In Car Camera System

[craggle]

Mine came with a 16Gb micro SD card which apparently allows 4hrs, 37mins at full HD 30fps quality, It then starts recording over the earliest recordings so it's on a continuous loop. I figure if anything happens you'd probably download the files as soon as you can rather than let it record over them.

You can however reduce the recording quality so if you drop it to what they call a D1 setting at 30fps, Not sure what resolution that is though but that does 17hrs on the same card.

You can also upgrade to a 32Gb card which of course doubles the recording times.

Good to hear you got one too John, To be honest I'm not sure the HD quality is really needed but I intend to try it out in my other car too and thought it might come in handy if I do any track days.

I found the SD card slot OK in mine but you do need to push it in a long way to get it to seat. I used the blade of a small screwdriver in the end but know what you mean, best left in there I think once installed.

Craig.

[johnan]

Mine came with a 16Gb micro SD card which apparently allows 4hrs, 37mins at full HD 30fps quality, It then starts recording over the earliest recordings so it's on a continuous loop. I figure if anything happens you'd probably download the files as soon as you can rather than let it record over them.

You can however reduce the recording quality so if you drop it to what they call a D1 setting at 30fps, Not sure what resolution that is though but that does 17hrs on the same card.

You can also upgrade to a 32G card which of course doubles the recording times.

Good to hear you got one too John, To be honest I'm not sure the HD quality is really needed but I intend to try it out in my other car too and thought it might come in handy if I do any track days.

I found the SD card slot OK in mine but you do need to push it in a long way to get it to seat. I used the blade of a small screwdriver in the end but know what you mean, best left in there I think once installed.

Craig.

My "manual" wants me to format the card once a week for best performance...don't think that is going to happen!

Craig, is it simple to put the cable under the headlining above the screen, and do the side pillar covers just unclip?

I haven't tried to fit anything yet but any advice would be helpful.

Also, does the glue on the sticky pad seem adequate? You had to reposition yours so I suppose you had to use the spare pad that comes with the kit after taking off the original one.

By the way my Sd card is now behaving after taking your advice to use a tool to push it in a little further. Again thanks!

John

[craggle]

Hi John

Good to hear the SD card is better now, It does seem to like a good push to get it to seat properly.

I put a blunt tool (spatula) between the top of the screen and the roof lining and carefully opened up bit of a gap, You don't need much as the cable is only about 4mm round so you can open enough room to slide the cable in quite easily. The door pillar does pull off quite easily if you start at the top. I just popped it away from the car a bit, not all the way then fed the cable in behind and down the gap between the pillar trim and the door seal, That's as far as I've got so far. Hopefully I can hide the rest behind the dash this Saturday.

I ran my cable down the left or passenger side pillar, not sure what was best really but it was on the right side of the mirror.

The sticky pad is very good and is a soft gel type substance but very sticky. I actually managed to peel the mount off the screen and the sticky pad stayed stuck to the mount. I just gave it a few minutes to shrink back to it's original size after it's stretching and then stuck it back on, Holds just fine.

Let us know how you get on.

Craig.

[johnan]

Hi John

Good to hear the SD card is better now, It does seem to like a good push to get it to seat properly.

I put a blunt tool (spatula) between the top of the screen and the roof lining and carefully opened up bit of a gap, You don't need much as the cable is only about 4mm round so you can open enough room to slide the cable in quite easily. The door pillar does pull off quite easily if you start at the top. I just popped it away from the car a bit, not all the way then fed the cable in behind and down the gap between the pillar trim and the door seal, That's as far as I've got so far. Hopefully I can hide the rest behind the dash this Saturday.

I ran my cable down the left or passenger side pillar, not sure what was best really but it was on the right side of the mirror.

The sticky pad is very good and is a soft gel type substance but very sticky. I actually managed to peel the mount off the screen and the sticky pad stayed stuck to the mount. I just gave it a few minutes to shrink back to it's original size after it's stretching and then stuck it back on, Holds just fine.

Let us know how you get on.

Craig.

