GoSafe520 Dashcam review

[Matticus91]

Scroll down for GoSafe520 review

Looking for a solid dual-camera dashcam, it's hard as hell to find a good one because so many non-technical people buy them and go "OMG THIS IS GREAT" so the reviews are worthless.

I need auto-on, recording during parking, auto-looping, and solid night-time clarity. If I can't look at footage and read a license plate at night it's not worth my money!

If anyone has any recommendations I'd greatly appreciate it!

Update:

Decided to take the plunge and go with a brand I've heard good things about despite some well-backed negative reviews. It seems there's no such thing as a good dual camera setup out of the box so I'm going to go with this for now and see if I miss the rear cam or not...

Papago GS520 on Amazon

Will arrive Saturday and I'll install/review, and post results here at that time.

Update2:

As promised I got the thing all hooked up on Saturday and have been testing it out for the past few days.

My findings so far:

1. Clarity is decent but when things are moving they have a slight blur. This is an issue for identifying license plates on cars that are along side passing or being passed and not directly in front where the plate is more stable in the frame.
2. Nighttime clarity is about the same as day, somewhat easier to ID plates due to higher contrast (black text against reflective surface) at night.
3. Window cleaner is a good investment, if your windshield is dirty even slightly you'll notice it in the video.
4. The view is SUPER wide, very happy with that.
5. Recordings are in 5 minute incriments and stamped with Date/Time making it easy to locate footage.
6. The unit will detect severe jarring motions and safe those files in a separate "Event" folder on the drive. You can also hit the "EMG" button for "Emergency" that will save the current clip in the same spot if you want to save something that just occured.
7. Keep your wipers on a higher setting than you would normally during rain.

[/LIST]
Overall I'm pretty happy with the device but I do wish plates were clearer when moving around, I will have to see what can be done about that. The cam is definitely well made and even though it's light it feels pretty solid. The parked function is cool too, though I did not notice any files while parked which means the sensor must only pick things up that are very noticeable.

I'd give it a 8/10 overall so far, broken down as:

9.5/10 - Ease of use (Couldn't be easier honestly)
7.5/10 - Image quality (Really needs to pick up plates better)
8/10 - Features (No GPS, though this could be a good thing...)

I will get some more footage tomorrow and post an example of night driving and day driving when I have some that I'm not singing in

Some pics:
20160402_115347 by Matt Steele, on Flickr

20160402_115515 by Matt Steele, on Flickr

[RedRanger]

I went with the K1S by Koonlung on Amazon. Let me know how you like that one

[Matticus91]

Originally Posted by RedRanger

I went with the K1S by Koonlung on Amazon. Let me know how you like that one

That's actually the model I was looking to buy at first, but was scared off by the ratings! What do you think of it? I'll let you know how the Papago holds up.

[suspenceful]

Would love installation details and a solid review of the PAPAGO unit.

I'm most curious about the motion-detecting video and how it works. For times I leave my car parked in questionable locations overnight, I'd love to have something that records every time someone walks by or something. I'm curious how that works and didn't see any reviews that mentioned it.

[Matticus91]

Originally Posted by suspenceful

Would love installation details and a solid review of the PAPAGO unit.

I'm most curious about the motion-detecting video and how it works. For times I leave my car parked in questionable locations overnight, I'd love to have something that records every time someone walks by or something. I'm curious how that works and didn't see any reviews that mentioned it.

I'll be sure to go into detail and post example videos.

For the motion sensing, my understanding is that the unit has an internal battery that allows it to stay idle for a length of time, and if it detects motion it will flip into record mode and record until the motion has stopped. I'm not sure how long it stays in the idle mode or if this has any draw on the car battery, it'll be a learning experience for me as well.

Edit:

From amazon questions about the battery life:

Question: How long does the built-in battery power the unit when the car is turned off or disconnected from external power?
Answer: Mine lasts about an hour

[suspenceful]

Originally Posted by Matticus91

I'll be sure to go into detail and post example videos.

For the motion sensing, my understanding is that the unit has an internal battery that allows it to stay idle for a length of time, and if it detects motion it will flip into record mode and record until the motion has stopped. I'm not sure how long it stays in the idle mode or if this has any draw on the car battery, it'll be a learning experience for me as well.

That's what I assumed, but I'd love to learn more and get some feedback on it.

Do you know how to upgrade it to a 64GB SDcard instead of the 32GB?

EDIT: Answered my own question. You can update the firmware using a <32GB card: http://us.papagoinc.com/2015/10/impo...mware-updates/

Pending your review, I plan on purchasing one of these. I'd like to go with a stealth install with minimal cords showing, I'm curious how you'll route it.

[Matticus91]

Originally Posted by suspenceful

That's what I assumed, but I'd love to learn more and get some feedback on it.

Do you know how to upgrade it to a 64GB SDcard instead of the 32GB?

EDIT: Answered my own question. You can update the firmware using a <32GB card: http://us.papagoinc.com/2015/10/impo...mware-updates/

Pending your review, I plan on purchasing one of these. I'd like to go with a stealth install with minimal cords showing, I'm curious how you'll route it.

I just went with a 32gb card, 64gb is quite a lot of recording and my commute is only around 20 minutes/half hour.

For installation I plan to use basically the same configuration that a fellow 1er outlined in fantastic detail here:

http://www.1addicts.com/forums/showthread.php?t=211933

[phierce]

Here is a good site. Aliexpress is a good source for these cams amazon is a rip.

https://dashcamtalk.com/

[Hit Redline]

I have been running Blackvue DR650GW-2CH Built-In Wi-Fi Full HD Car DVR Recorder, 64Gb With Power Magic Pro - Black for several months.

http://www.amazon.com/Blackvue-DR650.../dp/B00MC56AXM

Very happy with quality and ease of use. It records when parked as well with motion sensors.

Software is nice and easy to use as well. I highly recommend.

This review was helpful in my decision making on a dash cam.

[Hit Redline]

Here is some footage of mine in action.

[Matticus91]

Originally Posted by Hit Redline

Here is some footage of mine in action.

Looks good but just a heads up that having all that data stamped on there makes this video super incriminating... Exact time and date + speed + video footage... If someone catches a street sign and reports to police you're gonna have a hard time O.O

Update on GoSafe520 in original post