Russian car crashes are the most spectacular, and if all Russian drivers used Garmin dash cams, the spectators would be able to watch the show in mind-blowing 1080p. Unless they are the ones involved in the accident, case in which things wouldn’t be that great to watch.
Garmin used to be one of the go-to companies when people needed navigation systems, either for cars or for pedestrians. When smartphone became mainstream and developers started creating free GPS software (mind you, Navigon Europe is still among the priciest apps for Android, at $53.44), Garmin figured out that they had to expand their business to other fields or otherwise they would perish. Recently, the company has unveiled a spy gadget that hides inside your windshield and records every second of your drive.
This dashboard camera is particularly useful in the event of a police investigation or an insurance claim. It records through a wide lens in 1080p, 720p or WVGA on a 4GB microSD card, and applies a timestamp and a geotag that serves as evidence in the two aforementioned situations. Upgrading the storage card is possible, in case the driver is on the road a lot or he wants to shoot video in a better resolution. Probably one of the best things about Garmin’s spy camera is that you don’t have to start it manually. In fact, it starts recording as soon as you start the engine.
As PA2SK pointed out on Gizmodo, such dash cams can prove useful for more than just shooting video evidence of car crashes. A lot of stuff happens on the streets and highways, from actions that are against the law to cute animals that are trying to cross the road.
Garmin Dash Cam 10 is available for pre-order on the manufacturer’s website. Assuming that you consider the price to be fair and the features to be to your liking, you will have to pay $220 to get one. PA2SK also mentioned in the same comment that dashboard cameras with similar capabilities are available for $50-$80 or so, which makes Garmin’s offering a bit steeply priced.
Personally, I wouldn’t like to see car crashes filmed with the Garmin Dash Cam 10, but timelapse videos shot in beautiful areas of the globe, at different times of the day. I’m not sure that’s what they had in mind when they made this tiny camera, but that’s my wish!
If you liked this post, please check Corvette’s Performance Data Recorder and the Android-based infotainment platform built by Google and Audi.
