Read the 3 stars to 5 stars. There are some great tips on any concerns (as well as valid issues).
1. Boxed well
2. Easy to configure (I did not read the directions), was really plug and play
3. Set the date, time, and I left the stock config's.
4. Used in FL heat, could be an issue eventually with the sun, etc
5. Make sure you get a 32gb mini card (at least), it will not store internally.
6. Play back is easy
06.17.18 Fathers day update
1. Coming back from our trip, the unit works great still.
2. BUT, you will not be happy with the mount.
3. Keep a screw driver handy with you as the two screws that hold the unit in place, continuously need to be tightened.
4. After finding a loves truck stop, purchased a cell phone mount to use.
5. Main unit is great, but having to make something means that the unit still needs some R&D.
6. If you read the reviews, many have ran into the same issue.
07.13.18 UPDATE
1. Company reached out and sent a new mount, I have used it now for over two weeks, what a difference.
2. In fact, ordered another unit last week, it came with the new mount, wife loves it.
Closing- Company customer service is OUTSTANDING. Do not send back your unit if your frustrated, drop them an email, they will take care of you. I will definitely be staying on top of their new products for when my kids are older to drive, everyone gets one
Having recently started driving Uber it occurred to me it would be in my best interest to have a dual dash cam. This got me started doing the research. In this litigious society (no matter what country) a video is worth a thousand words when it comes to the truth.
So, whether having a video record of your ride sharing experience inside the car, or to dispel the “he-said-she-said” debate following a traffic accident, it is clearly in your best interest to be able to produce video proof.
Obviously, not all dash cams are created equal. Consider your needs before making a decision. In my case I needed a “dual” dash cam with a rear facing camera that would work in complete darkness to capture what is going on inside my car. Some “dual” dash cams claim to have wide dynamic range (WDR) and “night mode”. But if you really need a camera that works in the complete darkness you need an infrared (IR) capable camera WITH an infrared light source built in. The Vantrue N2 Pro Dual Dash Cam w/ Infrared Night Vision provides exactly that.
Other dual dash cams typically have a remote rear facing camera, with a long cable to attach it to the main control unit, while the front facing camera will be built into the main control unit that attaches to your dash or windshield. These are intended to allow you to decide where to put the rear facing camera. Typically facing out the rear window to cover what’s happening behind the car. If you wanted to capture the interior of the car you would attach it to the inside of the front windshield facing the interior of the car.
I originally bought a dual dash cam that claimed to have “night vision”. I installed it and found it to be a really nice camera with a lot of features, however neither camera was rated for infrared (IR) light. After I realized it would not work to capture images of the interior of my car in the dark I bought an external IR light source. This did not help. I contacted the manufacturer and they confirmed that the camera was not rated for infrared light!
I ended up sending both the light source and the camera back and bought the Vantrue N2 Pro Dual. This is a FANTASTIC camera. I won’t quote the specs because they are all in the description, it has an amazing field of view on both cameras and extremely high-resolution video capture (1080p in dual camera mode) with all the features of the first camera I bought and more. I also purchased the GPS module. This is a really cool addition to the camera that also helps to set it apart from the rest. It superimposes your exact GPS coordinates into the video along with your speed. There is a really cool software package available to give you map imagery coordinated with your video. The camera will allow you to insert your license plate number which is also superimposed on the video.
In summary, other “dual dash” cameras claim to be a perfect fit for Uber and Lyft drivers but beware, only cameras that specifically state that they are infrared (IR) capable with an integrated IR light source (LEDs) are truly rated to capture images in complete darkness. If you go with a camera that is not rated for IR you will find that unless you are in a brightly lit area, or it is daylight, you will not be able to capture what is going on inside your car!
If I were to find any fault with this particular camera it would be the following:
• Memory card is NOT included. Most of the cheaper cameras come with one (~$13.00 for 32GB)
• GPS is not built in and costs another $22.00
• I would prefer a rearview mirror mount. The ideal position for this camera to mount would be just below the rearview mirror. The suction cup mounts can’t facilitate this.
This camera is on the high end in cost, but in this case you definitely get what you pay for.
