Loop recording records 3-minute clips and deletes old recordings as space is needed (single-button file protection saves important clips from deletion)
Motion detection recording
Beeps when the car in front of you at a light starts to move
Reminds you to put on headlights when the night comes
Automatically saves the current file if gravity sensor detects a collision
LCD Display: 2″ TFT panel, 480 x 272 pixels resolution
Here’s an example where a guy stops and then goes in reverse. Once the cops get there, it would look like you rear-ended someone. With the camera, it would be clear it was his scam/fault.
@cengland0@cengland0 A long time ago a car magazine pundit said that the best way to ensure safe and defensive driving was to put a spike in the center of the steering wheel, aimed at the driver.
Dashcams are a good substitute and more compatible with airbags. You don’t want to damn yourself with the video, so drive like everyone around you is an insurance scammer trying to make you hit them (there are a lot of them out there and they “get whiplash” from a hard stop with no contact.
@TechnicGeek - The spike doesn’t ensure safety of THAT driver, it’s a driver of defensive driving by the driver. Deciding to drive defensively defends the driver from the device driving a divot in the driver.
Has to be better than those ones they sold a while ago that strap on to the front of your mirror and were tinted blue so you couldn’t see shit at night or wearing sunglasses during the day, practically guaranteeing an accident
@pitamuffin At some places around here, the + might be the fee for not stealing your hubcaps after they wash everything. So yeah, you may be on to something.
@craigthom The other night I was driving home and, while my turn signals were blinking, they were not making a sound in doing so. I was FREAKING OUT, MAN!
I paid $70 for a Yi Action Cam a couple years ago. The biggest downside with that it has no screen. But it does take nice photos too and you can put scripts on the SD card to make it act like a dash cam and do other things.
@medz that was the default date and timestamp out of the box. Sorry was feeling lazy that day. And today too incidentally. Maybe its a chronic issue now that I think about it.
@brogers This is an important question for me. The 720p Arduro (sp?) dash cam I have does not maintain the date and time and thus all videos it records start way back in 2012 or whenever.
If this camera has the same issue, I am definitely not interested in it.
@baqui63 this dash cam doesn’t appear to have that issue. my sample was factory reset which is why it has the 1/1/14 date. if you buy and encounter any issues just let us know (but don’t think you will)!
@ruouttaurmind let me check with the manufacturer on the frame rate. pretty sure the sample video was 1080p…i would check the setting on the camera, but that sample was donated to charity. brb
does it only record in 3 minute loops or longer in another mode? One I have now can record 20+ hours continuously (not that anyone could drive that long at once). And only a 32 gig card max seems like 3 years ago technology. 2 of the big brand cards may not work? What’s up with that? And I see the manufacturer has supreme confidence in these refurbs only for 30 days. Yikes. Time to move along now…
I’ve been close to buying a Papago dashcam in the past. But didn’t pull the trigger because there always seemed to be an issue or missing feature mentioned in just enough of reviews.
Is there such a thing as a truly 5-star dashcam at a reasonable price? It doesn’t seem like difficult tech for the right engineers with a Chinese plant on the payroll.
@RedOak 5-star dash cam, yes. Dash cam at a reasonable price, ya. 5-star dash cam at a reasonable price? If it’s out there, I surely haven’t found it yet. And I been looking with intent.
@RedOak With dashcams you do get what you pay for, so if you want something 5 star like a high end Blackvue you are going to shell out more coin.
Personally I say it is worth splurging on a good cam, as you reduce the chance of some type of failure to record an event. It isn’t worth the risk to save a couple bucks in my opinion.
That’s a truism and applies to everything. There is nothing expensive inside a dashcam, no reason they can’t be done well for 50 bucks or less.
Aye! Ya speak the truth. If “they” can make the crap ones and sell for $10-$15, surely it’s possible to turn one out with decent performance and good quality for $40-$50.
There are a couple decent alternatives to the GoPro cameras, but for 1/4 the price. Why not this market as well. After all, the imaging tech is the same.
@baqui63 yep, thanks - I googled the model and should have included the link in my response. I get more and more picky as the spend on a gadget goes over $30-40. Gonna wait…
@RedOak I read all the reviews a few months ago on the Yi. Biggest issues mentioned in the reviews: “poor image when unit gets hot”, “internal battery exploded from the heat”, “case melted from the heat”. I’m in the Arizona desert, so there’s no avoiding the heat.
