[E91 Hoarder]

Originally Posted by cuiter23

Do you have the Version one of the DR400? I heard version 2 fixed the overheating issue.

I have the first version. My friend has the second version. While his does not overheat like mine, it has a lower image quality, especially at night.

[cuiter23]

Originally Posted by bmwforme

i don't understand why this isn't a flourishing competitive market here in the U.S. yet.. I would hope eventually bestbuy will have a section of these, quality tested, and just refined devices.. things are really hit or miss now..

I agree, in many Asian countries the majority of drivers all have dash cams. Most of them cheap ones but nevertheless dashcams.

I think it is a good idea, however, I like to keep my dashcam a secret to everyone else so if anything goes wrong, I can surprise them

[Wai328]

nice review man ..can't wait to get the dr500

[cuiter23]

Originally Posted by Wai328

nice review man ..can't wait to get the dr500

When is it coming out?

[drevil2k2]

Originally Posted by cuiter23

I would love orange to match the interior but I dont think with the new software update we can't change the colour anymore If you find out let me know man!

I have the first generation and didn't do the software update yet. Thanks for the heads up. My software version is 1.038-400E BTW

[bmwforme]

considering getting one, was there ever a solution to the power cutting off issue?

[cuiter23]

Originally Posted by bmwforme

considering getting one, was there ever a solution to the power cutting off issue?

The power cutting off is not an issue. The power box lets you set a desired voltage or certain time in which it cuts off. I set mine to 12V because its winter. It usually lasts about 30-40hours when the car is parked which is quite a long time.

You can always opt out of buying the power kit. Your camera will only activate when your car is on so you can't use the parking mode without the power kit. You also cannot hardwire it if you choose not to buy the power kit so there will be a cable running down from the camera to the power outlet of your car.

I definitely recommend it, and as stated before, the power cutting not an issue. Just depends on your battery, how long its been charged for etc etc. You can set the voltage lower so it will run for longer but I am just playing it safe

[nukezero]

This is pretty awesome. May I ask, how did you hardwire it? Did you use the fuse box and where is the fuse box located? underneath the driver footwell?

Were you able to hide the wires ?

Also, whats the difference between the 380G and the CR500 ? It's a 130 dollars more, seems like just 1080P vs. 720P?

[Das_Stig]

love that these have g sensors for parking modes now, would take a lot of worry away parking on these streets.

[cuiter23]

Originally Posted by nukezero

This is pretty awesome. May I ask, how did you hardwire it? Did you use the fuse box and where is the fuse box located? underneath the driver footwell?

Were you able to hide the wires ?

Also, whats the difference between the 380G and the CR500 ? It's a 130 dollars more, seems like just 1080P vs. 720P?

I live in Vancouver so the distributor here did it free for me although you can hardwire it yourself it will not be too hard

Here is a tutorial:

Our batteries are located in the trunk on the right side. There is a area you can turn the knob and take a part of the trunk off and you will see the batteries. The wires are hidden 100%, cannot see it at all from the inside or the outside, perfect install hahah.

Well the 380 is compared to the 400, the only difference is 720p vs 1080p. Difference is not big enough to justify the price tbh. The CR500 is the finevu and it is coming out soon i think. I would go for the blackvues for a dashcam, Finevues are better for interior recordings.

[cuiter23]

Originally Posted by Das_Stig

love that these have g sensors for parking modes now, would take a lot of worry away parking on these streets.

Yea man, you can also set the sensitivity of the sensors so any hit or bump to your car will immediately trigger the emergency recording

[nukezero]

also, what happens when you run out of memory and recording space? Does it start to over-write the video files? Or do you have to manually clear the files ? Does it tell you when it runs out of recording space?

Liek how much maintenance do you have to do , say when you drive every day of the week. Do you ahve to go in and clear those files or it just keeps over-writing in a circular buffer?

[cuiter23]

Originally Posted by nukezero

also, what happens when you run out of memory and recording space? Does it start to over-write the video files? Or do you have to manually clear the files ? Does it tell you when it runs out of recording space?

Liek how much maintenance do you have to do , say when you drive every day of the week. Do you ahve to go in and clear those files or it just keeps over-writing in a circular buffer?

No maintenance at all, it just over-writes everything. Once in parking mode and you drive off, it will automatically detect you are in motion and it will change to normal driving mode automatically and will notify you by speech as well!

[nukezero]

It seems like they don't sell the 280/300 much anymore. It's been replaced by the 400 model, but the 400 series appears to have overheating issues.

damn

[cuiter23]

Originally Posted by nukezero

It seems like they don't sell the 280/300 much anymore. It's been replaced by the 400 model, but the 400 series appears to have overheating issues.

damn

They don't sell 400 v1 anymore. Overheating issue has been resolved on the DR-400G II has been resolved.

I just realized BBMC ran out of stock for the 380s, I am pretty sure they will restock soon.

[nukezero]

Is your unit wired straight to the battery using the power magic kit or did you wire straight to the fuse box in the glove compartment box? Deciding if I should buy the power kit, but don't know if it is needed and whether or not it will drain the battery.

There is a youtube video saying the BMW's must be wired straight to battery because the electronics shut off the power to the fusebox.

[pepsih]

Originally Posted by nukezero

Is your unit wired straight to the battery using the power magic kit or did you wire straight to the fuse box in the glove compartment box? Deciding if I should buy the power kit, but don't know if it is needed and whether or not it will drain the battery.

There is a youtube video saying the BMW's must be wired straight to battery because the electronics shut off the power to the fusebox.

I personally run the wire from the battery, i couldn't find any fuse that doesn't shut off after couple of minutes...
I have the power magic box setup for (as i remember 6 hours) and you can setup the voltage as well.

[pimp4cheddar]

Just curious...what's the point of these cams?

Obviously they help in an accident as people tend to lie...but any other reason?

[drevil2k2]

Originally Posted by pimp4cheddar

Just curious...what's the point of these cams?

Obviously they help in an accident as people tend to lie...but any other reason?

Pretty much it, there are lots of scams and careless (irresponsible - opps I bumped your car...move along...) people. Keeps the other party involved a little more objective.

I know that a private investigator uses one, but not sure if he uses the footage from the cam in addition to his own surveillance recordings.

[nukezero]

Originally Posted by pimp4cheddar

Just curious...what's the point of these cams?

Obviously they help in an accident as people tend to lie...but any other reason?

Because another usage for this is to capture crazy stuff on camera, especially on the road. Then you can make big BUCKS $$$ like in California where we got crazy drivers killing people and taking off. (i.e. farmers market,

For example, if you filmed a traffic accident of some dude hitting a pedestrian and he takes off, you've got it on camera. You could sell the video to the lawyers and victim and take 1/4 of settlement just because you provided irrefutable proof. It's a money maker and the first settlement money will more than likely pay for the camera by 10 fold.

I always wanted one but I figured they were very expensive and the interface were difficult to install/use. Now it seems like

[E91 Hoarder]

There is another long thread somewhere here, search for 'blackvue' - there is plenty info on installation, wiring etc.

Generally speaking, a dashcam is a very good surveilance tool and $200-$300 is a reasonable investment. Especially in case you need to prove something and need an evidence. If you track your car, it could be another use case for it istead of gopro.

[cuiter23]

Originally Posted by drevil2k2

Pretty much it, there are lots of scams and careless (irresponsible - opps I bumped your car...move along...) people. Keeps the other party involved a little more objective.

I know that a private investigator uses one, but not sure if he uses the footage from the cam in addition to his own surveillance recordings.

hit and runs, car being keyed etc. The parking mode is a handy feature to capture individuals and hold them accountable to their actions.