IMPORTANT UPDATE (Overheating issues) - OCTOBER 2014 I've received a number of reports from people who live in hotter countries that have experienced overheating and failures with the 0803. Due to the short time that I test any one camera, and the lower temperature where I live, I didn't have any issues myself but I would now recommend you avoid the 0803 if you live in a hot country.
After a couple of hot months in my car in direct sun light ( 95F ) the only issue I have had is the power button on one of my units wont work anymore so I cant interact with the menu unless its plugged in. Both still work and don't feel hot to touch when in use.
Is the 0803 known to come with different internals? There are some ~£50 ones on ebay from Asia up to £75 for the American reseller linked in the description...
What are the symptoms? I've had an issue with mine but didn't know if it was just a glitch, user error, or now that I've read this- maybe a symptom caused by heat.
I just bought one of these for my car. I used your review of the original mini 0801 to make the purchase for my new truck in December. 6 months later, my new truck was rear ended. it has been a nightmare getting it fixed, dealing with the insurance companies and body shops (yes, plural...) but the video is invaluable, even though it didn't capture and the actual collision. The camera performed its duty perfectly, Thank you Techmoan!
Just in case anyone has turned off the annotations. The blocking that is visible in the trees section of the video is an artefact created during the youtube re-encoding process and isn't visible on the original clips - which are downloadable from my website goo.gl/QYMmSW (the file name of this particular clip is Trees).
that's not completely true though, it's the result of the low bit-rate, re-encoding anything always makes it worse but if the camera was shooting in 30MBps or even 20MBps (in 1080p) there would be less or no artifacts. Also if anyone wants to upload the videos shot with it to youtube they will also always get that blocking so it matters. Also now you can upload higher then 1080p video to youtube, maybe upload a 1290p sample to youtube, it might not get so much blocking. Just a thought.
I've been using this model for over 6 months and I DO NOT recommend you buy one. My first one kept randomly turning off and on and the replacement was ok for a few weeks and then started doing the same thing. Even with different SD cards and mains power supplies it keeps turning off. Also when you press the save button you must press it twice. The first press turns the screen on (if its set to turn off) and the second press saves the minute before, during and after the button was pressed. BUT it does not change the filename it changes the file attributes which has to be added to windows explorer by right clicking on the columns, choosing More.. and check the Attributes box. Then you'll find all the saved clips with the attributes RA (some of my saved clips didn't save). Might invest in a Garmin 10 instead...
Over the past 5 months or so, I tried out 4 other dash cams...and NOTHING even came close to the quality and price and this awesome cam. This product is simply OUTSTANDING...I am just an average Joe consumer and have no hidden agenda here. I bought it through Amazon and I highly recommend this product. Dave Lee, Canada.
AE Meter mode switched to spot could be the solution for you not to film the hood of the car as Automatic Exposure would then evaluate the correct exposure from a spot not the whole center part of the image so there would be no hood-filming-cheat needed ... but - THANKS FOR YOUR REVIEWS!!! They give a deep insight and they make the choice of the dashcam a lot easier and more probably I will get what I am looking for (and not a black cat in a black box).
someone probably already commented on this, but the ev-value determines wether you want a lighter or darker image throughout the recording. 0 is not auto, it's simply the cameras default exposure. thanks for all these videos. makes us not having to buy them all.
I was only vaguely curious about a dash cam. But after watching your video, I am now quite interested and definitely know MUCH more how these thingy's set-up/work then before. Thank you much for this video.
Excellent camera. We have a mobius in the wifes car and due to the mount size of the mobius I haven't been running with a camera in my mini. This fits nicely above the mirror and isn't easily noticeable from outside the car. Thank you for the review!
I just wanted to say thanks to Techmoan. I purchased the Mini 0803 after many reviews and forum browsing and it has been working flawlessly. I mounted it just under the rear view mirror on my 1 series and it is hardly noticeable at all. Removing it is just a matter of sliding it in and out of the GPS holder and it is extremely easy. Thanks again!
I have one if these. It's brilliant, simple, and easy to use. I haven't had a single problem with it yet, and I've been using it daily for four months.
@LucasLand(who's youtube account can't receive any replies to his comments). If you want to manually lock a file when the camera is recording - you can press the down arrow.
Absolutely EXCELLENT videos mate! Very very informative and very well presented! There is nothing more irritating than when someone tries to talk about something that they have no clue about! Very well done!
Thank you for this review. I have been looking for a good dash cam for a little while, your review convinced me to spend a little more for better quality. My 0803 arrives in a few days... Thanks again.
I live in the USA, I guess in summer I would have to be careful but so far this cam looks really good. Price is not bad either. Nice full featured review as always. Thanks.
Just got one of these, for a friend who liked my 0801, the footage, especially in low light is a lot better, I will be sticking with my 0801 for now until it gives me reason to replace it. I replaced the sticky pad with a black version, up behind the mirror it is virtually invisible, so I leave mine fitted. Great review as always, I got my mate to look at all your dashcam reviews, before buying :)
I just picked up this camera (0803) and it's awesome compared to the generic one i've been using. I love the GPS function and the mapping, it even shows directing & speed. Thanks for the review, i'll be posting one of my own soon.