I wonder if companies research names before they use them. I’m sure I can call this a Southern AZ problem, but Papago was the old name for the Tohono O’odham tribe members that live here. The word roughly means “bean eaters”, so I can understand why it fell out of favor and can now be considered an insult.
I guess you can cover it in black tape if you happen to live around here.
Google “ibeat blaxx” to read about another unfortunate product name.
talk about unfortunate product names:
on Amazon-
PUNICOK
Bluetooth Music Speaker，Bluetooth V4.0 Portable Speaker with HD Sound and Bass,Hi-Fi Portable Wireless Stereo Speaker By PUNICOK,Compatible with iPhone, iPad, Samsung and More
Did not one single English speaking employee raise their hand and say ummmm, maybe another name?
Too late, already have have a dash cam in my car. Wish I had it that time a car was weaving in and out of traffic and flipped over several times right in front of me. It was awesome … the driver lived too.
PAPA-go? What a sexist camera. Thanks for assuming all driving is done by the males of the household. Where is the equivalent MAMA-go? Amazing half of the camera market is eliminated. Can this be used by my wife while pregnant and acting as the sober driver? I do not see this listed in the features. Must know! Thank you.
Stock photo of what it looks like in front of my rearview mirror. With the advent of all the safety features cars now have positioned in the same spot, attaching a cam like this to the mirror is absolutely useless.
@medz I’m guessing this will be the norm soon enough. Considering I drive about 25k miles a year, I’m sticking with the safety features and a dash mounted camera.
@cinoclav cars are offering way too many options that we don’t need and also the more “bells and whistles” that we opt for there are more things that can break. My ? is don’t some vehicles already have dash cams installed? I think they should be standard.
@growyoungagain I do tend to hesitate with the options for just that ‘more things to break’ reason. However in this case, what’s embedded up there are definitely worthwhile safety features, including lane departure warnings and ‘Smart City Brake Support’ which responds even faster than my quick reflexes are capable of doing. As far as I know, the only car with a built in dash cam (as an option) is the C7 Corvette. It’s part of their ‘Performance Data Recorder.’ It’s a wonderful idea though which I’d bet would result in a real world reduction of false insurance claims. Most people don’t know that modern cars have a ‘black box’ that records a lot of vital info which is particularly useful in case of an accident. If a built in dash cam stored the footage where the driver was unable to access it, they may think twice about doing something stupid knowing all this information could make them liable.
Can you reverse it to show what is happening inside the car? Because the real reason you need a dash cam these days is if the cops pull you over and wind up shooting you for looking at them sideways or something.
@medz statistically you are probably right, for a middle-aged white woman such as myself. Young black man, maybe not so much. But if we weight the statistical likelihood of use by importance in the grand scheme of things, it still qualifies as a darn good reason. Though, admittedly, importance in the grand scheme of things is kind of at odds with everything meh stands for.
@alisonacase I’d wager that the typical black bloke would still capture more interesting things with the camera pointed forward vs inside the car. Unless they’re an Uber driver…
Well it’s quite a bit more than 50 bucks but I got a Garmin nuviCam LMTHD 6" GPS Navigation Built-in Dashcam Maps HD Traffic Refurb for just over 200.00 w/free shipping over at ebay a few monts ago and am very happy with the dashcam part as well as all the other stuff with it. (Just saying)
My dash cam got me on the local news. A chunk of pavement was launched from the car in front of me and smashed a hole in my windshield. A few months later the news ran a story about it because someone was actually knocked out from a chunk going through their window. I sent my clip in. They stopped by to do a quick interview
Anyone having issues with the internal battery? I drive an hour to work, shut the car off and turn it right back on and the date and time need reset because the internal battery was DOA. Anyone else?
This camera is a piece of crap and the company does not support it. Bought one, lasted 2 days, contacted MEH and they said ‘no our problem’. Contacted the company and they said, ‘you broke it’. To Bad for You! They suck. DO NOT BUY FROM THEM EVER!!!
Specs
What’s in the Box?
1x Dashcam
1x Car charger (plugs into cigarette lighter)
1x Rear view mirror clip
Pictures
Camera
Crap
Ports
Screen slides out
Clip
IDK
Mario Kart prop for scale
Smokey and the Bandit
Price Comparison
$119.99 (new) at Amazon
Warranty
30 Days Papago
Estimated Delivery
Monday, July 13th - Thursday, July 16th
Nope
I use my dash camera in case someone claims it’s my fault on an accident. I should be able to prove it wasn’t (as long as it really wasn’t my fault).
Here’s an example where a guy stops and then goes in reverse. Once the cops get there, it would look like you rear-ended someone. With the camera, it would be clear it was his scam/fault.