- 2 cameras in 1 small lightweight device! They record at the same time and you can watch the 2 videos separately on computer, laptop or phone. Because of this I recommend at least 64 GB micro SD card. I have 16 GB one you can see in the video and it enough for about 12 hours of dual recording. It is not included and you would have to buy it separately;
- amazing night vision quality on both cameras;
- clear instructions come with a quick start guide which makes installation and setup much easier;
- the camera is adjustable many ways, snaps quickly into it's holder unlike some of the others I tried which takes forever to screw in;
- the build in USB port to charge your phone or other device is so incredibly convenient!
This is a great dash cam! Make sure to check the 3 minute video here as well!
I have owned this camera for about two months now and I have no regrets. It is a little pricey, but you get what you pay for. This camera is a dual facing camera with true IR night vision built in. You can get a clear, quality picture of the cab in complete darkness. I would recommend this to anyone driving for Uber or another similar service. The front facing camera is very high quality, you can shoot in HD +, at 30 fps or 1080p at 60 fps all the way down to whatever resolution you need. The camera comes packaged in a quality box with a detailed, easy to understand instruction manual which I recommend that you keep. There's so many options available to set this camera to fit your needs no matter what they are. It has a parking monitor setting that I really like. It will turn on every few minutes as set or when it senses a jolt or abrupt movement as long as it's hooked into a power supply that stays on when the vehicle is off or directly wired into your fuse box. The camera will automatically place a video in a protected folder if it suspects a wreck has occurred so that it doesn't get overwritten by the loop recording if you have it set that way. It can record audio even with the interior camera off if you choose to. I drive a 2015 Subaru Wrx Sti Impreza Limited Edition and although I try not to speed often, I get pulled over constantly. It is the most ticketed car in America according to a study released by insurance.com and I like having the peace of mind knowing that all audio is recorded on my end as well as the officers. I have also found that my car attracts every idiot who thinks they want to race me down public roads. These people (mostly teenagers) will weave in and out of traffic pulling in front of me and slowing down, driving in my blind spot, speeding past me and then slowing down till I come up even with them revving their engine and flying off. I have had everything from pickup trucks to Honda civics, motorcycles to a Range Rover lose their minds when they pull up beside me. With my dash cam going I have the peace of mind that if one of these idiots ends up wrecking we have video evidence of the situation. Also people like to bang the windows hard enough to engage the camera looking inside my car while it's parked at the grocery store. It's a nice car but it's all factory I don't know why everyone wants to play like we are in fast and furious everytime they see it. Thankfully no accidents or damage has occurred, but I have enjoyed being able to show people clear video of the antics. I have found that 1080 @ 60fps is sufficient to give me pictures clear enough to see license plates at night on playback. Honestly I haven't scratched the surface of the options this camera provides. It has a button you can hit while driving to take a photo without pausing recording and much more. I read some reviews complaining about the quality of the mount, but it seems they have fixed that mine sits firmly in place without any problems. In fact I intend to order the mount with GPS installed then it will add information like my location and speed to the video while driving as well as a kit to wire it directly into the cars wiring harness because I don't intend to leave home without it. They also have prompt customer service. I had a question about formatting my SD card because I didn't read my manual and someone answered my email and was able to get me back on track in less than 24hrs. Everyone should have a dash cam and this model has surpassed my expectations. I would recommend this to my family and friends.
Short and Quick Version:
> Very highly recommended. Don't mess with cheapos.
> Setting up is extremely easy. Matter of fact just pop in Micro SD card and that's it.
> Video quality is great. Tiny LCD is very useful. Cabin camera and Audio recording work great.
> The size is really compact, almost disappears/blend in front of the room mirror and behind the glare of the front windshield.
> Quick Start guide may be all you need and it's in English !!! (NOT Chinglish :P)
Now, this is for those (like me) who like to do a bit of research before purchasing anything.
I am not going to go in fast shipping the nice packaging and all that. That was all great! But I am going to break the review down to what I was looking for in a dash camera.