I got a new one. So much more advanced since this video was made. Very good at night time. Holds a lot of memory on the SD card, and has WIFI transfer to phone and live view option with phone.
Thank you for your videos. I have been following since you reviewed the 0801. After seeing this review I used your eBay link and bought one for each vehicle. I just finished installing the last of the three last night. I hardwired them into the vehicles' wiring under the dash for a stealthy install. My only gripe thus far is the G-sensor sensitivity, we have a lot of speed bumps in South Africa and at 3.5G it retains almost all of them, got it at 4.5G now, I'll go see later if it's better. Thanks again.
great videos, just bought a G1W as an "impulse purchase" - wish I had seen your videos first.. something strangely soothing about hearing you review them lol.. nice work.. might look into a 0803 unless you have made some newer review of a better one.. going to check the rest of your videos now..
G'day Mat. Great review as always. I think you've been 'video bombed'. :P Around 18:30, in the top left hand corner of the screen there appears to be a small insect crawling across your monitor. Cheer, b. :)
Thanks so much for the work you've put in. Your video was very well made and really gave me an idea of what to expect from dash cams since I am just now beginning to look into it. I am doing research on a camera that I can use in park mode in addition to while driving. I live in NYC and in the past week I have had two separate occasions where I come to find my car damaged while parked overnight. I am aware that running the camera with the car turned off would require hard-wiring if I wanted it to run overnight. My main question is what are the motion detect capabilities of this camera? How long does it record after it detects motion? The motion detect/ parking mode seems to be an important part of reviewing a camera for many people and I am surprised to see that it was skipped. If you did check before changing cameras, could you please provide some info on the motion detect? Thanks so much!
Great review. I do have a question, but it's not about the reviewed device. I'd like to ask how you did the side-by-side videos of the 0801 and 0803. I'd like to do something similar. Cheers!
:30 thank you for the suggestion of asking my auto insurance company if I too can get a discount for having one mounted in my car as well. I bought the original 0801 upon your previous video, and I thank you for that.
Nice review. I'll be replacing my current basic DVR DashCam with one of the GPS enabled versions of this. Good to see some roads I'm familiar with too, round Wigan, Haydock and Ashton
No problem here in hot - humid South Florida. BUT here's what I did over 8 months ago: I painted the unit white. It reflects the sun and stays cool. Highly recommended. Ofcourse don't get paint in sensitive areas.
Weird, I live in Australia, it can get hotter than florida. I have yet to have a heating issue with mine. My mount did sag due to the heat though. It was fixed by wedging some paper inbetween the connector panel and the camera. Just unscrew those two little screws near the 4 pins. It thickens the cameras attachment point just enough to make it sit back in the mount firmly.
DemonAMVs I also live in Australia near Sydney & I bought three of them but had endless problems with the overheating issues, No trouble when using them in the Snowy mountains in winter time but had heaps of trouble in summer ? Such a shame as they are a convenient compact size & when they are working properly they can not be matched by anything on the market.
clangun Weird, my 0803 has been working fine, i bought it pretty much on the day it became available except some GPS bugs, but I don't care so much about GPS. my 0802 has been running flawlessly even after I transferred it to my girlfriends car. Maybe you just happened to get a bad batch, it's my opinion that if you get one faulty camera, the next couple they send you will probably also be faulty until they finally send you one from a new batch.
DemonAMVs My first one died after one week but the replacement has been perfect for almost a year. No GPS. Maybe painting it white helped. The sun doesn't directly heat it now -
It's just the remnants of an annoying white QC sticker that was on the camera. It took a bit of scraping to get it off the camera and the sticky bits went everywhere.
I love this video, the presenter is very clear and descriptive, I have just bought the 0805 and I love it, thanks for sharing this video, I have it in my favourites so I can keep looking at it. Where abouts in England did you film the footage, it's nice seeing the country side. I was in born in Bolton, would love to see that now.
thanks for a very thorough review. This is my first dashcam and I managed to figure most of it out but appreciate your explanation of the menus and features. 1 thing not considered: Mount/Camera orientation. Canada/USA is left hand drive, so had the mount and camera be flipped, it would make installing on the passenger side cleaner.
Great video, I went to your website and downloaded some replays and yes they are much better than youtube can show, as you said it is because of the way youtube converts or handles the uploads. By the way I downloaded the motorway clip and played it back through Registrator Viewer, it is great that you get to see all the features from speed, direction and how far you have travelled. You have just incriminated yourself from the motorway clip, here we see you speeding upto 81MPH on a 70MPH road!!! you naughty man! lol. Going to buy 1 of these thanks to your video and links, keep the vids coming I always enjoy them but never really make a comment.
I have one of these dash-cams. It's the only one I've ever owned, so I can't give a comparison. I can however say that I've found it to be a very good camera. It's simple to use, easy to install, and captures great quality images. I think you'll struggle to find anything else this good for such a low price.
