[landcruiser123]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AwGwrbkTrJk

Tried it recently. Pathetic results.

Any suggestions to improve?

[r2212xx]

I noticed that this thread has not been updated for several years now, so thought of sharing my experience of using an old smartphone as a dashcam.

Background
I was exploring dashcams for my car and, while doing so, got acquainted with several nuances. Notably, the dashcam would draw some trickle power when the vehicle is not in use. This is usually for the wake-up mode when the camera senses vibration and captures footage of a few seconds to a minute. While this is not a concern, the use case of my car was going to be about 80 to 100 km per month, with most drives on weekends. Considering the ultra-low usage, I was concerned that I might not be using the vehicle enough in a week to compensate for the trickle charge lost by the dashcam.
While ruminating about how to go about it, I considered exploring the possibility of using my old smartphone as a dashcam.

Using the phone
The phone I use is Nokia XR 20 attached to a standard phone stand that attaches to the dashboard through a suction cup.
The phone has an ultrawide 13MP camera with a 123-degree field of view (FOV).
You may choose any phone with at least 13MP ultrawide lens, which is considered to be a FOV of anywhere above 100 degrees. A camera with at least 114 to 115 degrees is preferable. There is no need for a specialised dashcam app, and the phone’s standard camera app is sufficient.
Note the following points as well.

• If the camera offers options between higher frame rate with lower resolution versus lower frame rate with higher resolution, pick the latter. A higher resolution makes it easier to zoom in and see vehicle numbers when reviewing the footage later.
• Ensure the phone has video stabilisation feature. This is vital otherwise all you will get is a shaky video. Some smartphones restrict video stabilisation to a lower resolution video, such as up to 1080p rather than 4K. While the higher resolution is preferred, it is of no use without video stabilisation. Therefore, in such scenarios, pick the resolution that works with image stabilisation.
• Use the video grid overlay lines, the ones that criss-cross the video, to align the video to the horizontal plane before you press record.
• Most smartphones limit the maximum video length to 30 minutes at a time. So, at some point during your trip, you may stop recording and then press the record button again. Traffic stops are usually the best time to do this.

Performance
Below is a GIF of a short section of a video. It is not very different from a dashcam footage.


Before you begin

• Check what is the manufacturer-recommended operating temperature of the device. This is very important. Car dashboards can get very hot during summer. Some military-grade phones have tolerance to significantly higher temperatures.
• Some phones' wide-angle cameras are not great for low light or nighttime video recording. The acceptable quality level can vary as per the phone, so test it first. If the phone camera features a night mode, you may consider using it.
• Remove any unnecessary apps on the phone that may run in the background and drain the battery while also contributing to phone heating.
• Adjust the phone holder before the drive. Never make any adjustments while driving, as it can be distracting.
• Ensure you have enough phone or card memory available to record the videos for your trip.

For whom it is a great option

• Those who use their vehicle sparingly, such as weekend drives only or a few hundred or so kilometres a month.
• Those with more than one car, such as a second, smaller city car without a dashcam.
• Those who do short drives, such as max an hour of total drive a day.
• Those with several old smartphones lying around at home. The rate at which technology evolves these days, it is not uncommon for a phone's operating system to go obsolete, while the hardware per se stays fine.

Advantages

• Immediate review of footage: No need to connect through some app to the dashcam. Just review the footage on your phone’s screen.
• Easy cloud upload: In case you wish to retain the footage and want to keep a spare copy, you can easily back it up to the cloud using the phone’s Wi-Fi.
• No need for special memory cards: Smartphones support a wider range of memory cards than dashcams. Plus, if your phone’s internal memory is substantial, you do not need a memory card.
• Cost effective: No additional expense. It can give a new purpose to an old smartphone lying at home. One may even consider it environmentally friendly.

Limitations and Points to remember

• The phone dashcam best suits front-view recording. I would not recommend sticking a phone holder on the rear windshield or parcel shelf since the vehicle’s jerks may cause the phone to hit the windshield.
• Do not leave your phone in the holder in a parked car. Besides it getting heated up, it can be too conspicuous and tempting for thieves.
• Do not use the same phone for Android Auto or Apple Carplay (if the phone has a SIM card). It will heat up the phone faster and increase the chances of glitches.
• Keep a 12V charger and a cable handy just in case the phone needs charging. Alternatively, you may connect it to the charging-only USB port of your car. You can charge the phone while it is recording for short durations to prevent overheating.

[arnav17]

This is an excellent idea! I wish you had written this thread before we went ahead and got dashcams for both the cars installed last year. I have atleast 7 old phones (all running android 5) lying around with zero usage, which could have avoided the dashcam purchase. Will try to see if it can be fitted at the rear somehow without hitting the windshield.

Thanks for sharing

[ramki.grandhi]

Originally Posted by r2212xx

For whom it is a great option

For rental cars like Zoomcar, it's a great option. Thank you for sharing this information.

[Vikash Kumawat]

Its a good idea if you have a good secondary phone,

Usually phones get hot even while normal camera usage, if you use video recording while your car is parked outside or while driving, the phone will become boiling hot, it will lead to stop the recording.

Phones around in 20k-30k budget range don't offer a good wide angle camera, most phones come with 2 or 5 MP VGA cameras, without video stablisation.

A dashcam is one time investment, you can get good dual channel dashcams below 10k, though it is a good idea in a rented car.

[ajaiD]

Be warned that the battery can expand/explode. Direct sunlight is not great for a phone which is designed for multi usage. If smartphone is a must then take out the battery and use a super cap instead but time will be messed up.

[sagkag]

Dashcams have become so cheap nowadays, you can get a decent one under INR 5000.

If trickle power is your concern, just disconnect it from the power socket when you're not driving the car (just like you'd disconnect the phone in your example).

[Sach_511]

Using a phone as a dash cam can be quite dangerous and risky. Windshields tend to get direct sunlight, and the phone's battery may not be capable of handling such high temperatures. Fortunately, dash cam prices have dropped to very reasonable levels, and you can purchase one for just a few thousand rupees. Please avoid using your phone as a dash cam.

[Sedate]

If you have a good phone, you can even retrofit lane keeping assistance and cruise control. Certain Honda ECU support a package where by you can connect the phone via OBD to control steering and accelerator.

The problem was always overheating phones. I think there was some work on this done some 5+ years ago (Using one plus phone if I remember right).

[TurboKat]

Originally Posted by r2212xx

I noticed that this thread has not been updated for several years now, so thought of sharing my experience of using an old smartphone as a dashcam.

I had a Samsung A01 lying around. The phone used to belong to my uncle. He gave it to me for free after the display cracked. I didn't use it for quite some time. Later, I had the idea of using it as a dashcam as I wasn't using one after my earlier one went bad. It was the right decision for me as the phone is still functioning properly as a temporary dash cam. It's been almost a year since I adopted this "jugaad". I don't care if it gets stolen as I spent almost nothing on it.