What is a dash cam?
A dash cam is a filming and recording device for keeping a visual record of events during your journey. They are typically mounted on your vehicle’s windscreen or around the neck of the rear-view mirror, facing forwards to the road ahead. Other views are available too, such as to the rear of the vehicle or around the vehicle’s cabin.
Dash cams which come with a tamper-proof time-and-date stamp are especially valuable for insurance purposes, to provide visual evidence after any on-road incidents, and those where circumstances around certain incidents, may be otherwise disputed.
The three different types of dash cam are:
- Front view: surveying the road ahead including oncoming traffic on the other side of the road, and traffic directly ahead of you and moving in the same direction as you. Of course, these keep track of what’s happening in front of your vehicle but can’t track what happens to the rear of the vehicle.
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Front and rear view: as described, these dash cams record both the front and rear of a vehicle, offering a much more comprehensive view of the situation around the car.
- Cabin view: more often used for commercial purposes, such as in cars used for taxis or chauffeuring, to provide a playback of the events of a working day if needed. As a driver, you might want one to analyse your own habits in the cabin too, especially if (in normal times) you provide a carpool to work or for recreation.
Why install a dash cam?
Dash cams are increasingly widespread on UK roads, with almost a quarter of respondents to a 2017 AA survey responding that they owned a dash cam. The cameras themselves are handy for recording and playing back sections of a journey, but their presence could have other knock-on effects.
For instance, if more people own them, more disputes where it is one person’s word against another person’s, are suddenly resolved through compelling dash cam footage, this could drive down insurance policy prices and accident-related premiums.
Indeed, some insurers already accept dash cam footage as evidence in insurance claims.
What’s more, dash cams can make it easier to report dangerous drivers and have the potential to broadly improve driving standards, with errant drivers running a higher risk of being exposed for driving dangerously, whether by cutting lanes, speeding in urban areas, or aggressive tailgating.
Autoparts’ dash cam range
Pama HD 720P Plug N Go Drive 3 dash camera
This cracking front-facing camera from Pama features a built-in microphone and speaker, automatic recording when in motion, loop recording function, and a night mode to allow playback even when you’ve been driving in the dark.
Use its USB cable for charging, or for easily transferring your footage onto another device.
Better still, this dash camera includes a free micro-SD HC 16GB memory card.
Find the Pama dash camera in Autoparts’ products section.
Ring HD 1.5 Mini Dash Camera
Making their name in shoring up household security with a range of doorbell cameras, Ring has also produced an excellent dash cam for taking to the road. Its 120-degree view means you’ll enjoy a commanding view of the oncoming road, even when you’ve stepped out of the car. It’s intelligent, too, automatically switching itself on and off when you start and stop the vehicle ignition.
It’s driving, with a Ring to it. Find the Ring mini dash camera in Autoparts' product section.
P1 Autocare full HD dash cam
Enjoy automotive filming at its finest with this pint-sized powerhouse camera from P1 Autocare. Filming in glorious HD, it’s designed to give you top-quality clarity of filming with an expansive 120-degree range. Plus, it contains a rechargeable lithium-ion battery and a microphone and speaker to allow for audio input and playback, because it’s important to hear as well as see what’s going on around your vehicle during your journey.
Find full HD filming capability here.
For a phenomenal range of vehicle tools and accessories for all seasons, visit Autoparts’ products section.