That is really very helpful, Craig, thanks for such a full reply.

I had to very slightly make the "quick release" mounting more keen to quick release as I found it reluctant to "let go" the camera even when held in my hand.

The free extra mount was the same so I trimmed a tiny bit off the locking peg in both of them to make it easier in future.

I will certainly let you know how I get on putting it in position though I expect you will be well ahead of me!

John

[tarquin]

Talking of Gagets (favourite topic) I bought a great one. A small unit that takes sms txt commands If you were worried about your car being stolen for instance, you could fit it in the start control unit and if it was stolen you simply send your car the command to STOP and it does just that it even txts you back it has done it. Course you can use it for all sorts of stuff like turning you boiler on and off and burglar alarms etc. The list is endless

David

[craggle]

Any more information on that David?

Might be useful and presumably if it works off the mobile network and has a sim card in it, it could be tracked?

Craig.

[johnan]

The wiring and hiding the wires was easier than anticipated so the camera is now operational though I haven't been round the block yet.

So far it has shown me a nice video of the IQ's bonnet and my garage door!

Like you Craig, I have fitted it to the left of the mirror where it is least noticeable but slightly awkward to fit the power cord when re-fitting it, but not a real problem.

I nearly didn't leave enough space for the power connector when trial fitting it, but remembered just in time to move it over a bit clear of the mirror bracketry.

I am waiting for a 16gb micro sd card to come ( that is the biggest mine will take) and once I have formatted it and put the software on it that should be everything up and running.

Getting the best camera angle will take a bit of experimentation I expect.

John

[craggle]

Wow, You have been busy, Done it all before me. :)

My power connection is a bit fiddly too but not too bad once you get a technique. What size memory card did yours come with then, I assume the 16Gb I got was for the HD models only then.

As for the angle I used the logo on the button on the end as a guide and positioned it slightly pointing down from level, only a few degrees I reckon. I think on a normal car you could position it to just see the front of the bonnet but on the iQ the bonnet is more or less invisible unless the camera is pointing straight down!

I'll carry on and try hiding my cables tomorrow as I need the accessory socket free on Sunday for the TomTom, got to drive all the way to Donington park, not for a race, for a training course on Monday.

Craig.

[tarquin]

Craig

Yes, if you use a sim that you have subscribed to a tacking service them double sammy Stop the car with a text and go and get it

David

[johnan]

Wow, You have been busy, Done it all before me. :)

My power connection is a bit fiddly too but not too bad once you get a technique. What size memory card did yours come with then, I assume the 16Gb I got was for the HD models only then.

As for the angle I used the logo on the button on the end as a guide and positioned it slightly pointing down from level, only a few degrees I reckon. I think on a normal car you could position it to just see the front of the bonnet but on the iQ the bonnet is more or less invisible unless the camera is pointing straight down!

I'll carry on and try hiding my cables tomorrow as I need the accessory socket free on Sunday for the TomTom, got to drive all the way to Donington park, not for a race, for a training course on Monday.

Craig.

Craig,

Mine came with a 4gb card, which is probably enough, but I thought I would get a bigger one anyway.

I had the angle too much downwards, as you say just a few degrees below horizontal seems about right.

I have a 1 to 4 way aux. adaptor hidden away so my wiring was just a matter of pluging it in and hiding everything.

I have three other gadgets powered from the socket so for easy fitting and removal I decided on the adaptor.

Nothing is permanent, but not untidy either.

Enjoy your course...I never liked those things!

John

[marcandsebe]

One time I was rear ended in a supermarket carpark, and the man wanted me to give him £600 for his bumper! How many bumpers did he want? He was driving a 2002 corsa, and he actually thought I'd believe a bumper for that would cost £600! Parts gateway has them for £85. Never heard from him since.

Bumpers are more expensive than you think, plus they might have to be painted. Mind you. You said you were rear ended, so wouldn't that be his fault.

