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Now, I’m not going to rehash all the specs. You could scroll up to see that for yourself. Or even download the manual from the VANTRUE website. That information is easy to find and in excellent english. What I’d rather discuss is how this camera functions and operates outside what you can glean from the manufacturer.
I’ve included pictures of what I received in the box with this review. Frankly I was pleasantly surprised how neatly it was packaged up. And it included legible instructions and directions! I’ve also included a video of a side by side against my current camera and what I see in any given typical week driving in my area.
Impressions upon pulling everything out were that it’s not exactly the smallest thing going. I was a bit concerned it’d draw my attention when mounted but I don’t even notice it while driving. So that’s a plus. The screen is large enough to see from the driver’s position but realistically all the reviewing you’ll do after the fact will happen on your PC. It’s easy enough to navigate through all the settings with the included display and that’s good enough for me. I was also impressed that they include a data/short USB cable plus a power adapter cable and ODBII cable. Anything made in the last 30 years should be fine for providing power using one of these methods.
Also impressive is the mounting system. I did not (yet) purchase the GPS based mount, however, you can run your power source directly to the mount included. Then simply latch the T2 in place and you’re good to go. To remove the T2 you don’t have to disconnect power, just simply remove it from the mount. That is really very handy and much better than my previous camera. The GPS mount works the same way but includes a GPS module in the mount itself.
Usage is pretty simple and there’s no ambiguity in the menu options. If your power supply turns on with the ACC on position then the camera will turn off and on with the car. If you use the ODBII connection the camera can run 24/7. A word of caution on this, parking mode doesn’t function very well when it’s raining. It captures a fair amount of events since it’s motion based. But I’m very happy to report that it works as one would expect in parking mode as stated in the manual. When the car shuts down it will only turn the camera back on for a few moments if it senses movement or the car is shook. Second word of caution is that I would not leave your vehicle sit more than 24 hours at a time parked using this mode unless you test that the battery will not drop below the level required to start. Very last word of caution; since this uses a capacitor it will not function at all without direct power. Whether this be provided by your car or a battery pack, it’s something to know in advance.
Final thoughts then. It’s got very good picture quality. I’ve already used information (in the very first week on the road) to call in a very distracted driver to his company. Since it uses a capacitor vs a battery it should last even longer than my previous camera, which was 5 years. I cannot find any fault with this unit and would recommend it for anyone looking for a quality dash camera.
