The Best Value For Money Cam: Rexing S300
The Rexing S300 is built with an ultra-wide field of view at 170 degrees. It offers an almost complete view of the road ahead with such a wide view. It also supports a rear setup, allowing for an unhindered view of the back of your truck.
The Best Video
Quality Cam:
WheelWitness HD Pro Plus
Recording at an impressive 2304 x 1286p compared to the more popular 1080p makes the WheelWitness HD Pro Plus our pick as the best video quality dash cam. This dash cam also implements a Wide Dynamic Range technology which allows it to capture exceptionally high-quality videos in low light.
The Best Accident Prevention Cam –
Garmin 55
The Garmin 55 is a compact and discrete GPS-enabled dash cam developed with major consideration for safety. Firstly, the GPS notifies drivers about upcoming hazards on the road by offering forward collision and lane departure warnings. It also alerts a driver of nearby red lights and speed cameras.
Three Best Dash Cams For Truckers In 2022
Truckers spend a lot of time on the road. And just like any other driver, they are susceptible to unforeseen accidents or incidents.
However, based on the sizes of the rigs they handle, truckers are usually tagged as the guilty party when an accident involving a truck occurs. But a truck dash cam is essential in protecting yourself from these stereotypical assumptions by capturing crashes if they happen.
As an individual trucker or a fleet manager, this article takes you on a trail through some of the best dash cams for truckers in 2022 while increasing your general knowledge of a truck’s dashboard camera.
What Is A Semi Truck Dash Cam
A semi-truck dashboard camera (or a dash cam) is a small video camera typically fitted on the dashboard of a truck. The standard arrangement sees the dashcam facing the road to capture any event. However, some dash cams also face the drivers to record road habits and behavior leading up to a crash.
Truck dash cams often have wider angles than those mounted in smaller vehicles because of the width of a truck cab.
In cases where truck drivers are victims of other careless road users, a semi-truck dash cam is an ideal way to protect them from unfair claims and penalties. Modern dash cams come equipped with fleet management software that helps reduce insurance rates, speed up claims, and incentivize safe driving.
What Is The Best Dash Cam For Truckers
Various brands of dash cams are on sale today, and it's a hard ask to identify the best. Hence, we will list the best dash cams in different categories
The Best Value For Money Cam: Rexing S300
Main Features
Video Quality: 1080P
Wide Angle Lens: 170 degrees
Night Vision: Yes
GPS: Yes
The Rexing S300 is built with an ultra-wide field of view at 170 degrees. It offers an almost complete view of the road ahead with such a wide view. It also supports a rear setup, allowing for an unhindered view of the back of your truck.
Fitted with a fast wide f2 six-glass lens, this dashboard camera records footage in full HD resolution, vividly capturing smaller details useful in the aftermath of a crash.
It’s compactly designed and easy to install, coming with an adhesive section that could be mounted to any windshield quickly and easily. Its heat-resistant capabilities also make it an ideal option for trucks operating in locations with extreme heat.
Furthermore, the S300 offers night vision capabilities, GPS logging and G-Sensors to detect sudden changes in gravity caused by abrupt changes in acceleration. All these make it a dash cam with the best value for money.
Pros
- Best value for money
- 170-degree wide-angle lens
- Large 2.7’’ screen
Cons
- Adhesive could be stronger
- No WIFI connectivity
The Best Video Quality Cam–
WheelWitness HD Pro Plus
Main Features
Video Quality: 2304 by 1286P
Wide Angle Lens: 170 degrees
Night Vision: Yes
GPS: Yes
Recording at an impressive 2304 x 1286p compared to the more popular 1080p makes the WheelWitness HD Pro Plus our pick as the best video quality dash cam. This dash cam also implements a Wide Dynamic Range technology which allows it to capture exceptionally high-quality videos in low light.
The WheelWitness dash cam also offers GPS for tracking and logging essential details of the truck, such as location, speed, bearing and altitude. Additionally, it makes efficient use of its memory through a loop recording, a feature that automatically overwrites old footage with new ones.
Aside from its impressive video quality, the WheelWitness dash cam offers useful security features too. It notifies you of certain situations like when you’re getting into another lane and when to turn on the headlights. Another handy feature is its ability to detect shock, in which case it stops recording and prevents existing footage from being overwritten.
Pros
- Easy to utilize
- Highest quality video available
- 170-degree wide-angle lens
Cons
- Recording loops are only two minutes long
- GPS is included as an external plugin
The Best Accident Prevention Cam – Garmin 55
Main Features
Video Quality: 1440P
Wide Angle Lens: No
Night Vision: Yes
GPS: Yes
The Garmin 55 is a compact and discrete GPS-enabled dash cam developed with major consideration for safety. Firstly, the GPS notifies drivers about upcoming hazards on the road by offering forward collision and lane departure warnings. It also alerts a driver of nearby red lights and speed cameras.
These features are accessed through the dash cam’s voice control function. By interacting with voice control, drivers can also carry out specific tasks like starting a new recording or taking a still picture quickly without taking their hands off the steering wheel.