I have one of the older 0801 model cameras, but noticed that you glossed over the G setting on the menus, it's what I consider to be one of the most important features of the device. If the camera detects a sudden G-force above what you selected in the menu, then the file it is recording at the time is marked as read-only so it can't be accidentally overwritten. Which means, that if you are in an accident, the evidence will not be overwritten even if the car's ignition is left switched on, or you forget to switch off the cam due to the shock of the accident.
i want congratulate with you...really good video review !!! one of the best i ever seen for real, very professional indeed. i will follow your blog channel in the future, thanks allot
Great video I purchased a 0801 last year after that review and have been happy so far with it, it installed very neatly into my car and provides good footage although the improved night time footage of the 0803 seems like an advantage. Are the mounts in particular the gps mount interchangeable between the 0801 and 0803.
Hi and thanks for all your reviews for car and bike cam's. I've recently purchased 2 0803's on your comments in this video. I'm wanting to review the footage on my Windows 7 laptop but I can only hear the clips and cannot see them. I'm guessing I've got an issue with the resolution incompatible! Both cameras are on the highest setting. Can you help me out please? Cheers Mick.
***** It is called a joke - I'm not sure if you think I'm that stupid to not know this or you so dumb to think a person can be that stupid. Yes, the people in the US drive on the right side of the road vs the places that drive on the wrong side of the road.
***** there is no right or wrong side. Like with the unit system. The entire universe use metrics, only some are still behind. I have lived in Europe, South America, North America Mexico and now the U.S., every country is different, so wy don't you can just enjoy the video?
Have you ever had a micro SD card lock up? I own this model and I found that after a year or so of owning it the SD card wouldn't allow me to modify its contents. The camera was unable to record and I wasn't able to delete any of the files from the card or reformat it. I was able to save the clips I wanted on the computer, but it was extremely slow during the transfer. I put a new SD card in and still works perfect. Thank you for your reviews.
zrinzoj Flash memory has a limited number of write cycles, eventually the comtinuous rewriting of a Dashcam will kill it. Then again the heat is probably just as likely to kill it.
Thanks for the review. I am looking for a dash cam that handles lights and dash reflections very well. I bought the GW1 that you reviewed a while back. Love it, except that lights bleed all over during the night and my dash is reflected over half of the screen. You went over a filter on the Marcus 3. I think its best to save my money and see what comes out next year.
I've got one for US$90 and installed in my car. Thanks for the excellent review. Mine came with a hard-wire kit, so I have wired it to the fuse box. Question how do I stitch the clips together? How do I play the clips at higher speed and record it for UA-cam upload?
I got this cam per recommendation from a Camaro club member here in the Indianapolis area and it gets hot here in the summer and I can say I've had no issues with mine. It's worked every time and I've even thought about removing it from the windshield on hot summer, humid days and forgot to do so and came back and it still came on as soon as the car started and worked fine. I'm not sure what heating issues people are having and the referral person on this hasn't told me of any issues he might be having either and we're pretty close. I think the only thing I would really like to do with this unit is hard wire it into my fuse box on the side of my dash to a location that comes on with the ignition. Thus far, I'm really enjoying this unit and the only draw back is my music speaker being just below it's mounting which tends to leave me with some undesirable music acoustics but probably if I turn it down a bit It'll be fine.
Excellent review, thank you. I agree that the mount on the dashcam is very noticeable from the outside. Can we use this dashcam with a different mount, one that is more inconspicuous?
Mat did you notice any vibration on the mount with this one? I had the 0801 (bought on your recommendation!) and I noticed a lot of vibration on rough roads. It was caused by a small gap where the camera and mount didn't sit entirely flush. a small bit of blue tac sorted it out, it didn't do my OCD any good mind! I can't seem to see any difference to the mount on the 0803 in your review?
Thanks for this excellent review. Is it possible record with the gps & speed data alongside the time stamp in the original video? I don't want to deal with any external software to see that log data. Thanks.
I see there is a 0806 that has been released with some of the issues you have pointed out being addressed. Are you planing or have you done a review on it yet? If so I would be interested on your take of it and if its worth buying...
Thanks for another great review! Did you talk about gaps between videos? When one clip is full and the next starts recording? If you did I missed it, but if you didn't, could you give me something on that? I've been using a GS1000 (one of the no-name ones where you had to pay attention to the menu color or something), but found that the video quality kind of got worse over time. While it was clear and sharp in the beginning, it got really griddy and blocky by now. I think I'm gonna try turning it a bit downwards like you showed with this one, maybe that helps, maybe it's just a focus issue.
As you have done some great reviews on the 0801 (which I purchased after watching your video) and the 0803, would you consider reviewing the 0805. I'm again in the market for a new dash cam and am struggling on which one to get.
(14:36-14:44) McLaren MP4-12c on the right. I can recognise that shape from a mile away. I mean how could you miss that?! I had a fanboy moment when I saw that distinctive shape.
