17 November 2014

REVIEW: Snooper DVR-3HD Vehicle Drive Recorder

Dash cam awesomeness.

So you're driving along, minding your own bee's wax, when suddenly a car comes out of nowhere (which is a terrible place to come from) and side-swipes you. The driver leaps out of his car and immediately blames you (as people from nowhere tend to be pretty rude). How do you prove your innocence, especially to keep you insurance premiums down? Simple; just present the video evidence you captured on your Snooper DVR-3HD Vehicle Drive Recorder. Take that, nowhere loser!


Essentially what we have here is a HD digital video camera that affixes to you dashboard and points happily through your windscreen. What makes the Snooper DVR-3HD Vehicle Drive Recorder unique is not only its shape (its far more compact than other dash cams, looking more like an action cam) but also the many bundled abilities it possesses. This is more than just a point and shoot camera.

Firstly, the footage itself. The Snooper DVR-3HD Vehicle Drive Recorder films at 1080p HD resolution, so pretty similar to what you'll see from high-end action cams and smartphones. It also saves the footage to a microSD card which can be removed (essential as evidence) but, cleverly, will overwrite old information automatically once the card is full. That means you never have to delete stuff yourself to make room for more video. Also, you don't even have to switch it on, as once the Snooper DVR-3HD Vehicle Drive Recorder is set up it will automatically activate and start filming as soon as you turn your ignition key. Points scored, Snooper.


As well as the camera the Drive Recorder includes Snooper's famed Speed Trap Location software, which, quite like a SatNav, knows where all the speed cameras are and will warn you in enough time. And it will certainly know where you are in relation to those annoying cameras, as the DVR-3HD comes with a very accurate GPS which, in the event of an accident, can plot your position and route directly onto Google Maps, complete with detailed telemetries to help prove your innocence should an incident ever go to court. The DVR-3HD also has a three axis impact sensor, which will record exactly what sudden movements your car made, before, during and after a crash.


Interestingly the Snooper DVR-3HD also features a microphone, which although won't be able to record the naughty man who hit your car saying he intends to blame it on you for the insurance cash (we wish), it will record you. You've probably heard on all those Russian dash cam videos, where we see crazy accidents and hair-raising near misses, the voices of the car's occupants gasping or swearing (or, as it's Russia, not really being all that shocked by being dinged by a runaway Soviet-era tank). However, there is an option to deactivate the mic, just in case you're not all that bothered about the sound of you slagging off your mother-in-law being used in evidence.

At the end of the day, something like the Snooper DVR-3HD Vehicle Drive Recorder has now become a must-have car accessory. In a way, that is a shame, but at least you know that with technology like this on your side, your bases should be covered.

£150



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