SIZE: I was totally amazed by the size of this thing. Did not expect it to be this small and compact. That was one of my main concern while purchasing a dash cam. My car has been broken into once and the dash cam was stolen. And I think that was mainly because the camera looked just like a GoPro (Yi Smart Dash Camera). Anyways, I installed it right in front of the room mirror and it's really hard to tell if there is something in there or not. It blends with the black back of room mirror and the glare of the front windshield really helps, making it a nice stealthy camera.
BUILD QUALITY: When you are spending like $200 you expect quality. And I have to say this camera is very well built and feels the premium product in the hand. Only time will tell how well it will do in this hot summer and coming cold a$$ winter. But I have a positive feeling that it should definitely hold up.
SETUP: I received my order right before I was leaving to run some errands. I really could not hold myself, so I opened the box turned the camera on and I was on my way within 3-4 minutes. It was super easy to set up. Basically, I did not have to do anything. The factory defaults were just perfect, I basically cycled through all the settings a couple of times and that's it. It has two different places to attach the power cable (nice and long!), on the side of the camera or on the windshield mount! Very cool! So if I wish to take the camera out or detach for whatever reason (data transfer), it is very convenience to do so. The attachment works great.
* The date format is DD/MM/YY which is annoying for me. Common you guys, this is US MM/DD/YY is what we understand here.
VIDEO QUALITY: This is the most important factor when it comes to dash cam. Without a good quality video, the device is useless. I have been recording only in 1440p and it looks really great. I can read license plates just fine, the FOV is enough to cover a good amount of front of the vehicle and night vision is not bad at all (a lot better than I was expecting - not the greatest for sure).
* One gripe about the resolution of the video is you can only record in 1080p 30 when you are also recording cabin (inside). The 1080p 60 and 1440 30 is useless if you want to record inside as well.
DATA TRANSFER: This is really not of my concern at all, because you can pop out the Micro SD from the camera and/or detach the camera very easily from the windshield mount. However, they use Mini USB port, which IMO is ancient. Good thing it comes with a cable and the Micro SD I purchased also came with an adapter. Once again really does not matter but a Micro USB or even Type C would have been great!
EXTRAS: The camera has few more extra features which could be useful for some people. Snapshot, Timelapse and the Parking Mode. Because it has a built-in battery it will record while the vehicle is parked. Timelapse looks really amazing and could be really useful say if you are a Vlogger or just want to make a video of where you going or even what is happening in front of you etc. The User Manual is actually very very useful and totally in English (LOL). It's not Chinglish, great work you guys!
FINAL THOUGHTS: I am glad I purchased this camera instead of messing around with cheaper options. And I highly recommend it to anybody who has a need to record cabin and audio as well as catch those idiot drivers out there. I am giving it Full 5 Stars.
Feature Product
- 【Dual Lens Dash Cam For Uber Lyft Taxi】Best dash cam to record car interior picked by Wirecutter. Based on powerful Novatek NT96660 CPU, advanced Sony Exmor IMX323 sensor (inside car camera) and OV4689 (front car camera) sensor, the front and inside camera simultaneously capture the road front (170°) and inside passenger cabin (140°) in crystal details at dual 1920x1080P 30fps. Or utilize the front cam only to record road front at 2560x1440P@30fps or 1920x1080P@60fps to capture license plates.
- 【Infrared Night Vision w/Sony Sensor】The interior facing camera utilizes a Sony IMX323 sensor, 4 IR LED lights and f/2.0 aperture, which can handle low light conditions and ensures flawless video footage even when the passenger cabin is dark. F/1.8 6-glass lens front facing cam and unique HDR video system automatically balance the light and dark areas of the video.
- 【24 Hours Parking Mode & Auto LCD OFF】24 Hours Motion activated parking mode makes the dual car camera to automatically record when it detects motion in front of your car. Auto start and record when the ignition sparks up. Auto LCD OFF timer ensure you won't be disturbed by another glowing rectangle on your windshield. Ideal for most climates: -4° to 158°F (-20° to 70°C). Excellent audio recording with built in microphone. Time lapse function automatically takes photos at specified intervals.