I'm living in Brisbane Australia and I'm starting to have some issues with my mini 0803, it's been very hot here lately and my camera has been switching on and off while I'm driving ,it looks like it was still recording but when I checked it out on my laptop I couldn't see any video, the card did have data on it but I couldn't see it, in desperation I've pushed as many buttons at once that I could and it seems to be back in action, my mount has also become very loose ,I see that they've changed the mount on the 0805 , I've managed to make mine a bit more secure by packing the mount with some thin aluminum , it's doing the job.
The turning off and on could be a result from the loose mount. To fix it, remove your camera from the mount. At the top where the four pins are there is two screws. Remove both screw being careful not to lose them. Separate the connector from the camera carefully, it will be attached by a wire alone so don't pull it. Get a small piece of paper and fold it twice to three times. Put it inbetween the camera and the separated connector. Put everything back together while the paper is still in between. This thickens the connector part just enough to make it fit snugly again. No need for a new camera, just some scrap paper.
Tech pan could you please review a dashcam that has dual cameras I.e. for the front and back? Ive seen a dashcam on eBay that has the same design as this camera in the video but it also has a second camera for the back. Thank you, great videos.
Nice test of so many dash cams and also the eksplanation of how to test and the meaning of yor test for deciding the quality og dash cams. How about a test of the new mini 806?
Hi Techmoan! I always enjoy your reviews! Question: Several of the Amazon reviewers complained about the use of super cheap plastic, and the case/mount melting if left in even a moderately hot car interior. What is your opinion on this? I'm getting ready to move to Florida, which has a pretty hot climate and this is the only thing keeping me from purchasing one of these cameras! Any thoughts?
I just purchased this dashcam, since our needs seem to be similar, and can't wait to actually get it mounted. I've been waiting for 1080p/30 with all these features for some time... I would have liked a camera with night vision pointing inside the car as well, just in case of a traffic stop, but this will do for now. (Police here like to illegally search vehicles during a traffic stop and later say you gave consent when you didn't.)
I have this camera now for a couple of month and it works great. But i'm wondering why you don't use the "best" dash cam yourself as you claim in the other video. And will you make a video about the successors of this cam? I'm planning to put a second one filming backwards and want a cheap good one that takes good video through the tinted glass of my 206SW.
Bought one of these for the wife's car and like yourself, I use a MAC, not a PC. First thing I noticed was that the GPS module and current firmware (FW20141101 v.1.0) allows me to display the speed of the vehicle within the camera recording. The downside is that although it shows it as MPH, it's actually reporting it as KPH. With Dashcam Viewer, all the modules show 70MPH, while the on-screen display shows it as 110MPH. According to Earthshine Software, it's not a problem with Dashcam Viewer and E_Prance suggest I use their PC software. Ever feel you're between a rock and a hard place?
IMPORTANT UPDATE (Overheating issues) - OCTOBER 2014
I've received a number of reports from people who live in hotter countries that have experienced overheating and failures with the 0803. Due to the short time that I test any one camera, and the lower temperature where I live, I didn't have any issues myself but I would now recommend you avoid the 0803 if you live in a hot country.
ok thats nice ,,i just got myself one,, i live in spain... have not got it jet,,, will see what happens,,
After a couple of hot months in my car in direct sun light ( 95F ) the only issue I have had is the power button on one of my units wont work anymore so I cant interact with the menu unless its plugged in. Both still work and don't feel hot to touch when in use.
Is the 0803 known to come with different internals? There are some ~£50 ones on ebay from Asia up to £75 for the American reseller linked in the description...
diff models ,,with or without gps , or with or without memory,, i bouth one without memory and without gps,, 70,- euro on dealextream,,
What are the symptoms?
I've had an issue with mine but didn't know if it was just a glitch, user error, or now that I've read this- maybe a symptom caused by heat.
See
Will it blend?
I just bought one of these for my car. I used your review of the original mini 0801 to make the purchase for my new truck in December. 6 months later, my new truck was rear ended. it has been a nightmare getting it fixed, dealing with the insurance companies and body shops (yes, plural...) but the video is invaluable, even though it didn't capture and the actual collision. The camera performed its duty perfectly, Thank you Techmoan!
Just in case anyone has turned off the annotations. The blocking that is visible in the trees section of the video is an artefact created during the youtube re-encoding process and isn't visible on the original clips - which are downloadable from my website goo.gl/QYMmSW (the file name of this particular clip is Trees).
that's not completely true though, it's the result of the low bit-rate, re-encoding anything always makes it worse but if the camera was shooting in 30MBps or even 20MBps (in 1080p) there would be less or no artifacts.
Also if anyone wants to upload the videos shot with it to youtube they will also always get that blocking so it matters.
Also now you can upload higher then 1080p video to youtube, maybe upload a 1290p sample to youtube, it might not get so much blocking. Just a thought.
The electrical noise in the audio is most likely caused by the 5v usb supply. I had the same problem on my dashcam until I used a different supply..
Joe G.P. iMovie only outputs 1080p (at a bitrate of 18.53 Mbit/s) - so it's this or nothing.
Recommended SD card? I'm getting an SanDisk 16GB Class 10.
Where can I order one to Canada?
