Dash Cam

[darkness975]

I will soon be without my car for a week while they repair the damage that some knuckledragger did to it (hit and run on my parked vehicle while I was at work).
http://www.civicx.com/threads/hit-and-run.19485/

I have decided I want to install a dash cam. I got an Aukey dual dash cam (which has front and rear).
https://www.amazon.com/AUKEY-Wide-A...512670428&sr=8-3&keywords=aukey+dual+dash+cam

The thing is, I want it to run while I am at work and the car is off. I don't want to start pulling apart the molding and running wires all over the place. So I purchased an Anker Powercore 10000 and intend to hook up the camera to that so it will run and record all day.
https://www.amazon.com/Anker-PowerC...2670481&sr=1-3&keywords=anker+powercore+10000

I know the dash cams are made to be left in the car. I won't leave the Powercore battery in the sun to bake, I'll stick it on the floor or someplace. Even if the temperature fluctuations in summer/winter kill the Powercore pack faster than if it was used indoors it is worth it for peace of mind so that if this happens again I will catch the (insert your choice of insult here) that does it.

I am sick and tired of always being at the receiving end of everything. It's high time I start catching these roaches guilty.

So far I have run the cams with the battery inside while setting them up and they seem to be working well.

Has anyone else done this or something similar?

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[CobraCommand]

Hello darkness, my old friend
I've come to talk about dash cams again
Because a bad drivers are softly creeping
Left damage while I was at work or sleeping
And the battery bank that was planted in my car
Still holds a charge
Thanks to the feat, of science.

I actually ended up wiring mine though to stay on, but my old car I had a battery bank and it was fine through canadian winters.

 

[_dc_]

Something like the Zendure A3 charger might be better suited for this application. It features pass-through charging, so it can charge itself and power a connected device at the same time, and also power the camera when the car is off, all without swapping around USB connections.

https://www.zendure.com/products/a3

 

[darkness975]

I actually ended up wiring mine though to stay on, but my old car I had a battery bank and it was fine through canadian winters.

I was more concerned about the heat in summer, Mr. Simon and Garfunkle

 

[darkness975]

Something like the Zendure A3 charger might be better suited for this application. It features pass-through charging, so it can charge itself and power a connected device at the same time, and also power the camera when the car is off, all without swapping around USB connections.

https://www.zendure.com/products/a3

I see what you're saying and I do agree. But, I have other things (radar detector, etc.) that are already commandeering the 12 volt port and I'd rather leave that be.

I might use it while driving, but the real reason I got it was for the parked application. It is a sad day when you are more at risk parked somewhere and not in your vehicle than when you are on the road moving.

 

[DoubleDown]

I've been looking into dashcams as well. I found a YT channel that might be helpful.



I do prefer a cam where I can reposition it. Say if some idiot tries to rush my car, I could reposition the cam to face the driver's side window. Or if a cop pulls me over, I could record the interaction.

Good luck with your decision.

 

[CobraCommand]

I was more concerned about the heat in summer, Mr. Simon and Garfunkle

Haha I was in a boring work meeting when I wrote that. It was also fine through summers too.

 

[darkness975]

@DoubleDown @CobraCommand I got the Aukey Dual Dash Cam and the battery bank the other day. I did a test drive with it and so far it did work well from what I can tell. The real test will be how long it will last sitting there in the parking lot for 8 hours.

Also, I need to figure out a way to mount them so they are movable. I don't want to use the adhesive because it will not be movable. I'm also not going to run any wiring through my molding or anything.

Tomorrow I am going to play around with it. I think I can attach some Velcro to the bottom of the cameras, then use some Velcro on the bottom side of a suction cup, stick those two pieces together, and then I can just use the suction cup to attach to the glass.
Work in progress ...

Ideally I'd like to be able to record both while driving and while parked, so let's see how this goes.

I also want to figure out the "Screen Saver" mode. While I don't think having the picture it is looking at be on all that time is bad, maybe it will save a little battery draw if the screen goes dark but it still records.

Makes sense anyway.

 

[unr1]

Using a 3-4 year old A119C (or some close variation) dash cam and it's working fine. Better than nothing

 

[darkness975]

Using a 3-4 year old A119C (or some close variation) dash cam and it's working fine. Better than nothing

Not sure about the night time viewing yet, but the one that I got has excellent quality for the price. I was able to read license plates in front of me no problem in the day. When parked, I will turn them to face out that side of the car exposed to the parking lot (driver's side is protected by a field/curb, no one able to drive or park on that side).

 

[darkness975]

Has anyone experienced issues using a dash cam while hooked up to a Powerbank battery when the car is parked in the sun all day?

I wouldn't have the Powerbank in the sun but it does get hot in there.

Just wondering.

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