After a recent incidence where buddy's car was rear-ended by some punk driving while texting, I decided to install a rear facing dashcam. I already have a cheap dashcam in the front, but figure it's bulky and not very pretty. So I decided to move it to the back and buy something more discrete for the front.

After doing some research I ended up with "Mobius" camera due to it's small footprint and very good picture quality. It's a popular alternative to the Gopro due to its size, and commonly used in R/C hobby community. Now the beauty of this camera is the price; it can be had for less than $70. But the downside to this smallness is the lack of LCD screen, so you will need some trial and error to aim, and also video playback.

Mounting to the Cayenne was extremely easy. There's a flat spot at the bottom of the rearview mirror housing where you can just use a double sided tape or Velcro to attach the camera to. After installation you can't even tell it's there from inside the car, since it's completely hidden by the rear view mirror.

Power came from a micro USB cable I bought on ebay which tucks along the upper windshield inside the roof-liner, down the A-pillar and into the fusebox.

 

hmm it looks like its aiming upwards, do you have a still photo to show the POV?

 

Thanks for the info on that, I was looking a while back for the same but gave up the search. I would really like to hear how it works out for you after you get used to it.

 

blackvue is also a popular choice for dash cams but they start at a couple hundred bucks.

 

Here's a good list of popular dashcams. The forum also provides a wealth of info

http://dashcamtalk.com

To me dashcam is one of those gadget that's install and forget. As long as it provides reliable recording, you rarely have to touch it again. So I wanted as discrete as possible, without a giant LCD screen and bunch of blinking LEDs to distract my driving. So far the mobius has been perfect. There's one annoyance where windshield shows reflection of the dashboard. But I can still decipher the license plate of vehicle in front so that's good enough for me.

 

with the Mobius, where did you hook up the power source to? im assuming you hardwired it? for the price, looks like a great deal. thinking of getting a couple units to install in my cars as well.

 

The popular fuse 18 on the passenger dash.

http://rennlist.com/forums/attachmen...e-position.jpg

 

Forgot to mention you will need a 12v to 5v converter, just the standard micro USB plug. I got mine from ebay for less than $5 shipped.

Or you can just get a USB cigarette lighter adapter and plug into the passenger footwell port for portability.

 

I have been on the fence about a web cam for a while now and this thread has resurrected my interest. From reading through dashcamtalk.com, it seems that there are some concerns around units with batteries and areas where it gets real hot inside the car. While I look the discrete aspect of the Mobius, I am concerned about what excessive heat (from the windshield) does to the battery and unit itself. steph280, you are down in SoCal, so I'm interested in hearing how it's holding up so far? The Mobius is one I am considering and the other is the Powerucc Panaroma S or G.

 

So far so good. I have parked it numerous times in direct Socal sun where inside temp reached excess of 110F degrees (estimated). I have two of the original DVR027 which has lasted over 3 years now without issue. It has a similar (but larger) lithium battery that got slightly puffy over the years, but still works without issue.

I will definitely come back to this post should any issue arises over time.

 

So I decided to take the plunge after seeing some crazy drivers today on my morning commute. A SUV lost control and ran up on a median island and took out a traffic light.

I opted to go with a Panorama G after reading reviews on dashcamtalk.com. Will see how that goes. If it ends up being useful, I might add a Mobius to capture the rear, to capture and rear enders where users are either talking on their phones or texting and not paying attention to the road.

 

I was looking at the Panorama G after reading this posting and I am following along with interest. It sounds like a real good model as well as the Mobius.

 

Any updates on how the Mobius is working out?

And did you get your cam installed HOiYA ?

 

Well my install is definitely not as stealth as stepth280's. I just hid the wires for now until I can figure out how to tap it into the fuse box. Anyone now if which slot on the passenger side is always on? I got power cutoff device that monitors the battery voltage and cuts off power to the dash cam if it drops below a configurable value, that way the dash cam can operate in parking mode without draining the car battery. From Driver's Side: Almost hidden from the driver. From Passenger Side: Video Sample: I have 70 tint on my front windshield and the below video has a polarizer on the dash cam lens. As a result of those 2, there is a rainbow effect on the windshield. I get the same thing occasionally with polarized sunglasses. Will probably end up removing the polarizing filter. Also the tint at night does affect the video quality at night. Will see if I can capture a decent video at some point.

 

The Mobius is working very well. I checked the recording the other day and it recorded everything as expected. So I went out and bought another one for the rear. Going to try mounting on the rear overhead lamp cover.

If you look at the fusebox photo I linked to earlier, below the row where fuse 18 is, the empty slot (3 over one down) between the 15 and 20 amps fuse will give you constant on. I unintentionally plugged my cam into that fuse slot and couldn't figure out why it wouldn't turn off.