- 【Looping Recording & G-Sensor & Optional GPS】Seamless Loop Recording overwrites the oldest footage with the newest upon filling a card to capacity. Variable sensitivity G-sensor auto detects sudden shake/collision and emergency locks the footage to "Event File" to prevent that video from an overwrite. Supports up to 256GB microSD cards, recommend samsung evo card. Optional GPS to track the driving route, location and speed(To use GPS function, please buy an extra gps mount Asin: B07CYW6JXW).
- 【Total Peace of Mind w/18m Warranty】Full 18m Warranty, email replies within 24H, and 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Pay less auto insurance, your witness for accidents and insurance claims. Perfect dual lens dash cam for uber, taxis, rideshare, lyft drivers, commuters, and families. Works with 12V and 24V vehicles.
Description
Updated review
It's quite amazing to find a company that takes Pride in their product and their support for their customers there was a design flaw in this GPS mount they took their time and redesigned it remanufactured it shipped it out and fix the problem I am very much impressed fantastic communication throughout the whole process and I ended up with a better design better feeling about my investment in this phenomenal company thank you so much for your patience and your customer service I am now once again a happy customer and will definitely keep referring
the mount come loose and the camera will not hold stable. it is a bad design and the GPS mount is no better. I was not going to post a review but got an email from the seller asking for one . so here it is . it is junk do not order it unless they did the problem. I shuld have returns it but it is hard wires i my car now but it will not hold stedy so it is not good.
Ok. I have a brand new 2018 Shelby GT350 and someone dinged my door HARD the other day down to the metal. No note, no apology, no nothing.
I wanted a camera that was 360 degrees but the ones I looked at fell short on video quality. Then I came across this camera. They say this is for Uber, etc. but seriously, who wouldn't want coverage of your rear and sides?? Cars can rearend you or hit you from the sides even more than the front of the car! We need the full coverage of two cameras!
The Vantrue N2 Pro has TWO 1080p cameras (front and back) almost covering 360 degrees. If anyone hits my door now, I have this camera recording full time. It also completely covers the view out the rear windshield in 1080p so if anyone rear-ends me, it's all on camera. Both my side windows are visible (I can adjust the camera to get more coverage too) so if anyone hits me from the side, it's covered.
I feel much SAFER parking and driving now. Also the camera itself is a deterrent from someone doing something to my car on purpose. Because people can see it (it's very good looking in the windshield) and also has a blue glow on the adapter that may scare people away so they don't mess with my car.
Things I like:
1. Picture quality is 1080p forward AND backward!
2. Sound quality is great.
3. NIGHT VISION for inside car!!!
4. Two cameras simultaneously.
5. Bright colorful images.
6. Lots of features such as auto night vision (so you don't have to set it manually), emergency file protection (if you have a smaller card and you want to protect a segment from being overwritten, etc.
7. It looks good.
8. You can easily move it in all angles. You can also adjust the rear camera separately.
9. Solid build.
10. If you don't want to use the rear camera, you can use super high res for the front (1440p).
I also heard you can save money on car insurance with these so I'm going to call my car insurance tomorrow.
In summary, this is the best dash cam out currently and also covers your rear (no pun intended!). :o)
UPDATE: I also bought the hardwire kit. I'm glad I did because I don't like wires hanging all over and this is a 100% concealed kit. The Vantrue has another port on top for the plug and so you just route the wire along the top of the windshield (it tucks right in without any special tools), then I pulled off my a-pillar cover (just snaps out), pulled off a panel on the side where it vents into the door (also just snaps off), unplugged a fuse and plugged it into the correct wiretap, and then plugged in the Vantrue wiretap and DONE!!! It's a <10 minute job!!!
Highly recommended.
As many others have stated, the default mount of this came loose almost immediately after using it. I bought a replacement, which took a while to arrive - had to come all the way from China. It was slightly annoying, but the new one seems to be much sturdier. I'm just a little annoyed I had to pay more money to fix a known problem. Oh well, they're only an extra 5 bucks or so.