I've been using this model for over 6 months and I DO NOT recommend you buy one.
My first one kept randomly turning off and on and the replacement was ok for a few weeks and then started doing the same thing. Even with different SD cards and mains power supplies it keeps turning off. Also when you press the save button you must press it twice. The first press turns the screen on (if its set to turn off) and the second press saves the minute before, during and after the button was pressed. BUT it does not change the filename it changes the file attributes which has to be added to windows explorer by right clicking on the columns, choosing More.. and check the Attributes box. Then you'll find all the saved clips with the attributes RA (some of my saved clips didn't save).
Might invest in a Garmin 10 instead...
Over the past 5 months or so, I tried out 4 other dash cams...and NOTHING even came close to the quality and price and this awesome cam. This product is simply OUTSTANDING...I am just an average Joe consumer and have no hidden agenda here. I bought it through Amazon and I highly recommend this product. Dave Lee, Canada.
Excellent metaphor/demonstration to illustrate the loop over feature at 2:32.
AE Meter mode switched to spot could be the solution for you not to film the hood of the car as Automatic Exposure would then evaluate the correct exposure from a spot not the whole center part of the image so there would be no hood-filming-cheat needed ...
but - THANKS FOR YOUR REVIEWS!!! They give a deep insight and they make the choice of the dashcam a lot easier and more probably I will get what I am looking for (and not a black cat in a black box).
someone probably already commented on this, but the ev-value determines wether you want a lighter or darker image throughout the recording. 0 is not auto, it's simply the cameras default exposure. thanks for all these videos. makes us not having to buy them all.
I was only vaguely curious about a dash cam.
But after watching your video, I am now quite interested and definitely know MUCH more how these thingy's set-up/work then before.
Thank you much for this video.
The GPS data is embedded in the video files, so the files in the separate gps folder might not be needed depending on what software is used to view.
Dang! This is one of the best reviews of ANYTHING that I have ever seen. Thank you so much.
Excellent camera. We have a mobius in the wifes car and due to the mount size of the mobius I haven't been running with a camera in my mini. This fits nicely above the mirror and isn't easily noticeable from outside the car. Thank you for the review!
I just wanted to say thanks to Techmoan. I purchased the Mini 0803 after many reviews and forum browsing and it has been working flawlessly. I mounted it just under the rear view mirror on my 1 series and it is hardly noticeable at all. Removing it is just a matter of sliding it in and out of the GPS holder and it is extremely easy.
Thanks again!
Thanks Techmoan, your reviews are brilliant. I just got one of these (0803) cameras and so far its excellent!
I have one if these. It's brilliant, simple, and easy to use. I haven't had a single problem with it yet, and I've been using it daily for four months.
@LucasLand(who's youtube account can't receive any replies to his comments).
If you want to manually lock a file when the camera is recording - you can press the down arrow.
If the screen is off you have to hit down 2 times. First time will turn the screen back on and the second will lock it.
Techmoan Cheers - this was a question I too was also about to ask.
14:35 is that Bamford in Rochdale? Looks remarkably familiar. Obviously seem Costco many times....
A day get just a bit better when i see a new video from you, another great one !
Thanks very much for the review, very helpful. Just FYI at 4:35 its 90 degrees not 45 :-)
Great review, as always! Small correction: amount of twisting is 90 deg, not 45 as you mentioned (unless what you mean was plus and minus 45).
Absolutely EXCELLENT videos mate! Very very informative and very well presented!
There is nothing more irritating than when someone tries to talk about something that they have no clue about!
Very well done!
Thank you for this review. I have been looking for a good dash cam for a little while, your review convinced me to spend a little more for better quality. My 0803 arrives in a few days... Thanks again.
I live in the USA, I guess in summer I would have to be careful but so far this cam looks really good. Price is not bad either. Nice full featured review as always. Thanks.
Thank you for you excellent quality reviews! You explain everything really clearly and go in depth without being boring! Thanks!
Just got one of these, for a friend who liked my 0801, the footage, especially in low light is a lot better, I will be sticking with my 0801 for now until it gives me reason to replace it. I replaced the sticky pad with a black version, up behind the mirror it is virtually invisible, so I leave mine fitted. Great review as always, I got my mate to look at all your dashcam reviews, before buying :)
Excellent independent reviews, and very professionally made. Thanks for making and sharing.
Thank you for the video. Just purchased one. The quality of the video is excellent, I love it!
Atl, GA.
I just picked up this camera (0803) and it's awesome compared to the generic one i've been using. I love the GPS function and the mapping, it even shows directing & speed. Thanks for the review, i'll be posting one of my own soon.
And that's how a review is supposed to be done
Wish you could review every products lol thanks
I got a new one. So much more advanced since this video was made. Very good at night time. Holds a lot of memory on the SD card, and has WIFI transfer to phone and live view option with phone.
Thank you for your videos. I have been following since you reviewed the 0801. After seeing this review I used your eBay link and bought one for each vehicle. I just finished installing the last of the three last night. I hardwired them into the vehicles' wiring under the dash for a stealthy install. My only gripe thus far is the G-sensor sensitivity, we have a lot of speed bumps in South Africa and at 3.5G it retains almost all of them, got it at 4.5G now, I'll go see later if it's better. Thanks again.
