What is Dash Cam Parking Mode?

You want dash cameras to protect you while driving, but what about when you park your car? Read on if you want a simple explanation on how a dash cam with parking mode can protect your car

Dash cameras are designed to record when you are driving your car, capturing everything in front and behind if you get a two channel system, or just the front or back if you get a one channel system, and even inside the car if you need an internal infrared ridesharing dash cam system. No matter which dash camera system you need, in the simplest terms dash cam parking mode is like CCTV for your car that captures the same footage when you are not driving your car, but with key differences as you will see if you read on. This can help you to catch intentional or unintentional damage caused to your car when it is parked, and can even allow you to provide assistance with clarification on events that may have happened near your car.

How does dash cam parking mode work?

Parking mode is automatically activated when you turn your car off, and dash cameras have inbuilt sensors for different recording reactions to occur:

• Motion sensitive dash cam recording; detects someone/something near your car
• Impact sensitive dash cam recording; detects contact with your car

Parking mode is designed this way so that when you are away from your car, only targeted footage is recorded, this means less footage is created/overwritten and requires lower power consumption as the dash cameras are effectively in a hibernation state when not in use, which is also beneficial for SD card health/longevity no matter what size SD card your dash cameras have

There is also a feature known as the timelapse parking mode, which takes a series of photos and compiles them into a video, created as an alternative to motion and impact sensitive parking mode recording for cars in busy areas like a main street. The timelapse parking mode feature is available with BlackVue, IROAD, Street Guardian and THINKWARE dash cameras

Some dash cameras like the BlackVue DR970X-2CH LTE are cloud enabled, which will allow you to receive parking mode alerts and remotely live view parking mode footage from the dash cams on your smartphone for the ultimate parking mode car security; we have more information on remote live viewing dash camera footage here

Do all dash cams have parking mode?

No, but it is becoming a more common dash cam feature, that said it is important you check if the parking mode feature is supported on the dash cameras you are interested in, and what is required to power them when your car is parked to enable parking mode recording. For all the dash cameras we stock they include a hardwire kit for parking mode (more on this below) as an added benefit to our Sydney wide mobile professional dash cam installation service

What are the dash cam parking mode power methods?

When your car is running dash cameras record full time as they are receiving unlimited power, when the car is parked there are two options to power dash camera parking mode:

• Dash cam hardwire kit: connects dash cameras to run off the car battery and shut off the dash cameras at a certain voltage cutoff point to prevent flattening your car battery so you can start the car when you return
• Dash cam battery pack: Separate/independent dash cam battery pack that is charged when you drive, providing power when parked for dash camera parking mode

You can only use one of the two options above, not both together. We recommend and include with all our quotes a dash cam hardwire kit for parking mode, and the reasoning is simple:

1. Hardwiring a dash camera to the car battery provides a reliable power source
2. It is the most cost effective option
3. For most people/applications it will provide a sufficient amount of power for parking mode time required

Alternatively you can opt for a dash cam battery pack which provides a separate power source for your dash cameras that charges as you drive so that when you park your car you have a separate dedicated power source for parking mode recording that does not rely on your car battery and protects it from overuse, our most popular and cost effective dash cam battery pack option is the BlackVue B-112 battery pack. But what are the pros and cons of using a dash cam battery pack?

1. Independent parking mode power source that does not rely on your car battery
2. Dash cam battery packs generally provide longer parking mode recording times than hardwire kits
3. Adds more cost to the price of dash cameras when compared to using a hardwire kit

It is important to keep in mind that parking mode will only work for as long as your battery has extra power to spare, driving shorter distances leaves little spare power and shorter parking mode recording time, whereas driving longer distances leaves more spare power and longer parking mode recording time, regardless of whether you have a hardwire kit using the cars battery or a dash cam battery pack

How long will dash camera parking mode record for?

Unfortunately parking mode time is a how long is a piece of string situation and an absolute amount of time cannot be guaranteed as many factors will affect this:

• Size and health of your car battery or dash cam battery pack (i.e - ability to store spare power for parking mode)
• Voltage cutoff point if hardwired to car battery (i.e - how much spare power is available before the cutoff point?)
• Busy areas potentially mean more impact and motion detection recording, using the power more quickly as more parking mode recording events are triggered
• Recording settings, such as the level of sensitivity set for impact/motion detection events or the recording resolution will impact power consumption
• How long your car will be parked for? The longer your car is parked it less likely the spare power to allow parking mode recording will cover that whole period

So, do you need dash cam parking mode?

If you are having dash cameras installed, it makes sense to make use of the parking mode feature, as stated above we include a hardwire kit with all our quotes because parking mode could help you catch the dishonest person who bangs your car with a shopping trolley, dissuade a would be thief, or catch the vandal who keyed your car!

If you want more information on dash cameras for your car please contact one of our team on 1300 533 922, or you can check out our range of dash cameras here. After years of experience we only stock the dash camera brands we trust: BlackVue, IROAD, Street Guardian and THINKWARE dash cameras, providing a mobile professional dash cam installation Sydney wide, get in touch for your dash cam needs today!

Written by Mark Tourni