Insurance - in whatever form - is something we hope we’ll never need to use. The same could be said of a dashcam. Recording - hopefully - nothing of note save perhaps for a memorable incident to be posted on social media!
Our dashcam however gets a little more use. Many who follow my blog and social media channels will come across our Site Arrival videos - dashcam footage of the last few miles or so to to a campsite overlaid with a bit of commentary from yours truly.
This summer the good folk at Nextbase kindly sent me one of their best selling models to review - the 412GW - so how did we get on and how did it compare to our previous device?
Installation was swift and straightforward - positioning and securing the suction mount then running the power lead back to the socket. In fact it was even easier than that as I used the power lead from the old dashcam after establishing that the connector and power supply output was the same.
The mount incorporates the GPS module and choosing whether to have the coordinates recorded on screen is one of many option available but the only thing you really need to do is insert a MicroSD card, set the time and date and you're good to go. An excellent quick start guide is included that covers the basics.
Operation was similar to our old device. It starts recording when you start the engine and stops when same. Recordings are made in 5 minute clips. Once the memory card is full, the dashcam overwrites starting from the oldest clip – this is why it’s important that the time and date it correct, particularly for how we will be using the footage.
Of course the hope is that in normal use you will never need to download the footage to pass on say to an insurance company, or even the police. However, we need regular access to the clips though to create our Site Arrival videos and that is where this product excels.
Transfer of files to your phone is easy using the inbuilt WiFi feature together with the Cam Viewer app available for iOS and Android. Footage could then be easily emailed to say an insurance company without the bother of transferring to a computer. What it means to us is that we can transfer footage ready for editing without having to physically remove the dashcam – saving wear and tear on the mount or memory card.
Should you wish to transfer footage to a computer however, the Nextbase Replay 2 software is included. Files can be played back on most video playing software but with this not only can you view the footage but also a map of the route taken, speed, direction and any G sensor information too. All useful information in the event of an insurance claim.
We’ve now had the dashcam a couple of months and it’s already proving to be a worthy replacement for our old dashcam. The picture quality is excellent – recording at 1440p – and the wireless transfer facility is particularly handy for us too. It seems well made and I’m sure it will give us many years of service. I’d have no hesitation in recommending it to anyone in the market for one.
For more information go to www.nextbase.co.uk
To buy from Amazon go HERE