So much detail my head hurts!!! Great review
great videos, just bought a G1W as an "impulse purchase" - wish I had seen your videos first.. something strangely soothing about hearing you review them lol.. nice work.. might look into a 0803 unless you have made some newer review of a better one.. going to check the rest of your videos now..
Great analogy showing how the recording mechanism works.
Enjoyed that, it's getting better and better.
G'day Mat. Great review as always. I think you've been 'video bombed'. :P Around 18:30, in the top left hand corner of the screen there appears to be a small insect crawling across your monitor. Cheer, b. :)
Thank you for all your reviews!
Another great review. Keep em' coming they are very informative and entertaining.
Cheers Kym
I just bought this camera. I love it.
Translation of the factory clip -
"Wang, when is our tea break?"
Thanks so much for the work you've put in. Your video was very well made and really gave me an idea of what to expect from dash cams since I am just now beginning to look into it.
I am doing research on a camera that I can use in park mode in addition to while driving. I live in NYC and in the past week I have had two separate occasions where I come to find my car damaged while parked overnight.
I am aware that running the camera with the car turned off would require hard-wiring if I wanted it to run overnight. My main question is what are the motion detect capabilities of this camera? How long does it record after it detects motion?
The motion detect/ parking mode seems to be an important part of reviewing a camera for many people and I am surprised to see that it was skipped. If you did check before changing cameras, could you please provide some info on the motion detect?
Thanks so much!
Great review. I do have a question, but it's not about the reviewed device. I'd like to ask how you did the side-by-side videos of the 0801 and 0803. I'd like to do something similar.
Cheers!
Another excellent and comprehensive review. Very good, helpful stuff. Thanks
:30 thank you for the suggestion of asking my auto insurance company if I too can get a discount for having one mounted in my car as well.
I bought the original 0801 upon your previous video, and I thank you for that.
Nice review. I'll be replacing my current basic DVR DashCam with one of the GPS enabled versions of this.
Good to see some roads I'm familiar with too, round Wigan, Haydock and Ashton
No problem here in hot - humid South Florida. BUT here's what I did over 8 months ago: I painted the unit white. It reflects the sun and stays cool. Highly recommended. Ofcourse don't get paint in sensitive areas.
PS, I used appliance touch-up paint.
Weird, I live in Australia, it can get hotter than florida. I have yet to have a heating issue with mine. My mount did sag due to the heat though. It was fixed by wedging some paper inbetween the connector panel and the camera. Just unscrew those two little screws near the 4 pins. It thickens the cameras attachment point just enough to make it sit back in the mount firmly.
DemonAMVs I also live in Australia near Sydney & I bought three of them but had endless problems with the overheating issues, No trouble when using them in the Snowy mountains in winter time but had heaps of trouble in summer ? Such a shame as they are a convenient compact size & when they are working properly they can not be matched by anything on the market.
clangun Weird, my 0803 has been working fine, i bought it pretty much on the day it became available except some GPS bugs, but I don't care so much about GPS. my 0802 has been running flawlessly even after I transferred it to my girlfriends car.
Maybe you just happened to get a bad batch, it's my opinion that if you get one faulty camera, the next couple they send you will probably also be faulty until they finally send you one from a new batch.
DemonAMVs
My first one died after one week but the replacement has been perfect for almost a year. No GPS. Maybe painting it white helped. The sun doesn't directly heat it now -
I love your vids. You have a great demeanor and delivery. Subbing as I'm shopping around for a dash cam just now. THANKS!
Hi Mat,
Can we please have a review of the bogey on your left little finger @ 07:50. Apologies for being picky.
Great reviews, many thanks.
It's just the remnants of an annoying white QC sticker that was on the camera. It took a bit of scraping to get it off the camera and the sticky bits went everywhere.
I love this video, the presenter is very clear and descriptive, I have just bought the 0805 and I love it, thanks for sharing this video, I have it in my favourites so I can keep looking at it. Where abouts in England did you film the footage, it's nice seeing the country side. I was in born in Bolton, would love to see that now.
thanks for a very thorough review. This is my first dashcam and I managed to figure most of it out but appreciate your explanation of the menus and features.
1 thing not considered: Mount/Camera orientation.
Canada/USA is left hand drive, so had the mount and camera be flipped, it would make installing on the passenger side cleaner.
Excellent.... I was waiting for this.
Great video, I went to your website and downloaded some replays and yes they are much better than youtube can show, as you said it is because of the way youtube converts or handles the uploads. By the way I downloaded the motorway clip and played it back through Registrator Viewer, it is great that you get to see all the features from speed, direction and how far you have travelled.
You have just incriminated yourself from the motorway clip, here we see you speeding upto 81MPH on a 70MPH road!!! you naughty man! lol.
Going to buy 1 of these thanks to your video and links, keep the vids coming I always enjoy them but never really make a comment.
