I really like how you are diving into this issue of modern dashcams struggling with license plates. Captured a hit-and-run today but the footage wasn't much of a help with how blurry the plate was. Like the videos and everything you do!
Please continue, I don't why manufacturers don't upgrade the sensor, record 60fps, record in at least 1440P , use capacitors, two front cameras(wide and telephoto) and one rear camera
I have been using this camera for 2 years now. To get a licence plate you have to be right up to the vehicle. I have found that you should always have your microphone on, that way if there is a road rage accident you have the license plate on audio. Also works great for catalytic converter thieves as you are driving by, you just say their licence plate # out loud and then when you get to a safe location, you can notify the police.
If you put the recorded footage on a large TV can you read the license plate then? I was thinking maybe it was from just looking at it on the screen from a recorded license plate
Great idea but probably Illegal in states with two-party consent laws unless you tell everyone in the car its recording AND get their consent. I have read implied consent does not fly.
In some countries - including Denmark - license plates are Infra read reflective. Police cars with license plate cameras have an IR light source mounted on the front of the car and the IR plate camera mounted with a heavy IR filter. That gives the camera the best illumination conditions both day and night, since the reflected (IR) light is almost constant.
@@kilobytecache6192 “brilliant” implies something within the visible light spectrum, whereas IR (infrared) is beyond the scope of what the human eye can perceive. Sorry to disappoint you.
This is an important topic. There's such a gap in the market for premium quality consumer level dash cams. The whole purpose is to capture what happened and who was involved. Most can do the former, few can do the latter.
Agree there. My local police force in the UK have a website for reporting bad drivers. I have a viofo A110 dashcam and it has helped me get enough evidence for most cases for them to take action on it. Primarily in the dark it's hard getting the plates or some cases in the day if the cars where not near me or passed me
@@zaink7037 Wow, you’re actually reporting “bad” drivers rather than just using your dashcam in case of an accident. That’s extreme Karenism. Just what do you consider bad?
Purchased a 3-channel dashcam and planning on modifying the interior lens and replacing the lens so it has telephoto lens. Should yield good results…. and i dont need the interior cam.
These cameras that are installed to the windshield by suction cups tend to fall after sometime. The sun heats up the windshield causing the suction cup that holds the camera to lose it's grip.
This reads license plates better than any other dash cam I've owned, including those with higher 2k resolution. I was hesitant to buy it, but now glad I did. So I sent Viofo an email asking them to build one with better resolution. Their reply: "...our engineers have been analyzing the feasibility of this ... and we hope we can release it ASAP." I also like the that the Z3 has a large video screen and flashing red recording indicator LED light that can easily be seen from quite a distance from behind my car, and I notice that this makes most tailgaters back off because they can see that they are being recorded, especially at night, and no one likes being recorded.
It's amazing that the market, especially with Tesla sentry mode being popular, hasn't responded to this need. Just about everyone I know would pay upwards to $500-800 for a fantastic 360 system that has a sensor that can not only capture license plates, but also act as a motion sensor in park mode. Between Vortex and Linus Tech Tips reviews, the industry is lacking across the board in providing suitable tech comparable to Tesla's Sentry Mode and Camera setup.
This might be impactable but a few years ago when I owned a Samsung galaxy S8, I used to mount it to my windshield. What I liked about it was it could record 30, 60 120, 240 fps. A lot of times I used the 60 or 120 fps and license plates, and other details were always crystal clear, even on fast passing cars. The one drawback is it created large files, so I used it sparingly on most occasions. What I'm getting at is that even if recorded at 60 fps it would have a better advantage.
I am surprised car manufacturers aren't offering cameras as an option. I am not saying the quality would be better but it would be integrated looking better,,, hopefully 😂 They backup cameras now so front just needed with recording added.
Keep doing these types of reviews, hopefully the manufacturers/industry will get the hint that there is a market for this. I run a dual 2 channel dash cam set up like what you described. Would be nice to have a dual 3 channel set up. Thanks for sharing.
I actually run two forward dash cams (as well as a rear) - I aim both of them in opposite 45° angles with their outer edges aimed to the center line, and them both overlapping. It is surprisingly pleasant to watch the footage - it doesn't "feel" like you are looking out a side window, but it is incredible for when stopped and being able to see both directions much greater distance. My field of view (combined) is easily 180°
Great review. I have a half dying Garmin (50, I think) that I wouldn't mind trying to slap a zoom lens also. That would be a great add on to my 4 camera setup right now. I am using multiple cams but not using a main box...which I like because everything has it's own card in case something went wrong when you really needed it. If one camera dies, I still have the others working on their own. Garmin 55's for front and one in back, and the Viofo MT1 for my side windows, Ford Escape...all nice hidden wiring :)
It'd be nice if manufacturers would maybe reduce the field of vision a little bit to give a closer picture. I still have two yada dash cams around 8 years old that have a digital zoom button up to 15 power. I tested those when I first got them and I could get license plates during the day all day. They would hold the setting until the camera was removed from the power source. However, they did not do well at night. Unfortunately the zoom button does not engage very well anymore but I usually get it to maybe setting 5. I have that in conjunction with a standard 1080p camera to help with license plate imaging. Thanks again for all your testing.
I guess it's time to make an Raspberry Pi based dashcam. With 2 RPI HQ Camera (they are tiny interchangeable lens cameras) And maybe AI license plate recognition.
I find the suction cups are junk . Hot , they fall off . Cold , they fall off . I mounted the camera in front of passenger visor , with 2 screws . Solved worthless suction cups .
Hit and runs, need to be a much harsher charge then getting off with tickets and warnings. They happen soo often now, people come up with excuses when you catch them. Needs to be something close to 10 years in county, no parole, never a license again.
Suction cup mounts tend to release on hot days. Garmin uses an excellent adhesive holding a metal disk to the window and a magnetic connection on the camera.
The WatchGuard 4RE has a two lens system just like this that is used for ALPR, but it also has an optional 12X optical zoom lens. You can read a plate from probably over 100 feet. I have some footage on my channel if anyone is interested.
I make dash cam vids too and the ones I have are wide angle, I would prefer a 4K zoom only because some crashes I capture are several hundred feet away and I can't zoom in.
