Dash cam recommendations?

ProfCJJ · Post by **ProfCJJ** » Fri Jun 01, 2018 10:17 pm

Hi all, I’m looking at getting a dash cam for my new E89 - I am looking for one which is not too big and bulky that I can fit in front of the rear view mirror and forget. If it has motion detection even better.

My other car had had its mirrors vandalised a while back and I just want to keep an eye out on the Z4.

Any suggestions of anything anyone has fitted?

I have a couple of these £20 ones from petrol stations - they work even if they are a bit clunky- I just don’t like how big they are on the windscreen.

Thanks

Christopher

dhobbs · Post by **dhobbs** » Fri Jun 01, 2018 11:08 pm

I'm thinking of getting the mini 0906. It's a front and rear camera from China.
Had the mini 0801 for a few years and has been good. Less than £100 and good reviews.
It's small and discrete too.

AnubisZed · Post by **AnubisZed** » Sat Jun 02, 2018 8:49 am

I've just fitted the Mini 0906 front / rear camera complete with a Parking guard kit as well, all in a shade over £100.

Fitting the front was simple, but finding a suitable (hidden) path to the rear was a pain in the backside!!
I ended up going along the inside of the passenger door sill and then removing various panels to get the cable up the inside of the passenger side roll hoop. Then with a little bit of cutting to allow the cable to sit properly within the plastic of the hoops fed it out of the join between the two halves on the inside of the top and stuck the camera to the inside of the hoop.
This is the only rear facing camera I've found that has the ability of turning round enough to mount it like this (alas i have no photo, but will try to get one later and post it up here).
As for quality (1080p on both cams), love it, there is still some very minor pixelation in certain conditions but other than that I'm more than happy, especially as an upgrade to my previous front only Mio Mivue (also 1080p). The parking Guard seems to be working perfectly.
Oh and when the roof is up nobody can see your rear cam but is in a good position to see behind you while driving.

AnubisZed · Post by **AnubisZed** » Sat Jun 02, 2018 4:41 pm

Here we go, a few shots of the location I've got mine in.
Although the rear one looks badly fitted its actually only slightly off horizontal (screen shots in next post)
Front cam has the GPS base that fits onto the windscreen which has the power lead in it, although there is a power point on the other edge of the base and on the cam itself.

AnubisZed · Post by **AnubisZed** » Sat Jun 02, 2018 4:43 pm

I've attached various front and rear screen shots to try to show you the quality and the angle you will get from the rear one.
Oh the corners missing in the front cam shots are the outer edge of the CPL filter that comes with it (if it's included), but you don't have to use it.

Lynchy · Post by **Lynchy** » Sat Jun 02, 2018 5:04 pm

That looks good and I like where you've fitted the rear

Lynchy · Post by **Lynchy** » Sat Jun 02, 2018 5:11 pm

Does the mini 0906 come with a front and a rear camera and if so does the rear take its power from the front camera ?

AnubisZed · Post by **AnubisZed** » Sat Jun 02, 2018 6:11 pm

Lynchy wrote: ↑Sat Jun 02, 2018 5:11 pm Does the mini 0906 come with a front and a rear camera and if so does the rear take its power from the front camera ?

Yes all you need for both front and rear are included. You'll notice that in my photo of the front cam on my windscreen there are two cables plugged in. The one that is plugged into the cam and not the base is for the rear cam, and that is plenty long enough to reach. The other one is the power feed cable, either from the 12v socket or via the parking guard from the fuse box (I'd recommend using "add-a-fuse" if you decide on using it via parking guard).

dhobbs · Post by **dhobbs** » Sat Jun 02, 2018 9:49 pm

That's good instructions on the install.
I have a blackvue in my other halfs car and that isn't too reliable, keeps on reformatting the SD cards.

Lynchy · Post by **Lynchy** » Sun Jun 03, 2018 7:32 pm

AnubisZed wrote: ↑Sat Jun 02, 2018 6:11 pm
Lynchy wrote: ↑Sat Jun 02, 2018 5:11 pm Does the mini 0906 come with a front and a rear camera and if so does the rear take its power from the front camera ?
Yes all you need for both front and rear are included. You'll notice that in my photo of the front cam on my windscreen there are two cables plugged in. The one that is plugged into the cam and not the base is for the rear cam, and that is plenty long enough to reach. The other one is the power feed cable, either from the 12v socket or via the parking guard from the fuse box (I'd recommend using "add-a-fuse" if you decide on using it via parking guard).

Thanks Dave

alane29 · Post by **alane29** » Sun Jun 03, 2018 8:24 pm

i had the mini 0806 was great until started playing up im now using a £30 one from lidl and its excellent

ProfCJJ · Post by **ProfCJJ** » Sun Jun 03, 2018 9:50 pm

AnubisZed wrote: ↑Sat Jun 02, 2018 6:11 pm
Lynchy wrote: ↑Sat Jun 02, 2018 5:11 pm Does the mini 0906 come with a front and a rear camera and if so does the rear take its power from the front camera ?
Yes all you need for both front and rear are included. You'll notice that in my photo of the front cam on my windscreen there are two cables plugged in. The one that is plugged into the cam and not the base is for the rear cam, and that is plenty long enough to reach. The other one is the power feed cable, either from the 12v socket or via the parking guard from the fuse box (I'd recommend using "add-a-fuse" if you decide on using it via parking guard).

Thanks for the detailed info and instructions Dave, I'm going to study these carefully.

Best

Christopher

AnubisZed · Post by **AnubisZed** » Mon Jun 04, 2018 7:17 am

Glad I could be of assistance, more than happy to be able to help.
Any questions please ask away and I'll see what i can do.

One thing I will say though is DO NOT buy cheap, at the end of the day your dashcam is there to protect your no claims and if it's of poor quality and you can't read the number plate in a hit-n-run then you might as well not even have one.
I watch them on YouTube (yes I know, I have no life!!

) and the amount of really poor quality is astounding, but then there are some really nice clear quality ones out there without spending a small fortune. Saying that, for the money and quality, I don't think you can go far wrong with the 0906 Mini.

Nictrix · Post by **Nictrix** » Mon Jun 04, 2018 1:55 pm

Is it a good idea to have the speed in the text at the bottom of the screen?
Could this be used against you in an accident if you were over the speed limit even if it wasn't your fault?

markeg · Post by **markeg** » Mon Jun 04, 2018 4:38 pm

I have the Thinkware F800 Pro in my daily. Fantastic piece of kit, also does speed camera warnings (fixed and mobile), lane departure, front proximity alert, and alert when car in front departs. It has front & rear cameras, and will allow for time-lapse recording (i.e. lower fps than standard) or standard video, motion detection or impact detection (or off) on parking mode, and will record impacts on the continuous recording. It's not a cheap piece of kit (at around £350), but I've found it well worth the outlay.

link

Z4-forum.com

Z4-forum.com