Vantrue N2X 2.7K Dash Cam Front and Inside, 5G WiFi Dual Dash Camera for Car with HDR IR Night Vision, STARVIS 2, GPS, 2.5K/60FPS, LTE Support, 24/7 Parking Mode, Voice Control, Support 512GB MaxClimatePartner certified

My windshield was shattered by an unidentified object on the highway in Feb. It was the aha moment for me that forced me to do some research and get a dashcam for myself. I am glad I got this one in the end, and felt it deserved a 6 month user review/tip sharing here.The best setup for the Vantrue N2X in my humble opinion is:1. Get the dashcam, follow the manual included in the box to place cleanly on your windshield2. Get Vantrue's microSD card (sold separately, I got the 256 GB, ASIN: B07WWCLHGM)3. Download the Vantrue App on your phone, connect your N2X to your phone wifi for instant view/edits.4. Get Vantrue's Hardware Kit for Parking Mode (sold separately, ASIN: B083XB8T7T)5. Watch the brilliant youtube tutorial carefully for how to tuck your wires away from sight professionally and/or how to hard wire the Hardware Kit to your vehicle safely (Look up "How to SAFELY Install a Dash Camera in a Car with Airbags (Hard Wire and Rear Cam)" by ChrisFix)Can this work without the hardware kit or without watching the tutorial clip?Yes, as long as you get a functioning microSD card with the N2X and just plug it in your cigarette lighter port, it works fine. The manual will get you there. You will however have a dangling USB-C wire hanging from your N2X down to your cigarette lighter port.So you will want to at least watch sections of the tutorial clip above (start at 11:05 for dashcam installation, and 13:00 for tucking the wires away like magic, clip uses a different Vantrue model but works across the board), poof, like a pro, no more wires hanging above or below.Now, do I really need that hardware kit?No, if you have a garage and live and go about in safe neighborhoods most of the time, no, it's not worth the hassle. But if you park on the street or an open parking lot and/or go outdoors a lot, I would definitely recommend getting the kit. Without the kit, you can't use the Parking Mode, which uses minimal vehicle power without draining your vehicle battery overnight and records when the motion sensor detects vibration/collision when your vehicle is parked (hence "Parking Mode"). ChrisFix goes above and beyond in the tutorial clip showing you patiently how to hard-wire the kit to the right fuse box sockets.Do I need that Vantrue App on my phone? Not really, but it's handy since you can view your front/back camera and make edits right away on a bigger screen versus toggling on the dashcam or waiting until you get home and plug the microSD to your computer.Once you have everything set up (you'll be glad you did all the work), you can enjoy your N2X working quietly almost out of sight at full functionality. The mount is super easy the detach and reattach the N2X, the size is just right under the rear view mirror, love that GPS is included, and for me 256 GB was plenty enough SD space. I generally check and reformat after a week's recording.The Sony STARVIS 2 IMX675 5M CMOS sensor really captures a lot of detail when recording and HDR gives shadows and night recordings life. You can see license plates quite clearly as long as you're within a car's length away. Audio recording is decent for the purpose of a dashcam. I have the sensitivity of Collision Detection set at 5 (highest level) that triggers Event recording the easiest. Little bumps or anything the N2X detects and records is stored in your SD card "Event" folder. Other recordings show up in the "Normal" folder that will overwrite itself when full if you don't clear or reformat it. If you have Parking Mode on, those will show up in "Parking" folder.This was my first dashcam purchase, and it's still running strong after 6 months. I can't speak for how well this compares with other models, but this was a really good bang for the buck for my purpose.

I've had a number of dash cams and this one's the smartest idea I've seen yet. So in a single dash cam without additional wiring you have a rear view (what they call a cabin view) as well as forward view. That rear view feature is adjustable and is enough to verify any rear end accident you might encounter or crazy driver syndrome etc. not to mention you, the driver, and your passengers. That's all I am worried about myself as far as rear view are concerned.This camera has an excellent interface with Android, (can't speak for iPhones) it's quite simple to view/download your videos you want to keep. You're in car view is picture in a picture but when you go to your SD card saves, they are full size front and rear vids and they're separate! This is very useful because in the event you needed to use/verify something that happened behind you, that is a separate video. I've read some people had problem w/adjustment; I don't understand that; it's fully adjustable and an easy install. The unit and the 3M adhesive base are two separate pieces so remember that the unit slides UP and OUT of the adhesive base that's attached to your windshield so you want to make sure you leave enough room to detach the unit when you want to get to the SD card easily we're just remove it completely. It's not a big deal it's only about 1.5" but it's something to be aware of. I don't get people saying they're finding the unit hard to adjust: if you'll just plug this in in your house and get familiar with the adjustments/buttons etc. before you go out to mount it, I don't see how you can miss! I've not tried it yet but I do believe you could quickly dismount this unit and lay it on your dash pointing to the driver side window to record a traffic stop! Food for thought!

Great camera. Easy to operate and it doesn’t lag unlike the Nexar camera I had for years! It starts recording automatically as soon as you turn your car on. The phone feature works great as well. I love the option to download and delete the clips right off of my phone instead of taking the SD card and saving or deleting the video files from a laptop. It’s soo much faster this way to free up space. Great for any uber drivers looking for a dashcam. I strongly recommend this one. Great clear video and sound quality!

Im disappointed with the camera. It seems to like to shut off and on all the time. I got the hardwire kit and installed it according to the directions...but yet if i put the leads on the accessory and full power, it shuts down and turns back on. I also have to format the SD card to keep the power on...so would have to upload the videos that i want to save every night. Also the clarity of the inside camera is a bit lacking for sure. I've spent less on Amazon for a cheaper camera that works better. I will say the front facing camera is very decent, but still for the amount of money you pay for this...it needs to wow you and it doesn't do that for sure!!