Question on wiring a dash cam

Hi everybody

Going to pick up a Thinkware Q800 Pro Dash Cam Bundle (front and rear).

I was planning on just plugging it into the cigarette lighter. I see my 2018 has two cig lighters, one in the center console and one on the front panel.

Do both of the sockets provide the same voltages? I would end up needing one lighter socket for the dash cam, and another for the phone. Not sure if I need to plug the dash cam into a particular socket.

The bundle does come with a hardwiring kit, but my daily commute is 0.1 miles, so I was concerned that hardwiring and letting the parking mode run would kill my battery because it doesn't have time to recharge.

Thank you.

 

0.1 mile to work.......

Why don't you walk? It should take less time than driving.

 

???

I feel guilty driving ~4 mi. to work, but it's too far to walk in a reasonable period of time and I'm just not comfortable bicycling on the street with a bunch of frantic soccer moms driving 6000lb. SUVs.

 

Commute is 0.1 miles across a major highway. So walking is a no-go.

 

so.....never a break in traffic?? You must cross at some intersection. There must be a break in traffic so you can drive across.

No stoplights, no stop signs, no pedestrian laws......... I'm skeptical.

About the only road a pedestrian can not cross is an Interstate.

 

And why do you care?

I was hoping to get some feedback on dash cam wiring.

Perhaps I am in the wrong place.

 

A. stewardship of the planet
B. stewardship of the equipment
c. a 0.05 mile move across the parking lot is insufficient to recharge what's lost from startup in most instances ergo your 0.1 mile "commute" is going to kill the truck far faster than the trickle drain of an accessory (that will absolutely kill the battery in a few days)

 

I don't care.

Just trying to suggest an alternate to driving the 0.1 mile to work to avoid the entire charging issue.

But.......drive if you want.....no skin off my backside.

You can follow the directions to hard wire it. or you can just plug it into the cig lighter. Both cig lighters are 12 Vdc.

 

I had the exact same thought.

There are also issues with the engine never getting up to operating temperature, falls under "B"".

 

Have no fear, I have mine hardwired and in 5yrs It has never worn down or deteriorated the battery, never. It will auto-shut to prevent that from happening.

 

Depends on whether the particular make/model of camera has that auto-off capability.

 

I you buy a model without auto-off capability it's a different animal, and in that case you might...

 

Hardwired or cig fed it's going to do the same draw (parking mode assumed). Never had an issue for week or 2 with my BlackVuiew being plugged in either method.

 

Not exactly. The cig outlet in the console box is switched (off when the truck is off). The cig outlet in the dash might be also (dunno', haven't checked). If they're both switched, then using either would mean there would be no battery drain when the truck is off, different from hardwiring to a non-switched source of power. You'd also have no "parked" mode of operation of the camera (records at reduced frame rate or is activated by motion), which may be a selectable optional in a particular camera. In other words, if your BlackVue isn't draining your battery it could be because it's either on a switched source of power, or "parked" mode is turned off. Pretty sure Blackvue cameras have a separate module for sensing battery voltage (for auto-off at low battery voltage) that needs to be (hard)wired to a non-switched power source.

 

"stewardship of the planet" ?

you will not live long enough to be a steward of the planet

 

Thank you for demonstrating your ignorance!

 

If you wire it to a socket I don’t believe the parking mode works. I have the same DashCam and did the hardwire to where it shuts off with the truck (no parking mode). Unfortunately I believe the 2020+ only has one socket and that’s in the front console so the only option for me was to hardwire

 

you're welcome. Man wants to drive to work when it's only a tenth of a mile away, that's his business.

I'll remain happily ignorant while others pass judgment on other people's choices.
Cheers