Camera for the Inside of a Car That Looks Like a Review Mirror

Dash cams come in all shapes and sizes and that'south certainly true of the Vantrue M2. It'due south unlike others we've reviewed because it mounts on your car's rear-view mirror and comes with a rear-facing camera that tin double as a reversing camera - handy if your automobile doesn't already have 1.

Plus, the fact the M2 hangs off your rear-view mirror makes it harder to spot than a standard dash cam, and these things - plus a few other tricks - make it worth the premium price.

Are yous ready to ditch your rear-view mirror for a smart one? Then read on.

Design & installation

The Vantrue M2 is designed to clip onto your existing rear-view mirror and brandish the live feed from the rear camera – a 21st-century spin on the rear-view mirror, if you will. Though it sounds complicated, it takes no more than 10 seconds to secure information technology into place using grippy rubber straps.

The device's touchscreen measures 12 inches across, making it bigger than most cars' rear-view mirrors, and this was the case with my 2016 Vauxhall Corsa. Information technology's not so big that information technology obscured my vision when driving, though.

Importantly, it yet does the job of your rear-view mirror when the screen is off: it'due south a little dimmer than a standard mirror, likely due to the anti-glare blanket which is designed to minimise reflections. It'll does the job, but information technology'south not quite as skilful equally a standard mirror.

The extra width of the rear-view mirror is required and then the 1440p 148° camera tin get a view of the route ahead. The bending can exist adjusted, although the range of motion is fairly limited. Still, as long as it's perpendicular to the road, you'll have no issues.

The primary unit plugs into your auto'south 12V socket equally virtually nuance cams do, merely Vantrue insists that you lot use the supplied cable and charger and not ane that you might've been using with another dash cam.

Unusually, there's a separate GPS receiver that plugs into the master unit, and this is designed to sit on your dashboard.

The Vantrue M2 tin serve simply every bit a front-facing photographic camera using the built-in photographic camera, but it comes with a 1080p rear-facing camera. This small rear camera connects via a long USB cable and can exist affixed to the interior of the car using the adhesive strip supplied, just information technology tin can also be installed on the exterior of the car where a reversing camera would usually alive.

This is easier on sure cars, such as my Vauxhall Corsa, where the registration plate is mounted in the rear bumper. Just if it'due south on a hatchback or kick lid (tailgate), then routing the wires becomes a lot more difficult.

Notation that you also need to connect a wire to the reverse light of your car in social club to automatically activate the rear photographic camera feed on-screen when you put the machine into reverse. This also displays reverse parking guidelines. Installation is a trivial too involved for well-nigh people, simply a local garage will install it for around £seventy / $90.

Features

When the unit powers on, you should run into your rear camera feed along with key information such as time and speed, visible in the top-right of the brandish.

The 12in anti-glare IPS display is bright in apply, utilising the rear-view camera to provide a rear-facing view unobstructed past the interior of the automobile. The 140° field of view is ideal, helping you to stay enlightened of cyclists and bikers in your bullheaded spots as you're driving.

Because of ultra-wide aspect ratio of the screen, you tin can swipe the display to move the view upward or down depending on your preference – although never exercise this while in control of a moving car, of course. You've also got the option to automatically plough the brandish off subsequently a few minutes, and you can plow it off manually via a button on the underside of the mirror if it becomes distracting.

Via a series of swipes and taps on the display, you can switch to a view of what the forepart-facing photographic camera is capturing (perfect for getting the bending right during setup) or displaying both side-by-side.

In that location can be a flake of lag when navigating the various menus, and at that place's some stutter when scrolling, simply you that'southward not something yous demand to do too often. One time everything is ready to your liking, you'll rarely need to interact with it. I just wish the whole affair was a scrap easier to navigate, with settings hidden abroad in obscure menus that should exist easier to admission.

It'southward when you connect the rear-facing camera to your car's opposite calorie-free wire that the Vantrue M2 truly shines. The mirror will automatically switch to the rear-view camera when you put the motorcar in reverse. What's more, it'll automatically accommodate the bending of the view to meet more of the kerb behind y'all, and it'll overlay parking guidelines to aid guide you into identify.

The guidelines are a not bad improver that tin can actually help estimate spaces while reversing, but I wish the setup was more than intuitive. As with other reverse cameras, the software doesn't know the dimensions of your motorcar and displays generic markings to give you a rough idea of altitude. It'due south downwardly to you to conform the shape and size to match your car.

Though it's a flake of a hurting, it is doable – I just wish that all the buttons used to adjust information technology were easier to empathize, or better yet, the markings could be adjusted by moving them with your fingers.