The setup and recording features are pretty straight forward. I'm still a little unclear on exactly what the "parking feature" does exactly, and it wasn't really explained in the manual very well. It basically sounds like it will just record after you turn the car off. Everything else was very clear and apparent. I'm not thrilled about having to manually format the thing every few weeks, as the manufacturer recommends, but I plan on getting in the habit of pulling footage off of it regularly, so it won't be too much of an inconvenience. If you want a set-it-and-forget-it-, though, this might not be the product for you.
The self facing camera is really good. I was surprised at how much of the inside of the car it covers! During one test, I thought I had it pointed solely at me and not the passenger in the passenger seat, but the camera managed to pick up both of us easily.
Sound is really good. Me and my passenger were talking at a normal volume and the camera picked it up really well. This also means it will pick up the radio or whatever you have going in the background.
I'm a little underwhelmed at the lighter-to-mini display cable. It's extremely long, and is meant to wind around the inside of your vehicle. Right now it seems like way too much of a pain to bother, so I just keep a majority of it tied up sitting in a compartment on my dash, and have it dangle down directly from the camera. No big deal, just a little ugly. There are instructions online for a couple of ways to address this. Keep that in mind before buying.
Overall, I recommend getting this dashcam if you are on a budget, just MAKE SURE you pick up an SD card (I went with the 64GB), and the "upgrade" mount. I bought all three separately and had to wait significantly longer then I wanted to because of it.
This is the best dash cam I have had. I know that sounds like I am being paid to say that but this dash cam truly is the best one I've owned. I had to return two different models because they were defective right out of the box, plus their video quality was not very good. The video quality on this is very nice both the daytime and night time video. I turned off the rear facing cam so I could get the 60 FPS on the front facing one which made a very big difference on the quality. It is crystal clear. With my prior two cameras the night time video was terrible to the point of you not being able to see any object unless it was in direct view of your head lights. With this unit you can see everything on the road even outside of direct light.
Just like other reviewers mentioned I had issues with the swivel mount where just days after installing the cam it became very loose. The product support was very responsive and contacted me the following day of reaching out to them. They sent me a replacement the day after I contacted them. The manufacture states that they have been in contact with their supplier to make the swivel out of a different material to prevent this from happening. So if you get one with a defective mount make sure to contact them on their web page and they will make it right.
Pros:
-Great video quality both day and night.
-Good options to tweak your videos.
-Very intuitive and easy to understand controls.
-The buttons are easily accessible and are placed in good positions.
-Excellent customer support.
-Build quality seems very good. The plastic is not cheap plastic that you see in less expensive dash cams.
Cons:
-Somewhat spendy for what you get. At this price point I would expect to have WiFi options and at least a capacitor based system rather than a battery.
-Has a Lithium battery instead of a capacitor. If you know much about batteries you know they don't like heat. Since this is right up on the windshield it will be getting very hot which will probably reduce the life span.
-Included swivel mount is very weak, although the new one is supposed to correct this.
Even with the cons I rated this as a 5 star system mainly because the dash cam works as advertised and the superior video quality compared to my last two dash cams.
Tip:
Just a last tip for people that may not think of this. When you get the dash cam please go to Vantrue's web site and download then install the latest firmware. This firmware update greatly improves the video quality. I'm in the IT field and I always look for updated firmware with my electronics but I'm sure a lot of people don't do this.
Lots of features for the price. 1080p front and interior video, you can even up the resolution and frame rate on the front facing camera as well. The IR light is a must if you want clear (black and white) interior video in the dark. One of the neatest features is that it separates front and interior videos on separate files. It also have an accelerometer so it protects files when there’s an abrupt jolt or stop, like in an accident. It also has parking mode, although it should be turned off unless you wire the camera to constant 12v power. The size is quite small, people can see it’s there, but it’s not an eyesore.
Over all, it is a great dash cam for $200. Remember to buy a micro SD card since it doesn’t come with one. Also there’s a separate GPS mounting unit for $20 if you want GPS stamps on your files.
**update**
My previous review I mentioned the flawed mount, but Vantrue listens to their customers and were quick to update the mount and this one’s ball swivel is way sturdier than the previous one.
If you’re a Vantrue customer and have a bad mount, just like them on Facebook, DM then your amazon order number and they will send you an updated mount for free. Five huge stars for their amazing customer service!
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