@cengland0 @cengland0 A long time ago a car magazine pundit said that the best way to ensure safe and defensive driving was to put a spike in the center of the steering wheel, aimed at the driver.
Dashcams are a good substitute and more compatible with airbags. You don’t want to damn yourself with the video, so drive like everyone around you is an insurance scammer trying to make you hit them (there are a lot of them out there and they “get whiplash” from a hard stop with no contact.
@duodec How does spike in the center of the steering wheel ensure safety of driver?
@TechnicGeek - The spike doesn’t ensure safety of THAT driver, it’s a driver of defensive driving by the driver. Deciding to drive defensively defends the driver from the device driving a divot in the driver.
@aetris how much defense would a driver drive if a driver could drive defense?
@bigjonroberts - How many definite dangers would a defensive driver defy if a driver did drive defensively?
@aetris DAMN DUDE
@nfi - Delighted!
PAPACOMEBACK
@awk PAPAdon’tpreach
@awk Papa was a rolling stone?
Maybe? To much?
Papa bless?
@Thumperchick I’m in trouble deep
@awk PAPPAGONE
@awk PapaSlam!
@awk Papa Crazy!
Papa no
Has to be better than those ones they sold a while ago that strap on to the front of your mirror and were tinted blue so you couldn’t see shit at night or wearing sunglasses during the day, practically guaranteeing an accident
@styloroc that’s what I’m thinking of replacing…
Not at this price point, get me a decent 720p dash cam at say $35 and I’m in
I watched the video and now I want some Taco Casa. They don’t have them in Ohio, though. Darn.
@DJ
I thought Ohio had everything!
Oh, right. “Everything” doesn’t mean everything. That’s everything +.
@DJ I saw the video and thought the name was Taco Caca, which really made no sense to me.
@DJ I watched the video and now I want to see the car wash.
@DJ There are a few Taco Casas in Cincinnati, which is in Ohio FYI
@ElCoolio417 that’s North Kentucky…
@ElCoolio417 Same name, different place. The ones in Texas are legit. Unfortunately the Cincinnati area ones are blah.
Just like PaPa John’s Pizza… this sucks and it’s over priced
I need to know how the everything plus dilemma is resolved. Everything is everything! What could you possibly add to it?
@djslack the everything/everything+ paradox lives on with no resolution in sight unfortunately
@djslack Plus a little something removed? So everything+ is < everything. Less is more…or is it?
@pitamuffin At some places around here, the + might be the fee for not stealing your hubcaps after they wash everything. So yeah, you may be on to something.
I’ve been wanting a good, low profile 1080p dash cam, but not willing to pay $64 for one. Especially not a refurb. Sorry Meh.
@mbimeh Yeah- I might’ve bitten if it weren’t refried…
@mbimeh Get the Yi dashcam. 1080p60, 165 degrees, and only $50
@mbimeh Had a look at one of these and was quite amused by the “2-Year Accident Protection for $3.99”
Whoever’s papa - how can go if recertified and clipped-on? Was LORA before and hence recertified?
@givemehdeal I dated a lady named Lora once. She was definitely in need of certifying!
/giphy nutty as a fruitcake
I’ll buy it for $50. No more.
I don’t hear a turn signal in that sample video.
@craigthom I noticed that too and he didn’t go into the turn lane until the very last moment.
@cengland0 With a child in the car!
@craigthom It might not be much of a dashcam either.
@craigthom The other night I was driving home and, while my turn signals were blinking, they were not making a sound in doing so. I was FREAKING OUT, MAN!
Thanks for letting me get this off my chest.
I paid $70 for a Yi Action Cam a couple years ago. The biggest downside with that it has no screen. But it does take nice photos too and you can put scripts on the SD card to make it act like a dash cam and do other things.
The sample video shows 1/1/2014. Is the date stored in volatile memory that gets reset every time it loses power?
Also no built-in battery, apparently.
@medz that was the default date and timestamp out of the box. Sorry was feeling lazy that day. And today too incidentally. Maybe its a chronic issue now that I think about it.
@brogers This is an important question for me. The 720p Arduro (sp?) dash cam I have does not maintain the date and time and thus all videos it records start way back in 2012 or whenever.
If this camera has the same issue, I am definitely not interested in it.
@baqui63 this dash cam doesn’t appear to have that issue. my sample was factory reset which is why it has the 1/1/14 date. if you buy and encounter any issues just let us know (but don’t think you will)!