I wonder if there will be a manufacturer who will do a no compromise dashcam, of course it will cost alot, but imagine if it gived you the options you want for the view you need. Left,right,rear,front, cabin, with many options of camera lense types, dual lenses, a better night time sensor, better manual or automatic control on exposure and higher shutter speed
Yes KEEP making these kinds of dash cam videos! Love them and have u tried the thinkware multiplexer? I would love to hear your though about it!!!👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼
This is a nice way to improve dashcams. It is technically possible with already proven and older technology to overlay your tele image over your wide angle camera image to enhance the image quality of the latter and produce one image. The same could be done with your rear view footage. This would be a major leap forward for the already for several years seems to be stucked development regarding the improvement of dashcams. This is a much better way of improving dashcams then recording 4-5 channels (take much more storagespace and viewing time) or go from HD to 4K (blackvue) . The latter also did not improve the license plate/details issue. Please forward this idea to all those (bit lazy?) top end dashcam manufacturers.
Fortunately there are many ways to prevent ANPR reading your plate. The police APNR systems have to work at night so they use infra-red rather than visible light there's a clue.
Yeah usually the constant IR transmitters work best at night and in dark parking garages. Even license plate flashers that use bright camera flash pops for speed cameras and whatnot can struggle in bright daylight, and those put out WAY more light than the full-time IR LEDs you'll see online.
I am a truck driver. I definitely need a dual lens. I also like to suction cup where I can take it in out of the truck. And I also need a dash cam that can hold a lot of memory while my truck is parked and watch the truck while I go take a shower or just go into the store. You won't believe how much stuff happens around truck driver why he's driving or why you sitting still. It would be nice if you can do a video for truck driver dash cams. Or dash cams that work best for truck drivers. Thank you for making this video.
Excellent review! I'm wondering if you have any reviews of dashcams for motorcycles. I've been looking at a bunch from China, but trying to find ones where both front & rear cameras are 1080p is difficult. Lots of them are 1080p front, but only 720p rear. Either that or they claim to be 1080p but closer inspection reveals them to be only 480p.
This is why it's always best to call out the plate number so the camera mic picks it up, just in case you can't read the plate with the dash cam video.
But there's going to be moments where you won't be able to see their license plate Like if they rear ended you and drive off to the side or opposite direction Also when they clip you at high speed without stopping
I wondered when dashcam makers would start making them with multiple cameras. Cellphone manufacturers had that idea years ago, I kinda thought dashcams wouldn't be far behind.
I guess some insurance companies, lawyers, and many others will lose their jobs! I don't have any other explanation. I wish they made a competitive market for dashcams just like mobile phones, so that we can update frequently, but I think something we don't know is holding them back! Just my assumption
I would be interested in the telephoto, if only to provide raw data for an "enhance" software app. There are already apps that stack photos, or align multiple copies of slightly different sizes, in order to create a single, sharper image. The more frames you have, the better your chances of a decent result. Combining wide angle and zoom image frames would be a great test.
@@76MUTiger Photoshop does stacking. So does Affinity, and (I think even GIMP). TH-cam has stacks of videos showing it in action. But - when you have multiple video frames, the next "level" is an algorithm called SIFT. Used in 3d reconstruction and panoramas, it "recognises" the same object at different angles. For a license plate, you'd need to stretch pictures farther away, to make them the same size / shape as pictures up closer. Then apply stacking to (hopefuuly) reduce noise. Don't expect miracles, but it's better than nothing.
Some people just use old cell phones as dash cams. I might just do that. I want some dash cams, and my phone just destroyed its screen (battery slightly puffed a year ago, back glass was destroyed, front display is now super cracked and frame is bent too but it still works and I'm using it till I get it fixed or replaced), so I might just mount my half destroyed phone since its just its screen that's pretty hard to look at (I can email it to myself in my driveway or connect with USB C if I needed anything off it), then I've got a free "dash cam" with the purchase of a replacement phone. Its got 4 front cameras and one selfie, but I don't think I have any apps that allow recording with multiple at once.
Someone needs to use AI video processing, like from Apple or Google, and use a triple camera setup that would use all 3 sensors as a 4th blended, ultimate detail, version. So each lens (wide, ultra wide and 2-5x optical telephoto) would record it's raw video with basic processing, but alternatively all that data also processes them into one ultimate detailed version.
AI likes to add some detail that can be dismissed in court. Recently there was a case where they used upscaling, and it showed someone's finger on the trigger (other cameras showed that was not possible unless the person had 6 fingers, which they did not). So it added what looked like a finger and I don't think it was even AI but could have changed the case. Sort of unrelated but also directly related, I was playing with AI photo generation yesterday and for example it sometimes thinks females need 3 breasts... I'm not trusting it to get lines correct, half the time people have weird extra legs (and it does a scary good job most of the time so its laughable it makes such egregious mistakes). It can do cool concept cars, crazy detailed engine designs (of concepts that don't exist), animals (I had it make a cat wearing a hoodie holding firearms in the style of a painting), but it just isn't there yet. For example, it thinks scopes need about 5 windage adjustment knobs, and nothing like that to my knowledge exists. I also had it generate documents (trying to be funny with "tomorrows lottery ticket" as if it could predict the future) and they look real when they are in other languages, but it has a poor concept of words. Worst is it can't do words or letters correct and THAT is what you're asking it to do. For example, I wanted a pig in a p-o-l-i-c-e uniform, and it half the time spelled it poluce or pollice, or it sometimes forgot an O and stuff. Like it even added like a service dog vest with the label to the pig before I thought of it (then I decided yeah lets get it in full uniform). But basically it can do the most incredible art (all offline, seems to hold the universe in just 4GB), but it doesn't understand how to correct characters on uniforms or basically a license plate. Most of the AI photo enhancement suffers the same issue, and I'd have that easily dismissed in court if you have a competent lawyer.
@@fraliexb Yeah and that's been thrown out in court, even without AI doing it. For example, in the Kyle case (where a person was defending against several pedophiles in a mob that were assaulting's him with deadly weapons), in a few frames it looked like his finger was on the trigger because the incorrect resolution or something was being used, because unless you break your finger nearly completely off, its impossible to have in the position it LOOKED like it was due to improper scaling or processing of the image. Its just like how TV's and monitors can have ghosting, or when you run AA in video games artifacts occur. The problem becomes that AI is really not that great at REAL images, it can make it LOOK real, but its not, there was never data there to use, so mathematically its just making stuff up. Then you try to use that made up stuff in court... well that's not a good idea, you may as well just photoshop or deep fake it at that point.
