DVR for the car. How to choose?

Every year the situation on the roads becomes more and more complicated and difficult: more and more cars and drivers with different skills. Accordingly, on the road more often there are traffic jams and various dangerous situations leading to accidents. Unfortunately, police officers can not always reason with the participants of the incident fairly.

In order to avoid road disputes and have the opportunity to analyze everything normally, most motorists buy DVRs. These are special cameras, which are often installed on the windshield or dashboard. With the help of such devices, a continuous recording of everything that is happening on the road is made. Therefore, when a controversial situation arises, you can always show substantial evidence and prove your case.

Registrar selection criteria

Immediately worth noting that the cheapest DVRs do not need to buy, because they are unlikely to last longer than six months, and a quality device should work without interruption for at least several years. At 130.com.ua you can buy DVR in Kharkov, Odessa, Kiev with delivery to Ukraine.

First of all, consider the items that directly affect the quality of the captured video.

Matrix

The first, on, what you need to pay attention to when choosing is the resolution of the matrix. Bad recording quality can seriously complicate the process of watching videos to identify the causes of the accident. Now few companies produce registrars, which are removed with a quality below the average (except for Chinese "noounaims"). Modern devices write video in Full HD format with 30, and even higher frames per second. In this case, slow browsing will help not only to accurately see the whole picture, but it will also be a pleasant experience. Often happens and such that on the box with the inscription Full HD may simply not be the quality that the buyer expects.

The fact is that to shoot a Full HD video it's enough to have a matrix with a resolution of 2.1 MP (to check this, multiply 1920 by 1080). Therefore, the presence of a matrix of five megapixels does not mean that the quality will be better than the 3-megapixel matrix. To remove the quality of HD in general enough matrix in 1 megapixel.

At the moment, most models use a 3-megapixel matrix.

Processor

If the processor is modern, it guarantees high device speed, stability and excellent video recording quality. The old and slow processor will not be able to record in high resolution and with a lot of frames. In addition, the new video will be recorded with a pause from one to four seconds after the previous one, and after all, anything can happen in those seconds.

The most popular DVRs are equipped with Ambarella processors, and budget models are based on Novatek processors.

Optics

The quality of the recording depends directly on the optics. Many DVRs that are on the market have plastic optics. Such optics have one significant disadvantage - over time the lens becomes cloudy and dim and degrades the quality of video recording. To date, there are enough models with a glass lens, which greatly improves the quality of recording at night, as well as in cloudy weather.

Viewing Angle

The angle of view depends on how much space gets into the frame. The larger the viewing angle, the more objects around the machine will be fixed on the video. This information is extremely useful in case pedestrians jump out onto the roadway in order to make a base with subsequent extortion. Usually, in the DVR, the viewing angle is 120 ° diagonally. Many manufacturers specify the angle exactly on the diagonal, since it is larger than horizontally.

An important feature of all DVRs is that at HD resolution the viewing angle will be larger (about 105 ° horizontally in the resolution of 1280x720 video) than when shooting in Full HD (about 95 ° horizontally in the video resolution of 1980x1080).

We recommend choosing a DVR with a maximum viewing angle (approximately 150 ° diagonally and 120 ° horizontally). With such an angle, the effect of the "fish eye" is not very pronounced, and at the same time, at a distance of 1-2 meters in front of the car, one can already see neighboring bands on the road and the roadside.

Display

To date, the most common are 3 types of DVRs:

1. Devices with a built-in display case

Often the presence of a screen affects the overall dimensions of the DVR, but this is usually not a criterion in the choice. But, despite this, before buying, you need to make sure that the display automatically goes out after a while, otherwise at night it will constantly distract the driver from the road.

2. Devices with integrated folding display

In this case, the screen is usually folded from the bottom panel and does not interfere with the driver. The advantage of this design is the reduced size.

3. Devices without display

DVRs without a display are still a minority, because in order to configure them, you need a smartphone, tablet or laptop, which not everyone has. On models that do not have Wi-Fi or Bluetooth-modules to watch the video or configure the DVR, it is necessary to pull out the "flash drive" and insert it into the smartphone, which, believe me, is not very convenient. When the recorder supports a Wi-Fi connection, everything is greatly simplified without unnecessary inconvenience. The device is configured only once, and for the rest of the operating time it simply hangs and removes.

