There are literally tens of millions of vehicles on the roads of Australia every day, and you would think that being an everyday driver would make people aware of the fact that they’re operating something that’s heavier than a tonne and can result in dire consequences when driven irresponsibly. Still, there are thousands of accidents on a daily basis, most of which are a result of irresponsible driving. And it doesn’t matter if you’re the best, most cautious driver in the world, if someone else is looking at their phone and not paying attention to the road, it will all be in vain, and you could get seriously injured and your car totalled. For all of these reasons, many people get garmin dash cams.
So what do dash cams do? These gadgets are invaluable, as they constantly record your driving. By having records of what’s happening around you, you can easily prove your innocence in the event of an accident, monitor your kids when they first start out to drive, and much more. Garmin dash cams are becoming more and more affordable, and they’re very easy to use, so they aren’t limited to early adopters and tech-heads. If you aren’t sure about whether you need one, or just want to get a better idea of dash cams before you make a decision, there are a few important things to consider. The main considerations revolve around the video quality, but there are other features available that may prove to be helpful, including Wi-Fi connectivity, GPS, increased storage, built-in displays, etc. Let’s discuss the important features in detail.
Camera Quality
As aforementioned dash cames come with a wide range of features, but the most important one to consider is the quality of the camera itself. Cameras of higher quality will provide a clearer picture, which can help you see details after an accident. The important specs are resolution, which represents how clear the picture will be. Generally, modern cameras have a 1080p resolution or more. Basically, the more pixels, the better. However, keep in mind that the higher the quality of the video, the more storage space it will take.
Next, consider the field of view. This metric represents how wide the camera can video capture. Some cameras feature a narrow field of view, whereas others are specifically designed to capture a wider field of view. Of course, there are downsides to having a wider field of view, namely, the quality of the video, as the pixels will be spread out a bit more. sadly, most manufacturers don’t provide much information about the field of view, and some of them even inflate the numbers. It’s best you see footage of the camera you’re considering online, and decide whether that’s good enough for you.
Lastly, you have to consider the frame rates, or FPS. As a general rule of thumb, you want the camera to provide at least 30 FPS. This is standard and will be good enough for most people. However, there are some cameras that can provide up to 60 FPS, resulting in much smoother videos. Again, having more FPS isn’t necessarily better, as videos captured in higher FPS take up more space.
Mounting Method
There are two basic ways to mount your dash cam, no matter whether you decide to do it on the dash or the windshield. Most dash cams use suction mounts which are pretty strong, but there are also those that are mounted with an adhesive that sticks to the windshield or dashboard. The ones that use adhesives are trickier to remove, and they can leave some residue. However, the advantage of adhesive mounts is that they don’t require any space on the dashboard or windshield.
Wireless Connectivity
Smart devices are all around us, and chances are you want to connect your dash cam with your phone. There are two ways to do so – through Bluetooth connectivity or WiFi. Wireless connectivity allows you to easily manage the settings and footage of the dash cam, and much more. It reduces the need to tinker around with the small built-in screen on the dash cam. With WiFi connectivity, you can also take advantage of extra features, such as uploading the captured video to a cloud, so you can later stream it on a computer or phone.
Storage
Videos can take up a lot of storage, especially if they’re captured in high resolutions. So, choosing a dash cam that features a MicroSD card with at least 128GB is important. Keep in mind that most cameras have some storage built right into them, and you might not need the extra storage from a MicroSD card. Chances are, however, that you probably don’t want to delete old footage every few days, and would prefer to do it once a month. The good thing about MicroSD cards is that you can remove them from the dash cam, and place them in a smart device to view all the footage you’ve captured when on the road.