It was a ridiculous pain in the butt trying to talk with them to get a unit so if I do, it'll be after I finish a bunch of more pressing and higher priority projects.
I have used a Thinkware F750 dual camera in WA for nearly a decade, but it is, hmmm. I would love to see a high end replacement rear view mirror, with hidden screen, auto dim, center camera with telephoto, internal camera, side camera (all in mirror) and rear external camera. Then have collision warning, lane warning, speed limit announcement, blind spot monitoring, and traffic light announcements; even better if they allow it to be hacked with radar detector (auto records video when detected) Sounds expensive and difficult, but a nice Arm chip could run all this, and help make the roads much safer.
Today's DSLR and mirrorless cameras have the ability to track focus on a subject's eyes. Do you think dashcams can do similar, with or without the autofocus? Mirrorless cameras don't use moving lens parts to autofocus. Secondly, have you tried the Topaz Labs Video AI or Photo AI on a frame grab? Video AI has some different treatments to clear up videos and make them sharper and upscale them. Photo AI does the same on still photos. I think it could be money well spent if and when you need it. For a couple of hundred spent, your savings can be many times more. You can probably use a 30 day trial for free or have a friend who purchased the software do it. When you submit these to your attorney or police, tell them about the enhancements and submit both resolutions. Also why are you not exploring another price point dashcams to explore their worth?
AI image enhancement could really make a big difference here. The TH-cam channel "Two Minute Papers" showcases the bleeding edge of AI and this sort of thing and I can definitely see this being a feature in the very near future.
What is the best camera that's inconspicuous that you don't know it's there but you can mount them in places where they're recording and the person outside doesn't know there's cameras there that's what I would like
Ideally AI upscaling would be the solution for corner cases. When you have multiple moving images of the license plate in a too low resolution, the information actually is still in there.
Have you tried the VIOFO RTC300 telephoto camera for the A229 Plus/Pro? It has Starvis 2 and HDR. I see you have discussed how a telephoto lens could help reading license plates.
You mean like MirrorTaps? They exist for certain dashcams that run off of 12v like your car and I've also seen some that convert to USB and step down to 5v. You'll need to Google around for it.
So, I'm curious to know why more people don't just use multiple primary dash cams, and if they want telephoto as well as wide angle, just have two dash cams with different lenses. Ideally, there would actually be separate cameras from the mobile network video recorder device, so you could easily have eight or sixteen channels, if you really wanted that many cameras.
What would be the use case? There are some dash cams with external mic options if you want to optimize recording in a different spot of the car, like passengers in the rear for rather drivers.
A polarizer seems like a must really. I want to catch the road not the reflection from my dashboard. It is not as simple as just screwing the polarizer on and being done with it. When adjusting it it will help to have screen or live view of what the camera sees. Unless you do it that way there is a really good chance that it might not work. In fact because of the way a polarizer works it might let the glare through accidentally if improperly adjusted.
It would be nice to see up to a 7 channel set up where all cameras are 5k 4 170degree for surround video and front and rear for plates and the 7th cam could be used for interior use.
Yep, REMIND manufactures to produce cameras that are FIT FOR PURPOSE! Not everything is about the purchase price if the evidence gathered is useless!! Keep exposing their mediocre products and hopefully they will improve to be more competitive...
13 minutes. I liked how you brought up while we're driving on the ROAD we can film pointless airplanes in the sky. TH-cam suggested dumb crap is the only reason I'm commenting. Not enough info for a 13+ minute video. Airplane...funny stuff
Great review, I like the idea of the telephoto. It seems to solve a few issues by the very nature of capturing things from further away. It helps with low dynamic range by recording things further away and due to the inverse square law license plates aren't as bright. It helps with motion blur because at distance the movement speed of vehicles is significantly slower than when it is 40ft from you. I think they are on to something here. Maybe dual 4k sensors with 1 telephoto and one wide. Can you show how the app displays these camera angles and how offloading the files is like? Also what bitrate are these files and what framerates are supported? Full Review please! This might be good as a DASHcam. Meaning, mounted on the dash itself instead of the windshield.
I’ve mailed back the dashcam and have no plans to do a review of it. The telephoto is cool, but I really don’t like the design and so it’s not for me. There’s no app since there’s no BT or WiFi. I haven’t messed with their software to view files. I just offload from the memory card and play back in VLC. As for the bitrate, the wide angle is 13.44 Mb/s and the telephoto is 11.49 Mb/s.
@@VortexRadar I have often wondered about this: buying the most updated version .. such as the one you reviewed in your youtube video. Here i went to amazon .. and then i wonder ... "just how old is this version? Is this just a dumping of ones that are now considered OLD b/c the newer versions are out now.. and this company that is selling these units just purchased a whole whack of them just to price them right on amazon ... "
Too bad Samsung and Apple have no interest in dash cams. Any company big enough to invest some real R&D into post-processing etc.. You would think the car insurance industry would support cams too. The potential market is the same size as the car industry. Who wouldn't want some liability protection? But it is a vicious cycle. Nobody buys dash cams cause they suck, and nobody invests R&D to improve dash cams because nobody is buying them. Dash cams are popular in Russia and other places. But everyone I talk to that owns a car says they would like a dash cam, but the image quality is useless. Yeah, smartphones don't have super capacitors etc. etc., but smartphone cameras set the standard for image quality in the minds of the public. And dash cams look liks they are using 10yr old tech. The most common dealbreaker seems to be less the price, and more the fact that even the "good" cams struggle to capture license plates, moving cars, and night footage. They don't care about peripheral features like wifi or parking mode. None of that matters if the cam can't record the important stuff reliably. Nothing feels worse than sinking half a grand or more into a cam for it to fail to catch the plate of a hit-and-run. It would be like if a surgeon bought a fancy titanium scalpel with an anodized rainbow pattern and built in LED light, but it wasn't sharp enough to make clean incisions. Serious work needs serious tools!
