Would you like to have an automatic recording of the road you traveled? Think of the beauty you could capture driving through the mountains. Or how about just a documentary on getting out of town. When that jerk pulled out in front of you, how would you like to capture that license plate?
Maybe it’s not important enough for you to buy a dashcam. Did you know you could use that tablet that’s just been gathering dust? Just add a free Dashcam app, mount it onto your dash (velcro will do) and turn it on! No data connection required. You do want to have it plugged into power though, since it is running all the time it will drain your battery pretty fast. Here is a sample of the video and stills captured from our RV as we got out of town!
We used a 7 inch Samsung tablet and the Daily Roads Voyager app for Android. If you need an app for iPhone/iPad, we found one called DashCam. We discuss dashcams in our What Does This Button Do show #101. Here’s a link to the point where we start the section on dashcams.
How Does a Dashcam Work?
If the dashcam is running all the time, how does it store all that video? Does it use the Internet? No – you do not need an Internet connection, everything is handled directly by the phone or tablet. The vidoe is stored on a loop. It’s recording all the time, but when it reaches the specified time limit, it starts deleting the beginning of the recording. Any time you want to keep a portion, just tap the screen to save and a specified amount of video, or still frames, will be stored in a separate file. If you’re in an accident, the accelerometer in the device alerts the app and it automatically saves that segment.
Some dashcams are now calling themselves “Black Boxes” because they can record not only the video out your windshield, but also audio, and diagnostic information from an OBD – On Board Diagnostic – device. We haven’t tried it yet, but CaroO is one that makes this claim. Next trip, we’ll give it a shot.
- App: Daily Roads Voyager, by DailyRoads
- Platforms: Android
- Cost: Free
From 2003-2017 she traveled the country in an RV with her husband, Jim offering technology seminars at RV rallies, computer clubs, and senior centers. Now they travel the world and continue teaching on their website, GeeksOnTour.com, over Zoom, and on their YouTube channel. Specializing in the use of Google Photos, Chris teaches people how to get control of the thousands of photos and videos taken with both phones and cameras these days. She is designated by Google as a Diamond leve Product Expert for Google Photos.
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Great tip. What program did you use to make the video that you show?
The video is made with Google Photos!
Thank you.