Nope. The Amazon feedback is all suspect, since none of them are “verified purchase” reviews.
@mistamoose Only 5 reviews too.
@mistamoose Fakespot gives the reviews a D “Our analysis detected 40.0% low quality reviews”
No mention of the 1080p frame rate. The assumption is 30fps, but I don’t want to spend $64 on an assumption.
Any mehxperts know the actual FHD frame rate?
@brogers, if I understand what I’ve read here, you were the buyer? Can you answer the question regarding 1080p frame rate?
Also, was your example video recorded at 1080p or 720p?
Thank you in advance!
@ruouttaurmind let me check with the manufacturer on the frame rate. pretty sure the sample video was 1080p…i would check the setting on the camera, but that sample was donated to charity. brb
@ruouttaurmind it’s 30 fps @ 1080p
@brogers
TY!
@brogers Poor people need dash cams too!
does it only record in 3 minute loops or longer in another mode? One I have now can record 20+ hours continuously (not that anyone could drive that long at once). And only a 32 gig card max seems like 3 years ago technology. 2 of the big brand cards may not work? What’s up with that? And I see the manufacturer has supreme confidence in these refurbs only for 30 days. Yikes. Time to move along now…
@beagleboy99 Probably 3 minutes per file.
Yes, the 30 day warranty is the biggest pause. It suggests to me too that the manufacturer has very little faith in their own product.
I’ve been close to buying a Papago dashcam in the past. But didn’t pull the trigger because there always seemed to be an issue or missing feature mentioned in just enough of reviews.
Is there such a thing as a truly 5-star dashcam at a reasonable price? It doesn’t seem like difficult tech for the right engineers with a Chinese plant on the payroll.
@RedOak 5-star dash cam, yes. Dash cam at a reasonable price, ya. 5-star dash cam at a reasonable price? If it’s out there, I surely haven’t found it yet. And I been looking with intent.
@ruouttaurmind Ditto on the search…
@RedOak With dashcams you do get what you pay for, so if you want something 5 star like a high end Blackvue you are going to shell out more coin.
Personally I say it is worth splurging on a good cam, as you reduce the chance of some type of failure to record an event. It isn’t worth the risk to save a couple bucks in my opinion.
@RedOak Get the Yi dashcam. 1080p60, 165 degrees, and only $50
@Froggy
That’s a truism and applies to everything. There is nothing expensive inside a dashcam, no reason they can’t be done well for 50 bucks or less.
With all the competition it will happen.
@Naivatkal that #1 Amazon seller looks promising but there are enough credible sounding negative reviews to block it for me.
@RedOak
Aye! Ya speak the truth. If “they” can make the crap ones and sell for $10-$15, surely it’s possible to turn one out with decent performance and good quality for $40-$50.
There are a couple decent alternatives to the GoPro cameras, but for 1/4 the price. Why not this market as well. After all, the imaging tech is the same.
@redoak, this is the camera that @Naivatkal means (I think): https://www.amazon.com/YI-1080P60-Dashboard-G-Sensor-Recording/dp/B01C89GCHU
@baqui63 yep, thanks - I googled the model and should have included the link in my response. I get more and more picky as the spend on a gadget goes over $30-40. Gonna wait…
@RedOak I read all the reviews a few months ago on the Yi. Biggest issues mentioned in the reviews: “poor image when unit gets hot”, “internal battery exploded from the heat”, “case melted from the heat”. I’m in the Arizona desert, so there’s no avoiding the heat.
I wonder if companies research names before they use them. I’m sure I can call this a Southern AZ problem, but Papago was the old name for the Tohono O’odham tribe members that live here. The word roughly means “bean eaters”, so I can understand why it fell out of favor and can now be considered an insult.
I guess you can cover it in black tape if you happen to live around here.
Google “ibeat blaxx” to read about another unfortunate product name.
talk about unfortunate product names:
on Amazon-
PUNICOK
Bluetooth Music Speaker，Bluetooth V4.0 Portable Speaker with HD Sound and Bass,Hi-Fi Portable Wireless Stereo Speaker By PUNICOK,Compatible with iPhone, iPad, Samsung and More
Did not one single English speaking employee raise their hand and say ummmm, maybe another name?
Is recertified the same as respiffied?
Woo Hoo! Not interested! Get to save my money… get to save my money!
Finally, a size comparison with a bana… what? … a Mario Kart prop?! NOOOO!!!
Too late, already have have a dash cam in my car. Wish I had it that time a car was weaving in and out of traffic and flipped over several times right in front of me. It was awesome … the driver lived too.
