Lexand vs. BlackVue - FullHD DVRs

I already wrote about the perfect DVR , which caused some discussion in the community. Many thought my ideas absurd, however, the registrar manufacturers somehow bring my dreams closer.

In January, two recorder models fell into my hands, each of which was somehow close to the ideal. I can't help but share my feelings, especially on the eve of holidays, when our naive ladies, trying to make us happy, will disperse various “technical things” from the counters, evaluating them only for the beauty of the box design. I do not know how anyone, but I myself have not once been a victim of such purchases, and therefore I turn my text, first of all, to the ladies: o)
')

Lexand LR-4500

First of all, it is worth noting that the product is really nice to the touch. I am terribly annoyed by bald and rough joints between body parts, sharp edges and loosely tightened screws. There is no such thing. The case is slightly rough, the inscriptions are neat. It looks like a spy camera, which the teacher at school scared us with when Andropov died. She forbade us to laugh in the days of mourning, because American correspondents with small cameras, shooting joyful Soviet children (her words), were running along the streets. And something like this, I imagined what exactly they could have shot us.



First of all, I was interested in the quality of shooting, especially at night. For the numbers to be read and in general, something more than the brake lights of cars passing by would be visible. I must say that the test recorder withstood quite adequately:



The picture during the day was also quite good:



Everything in the management turned out to be quite simple - a single reading of the instructions was enough for me to understand what was configured there and how, and once I had done the settings, I did not touch the buttons anymore.
When the engine is turned on, the device activates in about 10 seconds, and when the engine is turned off, the recording stops.

The recorder has a built-in battery that will hold it for about half an hour. The file size is 1 minute long - about 80 MBytes (in maximum quality). There are non-erasable files that will save the recording in case of a crash or manually, after pressing the button on the device (although until you find it ...: o).

What annoys me, and in this navigator, and in many others, is the terrible hinge with the suction cup, which is attached to the windshield. Since It is not recommended to leave the recorder in the cabin directly on the glass, then each time it should be stuck before the trip and removed after. On the cold glass, the sucker is attached only if it is thoroughly nadlyavit and not the fact that it does not fall off from the concussion along the way. I fell several times. Leave the hinge glued to the glass forever, unscrewing only the navigator will fail - painfully thin screws there.



The bottom line is that the picture from the recorder is valid, the design of the case is excellent, the software is normal. Only frustrating mount. Ready to come to terms with this shortcoming - take it without thinking.

BlackVue DR400G-HD II

To be honest, reading the text on the site of this registrar, I thought that here it is - almost ideal. In fact, some of the claimed advantages were rather disadvantages, and some were not entirely true.

First of all, it seemed to me very cool that the recorder has no hinges and its mounting is simply glued near the mirror. But in practice, it turned out that, all the same, it does not allow him to be left in the working position in the passenger compartment, since from the outside he is perfectly visible to all sorts of potential villains:



Again, with this mount, the recorder cannot be rotated to the side during recording to record, for example, communication with the traffic police. I somehow did not need it, but fans on the road to argue will be disappointed.

Next - the lack of a screen. In general, the screen is not needed if you do not want to see the result of the recording immediately, but personally I would like to have a little more information about what is happening with the device. The color indication of events is not bad, just to learn this Morse code is difficult. For example, it scared me when the indicator started flashing red, but it turned out that it was just that the shaking enhancement sensor had worked and the current fragment was recorded in an indelible memory area for the time being.

What really surprised me was the lack of a battery. It would seem that in such a huge cylinder there is a place almost for a finger-type battery, but in fact there is something battery-like, which is only enough to turn off the device in the absence of power. That is, to remove the registrar from his seat and bring it to the street for recording - will not work. It upset me.



Also, the developers strangely approach the well-established notation. For example, the WiFi icon, which is lit in green, does not mean a wireless connection at all - it has nothing to do with it, but reports that GPS is working. That is, when viewing a recording on a computer, you will see exactly where the action takes place.

By the way, about viewing on the computer. For some reason, it is impossible to download a special program from the manufacturer’s website, which allows viewing the record in a rather convenient way. It can be installed from a special section on a flash card, and only. The device is configured from the same program, i.e. during the trip it is impossible to do.

I did not test the declared recording system during parking, because It is difficult to buy a special adapter to connect directly to the battery; moreover, you need to leave the recorder in the cabin. But so - it is. In the same way as the declared “mobile sync” is just an opportunity to insert a memory card into your Android phone / tablet and view recordings from it. What iPhone owners like me do is unknown.

I was also surprised by the lack of a connector for connecting the device directly to a computer. Instead, there is a clever USB-adapter, in which you need to insert a large SD card, and a small one into it. For me, so the connector at the end would be much easier and more convenient.



Well, these flaws are not vital. The main drawback of the device is its dignity. Mount near the mirror means that the lens of the device is in an area that is poorly cleaned by the wipers. I have constantly on this place streams of melting snow from the roof. Driving a car does not interfere, but when recording, sometimes there are tangible defects. Making a test record, I specifically made sure that the glass was clean, but in real life it is tiring.

By itself, the recording quality is better than that of the LEXAND LR 4500 - this is noticeable in examples.

By day:



At night:



Thanks to the GPS module, the device records the speed of movement right on the record, and the coordinates allow you to see the map as the vehicle moves.

Conclusion. Good recording quality, GPS coordinates during the trip, compact size and a more or less tolerable mount. At the same time - the high price and several "built-in inconveniences." If you forget about money at all, you can take it. If money means, then think a little before buying and ... taking it shut. Because the mount without this nightmarish sucker is expensive - the price will be quickly forgotten, but you will have to stick it twice a day, which is annoying. Me.