Of course, the Vantrue M2 has many of the features y'all'd wait from any nuance cam including a One thousand-sensor that'll automatically lock recordings to preclude them beingness overwritten in the case of an imapct, a built-in microphone to record audio and a parking fashion.

The only large omission is a companion app for smartphones; the Vantrue M2 doesn't have is a mobile app. If you want to review recorded footage, you tin do this - awkwardly - on the brandish itself, just to share the footage, you'll have to eject the microSD menu and plug it into a PC or Mac.

There is a Vantrue app for PC and Mac that's quite basic in design, merely like near similar software for nuance cams, you lot can browse through the clips and they'll play likewise as showing telemetry data like GPS coordinates and speed – ideal for insurance claims.

Video quality

The most important gene is, of course, video quality. Fortunately at that place aren't any huge disappointments in that department. The 1440p front-facing photographic camera and 1080p rear-facing photographic camera perform fairly well in nigh situations.

Let'south start with daylight; as y'all'd await, both the forepart- and rear-facing cameras excel in well-lit environments during the day. There's balanced colour, and the item is impressive – but be sure to clean your windscreen first!

Front photographic camera during the twenty-four hour period

Regardless of the camera, you're able to pause the video at whatsoever moment and pick out finer details like car registration plates from almost any bending – a do good to using Sony'due south Starvis sensor in both cameras.

Rear camera during the day

It's typically at night that dashcams begin to struggle, and while it's not quite as good-looking as during daylight, the Vantrue M2 handles low-lite environments very well – another do good to using Sony's sensors.

The front-facing camera retains more than low-cal than expected on dimmer roads, with noticeable item and a well-tuned noise reduction organisation that leaves videos looking largely well-baked. The issue is that vivid headlights can – and often exercise – accident out the registration plate of oncoming vehicles due to the reflective nature of plates in the UK.

Front camera during the night

Though the rear camera drops to 1080p, yous should expect a similar level of impressive performance. The drib in quality is more noticeable at dark with racket reduction tech working a little too hard, simply information technology offers great dynamic range and a articulate, smooth image.

Rear camera during the night

It'due south worth noting that, unlike much of the premium competition, the frame rate is capped at 30fps – likely to retain that impressive low-light performance. That's fine for those that desire to use the photographic camera for insurance purposes, merely it does limit the quality of videos recorded for other purposes, especially when compared to the likes of the 120fps Nextbase 622GW.

The bigger annoyance for some will exist the format it uses; rather than the easily shared MP4, files are encoded in a .ts format. It makes sense as it encodes other information – including telemetry data – into the file, making it easier to view on a PC or Mac, and it saves files from existence corrupted if power is lost during recording, but it'south difficult to convert into an MP4 without the use of third-party software.

Here's a sample of clips taken from the Vantrue M2:

Price & availability

The Vantrue M2 isn't the cheapest dual-aqueduct dash cam around, costing £229.99 from Amazon UK and $249 from Amazon US at the fourth dimension of writing, but with advanced features like a rear reversing camera, it'south a price that some volition be happy to pay.

If you're on the hunt for something a little unlike, our option of the best dash cams might indicate y'all in the right management.

Verdict

The Vantrue M2 isn't an ordinary dash cam, simply that's what makes it compelling. Mounting to your motorcar's rear-view mirror is easy and means it doesn't obstruct your view of the road, or go far the style of the sun visors. It'due south the first nuance cam we've seen where the rear-facing camera can double up equally a reversing camera - this is a real bonus, particularly if you struggle with parking.

Importantly, both cameras capture detailed video during the twenty-four hours and are fifty-fifty decent at night. Though, they suffer from the same issue all dash cams have with reflective license plates blowing out at dark.

The bigger bug for some will be the .ts file format, which makes it hard to share clips with others, and the fact that there isn't an accompanying app for iOS and Android to easily access files.

Even so, if y'all can get over that, and the relatively high price, the Vantrue M2 is a great dash cam that offers something truly dissimilar from the contest.

Specs

Vantrue M2: Specs

• 12in IPS anti-glare display (1920 ten 480)
• Front-facing 148-degree 1440p photographic camera (f/i.55)
• Rear-facing 140-degree 1080p camera (f/1.8)
• Sony Starvis sensors with night vision & HDR
• Adjustable reverse guide lines (optional)
• Supercapacitor
• G-Sensor
• Parking monitor
• Built-in mic and speaker
• Supports upwards to 512GB microSD bill of fare
• TS video format
• Vantrue app for PC and Mac

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Source: https://www.techadvisor.com/review/vantrue-m2-3813164/

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