bruce van

You've probably seen a lot of car dash cam videos on YouTube. They seem to be very popular in Russia.

I'm surprised there is no talk of any factory dash cams from any manufacturers. I asked my wife what she thought about it and if it was an option from the factory if she would be interested.

I think this would be a great option and many people would like to have a factory dash cam so they record their journey and have evidence in the event of an accident. I for one would like to get it.

What are your thoughts on this and what car company do you think will be the first one to offer this?

Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

Saw this article posted today. Ironic

Watch what might be the world's oldest dashcam footage from 1926

The archives of the Fire Department of New York has released footage of a borough department responding to a fire in 1926. In the first of two silent videos, the camera is mounted on the car transporting Fire Chief John Kenlon from the Brooklyn Fire Department to a storage warehouse fire on East 123rd Street. Kenlon's name comes up frequently in the rise of the FDNY during the early part of the 20th century. The date of the video is given as April 24, 1926, and it was not only a remarkably snowy spring day, it could be the first dashcam video ever.

The second video takes us through the entire process of a fire call, from the fire alarm – placed in a box on the street – to the call going to the Manhattan Fire Alarm Telegraph Bureau and then being sent to the stations, and the department fighting the fire.

The low-res screencap above shows the hood of Kenlon's vehicle, with a clanging bell at the front, driving on the sidewalk among pedestrians to get to the fire.

Videos:
http://www.autoblog.com/2013/01/05/w...age-from-1926/

spwolf

if they offer it, it would be $500 :-).

while you can get cheap chinese units for almost nothing

KillaIS250

iTrader: (1)

I would like to see this too. Implementing this technology really wouldn't be that expensive and I think it would be a popular option too. I would personally love to see a system that records video when in motion, and that is also capable of recording rear view camera video when backing up (in case of accident when reversing).

Jewcano

iTrader: (4)

A few of us on here had the idea of an HD 360 cam mounted in the dome center of the car which would record in 360 degrees while driving. We pitched the idea to Lexus and I believe we got a reply back that they don't take ideas from outside sources. I don't understand either though why car companies, especially luxury brands, aren't pioneering the way in this tech .

bruce van

I think the insurance companies would probably benefit most from having this feature in cars. Imagine getting a discount off of your premiums of you had this option in your car. Win Win for everyone.

It's just a matter of time before this becomes an option. I wonder which company will be the first to implement it.

ydooby

It's already being offered from the factory in the flagship model of the Taiwanese Camry Hybrid. Unfortunately it's total crap though. The video quality is horrendous and one cannot view its video content directly on the standard nav screen, but has to take the SD card to a computer in order to view it. The only good thing about it is the fact that it comes pre-installed from the factory so it looks relatively cleanly integrated.



But at least it's a world's first?

ydooby

BTW I suspect that it hasn't been done from the factories in Japan or the Western countries because people there are usually more concerned about privacy and they don't drive in nearly as crazy a manner as those in Russia and Taiwan.

RocketGuy3

iTrader: (1)

I've been wondering about this myself. This seems like something that a lot of consumers (myself included) would definitely have interest in. Having a built-in camera could have a lot of advantages, such as being more conveniently set up, harder to steal, harder to knock out of position, etc. I'd definitely pay for this option if it was done right.

PhilipMSPT

iTrader: (5)

Caveat emptor: although it records video of others, it may also be used against you. It shows proof regarding your driving behavior, speed, distance, reaction time, windows of safety, and such.

Best line of defense: be a defensive driver.

rominl

iTrader: (4)

factory navigation costs 1000s while aftermarket is a fraction of the cost for better features, but factory nav systems still sell very well

integration rules

Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

Even older dashcam footage from 1907

Let the dashcam navel-gazing continue. As the story goes, Australia's National Film and Sound Archive dug up some camera footage in 2008 originally thought to hail from Hobart, Australia. A closer look revealed the images were actually of Vancouver, Canada. In 1907, Seattle filmmaker William Harbeck took his hand-cranked camera aboard one of the city's streetcars and began capturing life as viewed from the streets. The 106-year-old film shows bustling neighborhoods filled with pedestrians, stray dogs and men on bicycles all darting around town. The clip is an interesting glimpse at a life gone by, and predates the claimed oldest dashcam video we showed you before by an impressive 19 years (although obviously it's using a streetcar and not a conventional automobile).

Sadly, chronicler Harbeck met an untimely end. When he was 44 years old, he was commissioned to document the launch of a world-famous ocean liner, a ship that wound up on the bottom of the Atlantic. The name of the vessel? The Titanic.


http://www.autoblog.com/2013/01/08/e...age-from-1907/

LexusT3

Not to bring a tread back from the dead or anything but has anyone heard of this being done by Lexus?

I know there are aftermarket ones out there but there is something about it being integrated that I like.

bagwell

2015 Corvette has it

http://on.aol.com/video/2015-corvett...rful-518077948

LexusT3

The 2015 Corvette version is unreal! The amount of detail is pretty impressive from a factory system.

I want one more for insurance reasons. Living in Toronto driving can be pretty "Interesting" and I'm waiting for the day I get into a fender bender. I was hoping if I had one was ever in a suspicious accident it might help me.

The fraud in this city is crazy: