen for viewing which older GoPros lack.

If you're a Canuck, this is a bargoon!

Cheers,
phaetn

[spiderdan]

Good vid phaetn
I think you'll enjoy your NoPro, like I am.
Glad you found one.
Jay, you're next!

[4uall]

Think I'm just going to take a back seat from the forum for a while

[spiderdan]

I'm just going to take a back seat from the forum for a while

[TX82FIAT]

Nice drive on some nice scenic roads. Like the police on the radio. Date 1/1/13 needs to be changed on dash cam. May need to consider one of these. Very cool video.

[vandor]

I've been thinking of getting some, but reading the reviews of how cheap and crappy even some expensive unit are, I am not sure how to find one that is good quality.

[phaetn]

I've been thinking of getting some, but reading the reviews of how cheap and crappy even some expensive unit are, I am not sure how to find one that is good quality.

I think GoPro is probably the de facto standard (hi res, good image quality) but it's not cheap and the mounts can be expensive. Newerish units also have a wifi capability to so can turn it on an off remotely from an iPhone and see what it's seeing (while not recording).

Nice drive on some nice scenic roads. Like the police on the radio. Date 1/1/13 needs to be changed on dash cam. May need to consider one of these. Very cool video.

I hear ya. That was the first recording I did with it (after charging it at work) so I hadn't adjusted all the settings yet. Fixed now.

That route is my daily commute (about 20 mins each way) and almost always puts a smile on my face. Not too fast and nice scenery. It also passes a snall municipal airport which is beside our National Aviation museum so there are always little airplanes taking off and landing, and also a 1930s vintage biplane offering sight-seeing rides. I used to relive Top Gun moments watching planes, but instead of F14s and a Kawasaki Ninja, it was Cessna 150s and my little souped up 180cc 1978 Vespa.

Cheers,
phaetn

[spiderdan]

GoPro falls off fender (-$500)
NoPro falls off fender (-$100)

Phaetn, FYI ICYDK there is a setting to turn the vid 180 degrees. Wish I knew that when I mounted the NoPro on the trunk deck. I don't think there is a way to flip it back once complete.
Gonna try putting foam or small bandaid on mic to reduce wind noise. I also want to try mounting it on the outside of the windshield. It really picks up all those little stone chips. If that doesn't work I'll just dub in some great driving tunes. Off to the cottage, should be some great colors, if the sun comes out.

[calvinconrad]

they just put out a new low end go pro for $129

[btoran]

great video. thanks for sharing it.

[htchevyii]

I bought a vivitar action camera with several mounts on clearance for $19.00! It worked pretty well, until I put it on the convex trunk of my Dad's MGB to get good video of the Spider. It fell off and bounced down the road. Basic functions still work, but the touchscreen is cracked and no longer functions. I'm glad it didn't cost hundreds! If you search for "action camera" there are lots of inexpensive ones out there and you wont need to cry of they break.

[Pasni]

Nice video, nice camera. What's nice about the video that this camera produces is it lacks the wide angle distortion of the GoPro. For the most part the GoPro does alright on road vids but this one gets a good wide undistorted view and you can't beat the price.

I would suggest to anyone that puts a camera on an outside mount to come up with a safety tether of some sort.

[PininF]

I've had my eye on one of these for a while , already told my wife please put one under the christmas tree.
http://www.blackvue.com/en/contents/sub1.asp?idx=26

[vandor]

I'd like a dash cam that turns on by itself when I start driving and turns off when not driving, so I don't have to remember to turn it on every time.

[PininF]

I'd like a dash cam that turns on by itself when I start driving and turns off when not driving, so I don't have to remember to turn it on every time.

The blackvue does exactly that…it even has a motion sensor that while in park mode will turn itself on ! worth looking at.