Dashboard cameras are increasingly being bought and installed in personal vehicles by motorists who want to bring an impartial witness on road trips. AutoTemp manager, Tim Bruce, says camera sales and installations at his Calgary shop are equally split these days between business and personal vehicles. The units can sell between $200 and $500 and installation which involves running wires to the camera for power and fixing it in place, takes two to four hours. The more expensive units have more user options such as a second camera for the back window, higher resolution picture quality, larger storage cards, GPS for estimating speed and Wifi connectivity. The cameras start operating automatically when the car starts and run continuously. But there are some that also activate when the engine is off if they detect motion or an impact, such as when the car is struck by a vandal or another vehicle. The memory cards are overwritten as they fill, so the owner has to save a file separately if he or she wants to keep it. Bruce says many motorists buy a dashcam after they've been involved in an accident or an insurance dispute. (The Canadian Press)