I have one of these dash-cams. It's the only one I've ever owned, so I can't give a comparison. I can however say that I've found it to be a very good camera. It's simple to use, easy to install, and captures great quality images. I think you'll struggle to find anything else this good for such a low price.
I have one of the older 0801 model cameras, but noticed that you glossed over the G setting on the menus, it's what I consider to be one of the most important features of the device.
If the camera detects a sudden G-force above what you selected in the menu, then the file it is recording at the time is marked as read-only so it can't be accidentally overwritten.
Which means, that if you are in an accident, the evidence will not be overwritten even if the car's ignition is left switched on, or you forget to switch off the cam due to the shock of the accident.
I have had the 0803 up and running in Florida for 6 months - no problems.
i want congratulate with you...really good video review !!! one of the best i ever seen for real, very professional indeed. i will follow your blog channel in the future, thanks allot
At 14:41 the trees on the left are a bit unsharp compared to the rest of the image...
I guess thats some lower quality lens assembling.
Great review Techmoan!
Great video
I purchased a 0801 last year after that review and have been happy so far with it, it installed very neatly into my car and provides good footage although the improved night time footage of the 0803 seems like an advantage. Are the mounts in particular the gps mount interchangeable between the 0801 and 0803.
I also have an 0801 and would like to know if I can just slip the 0801 out of the window mount and put the 0803 in.
Yes they are interchangeable.
McLaren MP4-12C at the 14:35 mark
Hello Techmoan great review on the dashcam,....does it come with a back camera,....if not can you recommend a cheap basic camera much appreciated
Hi and thanks for all your reviews for car and bike cam's. I've recently purchased 2 0803's on your comments in this video. I'm wanting to review the footage on my Windows 7 laptop but I can only hear the clips and cannot see them. I'm guessing I've got an issue with the resolution incompatible! Both cameras are on the highest setting. Can you help me out please? Cheers Mick.
Techmoan i love your reviews!
It drives my crazy that you drive on the wrong side of the road. I'm just waiting for a head on. Thanks
The reason you don't see (many) head ons, is because it's the right side of the road (here).
Would that not be the left side? :)
nope more of the world drives on the left side
***** It is called a joke - I'm not sure if you think I'm that stupid to not know this or you so dumb to think a person can be that stupid. Yes, the people in the US drive on the right side of the road vs the places that drive on the wrong side of the road.
***** there is no right or wrong side. Like with the unit system. The entire universe use metrics, only some are still behind. I have lived in Europe, South America, North America Mexico and now the U.S., every country is different, so wy don't you can just enjoy the video?
Have you ever had a micro SD card lock up? I own this model and I found that after a year or so of owning it the SD card wouldn't allow me to modify its contents. The camera was unable to record and I wasn't able to delete any of the files from the card or reformat it. I was able to save the clips I wanted on the computer, but it was extremely slow during the transfer. I put a new SD card in and still works perfect. Thank you for your reviews.
zrinzoj Flash memory has a limited number of write cycles, eventually the comtinuous rewriting of a Dashcam will kill it. Then again the heat is probably just as likely to kill it.
yet again a great video! just what i was looking for!
Thanks for the review. I am looking for a dash cam that handles lights and dash reflections very well. I bought the GW1 that you reviewed a while back. Love it, except that lights bleed all over during the night and my dash is reflected over half of the screen. You went over a filter on the Marcus 3. I think its best to save my money and see what comes out next year.
Weh heh! Just bought mine3 days ago( thanks Amazon) and it's here already! Bonus or what!!
I've got one for US$90 and installed in my car. Thanks for the excellent review. Mine came with a hard-wire kit, so I have wired it to the fuse box. Question how do I stitch the clips together? How do I play the clips at higher speed and record it for UA-cam upload?
I got this cam per recommendation from a Camaro club member here in the Indianapolis area and it gets hot here in the summer and I can say I've had no issues with mine. It's worked every time and I've even thought about removing it from the windshield on hot summer, humid days and forgot to do so and came back and it still came on as soon as the car started and worked fine.
I'm not sure what heating issues people are having and the referral person on this hasn't told me of any issues he might be having either and we're pretty close.
I think the only thing I would really like to do with this unit is hard wire it into my fuse box on the side of my dash to a location that comes on with the ignition.
Thus far, I'm really enjoying this unit and the only draw back is my music speaker being just below it's mounting which tends to leave me with some undesirable music acoustics but probably if I turn it down a bit It'll be fine.
Excellent video Teccy, very well presented. I think a purchase is pending......
Excellent review, thank you. I agree that the mount on the dashcam is very noticeable from the outside. Can we use this dashcam with a different mount, one that is more inconspicuous?
Mat did you notice any vibration on the mount with this one? I had the 0801 (bought on your recommendation!) and I noticed a lot of vibration on rough roads. It was caused by a small gap where the camera and mount didn't sit entirely flush. a small bit of blue tac sorted it out, it didn't do my OCD any good mind! I can't seem to see any difference to the mount on the 0803 in your review?
This one doesn't rattle and feels a bit more solid - but that might be down to it being new.
