Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Dashcam Write Up Enough people have asked, so I figured I might as well do a write-up/review on my installation of the dashcam. After reading hundreds of reviews on Amazon, I determined that there was no perfect dash-cam. There was positive and negative reviews on ALL the cameras so I pulled the trigger on the Prime Recommended camera. I then returned it after finding out that it was missing one of the functions that I wanted. So I went back and did more research. The key features I must have were - • Parking Lot sensor – I back my rig into almost every spot I park, and also at home. I wanted to be able to capture someone hitting me if they are pulling into the spot next to me, and if someone walks up to my truck when parked at my house. • 1080p – needed high def. video to even be able to see anything remotely far away like a license plate. • Auto Loop – pretty standard these days, but I noticed some did not have this • Night vision – its dark 16hours a day up in the NW during the winter so not having night vision was not an option. • Small profile – the perfect camera for me is not seen from the driver or passenger seats. • Impact sensor – if I get hit or rear ended I want the camera to save the footage no matter what. • Price – I was looking for under $200 Functions that I did not want or need – • View screen – having a tiny 1.5in screen on the camera I found only added to its size and made the other dash cams larger than they needed to be. My thoughts are that I want this little camera mounted and never touched unless there is some really good or bad reason, and hopefully I will really never need to see the video/footage. At that time, removing the sim card is just as much of a hassle as trying to remove the entire camera to view the footage. Plus I wanted to have the camera hard wired so I would have to have an additional cable to plug in to view, so having a viewing screen was a useless addition for me. • Rear View Camera – My main reason is to capture any parking lot problems and keep an eye on my truck while at home. I back my truck into almost every spot I use so having the rear camera would be nice, but not a requirement in the event of a rear end collision, the forward facing camera should still capture the impact and the time/date. Also after getting the camera I played with the view points and having a large lifted truck, the view is very restricted because of the bed and tailgate. Most footage would be useless as it would not get the license plate info. I also figured if I really wanted to get a rear camera, I could just buy two and mount one in the back. • GPS - If I could have found a camera with this great, but the GPS functionality on my phone is spotty, so I figured these little cameras could not be an improvement on that. Also from my research, the only thing GPS helps people with is figuring the speed, mostly for fighting tickets. Now I am pretty good with math and if I ever really need to fight a ticket that bad, I should be able to use the footage and figure out the distance and time to get my actual speed. Speed = Distance , Time = Distance , Distance = (Speed x Time). Time Speed After returning the first Amazon Prime dash cam due to not having parking lot sensor I ended up choosing the GoLuk T2 after making sure it had everything I was looking for. I got it for a great price and it had all the functions I wanted. It also had a couple options that I didn’t exactly need, but if they worked would be great additions. Initially receiving the camera, I was a little concerned that it was a kiddy camera. The “FUN CAMERA” on the packaging would give it that appearance that’s is more of a toy or go-pro style camera then a dash cam, however after powering it up and playing with it, I am not disappointed whatsoever. The camera is about the size of a C-cell battery, maybe a bit longer, but very small compared to the dash cams that have the video screen. I was a little concerned about the round profile, but it seemed to fit just right under the rear view mirror. From the street it looks as if it’s just part of the truck and OEM. The camera and is virtually invisible to anyone sitting inside the vehicle. It really not noticeable from the street during the day. There is a small blue LED light that stays on and it can been seen at night. If I had to find one complaint this would be it. Having the blue light on, makes it noticeable at night inside the car. I figure I will put a little black electrical tape to cover it up. Hopefully a software update will make that light have the function to turn on/off. I am blown away from the software/app for this camera. For the price it is really above and beyond what I expected. I ran into some challenges when initially setting up the connection but I also tried to do it on my own without the manual. Once I sucked up my pride and followed the instructions, I was able to easily connect and have not had any issues sense. One thing to understand is the camera connects to your phone as if it was a Wi-Fi router, so you can connect to the camera as long as you’re in range of it. Nice feature as I can connect to the camera when my truck is in the garage. BUT you have to know that if your phone is set up to use Wi-Fi to connect to your carrier network (Wi-Fi calling) your phone will not be usable when it’s connected to the camera. Again, not a big deal for me, it’s not like I walk around looking at the camera footage from my dash cam. But I have to remember to disconnect from the camera when I am done. All the images/footage can be downloaded to your phone and reviewed later. Plenty of user settings to configure the camera to your needs. So far I have not been able to find anything really missing at this point. The app is pretty user friendly and easy to navigate. The footage is divided into three groups (Loop, sensor, push button), and so far has captured anything I was looking for. I valet park my truck 46weeks a year and like to be able to review the footage to make sure the valet drivers are not abusing my truck. It also picks up sound which is nice. The camera came with a little button that you push and it auto captures footage and still pictures and will upload them to your phone. At first I thought this was a silly feature and could not see myself using it, but I found that my kid loves it. I have it mounted in the back and he will capture things that are interesting while driving. Keeps him busy and attention on the outdoors instead of a game or tablet. Not a needed function, but I guess this is the “FUN CAMERA” part. Overall if I had one thing that could be changed, it would be the blue light that stays on while in parking mode. At night it can be seen, and draws unnecessary attention to the camera. It is really the only thing that gives the camera away. Without the blue light, the average passerby would never notice the camera. Everyone has different needs when it comes to Dashcam, but for my needs this camera has exceeded my expectations. I also got it while it was on some type of Amazon sale and the price was very reasonable for the functions that it provides. I will try to post a couple pictures in the near future.