[craggle]

Well, Just finished my final camera installation, I would take pictures but as there are no cables at all to be seen, couldn't see the need. :)

I managed to run the cable very easily down the door pillar by the door seal and then across the footwell and into the centre console. Once I popped off the heater control panel and the centre facia panel it was a simple task to connect to the cables on the back of the accessory socket. I decided to strip a small part of the insulation then solder on the new cables rather than cutting the original loom. Put a 1amp inline fuse in the power cable too just incase anything happens to the new cable behind the dashboard which is the same fuse that was originally in the plug to go in the accessory socket.

So, All done now, Maybe the footwell lights next weekend. :)

Craig.

[tarquin]

Excellent install

David

[marcandsebe]

I have been looking at the Roadhawk and Phantom in car cameras and they are quite expensive. I thought I would search on the Apple App Store. I can across InCarDVR and brought it for £1.49. I used it today and it works very well, especially for the low cost. Yes it uses plenty of memory, but I don't want to save the footage. I just delete it straight away. After all, it's only in case of an accident.

[tarquin]

The trouble is. Will you remember to run the app and have it mounted correctly for recording for every journey. If you miss one that could be the one I'm with Peter for it to be successful it had to be a dedicated unit permenantly fitted so no need to have to remember to set it

David

[marcandsebe]

The trouble is. Will you remember to run the app and have it mounted correctly for recording for every journey. If you miss one that could be the one I'm with Peter for it to be successful it had to be a dedicated unit permenantly fitted so no need to have to remember to set it

David

I know what you mean David, but I drive a Nissan Navara and the iQ. The cameras are fairly ugly too. We need you to design a mini camera with hidden DVR and connected to our navigation displays.

Marc

[tarquin]

Thanks, No pressure then

David

[marcandsebe]

Thanks, No pressure then

David

I have now used the iPhone app for a few days. It records video continuously as a temp video, in the event of sharp breaking or a crash it records another segment that it stores. When you exit the app, it deletes the temporary video files. Not bad for £1.49. Only about a litre of diesel.

[tarquin]

I did have a look at it and it does look good. I did download it for free because I have jailbroken mine but again if you are going to rely on it, you need it in place ALL the time and a quick trip down the road your just not going to bother clipping it in the mount, connecting the power lead and running the app. Human nature

David

[MccLtd]

Well sell the Novus Blackvue, sits lovely just below my IQ mirror you would never know its there.

We have tried a few in car cams and so far we find this to be the most reliable.

My daughters just passed her test and we got her a Aygo blue, guess whats behind the mirror?

So far a couple of customers have saved their excess with the video proof from these little devices so they do work and can quite easily pay for themselves should an accident arive thats not your fault.

We created put a video demo on you tube here from one of our older car cams:

http://youtu.be/zxU3bR9JzzA

If your interested in one let me know and I wil sort out fellow IQ drivers a good price.

Dave

[craggle]

Hi Dave

It is indeed a great bit of kit, So far I've only reviewed the film when I thought a saw a tartan patterned iQ coming the other way and didn't believe my eyes but reviewing the film, there it was! :)

Only thing with the films I find is you watch them thinking, *****, how fast was I going, looks like I'm doing warp speed through the high street when in fact you were doing an indicated 26mph!

Maybe it's just seeing it on a smaller screen makes it appear faster?

Craig.

[DFish]

Have you managed any night footage yet? Interested to see what its like at night.

Fish

[craggle]

Hmmm, I should have some on there I think from my motorway trip last week, I'll take the card out tonight and see if I can find any night time footage.

I'll post a picture of the Tartan iQ too if I can find it! :)

Craig.

[craggle]

OK, Here is a screen image from my last night drive.

Probably not a great way to show it really as I was moving at the time and there is street lights but watching the film you can see pretty much as far as you can in the headlight pattern on the road. If I get any better night time images on an unlit road I'll post them, Should be going out Thursday in the dark actually.

Also attached is the patterned iQ. :)

[DFish]

Cheers, next pay packet will see one purchased. :)

As for that iQ.... The owner needs shooting, but if everyone was the same it would be a dull world I guess.

Fish