you have a dash cam because you want to
protect you and your family in case of
accidents or fraud and also to watch
over your vehicle while it is parked out
in the public. that's what you should do
with a dash cam. here are eight things
you should not do with your dash cam.
Frakking Creations! showing you the good
stuff.
number one. not know how to use it
properly.
whether you get someone else to install
your dash cam or you install it yourself,
you need to know how to use it properly.
knowing how to configure it to suit your
needs and also knowing what the lights
and warning beeps and messages mean is
important. it will ensure you don't get
into a situation where you cannot access
the footage you need in case of an
incident. don't forget to try to retrieve
some footage from it before you actually
need it. having to figure it out or
install the app for the first time
during an accident is something you want
to avoid.
number two. not test it regularly.
dash cams like other electronics are
susceptible to heat damage. usage and
heat can also cause the super capacitor
or other components to fail. as a result,
all dash cams will eventually fail and
stop recording properly. other times a
defect or bad install could cause a dash
cam to work only sometimes or stop
working completely.
cheap dash cams also fail much sooner
than high quality ones like the ones I
reviewed. in some cases, the image sensor
has failed, as shown here in footage from
my older, high-end dash cam. the dash cam
was still able to record properly
without giving any warnings, but the
video is corrupt because of the failed
sensor. lesson learned. it is important
that on a regular basis, you are
checking that the dash cam is booting up
and recording properly, the video files
are good in that there are no warning
lights or messages indicating a
malfunction. number three. install on
loose vehicle trim. you want your dash
cam to be installed on a firm and stable
part of the vehicle. when this is not the
case you can get footage that is jittery
or shaky and negatively affects the
sharpness of the video overall, as can be
seen here.
in this case, the dash cam was installed
on the vehicle trim like so. the trim is
not held firm enough to provide good
support for a dash cam. ideally the
windshield is one of the best spots. so
go and check your video footage now if
you haven't already.
note that if your dash cam has a small
LCD screen, do not use it to determine
the steadiness of your footage. the
screen is too small to tell. it may even
be hard to tell on your smartphone, so
you may need to download the footage
onto your laptop or computer to view it
on a larger screen.
number four. not add sun protection.
dash cams run hot and even though some
have high operating temperature ranges,
keeping temps lower can help extend the
life and reliability of the dash cam. in
some models the dash cam will turn
itself off if the temp exceeds the max
temp rating. this means no recordings.
this is where sun protection comes in.
you might want to consider installing
some vinyl wrap that is cut to size to
help block the sunlight from hitting the
dash cam directly. with temperatures
rising around the world, it's not
unrealistic for temperatures to get very
high inside the vehicle and under the
windshield. you only need to feel how hot
your dashboard can get to have an idea.
when installing it make sure not to
block the dash cam's view or to block
your vision of the road or traffic.
Safety first!
number five. ignore warning lights and
messages.
sometimes a single failure happens only
once then goes away. this could be a sign
that something is about to fail. you
would be wise to check up on the dash
cam and the memory card. review old
footage to see if it has been happening
more than expected, currently or in the
past.
other times, the warning message is
indicating that the dash cam or memory
card has actually failed and will need
to be replaced.
this one time, one of my old dash cams
would regularly reboot itself at random
times while I was driving. it was not
consistent and after booting up, it
seemed to be working fine as there were
no more warning messages.
a thorough inspection revealed that the
rear camera had issues and was no longer
recording properly. this resulted in the
rear camera files being corrupt while
also causing the random reboots. number
six. use bad or cheap memory cards.
memory cards used by dash cams are also
susceptible to usage and heat damage
memory cards can only be written to a
certain number of times before they stop
working. high heat is also a contributor
to shorter lifespan of memory cards. both
conditions are typical of dash cam
environments. dash cams run hot from the
amount of processing they do and from
the heat Of the sun, plus they
continually write erase and write data
to the memory card. if you buy cheap low
quality memory cards, then expect them to
fail sooner than high quality ones. if
you have a low quality memory card or
one that is starting to fail, consider
getting a better one before it fails.
I've provided some links to good memory
cards in our video description. if you
are looking for one check those out.
Bonus tip 1. maintenance of your memory card is also
essential to having a properly
functioning dash cam. formatting the card
every so often is a good idea and so is
regularly using software like Hard Disk
Sentinel to test and repair your memory
card.
as a memory card ages it also starts to
slow down, as shown by the darker colored
cells, when running a surface test on it.
this can help you determine if you
should replace the card before it
actually fails. number seven. not check
the vehicle battery.
I have always recommended that dash cams
be installed with a hardwiring kit. this
allows you to take advantage of parking
mode recordings. if you have a dash cam
to protect you while you're driving, not
having it record while parked is a waste.
if your dash cam is hardwired, you should
also check to make sure your vehicle's
battery is in good condition. a battery
in good condition can provide longer
parking mode recording operation. Bonus tip 2.
because batteries typically last up to 5 years,
make sure to test yours if you're
getting close to that. note that there
are auto retailers out there that can
test your battery for free. you just need
to find them. number eight. not have a
spare memory card.
it's a good idea to have a spare memory
card for your dash cam. when you have two
cards you can swap them from time to
time allowing for each one to last
longer. Plus, in a situation where you
want to remove the card to download
footage faster on a computer or laptop,
the spare can be used to allow the dash
cam to continue to run. this is also
useful when one of the cards fails. you
won't have to drive your vehicle without
dash cam protection while you go out to
buy a new one or wait for one to be
delivered. there you go, a quick rundown
of 8 things you should never do with
your dash cam. give us a like and share
the video if you found it useful and
subscribe to get more from us! FRAKKING CREATIONS