Anyone think the motorcycle gif is real? The driver of the car does not even flinch. Hard to imagine not hitting the brakes in that situation.
@sourhead They did hit the brakes, it is more visible in the video -
PAPA-go? What a sexist camera. Thanks for assuming all driving is done by the males of the household. Where is the equivalent MAMA-go? Amazing half of the camera market is eliminated. Can this be used by my wife while pregnant and acting as the sober driver? I do not see this listed in the features. Must know! Thank you.
I was looking forward to taking a high-def trip through the car wash
Stock photo of what it looks like in front of my rearview mirror. With the advent of all the safety features cars now have positioned in the same spot, attaching a cam like this to the mirror is absolutely useless.
@cinoclav Drive a less fancy car.
/giphy solved
@medz I’m guessing this will be the norm soon enough. Considering I drive about 25k miles a year, I’m sticking with the safety features and a dash mounted camera.
@cinoclav cars are offering way too many options that we don’t need and also the more “bells and whistles” that we opt for there are more things that can break. My ? is don’t some vehicles already have dash cams installed? I think they should be standard.
@growyoungagain I do tend to hesitate with the options for just that ‘more things to break’ reason. However in this case, what’s embedded up there are definitely worthwhile safety features, including lane departure warnings and ‘Smart City Brake Support’ which responds even faster than my quick reflexes are capable of doing. As far as I know, the only car with a built in dash cam (as an option) is the C7 Corvette. It’s part of their ‘Performance Data Recorder.’ It’s a wonderful idea though which I’d bet would result in a real world reduction of false insurance claims. Most people don’t know that modern cars have a ‘black box’ that records a lot of vital info which is particularly useful in case of an accident. If a built in dash cam stored the footage where the driver was unable to access it, they may think twice about doing something stupid knowing all this information could make them liable.
Just saw this on amazon. How do they match up? https://www.amazon.com/Screen-G-Sensor-Recording-Parking-Version/dp/B071YLCX2Y/ref=sr_1_33_sspa?ie=UTF8&qid=1505400476&sr=8-33-spons&keywords=vga+switch&psc=1
@jaybird Better idea, why don’t you tell us how they match up since you found it?
@jaybird How do they match up jaybird?
@cinoclav ha ha, it was rhetorical since i’m not buying either.
how about this $50 one from Magellan at Yugster…
https://www.yugster.com/daily-deal/77752-magellan-mivue-1080p-hd-dash-camera-with-built-in-gps-and-2-4-display
@ozob Those are the same ones woot! was hawking for the last few months.
Can you reverse it to show what is happening inside the car? Because the real reason you need a dash cam these days is if the cops pull you over and wind up shooting you for looking at them sideways or something.
@alisonacase Statistically speaking, I don’t think this is accurate.
@medz statistically you are probably right, for a middle-aged white woman such as myself. Young black man, maybe not so much. But if we weight the statistical likelihood of use by importance in the grand scheme of things, it still qualifies as a darn good reason. Though, admittedly, importance in the grand scheme of things is kind of at odds with everything meh stands for.
@alisonacase I’d wager that the typical black bloke would still capture more interesting things with the camera pointed forward vs inside the car. Unless they’re an Uber driver…
Well it’s quite a bit more than 50 bucks but I got a Garmin nuviCam LMTHD 6" GPS Navigation Built-in Dashcam Maps HD Traffic Refurb for just over 200.00 w/free shipping over at ebay a few monts ago and am very happy with the dashcam part as well as all the other stuff with it. (Just saying)
My dash cam got me on the local news. A chunk of pavement was launched from the car in front of me and smashed a hole in my windshield. A few months later the news ran a story about it because someone was actually knocked out from a chunk going through their window. I sent my clip in. They stopped by to do a quick interview
Anyone having issues with the internal battery? I drive an hour to work, shut the car off and turn it right back on and the date and time need reset because the internal battery was DOA. Anyone else?
This camera is a piece of crap and the company does not support it. Bought one, lasted 2 days, contacted MEH and they said ‘no our problem’. Contacted the company and they said, ‘you broke it’. To Bad for You! They suck. DO NOT BUY FROM THEM EVER!!!
@ericrhenley Thanks for the feedback. 30 days warranty?
I will say that meh usually won’t let you get boned.
Not only boned, but I had to buy more lube!
@ericrhenley oh dude…that is truly boned.
@ericrhenley OK, I’m going to evoke @Dave here…dude is truly boned Dave!
@therealjrn Maybe he did break it?