Do you have a video for rechargeable Dashcams? I don’t like the idea of wires. Or Dashcams in general? I would like to learn about the backup batteries etc. Thank you
Thank you for you video. I have NEXTBASE camer same this one, it look same but name difference. Am taxi driver just like let other taxi driver know this camer not good for them.
Know your physics: (I’m a photographer) you will need two lenses (wide and long), you will struggle with night time. As a photographer, to get what I want, I buy a lens that I can zoom or dedicated telephoto.
Yes im looking at the Nextbase range which seem to be top sellers but Im a bit worried about the level of detail that I will actually need to capture plates or real world scenarios of clip and run....to be honest I find the choice of manufacturers overwhelming and maybe only the most expensive ones are useful......they should be built in to all new cars
Many years ago, building security cameras solved the license plate reading problem. Of course these are $3K-$6K cameras. What they would do is have a pod with two cameras on it. The 1st camera was for the wider view, and it would determine the x-y location of the license plate and tell the 2nd camera where exactly to zoom in. The 2nd camera had a full zoomed in image of the plate and it would nail it every time, day or night, front or rear license, crazy bright high beams, all captured and OCR's into a database of all plates that passed by.
The size of the sensor , the size of the lens DOES matter. You can't cheat OPTICS( physics) not even if you have a LEICA lens that is this small made into the dash cam.
I am shocked that there isn’t a third-party design device that you can plug multiple dash cams into that shows the vehicle and its surroundings as well as recording from this angle that is put together with all the other images like you have, and higher end vehicles on their back up cameras. Just like smart phones in the early 1990s the technology is there but nobody cares as long as people are paying good money for a cheap dash cams that don’t do the trick. What’s the point in spending extra money designing one that actually does what people want? Just let them keep buying cheap junk.
This is exactly why Florida drivers absolutely should have front facing license plates, so that you can see them coming and know their intentions, I don’t know what everybody in Florida is on, but they all seem to be on some kind of drug or something, extra oblivion
very good, photogrammetry and such us 50mm ut the ffocal distance and light angle is known so yu can make a small focs depth, but these days algorythsm re very good
I would totally buy this but the shakiness of the mount is what steers me away from it I'm looking for a dashcam but so far haven't found the right one yet as i want it to be able to see license plates in case of a hit and run
For me, the perfect dash cam: 1) flush design with GPS that sticks to your windshield 2) has a rear channel camera 3) has a left and right camera that could be mounted under your side mirrors 4) has Wifi 5) built in blind spot radar with a warning light that 6) dual front facing camera
Welp standard edition seem sold out everywhere. 😂 Amazon auto redirects to the commercial Edition with dual wide angle lens instead of the telescopic lens.
Man, I am in the WEEDS with which dashcam to pick. I've been watching all these videos and I just can't decide on what to get. I would like one that has good license plate recording, a decent view angle, probably 2 channel. I still don't know if I want one that has cloud cabiity or has an SD slot (Or one that has both?) So many options, but it really feels like when a dashcam does one thing really well, it does something else really poorly.
I think the 2 lenses would be better than one. Seems like it'll still be some similar limitations as you've shown with other cameras. Still, I would rather have 2 lenses than one.
I see the lenses can swivel 180 degrees. Does the recording function work if I spin it to face the driver window or does it only work in the front and back facing positions. For example if I get pulled over by the police can I spin a lens to face the window and record the interaction with the police or anyone else?
I really like how you are diving into this issue of modern dashcams struggling with license plates. Captured a hit-and-run today but the footage wasn't much of a help with how blurry the plate was. Like the videos and everything you do!
I love his product too. Nothing but high quality info. No music or dancing just info and accurate info .
@@JAYJAYJAY53 11:59 he does a traditional dance called the western wave.
Please continue, I don't why manufacturers don't upgrade the sensor, record 60fps, record in at least 1440P , use capacitors, two front cameras(wide and telephoto) and one rear camera
Will you please say it's price and availability of the dash cam in open market, I can't found it in Amazon ? Thanks
This was mostly ignored until LTT made a videoon how bad image quality on even the most expensive dash cams.
I have been using this camera for 2 years now. To get a licence plate you have to be right up to the vehicle. I have found that you should always have your microphone on, that way if there is a road rage accident you have the license plate on audio. Also works great for catalytic converter thieves as you are driving by, you just say their licence plate # out loud and then when you get to a safe location, you can notify the police.
Yep. That's what I've been doing. Just saying the plate number out loud.
If you put the recorded footage on a large TV can you read the license plate then? I was thinking maybe it was from just looking at it on the screen from a recorded license plate
Great advice
Great idea but probably Illegal in states with two-party consent laws unless you tell everyone in the car its recording AND get their consent. I have read implied consent does not fly.
In some countries - including Denmark - license plates are Infra read reflective. Police cars with license plate cameras have an IR light source mounted on the front of the car and the IR plate camera mounted with a heavy IR filter. That gives the camera the best illumination conditions both day and night, since the reflected (IR) light is almost constant.
Why isn't this standard? It's brilliant
@@kilobytecache6192 “brilliant” implies something within the visible light spectrum, whereas IR (infrared) is beyond the scope of what the human eye can perceive. Sorry to disappoint you.
very smart
This is an important topic. There's such a gap in the market for premium quality consumer level dash cams. The whole purpose is to capture what happened and who was involved. Most can do the former, few can do the latter.
Agree there. My local police force in the UK have a website for reporting bad drivers. I have a viofo A110 dashcam and it has helped me get enough evidence for most cases for them to take action on it. Primarily in the dark it's hard getting the plates or some cases in the day if the cars where not near me or passed me
you're the expert ay
@Phillip Banes
How’s the Mini 2 been working for you? I’ve thought about buying one too.
@@zaink7037
Wow, you’re actually reporting “bad” drivers rather than just using your dashcam in case of an accident. That’s extreme Karenism. Just what do you consider bad?
Purchased a 3-channel dashcam and planning on modifying the interior lens and replacing the lens so it has telephoto lens. Should yield good results…. and i dont need the interior cam.
These cameras that are installed to the windshield by suction cups tend to fall after sometime.
The sun heats up the windshield causing the suction cup that holds the camera to lose it's grip.