The Garmin 55 also features a G-Sensor for automatic incident detection. When an incident is identified, the camera saves the last, current and next recording, thereby conserving complete information about the event.
Its compact and powerful nature and high-quality recording capabilities make the Garmin 55 both discrete and stylish. SD cards amounting to 65GB also automatically store recorded footage
Pros
- Voice control
- Good video quality
- Compact size
Cons
- Limited battery capacity
- Limited functionality
Benefits of Getting A Dashcam For Your Truck
Truck dash cams help in various ways to ensure road safety and easy driving. Here are some other critical reasons to invest in a truck dash cam.
Capture Events
Dash cams are often valuable in accident scenarios. They record events and details that could potentially go unnoticed by those involved in the crash.
Some dashboard cameras are designed with night vision or infrared technologies, making them effective even in low-light conditions. During crash investigations, critical details like license plates and street signs could also be captured and used.
Improved Awareness
Regardless of the level of expertise, truckers are also susceptible to errors. A very common mistake stems from drivers having to actively handle blindspot challenges presented by the large size of a truck. In these situations, truckers need as much help as they can get.
Dash cams are utilized as a second pair of eyes, improving a driver’s awareness in monitoring and dealing with blindspots.
Security
Like every other vehicle, Trucks could be targeted by thieves when parked overnight in a less than secure location. While thieves breaking into a truck might be unavoidable, dual-lens dashboard cameras can offer extra security by providing the police with relevant records in the aftermath of a break-in.
Types Of Dash Cams For Trucks
Dash cam technology is constantly evolving, with manufacturers implementing novel innovations to cover a wide range of data storage and camera quality. However, regardless of these innovations, there are two basic types of truck dash cam; single lens and multi-lens.
Single Lens Dash Cams
These are the most basic type of dash cams. The single-lens model makes use of just one wide-angle lens. This model is not often used as it has limited coverage, limiting the number of details it can document.
It, however, is a cheaper setup and could still function effectively in most cases.
Multi-Lens Dash Cams
This dash cam setup combines more than one camera, which is useful in expanding the video coverage and the driver’s field of view in real time. The most common type of this setup is the dual-lens dashboard camera.
Most of these cameras are designed with both lenses fitted within the camera to cover the front and interior. Some manufacturers also produce multi-lens kits that include extra cameras you can mount around your truck.
How To Choose Dash Cameras For Trucks
Dash cams come in varieties, thus making it quite challenging to decide the type to get. Here we identify some necessary details to look out for when choosing a dash cam for your truck.
Video Quality
Modern dash cams usually document events in two different video qualities; 720p (1280x720 pixel resolution) and 1080p (1920x1080 pixel resolution).
The 1080p offers more detail than the 720p, capturing details that the 720p might miss. Such details include license plates, street signs and even other road users.
Newer cameras are designed to record in even higher definitions like 2k or 4k. However, these cameras control a hefty fee.
Camera Angle
The most popular dashboard camera setup is a single-lens and front-facing cam, which only documents events on the road directly in front of the truck. However, dual-facing cameras with two lenses are now being implemented to record the road and inside the truck.
The road-facing camera angle assists the driver with blind spots, while the driver-facing camera angle is essential in monitoring drivers' habits and behaviors.
Camera Size and GPS Capability
Not all dash cams include GPS location tracking. However, those designed with GPS data logging offer the option to match a timestamp to a particular location. You can also deactivate the GPS option if the need arises.
Additionally, new dash cams are designed to be much more compact, making them completely discrete.
Fleet Management
Major fleet management companies like Samsara and Verizon Connect now offer dash cams with their fleet management software. These software platforms provide extra features like routing, tracking safety habits, fuel tracking and electronic logging device (ELD) compliance.
Average Cost Of A Dash Cam
The average cost of a dash cam is about $150, but additional features like fleet management software and other driver applications could see them rise to as much as $500. Some of these software platforms are up for monthly subscriptions, though. You can also find much cheaper dash cams for about $50, but they offer poor video quality.
Trucker Dash Cam FAQs
These are answers to some of the most frequently asked questions about truck dash cams.
How Do Truck Dash Cams Work?
The dash cam records footage in real time and either saves it in a memory card or uploads it to a cloud storage managed by the dash cam supplier. Higher grade cams can also identify and record unusual road behaviors like harsh braking, overspeeding and swerves.
What Is G-Sensor In A Dash Cam
The G-Sensor is used to identify and record any abrupt change in speed that could come from hard braking or overspeeding.
What Are Some Main Truck Dash Cam Features
Dashboard cameras come with a ton of impressive functions. Some of the major features include GPS tracking, G-Sensor mode, parking mode and night vision, all of which play critical roles in helping both truck drivers and fleet managers equally.
Conclusion
Aside from the selected dash cams highlighted in this article, there are other terrific options to choose from. However, identifying the specific features that would be most useful for your situation is critical in determining a useful dash cam for your truck
In summary, a dash cam is a critical safety tool every trucker should invest in to save themselves a lot of time and money in the long run.
