Dash Mounted Camera

[schmism]

That's okay, I would rather turn it on/off myself. Maybe I can use the same power port that my gps is plugged into. I would hate to lose something important because it started overwriting on its own.

those all sound like bad ideas based on your ability to want it to record every time the car is on/moving.

1) dont expect that you'll remember to turn it on EVERY time you get in the car. powering it off a cig lighter might be ok instead of internal battery, but that doesnt turn the unit on/off with the ignition of the car.

2) a 32gig SD card useing a GoPro on the lowest res setting is only good for 8hrs of video. after that.... its full and wont record anymore. so you have to delete the video and start over. This is why a version that continually overwrites is preferred, you always have video from the last 8 hrs the car was on.

I dont see how you risk loosing important video to overwrite if you have an hr or more of buffer, the idea is that when something important happens you immediately pull the video off.

3) with vehical mounted rig, you dont risc some hoodloom busting a window and snatching your gopro off the dash. 3.1) with vehical mounted, the camera and recording unit are separate so even if they took the "webcam" off the dash, they dont get the video. 3.2) a proper setup would stream the video off the vehicle and to a online location for safe keeping so you dont risc cops/robbers takeing the recording, again doable with a cellular link from a permant setup.

again, if your serious about doing it right, there is a lot more to consider than just sticking a camcorder on the dash.


Oh and dont forget there are legal implications to your setup.

 

[two_bit_score]

That's okay, I would rather turn it on/off myself. Maybe I can use the same power port that my gps is plugged into. I would hate to lose something important because it started overwriting on its own.

I would like to take a look at GoPro, is there a large chain/box store that sells them or is it an internet only thing?

Best Buy carries them.

 

[bigtiller]

those all sound like bad ideas based on your ability to want it to record every time the car is on/moving.

1) dont expect that you'll remember to turn it on EVERY time you get in the car. powering it off a cig lighter might be ok instead of internal battery, but that doesnt turn the unit on/off with the ignition of the car.

2) a 32gig SD card useing a GoPro on the lowest res setting is only good for 8hrs of video. after that.... its full and wont record anymore. so you have to delete the video and start over. This is why a version that continually overwrites is preferred, you always have video from the last 8 hrs the car was on.

I dont see how you risk loosing important video to overwrite if you have an hr or more of buffer, the idea is that when something important happens you immediately pull the video off.

3) with vehical mounted rig, you dont risc some hoodloom busting a window and snatching your gopro off the dash. 3.1) with vehical mounted, the camera and recording unit are separate so even if they took the "webcam" off the dash, they dont get the video. 3.2) a proper setup would stream the video off the vehicle and to a online location for safe keeping so you dont risc cops/robbers takeing the recording, again doable with a cellular link from a permant setup.

again, if your serious about doing it right, there is a lot more to consider than just sticking a camcorder on the dash.


Oh and dont forget there are legal implications to your setup.

Really? There is a law out there somewhere that says I can't do this? I don't want to break any laws!

 

[schmism]

Really? There is a law out there somewhere that says I can't do this? I don't want to break any laws!

more along the lines of

if you record an incident, and the cops learn of the recording, then you can/could be subpoenaed to turn over said recording as evidence of the incident. that then brings up the issue of not being able to produce said recording and then being charged with destruction of evidence.

this is one of the advantages of manually triggered recording.... there is some plausible deniability to a system that requires the user to initiate a recording every time they get in the car in terms of "i forgot to turn it on" vs the system that does it every time you start the key.

then again are you willing to trade the plausible deniability for a system that is going to be more robust at actually capturing the incident in the first place. (which was the whole point to start with)

most states have various "dash obstruction laws" stating to the effect of "you cant have anything infront of the driver that possibly restricts view" this means the cops can demand you take down your fuzzy dice hanging from the rear view mirror, or GPS unit, or bulky camcorder on the dash. This is were a smaller lipstick style "webcam" with remote mounted recording unit which is much less obtrusive will likely go unnoticed (which has other advantages already listed)

State of IL just passed a law that expressly states the public can record cops doing there jobs, that may not be true in all locations. YMMV as well as not all states are single party wire tap states which mean if your in a dual party state, you'll need to expressly state your recording an incident when you come to the end of it, and or not record audio should you run afoul of wire tap laws.