This reads license plates better than any other dash cam I've owned, including those with higher 2k resolution. I was hesitant to buy it, but now glad I did. So I sent Viofo an email asking them to build one with better resolution. Their reply: "...our engineers have been analyzing the feasibility of this ... and we hope we can release it ASAP." I also like the that the Z3 has a large video screen and flashing red recording indicator LED light that can easily be seen from quite a distance from behind my car, and I notice that this makes most tailgaters back off because they can see that they are being recorded, especially at night, and no one likes being recorded.
It's amazing that the market, especially with Tesla sentry mode being popular, hasn't responded to this need. Just about everyone I know would pay upwards to $500-800 for a fantastic 360 system that has a sensor that can not only capture license plates, but also act as a motion sensor in park mode. Between Vortex and Linus Tech Tips reviews, the industry is lacking across the board in providing suitable tech comparable to Tesla's Sentry Mode and Camera setup.
Yep, you’d think auto manufacturers would be all over the profit potential of adding optional dash/surveillance cameras to their cars.
This might be impactable but a few years ago when I owned a Samsung galaxy S8, I used to mount it to my windshield. What I liked about it was it could record 30, 60 120, 240 fps. A lot of times I used the 60 or 120 fps and license plates, and other details were always crystal clear, even on fast passing cars. The one drawback is it created large files, so I used it sparingly on most occasions. What I'm getting at is that even if recorded at 60 fps it would have a better advantage.
I am surprised car manufacturers aren't offering cameras as an option. I am not saying the quality would be better but it would be integrated looking better,,, hopefully 😂
They backup cameras now so front just needed with recording added.
I'd prefer a dedicated premium telephoto with software features, thanks for this video, it does legitimise the theory of the telephoto and I love it!
Use a polarizing filter on the windshield where the camera is mounted. It will reduce the light reflection a lot.
do they come as stickers? this seems like a great idea :o
@@gt5fx it’s not a thing. And wouldn’t work.
Garmin has them available for their cams.
Keep doing these types of reviews, hopefully the manufacturers/industry will get the hint that there is a market for this. I run a dual 2 channel dash cam set up like what you described. Would be nice to have a dual 3 channel set up. Thanks for sharing.
I'm excited for more 2 lens dashcams but might wait until a Z4 comes out with the improvements you mentioned.
I actually run two forward dash cams (as well as a rear) - I aim both of them in opposite 45° angles with their outer edges aimed to the center line, and them both overlapping. It is surprisingly pleasant to watch the footage - it doesn't "feel" like you are looking out a side window, but it is incredible for when stopped and being able to see both directions much greater distance. My field of view (combined) is easily 180°
Great review. I have a half dying Garmin (50, I think) that I wouldn't mind trying to slap a zoom lens also. That would be a great add on to my 4 camera setup right now. I am using multiple cams but not using a main box...which I like because everything has it's own card in case something went wrong when you really needed it. If one camera dies, I still have the others working on their own.
Garmin 55's for front and one in back, and the Viofo MT1 for my side windows, Ford Escape...all nice hidden wiring :)
It'd be nice if manufacturers would maybe reduce the field of vision a little bit to give a closer picture. I still have two yada dash cams around 8 years old that have a digital zoom button up to 15 power. I tested those when I first got them and I could get license plates during the day all day. They would hold the setting until the camera was removed from the power source. However, they did not do well at night. Unfortunately the zoom button does not engage very well anymore but I usually get it to maybe setting 5. I have that in conjunction with a standard 1080p camera to help with license plate imaging. Thanks again for all your testing.
I guess it's time to make an Raspberry Pi based dashcam. With 2 RPI HQ Camera (they are tiny interchangeable lens cameras) And maybe AI license plate recognition.
I find the suction cups are junk . Hot , they fall off . Cold , they fall off .
I mounted the camera in front of passenger visor , with 2 screws . Solved worthless suction cups .
Hit and runs, need to be a much harsher charge then getting off with tickets and warnings. They happen soo often now, people come up with excuses when you catch them. Needs to be something close to 10 years in county, no parole, never a license again.
Suction cup mounts tend to release on hot days. Garmin uses an excellent adhesive holding a metal disk to the window and a magnetic connection on the camera.
Have you looked at the Dashcams that replace or attach over the rearview mirror?
If a dashcam doesn't have HDR it can not be considered for legibility of registration plates no matter if it is with telephoto lens or not.
Now, if it could read thru the smoked license plate covers. You know, the ones the asshole drivers always have.
Much appreciated. If anyone can drive the dash cam industry forward it's you.
The WatchGuard 4RE has a two lens system just like this that is used for ALPR, but it also has an optional 12X optical zoom lens. You can read a plate from probably over 100 feet. I have some footage on my channel if anyone is interested.
I make dash cam vids too and the ones I have are wide angle, I would prefer a 4K zoom only because some crashes I capture are several hundred feet away and I can't zoom in.
how much is the 4RE and is it available for purchase to civilians?
I wonder if there will be a manufacturer who will do a no compromise dashcam, of course it will cost alot, but imagine if it gived you the options you want for the view you need. Left,right,rear,front, cabin, with many options of camera lense types, dual lenses, a better night time sensor, better manual or automatic control on exposure and higher shutter speed
I'm looking for that one too
7:09 👈🏼😂 What’s going on here ?? Both drivers kept going like nothing happened…both thought They were at fault !! 🤣
Yes KEEP making these kinds of dash cam videos! Love them and have u tried the thinkware multiplexer? I would love to hear your though about it!!!👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼
I haven’t, but Thinkware will be at SEMA next month and I’ll have a chance to talk about it with them.
This is a nice way to improve dashcams. It is technically possible with already proven and older technology to overlay your tele image over your wide angle camera image to enhance the image quality of the latter and produce one image. The same could be done with your rear view footage. This would be a major leap forward for the already for several years seems to be stucked development regarding the improvement of dashcams.
This is a much better way of improving dashcams then recording 4-5 channels (take much more storagespace and viewing time) or go from HD to 4K (blackvue) . The latter also did not improve the license plate/details issue.
Please forward this idea to all those (bit lazy?) top end dashcam manufacturers.
Fortunately there are many ways to prevent ANPR reading your plate. The police APNR systems have to work at night so they use infra-red rather than visible light there's a clue.
Yeah usually the constant IR transmitters work best at night and in dark parking garages. Even license plate flashers that use bright camera flash pops for speed cameras and whatnot can struggle in bright daylight, and those put out WAY more light than the full-time IR LEDs you'll see online.