Memory

The memory that is required for video recording plays a very important role. The DVRs use SD or MicroSD memory cards, the choice of which is incredibly huge. It's important to remember that high-speed video recording requires a high-end memory card (from 10 and higher), and the recommended amount of USB flash drive must be at least 16 GB.

Fasteners

The mounting depends on how the recorder will be located: on the dashboard, on the glass or on the rear-view mirror. The latter option is one of the most expensive, but at the same time, the car owner does not have to bother with the bindings and take the recording device to his home in order to avoid theft. The camera, which is fixed to the mirror, is practically invisible, it does not take up space on the windshield and dashboard.

More budget models are suckers and stickers. With the help of stickers, recorders are installed on the panel. An obvious drawback of such fastening is that the adhesive base grips well with the surface only for the first time. If the camera needs to be reinstalled in another place, you'll have to invent all sorts of clever mounts so that the recorder will stay flat and not unsteady.

Photo of the video recorder on the suction cup

Suckers in this regard are more effective. They can be mounted both on the dashboard and on the windshield. The sucker can normally hold on any surfaces, without it it is possible to easily remove it and reattach it to its place. The only drawback is that in the winter the sucker can fly off at the most inopportune moment, because of the large temperature difference.

Additional options

Infrared and LED lighting

Most inexpensive DVRs are equipped with LED-backlit, but the advantages of this function is extremely small. All that these light-emitting diodes can do is highlight the place of an accident during filming or help in finding the keys that fell on the mat, because the intensity of the glow of the LEDs is only a couple of meters.

It is not recommended to use LEDs at the time when the DVR is installed on the mount. Their light will reflect the windshield and light the lens, greatly worsening the shooting. The same situation with infrared illumination.

It is unfortunate that manufacturers do not specify that it is not always necessary to use backlighting.

Motion Sensor

When such a sensor notices motion in the frame, the recorder starts recording. If nothing happens in the frame - the shooting stops.

There are a lot of disputes about whether such a function is useful, as leaving the camera in the car is extremely unsafe, and, in addition, the power will be supplied from the built-in battery in the recorder, which does not have a large capacity. < / p>

Despite this, such a regime can help find criminals who have committed unlawful acts against the car in the absence of the driver.

Accelerometer (G-sensor)

This is a useful sensor, about the functionality of which many owners of modern smartphones and tablets know. The sensor is able to track the position of the recorder in three planes, and also identifies loads that can occur during sudden braking, acceleration, shaking and so on. The presence of such loads, often, indicate an accident or any other emergency.

If the sensor detects such a load, the video file that is being written is protected and is not allowed to be overwritten on the memory card.

GPS function

This function should be considered only as information, because the device is not a measuring tool, therefore, the recorded speed of the machine will not be accepted in court, in the case when it is necessary to refute the speeding. The GPS function is useful only for the exchange or visualization of the distance traveled.

Wi-Fi Support

Wi-Fi is a premium feature that is available on a limited number of recorders and is usually applied on those models that do not have their own display.

On a Wi-Fi connection, you can connect your smartphone or tablet to the DVR, after which you can watch, copy or delete video, and configure the DVR.

Such a function is very important in dealing with impure policemen. After all, in case of an accident, a memory card from the registrar will have to be given to a police officer, and he can "accidentally" break it or lose it. With Wi-Fi, you can always quickly copy video to a smartphone or tablet, and send the original to the inspector.

Conclusion

The use of different combinations of optics, matrices and processors by manufacturers of DVRs leads to the fact that identical devices that are similar in characteristics are very different in quality of recording. But if you choose smartly, having thoroughly studied the technical parameters of DVRs, without regretting the money, you can get a great device that will reliably secure the owner for many years. It is recommended to purchase DVRs that have a built-in impact sensor to protect the file at the time of an accident. It will not be superfluous and support for Wi-Fi, as well as the presence of an integrated GPS-module, but the LED backlight and motion sensor are rather doubtful functions.

The article turned out to be quite extensive and it may seem that it is difficult to choose a DVR. But this is not so. It is enough to determine the basic technical parameters of the device, additional functions and choose the form factor of the device. These 3 items will significantly reduce the number of models and will help to make the right choice with ease.

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