 

[Code54]

The thing to worry about is audio - DONT record audio! You have a Federal wire tap issue to contend with, skip the audio and your safe there. Not too sure if there is legal issues with recording video on a state by state basis.

To record video in the quantity you want to you need a DVR to be trunk mounted that is considered harden and vibration proof. The camera can be mounted to the back of the rear view mirror and run to the DVR and set to power up when the car is started. This is expensive and there is really nothing I want to record that bad but hey everyone has their own thing. Plus don't forget if you accidentally run a stop sign and hit someone that is now going to be evidence against you because you know a crime occurred and could possibly be used civilly and criminally against you!

 

[aczlan]

I have looked at getting one of the following dashcams as they could allow recording in both directions:
Dual Lens HD 720P Dashboard Car Vehicle Camera Video Recorder DVR Cam G Sensor | eBay
2 7" Dual Lens Dashboard Dash Camera Car DVR Black Box Video Recorder GPS Logger | eBay
With a 8+GB SD card (making vibration irrelevant) and looped recording, I should be able to get 4+ hours of recording time which should be enough for my purposes (proving that I was not at fault in an accident, catching the plate of a hit and run driver, etc).
Per Telephone recording laws - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia as long as one party to the conversation (ie: me) knows that it is being recorded, I should be fine in NY.
I would prefer that the cameras be separate which could be done with something like New Mini 2CH 2 CH SD DVR Video Audio Recorder Surveillance CCTV Motion Detect | eBay as that could go in the center console and could be hooked up with a backup camera, but then I would need to find cameras...

Aaron Z

 

[3930dave]

If you have a big motorcycle dealership around, try there. Some jurisdictions have targeted bike street racing (real or perceived) so hard that some non-racing bikers have taken to running loop video on the bikes, to be able to defend themselves against spurious (false) racing charges.

Aside from weatherproof, bike suitable cameras have to be pretty standalone, requiring little fiddling.

Legally, some areas have been charging people re. recording police on the street (public space) with their cell phones. I get the intent (officers on stake-out, undercover, etc), but probably more so they are trying to limit future Rodney King type footage. In-vehicle recording legislation is going to vary quite a bit depending where you are and what you drive.

Ex. - an RV with a toilet may be considered a domicile, so might fall into different rules than a passenger car.

Must have been a lot more fun driving, back in the days when, as one TBN'er put it "There were more laws on the books about horses, than cars".

Rgds, D.

 

[Code54]

"Per Telephone recording laws - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia as long as one party to the conversation (ie: me) knows that it is being recorded, I should be fine in NY."

Just remember if you leave your car running and walk into a gas station lets say, now it is a wire tap device and you are subject to prosecution (no one is consenting at that point) - it is a dangerous area in the law to play and I would be VERY careful with audio recording. Also if you drive out of state everything could change as some states require 2 party consent... Just watch so you don't get yourself jammed up.

 

[aczlan]

"Per Telephone recording laws - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia as long as one party to the conversation (ie: me) knows that it is being recorded, I should be fine in NY."
Just remember if you leave your car running and walk into a gas station lets say, now it is a wire tap device and you are subject to prosecution (no one is consenting at that point) - it is a dangerous area in the law to play and I would be VERY careful with audio recording. Also if you drive out of state everything could change as some states require 2 party consent... Just watch so you don't get yourself jammed up.

Good point. The only reason I could see audio would be to add commentary as an event is happening outside the view of the camera (ie: someone changing lanes into my car).

Aaron Z

 

[schmism]

Good point. The only reason I could see audio would be to add commentary as an event is happening outside the view of the camera (ie: someone changing lanes into my car).

Aaron Z

There have been a large number of videos "showing" police pulling over and harassing motorists, not much to show with a cop standing at your window, but what is said (and recorded) is what makes the harassment charge stick .

One high profile case in St Louis a number of years ago lead to a "known harassing officer" getting fired finally because someone finally recorded hard evidence of his actions. again it was a video of the front dash looking at an empty parking lot, but it was the audio that was used in court to defend the harassment.

If it was me and i didnt live in a 2 party state, id record the audio for sure!