A compilation of clips from videos filmed by Russian dashboard cameras. The reason for the popularity of dash-cams is explained at Animal New York:
These fights happen all the time and you can’t really press charges. Point to your broken nose or smashed windows all you want. The Russian courts don’t like verbal claims. They do, however, like to send people to jail for battery and property destruction if there’s definite video proof...Watching this makes me think about the benefits of having a dash-cam. I wonder how they work - do they "loop" the recording, and then you click to save the last couple minutes?
Two-way insurance coverage is very expensive and almost completely unavailable for vehicles over ten years old–the drivers can only get basic liability. Get into a minor or major accident and expect the other party to lie to the police or better yet, flee after rear-ending you. Since your insurance won’t pay unless the offender is found and sued, you’ll see dash-cam videos of post hit and run pursuits for plate numbers...
And sometimes drivers back up or bump their pre-dented car into yours...
And then, sometimes, someone will jump under your car at a crossing, laying on the asphalt, simulating a badly hurt pedestrian waiting for that cop conveniently parked nearby. This dramatic extortion scheme was common, until the Age of the Dash-cam...
Warning: violence. Lots of it.
Via BoingBoing.
Dash-cams are great. Even if nothing particular happens, sometimes it can be fun to watch your own driving from another perspective :)
ReplyDeleteMost of the ones I've come across just start recording when you start your engine and stop when it stops. If you run out of memory, they usually loop around and erase the oldest files.
Usually the loop can last for a few hours, depending on the video quality you want and the size of the memory card.
The last clip in that video is fantastic. (2:33 for anyone who wants to skip the fist fights.)
ReplyDeleteI started wearing a cam on my motorcycle a couple of years ago and then mounted one in my car last year.
ReplyDeleteWhat it has done for me is allowed me to replay close calls and decide what, if anything, could have been done better by me.
Of course, once we all have them, I can imagine a warrant for your cam your plates were captured by another camera and the prosecution hopes your cars cam has a better view of some crime... And don't even hope that the constitution will protect you if and when you are pulled over and the fuzz wants to watch the whole thing...
Progress?
car cams are big in asian countries also- and there is also a few variations on how they work depending on type you buy- there is an event actuated one that runs continuously, it then saves 10 seconds prior to the the event and 10 seconds after the event as well as grabbing gps data and veh motion logs/gforce etc... ie-like an airplane black box. some even come w/jacks to allow you to plug in rear facing and also an interior camera (for catching picture of person stealing your stereo or car) -
ReplyDeleteThe one that really surprises me is at 1:42, because the SUV flips completely over, almost end-over-end, just from dipping one wheel into an open manhole. The full video is here: http://youtu.be/xGmVaKOilR0?t=1m18s
ReplyDeleteReally makes you glad that you've never seen a sewage worker absent-mindedly leave the lid off.
Actually, it looks like what actually happened was that a metal grate got jammed between the back tire and the open hole, pushing the back end up. This video has a much better view: http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=22f_1335451343
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