I am a truck driver. I definitely need a dual lens. I also like to suction cup where I can take it in out of the truck. And I also need a dash cam that can hold a lot of memory while my truck is parked and watch the truck while I go take a shower or just go into the store. You won't believe how much stuff happens around truck driver why he's driving or why you sitting still. It would be nice if you can do a video for truck driver dash cams. Or dash cams that work best for truck drivers. Thank you for making this video.
What’s different with dashcam needs for trucks vs everyone else? What does a traditional dashcam with driving and parking recording not do for you?
Its a shame there arent other dashcams with a tele. The alternative would be unscrewing the lens on a normal dashcam and replace it with a 12mm.
The dashcam UltraDash with telephoto lens is not available any longer. Any other recommendations for dashcams with telephoto lenses?
From what they told me, it should be back in stock again shortly. I’m not aware of other similar models.
The Z3 PLUS is out now. It has 2K on each camera and you can add a rear camera to the unit. I may up grade to this Z3 PLUS.
Yep, plus WiFi and sensor that is better in low light. I’ve got one and will do a video at some point.
Excellent review!
I'm wondering if you have any reviews of dashcams for motorcycles. I've been looking at a bunch from China, but trying to find ones where both front & rear cameras are 1080p is difficult. Lots of them are 1080p front, but only 720p rear. Either that or they claim to be 1080p but closer inspection reveals them to be only 480p.
This is useless. My local highway patrol said video is useless because they can't prove who was driving. Criminals keep getting more and more.
This is why it's always best to call out the plate number so the camera mic picks it up, just in case you can't read the plate with the dash cam video.
But there's going to be moments where you won't be able to see their license plate
Like if they rear ended you and drive off to the side or opposite direction
Also when they clip you at high speed without stopping
I wondered when dashcam makers would start making them with multiple cameras. Cellphone manufacturers had that idea years ago, I kinda thought dashcams wouldn't be far behind.
I guess some insurance companies, lawyers, and many others will lose their jobs! I don't have any other explanation. I wish they made a competitive market for dashcams just like mobile phones, so that we can update frequently, but I think something we don't know is holding them back! Just my assumption
I would be interested in the telephoto, if only to provide raw data for an "enhance" software app.
There are already apps that stack photos, or align multiple copies of slightly different sizes, in order to create a single, sharper image. The more frames you have, the better your chances of a decent result.
Combining wide angle and zoom image frames would be a great test.
Alan, what apps stack photos? Thx
@@76MUTiger Photoshop does stacking. So does Affinity, and (I think even GIMP). TH-cam has stacks of videos showing it in action.
But - when you have multiple video frames, the next "level" is an algorithm called SIFT. Used in 3d reconstruction and panoramas, it "recognises" the same object at different angles.
For a license plate, you'd need to stretch pictures farther away, to make them the same size / shape as pictures up closer. Then apply stacking to (hopefuuly) reduce noise.
Don't expect miracles, but it's better than nothing.
time to do a review on the new Z3 plus 3 channel dash cam with 2k resolution on front AND rear cameras
It just arrived today. ;) Will be a while before I get a video done though. The rear cam should be available in like two weeks or so.
"The camera doesn't take the picture, the lens does"...old photography quote I heard long ago. Looks like it applies here, too.
So dashcams will become the back of cellphones? I'm all in. Triple camera setup with a forward facing selfie camera with IR.
Some people just use old cell phones as dash cams.
I might just do that. I want some dash cams, and my phone just destroyed its screen (battery slightly puffed a year ago, back glass was destroyed, front display is now super cracked and frame is bent too but it still works and I'm using it till I get it fixed or replaced), so I might just mount my half destroyed phone since its just its screen that's pretty hard to look at (I can email it to myself in my driveway or connect with USB C if I needed anything off it), then I've got a free "dash cam" with the purchase of a replacement phone. Its got 4 front cameras and one selfie, but I don't think I have any apps that allow recording with multiple at once.
Someone needs to use AI video processing, like from Apple or Google, and use a triple camera setup that would use all 3 sensors as a 4th blended, ultimate detail, version. So each lens (wide, ultra wide and 2-5x optical telephoto) would record it's raw video with basic processing, but alternatively all that data also processes them into one ultimate detailed version.
AI likes to add some detail that can be dismissed in court. Recently there was a case where they used upscaling, and it showed someone's finger on the trigger (other cameras showed that was not possible unless the person had 6 fingers, which they did not). So it added what looked like a finger and I don't think it was even AI but could have changed the case.
Sort of unrelated but also directly related, I was playing with AI photo generation yesterday and for example it sometimes thinks females need 3 breasts... I'm not trusting it to get lines correct, half the time people have weird extra legs (and it does a scary good job most of the time so its laughable it makes such egregious mistakes). It can do cool concept cars, crazy detailed engine designs (of concepts that don't exist), animals (I had it make a cat wearing a hoodie holding firearms in the style of a painting), but it just isn't there yet. For example, it thinks scopes need about 5 windage adjustment knobs, and nothing like that to my knowledge exists. I also had it generate documents (trying to be funny with "tomorrows lottery ticket" as if it could predict the future) and they look real when they are in other languages, but it has a poor concept of words.
Worst is it can't do words or letters correct and THAT is what you're asking it to do. For example, I wanted a pig in a p-o-l-i-c-e uniform, and it half the time spelled it poluce or pollice, or it sometimes forgot an O and stuff. Like it even added like a service dog vest with the label to the pig before I thought of it (then I decided yeah lets get it in full uniform). But basically it can do the most incredible art (all offline, seems to hold the universe in just 4GB), but it doesn't understand how to correct characters on uniforms or basically a license plate. Most of the AI photo enhancement suffers the same issue, and I'd have that easily dismissed in court if you have a competent lawyer.
@@jakegarrett8109 more talking about AI processing as in combining layers to get better details. Like HDR does.
