Best Front and Rear Dash Cams: Your Second Set of Eyes

There’s a lot more to dash cams than the name might suggest. Years ago they might have just recorded the road ahead, but shooting high-quality video is only where many cameras today begin. When I started my research I knew there were a couple of things people would always care about, namely resolution. Anything less than 1080p or 30fps was ruled out entirely. Beyond that, I employed The Drive’s review methodology to evaluate an array of other features including things like parking monitoring, app integration, and dynamic range. Forum threads, as always, played a big part in narrowing down the choices. Spec sheets are always necessary, but it’s user experiences — and detailed ones at that — that can set apart a dash cam, for better or worse.

The Thinkware U1000 offers the best combination of outright video resolution and innovative added features on the market. But if recording is all you need, the Rexing V1P offers incredibly competitive performance in most conditions for roughly a quarter of the price of the U1000.

At the core of any dash cam, you’re looking for high-quality video recording that can capture the details you need in the case of an accident. For many accidents, 1080p will be sufficient to capture the relevant details, but many users splurge for 4K to capture smaller details like license plate numbers in the event of a hit-and-run. Be warned, some manufacturers will digitally upscale lower resolution video for marketing reasons, but these cameras don’t produce the same detail as native 4K cameras. If the camera’s sensor is below 8 megapixels, it isn’t capable of true 4K video. Beyond resolution, you also want to pay attention to things like field of view, low-light performance, and fps rate.

With most companies offering camera setups for the front, rear, and interior of your car today, the term dash cam is a bit of a misnomer these days. But, you still can just get a single camera for your dash, the issue is whether you should. Many dash cam users go for two-channel setups to record in front of and behind their vehicle. This should cover your bases for most applications, but if you’re a long-distance or rideshare driver, you might want to consider a cabin camera as well.

Most dash cams will come with a USB cable as their primary source of power from 12V outlets in your car. This poses a problem for the parking mode that many dash cams have since it’s common for cars to shut off power to their 12V outlets when the car is not running to prevent it from draining the battery. To get around this, dash cam manufacturers will usually sell a separate power cable that hardwires into the car’s battery or connects to the OBD port. Some companies also sell separate battery packs that charge up while the car is running and power the dash cam while it’s shut off, but these can increase total costs quickly. Before choosing a dash cam, it’s worth it to consider the power options you have for it.

A reliable, high-resolution dash cam can cost anywhere from $100 to $600. If you’re strictly looking for 4K video performance, you can find a mono-channel dash cam at the bottom of that range. Things get more expensive as you start looking at two- to three-channel setups, as well as additional features like built-in Wi-Fi, GPS, or LTE. 

You’ve got questions. The Drive has answers.