Using an old phone for a dashcam works well - if you're fine with pre-drive admin

[Jan]

We turned an old phone into a dashcam

MyBroadband used an old Android smartphone as a dashcam, and it worked surprisingly well. However, it also had several significant problems.

Good quality dashboard cameras can be expensive, and many people may have an older smartphone lying around after an upgrade.

 

[deweyzeph]

Tried this myself a few years ago as well. Another issue is the battery overheating.

 

[bromster]

So does this, if you don't mind pre-drive admin

 

[Polymathic]

I can't wait for dashcams to go mainstream and have my vehicle broken into for the sole purpose of swiping my dashcam. Oh wait, no need to wait. I'll just use my phone as a dashcam instead. I'll end up with the same result.

 

[Utterly Confused]

I can't wait for dashcams to go mainstream and have my vehicle broken into for the sole purpose of swiping my dashcam. Oh wait, no need to wait. I'll just use my phone as a dashcam instead. I'll end up with the same result.

That exactly what I was thinking.

 

[FiestaST]

Next article in 2-3 months time:

"Our old phone dashcam fried itself after x months".

 

[bwana]

This made us wary of leaving the device set up and had us remove and reattach it every time we parked in a public place.

Just how difficult was that? I keep my phone in a window mount when driving but have never really felt your struggle.

 

[STORMERSFAN]

Just how difficult was that? I keep my phone in a window mount when driving but have never really felt your struggle.

Not scared of smash and grab?

 

[bwana]

Not scared of smash and grab?

While driving? No.

I might unclip if I'm going through a really dodgy area but I need to be able to reference the screen while I'm driving and a window is the safest option for doing that.

But the author was bemoaning having to remove the phone when parked. I always remove it then.

 

[noxibox]

Not scared of smash and grab?

If they can manage to smash through a windscreen quickly enough to have time to grab anything.

 

[noxibox]

Next article in 2-3 months time:

"Our old phone dashcam fried itself after x months".

I think plenty of dash cams have overheating problems anyway.