Best Dash Cam (2021): Top Vehicle Dash Cams From Thinkware, Rove, And More

Over recent years, dash cams have become popular, no small thanks to recordings of on-the-road crashes and spectacles. Beyond viral videos, however, these mini cameras are useful for monitoring your car, settling insurance claims, and encouraging safe driving. If you’re in the market for one, we’ve listed down our top picks. Here, you’ll find highly-rated and best-selling dash cams from brands like Thinkware, Apeman, Anker, and Rove.

Best Dash Cam Comparison Chart

Best Dash Cam Front and Rear

The Thinkware U1000 offers impressive HD front and rear video recording, along with a suite of safety and smart features.

Crashes don’t always happen head-on. In fact, rear-end collisions are the most frequent, contributing to a considerable percentage of injuries and even fatalities. So getting a camera with front and rear footage is a great way of expanding coverage. In this line, one of the best dash cams to get is the Thinkware U1000 Dual Dash Cam. As the company’s flagship, the U1000 boasts 4K resolution at 30fps for the front camera. Its rear camera, on the other hand, records 2K QHD video at 30fps.

But while 4K sounds impressive, it does mean large video files. And with support for only up to 128GB of storage, you can only save up to 4 hours of 4K recording. The good news is that you can downgrade the resolution, with the added benefit of getting smoother videos and improved license plate reading. Thinkware’s U1000 offers wide viewing angles for both front and rear cameras, too. It’s also packed with solid features, including night vision, anti-file corruption technology, and support for Thinkware’s cloud services.

Resolution: 4K front, 2K rear | Viewing Angle: 150º front, 156º rear | Screen: No | GPS: Yes

Best Dash Cam For Uber

Uber drivers will like the intuitive and budget-friendly Anker ROAV Dash Cam Duo.

For ridesharing drivers, getting a camera with exterior and in-cabin views is an important safety feature. While a two-set front and rear dash cam can be modified for this purpose, installation is more complicated, not to mention expensive. A budget-friendly yet practical solution is to get something like the Anker ROAV Dash Cam Duo instead. Designed especially for Uber, the sleek-looking device features dual 1080p wide-angle cameras. The interior-facing camera also rotates for optimal coverage.

The Dash Cam Duo comes with a 1.5-inch LCD screen that streams camera views and displays control settings. You also get built-in GPS, parking mode monitoring, and emergency recording. While ROAV shares that the Dash Cam Duo is equipped with enhanced night vision, video quality is slightly limited at nighttime. In-cabin views are also noticeably narrower in the evenings. During the day, however, most drivers will find the coverage and video quality to be topnotch.

Resolution: 1080p | Viewing Angle: 155º front, 110º interior | Screen: Yes | GPS: Yes

Best Dash Cam Under $100

Drivers on a budget can look into the Apeman Dash Cam C4530 Series A.

Those who don’t want to splurge on a dash cam will find plenty of low-cost options in the market. However, the Apeman Dash Cam C450 Series A is arguably the standout among these models. For instance, the C450 Series A can shoot 1080P at 30fps res. It also comes with an impressive 170º wide-angle lens that captures more details while also reducing blind spots. Similar to many premium cameras, Apeman’s best-seller boasts a large and bright LCD screen, too.

Where the price is noticeable would be in the camera’s design. The Apeman C450 feels a bit flimsy. Its controls are arranged counterintuitively as well. The navigation buttons, for instance, are on one side while the OK button is on the other. As such, most drivers will need to use two hands when adjusting camera settings. Despite these drawbacks, the footage quality from the C450 is surprisingly good. It features several modes, too, including loop recording, motion detection, and emergency recording.

Resolution: 1080p | Viewing Angle: 170º | Screen: Yes | GPS: No

Best 4K Dash Cam

The Rove R2-4K is a value-for-money Ultra HD dash camera packed with safety and convenience features.

If you live your life in high-definition, then it’s worth considering the Rove R2-4K Dash Cam. Compact and sturdily built, this HD camera impresses given its fairly affordable price tag. Rove’s dash cam delivers 4K Ultra HD recording up to a resolution of 2160p. Just like the Thinkware U1000, you can also downgrade to a lower resolution and higher FPS. This comes in handy when you want to utilize slow-motion playback. Plus, the camera itself is equipped with a low-light sensor that actually works well during nighttime drives.

Of course, you’ll find that the Rove R2-4K has the standard features. The camera has built-in WiFi and GPS that work seamlessly with the Rove App. You also get parking mode and motion detection, along with a G-sensor for emergencies. Design-wise, Rove’s best-selling dash cam impresses, thanks to a versatile suction mount that rotates 360º. It also supports up to 512GB class 10 – U3 speed micro SD card. Unfortunately, the memory card is sold separately.

Resolution: 4K Ultra HD | Viewing Angle: 150º A+ Lens | Screen: Yes | GPS: Yes

Best Dash Cam For Truckers

The Apeman Dual Dash Cam C550 can also be installed on larger vehicles like trucks.

Dash cams aren’t just for cars. With their larger size and presence, trucks are prone to figuring into accidents, too. In fact, according to the US Department of Transportation, 11% of fatal road crashes occurred in large trucks. Because of the unique build of these vehicles, a dual dash cam setup is typically recommended. Among several models in the market, the Apeman Dual Dash Cam C550 consistently ranks high. The C550 comes with a 1080p front camera and a 720p rear camera. Both offer wide-angle views that translate to three-lane coverage, too.

For an entry-level priced camera, Apeman’s C550 is feature-packed. Like the other dash cams in this list, you get emergency locks on video recordings of crashes or collisions. Truckers also get access to parking monitoring and built-in GPS. To keep drivers focused on the road, the C550’s sleek and compact design means it can be installed discreetly behind a rearview mirror as well. One of the few downsides, however, is that the rear camera’s nighttime vision isn’t that great. The GPS antenna for the GPS is also sold separately.

Resolution: 1080p front, 720p rear | Viewing Angle: 170º front, 130º rear | Screen: Yes | GPS: No

Verdict

Among the dash cameras reviewed, the Rove R2-4K and the Anker ROAV Dash Cam Duo strike the perfect balance between design, features, and performance.

In this rundown of the best dash cams, the Rove R2-4K and Anker ROAV Dash Cam Duo both make strong cases on why you should get them. Rove’s dash cam, for instance, not only delivers impressive footage but does so in a reliable and compact design. You can also choose across multiple resolution options and enjoy additional features via the Rove App.

Anker’s Dash Cam Duo, on the other hand, lives up to its billing as the best dash cam for ridesharing drivers. It’s a reasonably priced device that delivers high-resolution video quality, too. If money is not an issue, however, then Thinkware’s U1000 camera is also a good purchase. The U100’s dual-cam gives it more coverage compared to a low-cost camera like the Apeman C450, for instance. Since you get front and rear cameras, the U100 is also a premium alternative for truckers not won over by the Apeman C550.

Looking for more safety gear or equipment when traveling? Check out our comparison of car seats here.

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Last update on 2022-05-27 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API