@@fraliexb Yeah and that's been thrown out in court, even without AI doing it. For example, in the Kyle case (where a person was defending against several pedophiles in a mob that were assaulting's him with deadly weapons), in a few frames it looked like his finger was on the trigger because the incorrect resolution or something was being used, because unless you break your finger nearly completely off, its impossible to have in the position it LOOKED like it was due to improper scaling or processing of the image. Its just like how TV's and monitors can have ghosting, or when you run AA in video games artifacts occur. The problem becomes that AI is really not that great at REAL images, it can make it LOOK real, but its not, there was never data there to use, so mathematically its just making stuff up. Then you try to use that made up stuff in court... well that's not a good idea, you may as well just photoshop or deep fake it at that point.
It would be cool if they made a 3 cam dashcam, one for wide angle, one for telephoto, and one for night
@Phillip Banes better video quality at night, dedicated for night
Would you please review the 70Mai rotating dash cam
It was a ridiculous pain in the butt trying to talk with them to get a unit so if I do, it'll be after I finish a bunch of more pressing and higher priority projects.
I have used a Thinkware F750 dual camera in WA for nearly a decade, but it is, hmmm. I would love to see a high end replacement rear view mirror, with hidden screen, auto dim, center camera with telephoto, internal camera, side camera (all in mirror) and rear external camera. Then have collision warning, lane warning, speed limit announcement, blind spot monitoring, and traffic light announcements; even better if they allow it to be hacked with radar detector (auto records video when detected) Sounds expensive and difficult, but a nice Arm chip could run all this, and help make the roads much safer.
Today's DSLR and mirrorless cameras have the ability to track focus on a subject's eyes. Do you think dashcams can do similar, with or without the autofocus? Mirrorless cameras don't use moving lens parts to autofocus.
Secondly, have you tried the Topaz Labs Video AI or Photo AI on a frame grab? Video AI has some different treatments to clear up videos and make them sharper and upscale them. Photo AI does the same on still photos. I think it could be money well spent if and when you need it. For a couple of hundred spent, your savings can be many times more. You can probably use a 30 day trial for free or have a friend who purchased the software do it. When you submit these to your attorney or police, tell them about the enhancements and submit both resolutions.
Also why are you not exploring another price point dashcams to explore their worth?
Fantastic. Not the camera, but that someone is making an effort at all.
AI image enhancement could really make a big difference here. The TH-cam channel "Two Minute Papers" showcases the bleeding edge of AI and this sort of thing and I can definitely see this being a feature in the very near future.
definitely useful if added features you mentioned were added. Also I would like want it in black to make it less vissible
Thanks for putting a link for your favorite dash cam in the description.
Yes please keep doing these types of reviews ! - You did a great job as always .
What is the best camera that's inconspicuous that you don't know it's there but you can mount them in places where they're recording and the person outside doesn't know there's cameras there that's what I would like
Ideally AI upscaling would be the solution for corner cases. When you have multiple moving images of the license plate in a too low resolution, the information actually is still in there.
Have you tried the VIOFO RTC300 telephoto camera for the A229 Plus/Pro? It has Starvis 2 and HDR. I see you have discussed how a telephoto lens could help reading license plates.
What would be really nice would be if manufacturers would put power outlets at or behind the mirror to make having one of these easier to install.
You mean like MirrorTaps? They exist for certain dashcams that run off of 12v like your car and I've also seen some that convert to USB and step down to 5v. You'll need to Google around for it.
No police. I'm calling my cousins.. . Louei and Antonio Sarducci.
So, I'm curious to know why more people don't just use multiple primary dash cams, and if they want telephoto as well as wide angle, just have two dash cams with different lenses.
Ideally, there would actually be separate cameras from the mobile network video recorder device, so you could easily have eight or sixteen channels, if you really wanted that many cameras.
agree it’s good practice. a camera, card etc could have a fault
Expense? Size? 🤷♂️
This looks really promising. I still think the action cam companies need in on this market. It should be a relatively simple transition.
is there any parabalic mic camaras so you can hear around
What would be the use case? There are some dash cams with external mic options if you want to optimize recording in a different spot of the car, like passengers in the rear for rather drivers.
A polarizer seems like a must really. I want to catch the road not the reflection from my dashboard. It is not as simple as just screwing the polarizer on and being done with it. When adjusting it it will help to have screen or live view of what the camera sees. Unless you do it that way there is a really good chance that it might not work. In fact because of the way a polarizer works it might let the glare through accidentally if improperly adjusted.
It would be nice to see up to a 7 channel set up where all cameras are 5k 4 170degree for surround video and front and rear for plates and the 7th cam could be used for interior use.
Yep, REMIND manufactures to produce cameras that are FIT FOR PURPOSE!
Not everything is about the purchase price if the evidence gathered is useless!!
Keep exposing their mediocre products and hopefully they will improve to be more competitive...
It seems like the perfect sub $200 dashcam would be the A119 v3 with that 1080p telephoto lens.
13 minutes. I liked how you brought up while we're driving on the ROAD we can film pointless airplanes in the sky. TH-cam suggested dumb crap is the only reason I'm commenting. Not enough info for a 13+ minute video. Airplane...funny stuff
Great review, I like the idea of the telephoto. It seems to solve a few issues by the very nature of capturing things from further away. It helps with low dynamic range by recording things further away and due to the inverse square law license plates aren't as bright. It helps with motion blur because at distance the movement speed of vehicles is significantly slower than when it is 40ft from you. I think they are on to something here. Maybe dual 4k sensors with 1 telephoto and one wide. Can you show how the app displays these camera angles and how offloading the files is like? Also what bitrate are these files and what framerates are supported? Full Review please!
This might be good as a DASHcam. Meaning, mounted on the dash itself instead of the windshield.
I’ve mailed back the dashcam and have no plans to do a review of it. The telephoto is cool, but I really don’t like the design and so it’s not for me.
There’s no app since there’s no BT or WiFi. I haven’t messed with their software to view files. I just offload from the memory card and play back in VLC. As for the bitrate, the wide angle is 13.44 Mb/s and the telephoto is 11.49 Mb/s.
@@VortexRadar thanks for the info! Hopefully Viofo comes out with one! 🤞
@@VortexRadar I have often wondered about this: buying the most updated version .. such as the one you reviewed in your youtube video. Here i went to amazon .. and then i wonder ... "just how old is this version? Is this just a dumping of ones that are now considered OLD b/c the newer versions are out now.. and this company that is selling these units just purchased a whole whack of them just to price them right on amazon ... "
Too bad Samsung and Apple have no interest in dash cams. Any company big enough to invest some real R&D into post-processing etc.. You would think the car insurance industry would support cams too.