Very interesting and very well explained. Thank you.
Thanks for this excellent review. Is it possible record with the gps & speed data alongside the time stamp in the original video? I don't want to deal with any external software to see that log data.
Thanks.
Your videos are always first class. ;)
What do you recommend more this or Mobius ActionCam? Great video!!
I see there is a 0806 that has been released with some of the issues you have pointed out being addressed. Are you planing or have you done a review on it yet? If so I would be interested on your take of it and if its worth buying...
Great video! Thanks so much for your effort and posting!
Thanks for another great review!
Did you talk about gaps between videos? When one clip is full and the next starts recording? If you did I missed it, but if you didn't, could you give me something on that?
I've been using a GS1000 (one of the no-name ones where you had to pay attention to the menu color or something), but found that the video quality kind of got worse over time. While it was clear and sharp in the beginning, it got really griddy and blocky by now. I think I'm gonna try turning it a bit downwards like you showed with this one, maybe that helps, maybe it's just a focus issue.
As you have done some great reviews on the 0801 (which I purchased after watching your video) and the 0803, would you consider reviewing the 0805. I'm again in the market for a new dash cam and am struggling on which one to get.
(14:36-14:44) McLaren MP4-12c on the right. I can recognise that shape from a mile away. I mean how could you miss that?! I had a fanboy moment when I saw that distinctive shape.
The mini 0805 is also just out now. Can you please do a review of this unit?
hi
did you test the new Mini 0805 ?
thanks
yossi
Excellent review. Thanks.
will the 0803 cam work with the 0801 mount/gps??
i love your vids - superb efforts!!!
JJ
Great reviews. What do you think about the new mini 806 with CPL? Can you make a review?
Great review! Thanks for posting
Great introduction yo dash cams. Which camera is Mac compatible?
Thanks, George Fryer
I'm living in Brisbane Australia and I'm starting to have some issues with my mini 0803, it's been very hot here lately and my camera has been switching on and off while I'm driving ,it looks like it was still recording but when I checked it out on my laptop I couldn't see any video, the card did have data on it but I couldn't see it, in desperation I've pushed as many buttons at once that I could and it seems to be back in action, my mount has also become very loose ,I see that they've changed the mount on the 0805 , I've managed to make mine a bit more secure by packing the mount with some thin aluminum , it's doing the job.
The turning off and on could be a result from the loose mount. To fix it, remove your camera from the mount. At the top where the four pins are there is two screws. Remove both screw being careful not to lose them. Separate the connector from the camera carefully, it will be attached by a wire alone so don't pull it. Get a small piece of paper and fold it twice to three times. Put it inbetween the camera and the separated connector. Put everything back together while the paper is still in between. This thickens the connector part just enough to make it fit snugly again. No need for a new camera, just some scrap paper.
Excellent review. Might be the next one I get.
Would you please post recommendations for dash cams used in extreme hot and cold climates?
Thanks.
Great channel!
Tech pan could you please review a dashcam that has dual cameras I.e. for the front and back? Ive seen a dashcam on eBay that has the same design as this camera in the video but it also has a second camera for the back. Thank you, great videos.
Nice test of so many dash cams and also the eksplanation of how to test and the meaning of yor test for deciding the quality og dash cams.
How about a test of the new mini 806?
Hi Techmoan! I always enjoy your reviews!
Question: Several of the Amazon reviewers complained about the use of super cheap plastic, and the case/mount melting if left in even a moderately hot car interior. What is your opinion on this? I'm getting ready to move to Florida, which has a pretty hot climate and this is the only thing keeping me from purchasing one of these cameras! Any thoughts?
Is Techmoan also known as younger James May? You guys sound identical... Great review. Thanks!
I just purchased this dashcam, since our needs seem to be similar, and can't wait to actually get it mounted. I've been waiting for 1080p/30 with all these features for some time... I would have liked a camera with night vision pointing inside the car as well, just in case of a traffic stop, but this will do for now. (Police here like to illegally search vehicles during a traffic stop and later say you gave consent when you didn't.)
The translation is..."they will never notice the nuclear waste in these!"
Actually? Or nah
@@BeyondThePines0 made in Fukushima. What do you think?!
@@slicedpage idk just caught me off guard lmao
I have this camera now for a couple of month and it works great.
But i'm wondering why you don't use the "best" dash cam yourself as you claim in the other video.
And will you make a video about the successors of this cam? I'm planning to put a second one filming backwards and want a cheap good one that takes good video through the tinted glass of my 206SW.
Bought one of these for the wife's car and like yourself, I use a MAC, not a PC.
First thing I noticed was that the GPS module and current firmware (FW20141101 v.1.0) allows me to display the speed of the vehicle within the camera recording. The downside is that although it shows it as MPH, it's actually reporting it as KPH.
With Dashcam Viewer, all the modules show 70MPH, while the on-screen display shows it as 110MPH.
According to Earthshine Software, it's not a problem with Dashcam Viewer and E_Prance suggest I use their PC software.
Ever feel you're between a rock and a hard place?