The potential market is the same size as the car industry. Who wouldn't want some liability protection? But it is a vicious cycle. Nobody buys dash cams cause they suck, and nobody invests R&D to improve dash cams because nobody is buying them.
Dash cams are popular in Russia and other places. But everyone I talk to that owns a car says they would like a dash cam, but the image quality is useless.
Yeah, smartphones don't have super capacitors etc. etc., but smartphone cameras set the standard for image quality in the minds of the public. And dash cams look liks they are using 10yr old tech.
The most common dealbreaker seems to be less the price, and more the fact that even the "good" cams struggle to capture license plates, moving cars, and night footage.
They don't care about peripheral features like wifi or parking mode. None of that matters if the cam can't record the important stuff reliably.
Nothing feels worse than sinking half a grand or more into a cam for it to fail to catch the plate of a hit-and-run.
It would be like if a surgeon bought a fancy titanium scalpel with an anodized rainbow pattern and built in LED light, but it wasn't sharp enough to make clean incisions. Serious work needs serious tools!
I need this for front , back and both sides of my car - too many crazy drivers out there 😂 we need cameras inside our baseball caps
Do you have a video for rechargeable Dashcams? I don’t like the idea of wires. Or Dashcams in general? I would like to learn about the backup batteries etc. Thank you
Thank you for you video.
I have NEXTBASE camer same this one, it look same but name difference. Am taxi driver just like let other taxi driver know this camer not good for them.
Well my cheap 4K dashcam (VVCAR D530 was 50$) always had a good resouliton to read the plates in every conditions...
Know your physics: (I’m a photographer) you will need two lenses (wide and long), you will struggle with night time.
As a photographer, to get what I want, I buy a lens that I can zoom or dedicated telephoto.
Yes im looking at the Nextbase range which seem to be top sellers but Im a bit worried about the level of detail that I will actually need to capture plates or real world scenarios of clip and run....to be honest I find the choice of manufacturers overwhelming and maybe only the most expensive ones are useful......they should be built in to all new cars
Many years ago, building security cameras solved the license plate reading problem. Of course these are $3K-$6K cameras. What they would do is have a pod with two cameras on it. The 1st camera was for the wider view, and it would determine the x-y location of the license plate and tell the 2nd camera where exactly to zoom in. The 2nd camera had a full zoomed in image of the plate and it would nail it every time, day or night, front or rear license, crazy bright high beams, all captured and OCR's into a database of all plates that passed by.
The size of the sensor , the size of the lens DOES matter. You can't cheat OPTICS( physics) not even if you have a LEICA
lens that is this small made into the dash cam.
I am shocked that there isn’t a third-party design device that you can plug multiple dash cams into that shows the vehicle and its surroundings as well as recording from this angle that is put together with all the other images like you have, and higher end vehicles on their back up cameras. Just like smart phones in the early 1990s the technology is there but nobody cares as long as people are paying good money for a cheap dash cams that don’t do the trick. What’s the point in spending extra money designing one that actually does what people want? Just let them keep buying cheap junk.
This is exactly why Florida drivers absolutely should have front facing license plates, so that you can see them coming and know their intentions, I don’t know what everybody in Florida is on, but they all seem to be on some kind of drug or something, extra oblivion
very good, photogrammetry and such us 50mm ut the ffocal distance and light angle is known so yu can make a small focs depth, but these days algorythsm re very good
I would totally buy this but the shakiness of the mount is what steers me away from it I'm looking for a dashcam but so far haven't found the right one yet as i want it to be able to see license plates in case of a hit and run
The small auctions will lose it’s grip quickly in hot climate states. I ended using action cameras with the professional GoPro suctions.
I should have bought one years ago. A worthy investment. As we all live in the age of Liars and "I don't know" for everything.
For me, the perfect dash cam:
1) flush design with GPS that sticks to your windshield
2) has a rear channel camera
3) has a left and right camera that could be mounted under your side mirrors
4) has Wifi
5) built in blind spot radar with a warning light that
6) dual front facing camera
If they made an affordable dual dash cam like @:20. I would by that in a heartbeat over that huge one with the LCD.
The video speed is awful....I had to switch X0.75 speed. What's the rush?
Welp standard edition seem sold out everywhere. 😂 Amazon auto redirects to the commercial Edition with dual wide angle lens instead of the telescopic lens.
THIS IS BIG BROTHER WE DO NOT WANT THIS SHIT IN USA 🇺🇸
Man, I am in the WEEDS with which dashcam to pick. I've been watching all these videos and I just can't decide on what to get.
I would like one that has good license plate recording, a decent view angle, probably 2 channel.
I still don't know if I want one that has cloud cabiity or has an SD slot (Or one that has both?)
So many options, but it really feels like when a dashcam does one thing really well, it does something else really poorly.
We are in the same boat my fellow TH-cam friend.
Its time Dashcams were incorporated into the new build cars. We have rear view parking cameras why not expand on this?
Hanging a small air freshener can get you killed by the cops, but hanging this massive dashcam is like kyptonite for cops
But, does any of this prevent the large number of cammers that are driving like self entitled jerks with little to zero situational awareness?
People in Russia drive so crazy, all the insurance co's there
REQUIRE dashcams on all the vehicles they insure. Not a bad idea.
!
Great review! I definitely think it would be helpful to have a telephoto lens on a dash cam.
I think the 2 lenses would be better than one. Seems like it'll still be some similar limitations as you've shown with other cameras. Still, I would rather have 2 lenses than one.
Are there Dashcam for 24 volts ? Trucks would need it these days when backing
Hmm let's just keep it the way it is people today are going to take this WAY TOO FAR...
The last video captured needs some context. No driver would drop off a passenger like that!
easy: buy adapter HDMI - MiniHdmi then remount with that big angle adapter..
Dash cams still need to be better.
Would be nice if I could add this to my Ring camera and start capturing Package Pirates or people who ride around checking car handles every night. 😂
I see the lenses can swivel 180 degrees. Does the recording function work if I spin it to face the driver window or does it only work in the front and back facing positions. For example if I get pulled over by the police can I spin a lens to face the window and record the interaction with the police or anyone else?