Nextbase 522GW Dash Cam Full 1440p/30fps Quad HD Recording In Car DVR Camera- 140° 6 Lane Front Viewing- Wifi, 10Hz GPS, Bluetooth- Built-in Alexa and Polarising Filter- Night Vision- Emergency SOS
| Dimensions: | 5.59 x 4.83 x 9.65 cm; 127 Grams |
| Model: | 522GW |
| Batteries Included: | 1 Lithium Polymer batteries required. (included) |
| Manufacture: | NEXT BASE |
| Dimensions: | 5.59 x 4.83 x 9.65 cm; 127 Grams |
| Origin: | China |
I have had this a few weeks now, connected it to my car really easy. When parked up its very easy to remove preventing a delightful individual thinking they can help themselves to it.
My previous dash came same model broke after 4 years of use , so I bought a replacement from Amazon at a good price defo recommend this dash camera the picture quality is superb nice and clear and reads Registrations easy. You can download footage on your phone with the nextbase app.
Really great camera, had a Blackvue before – the Nexbase is a better bet.
I purchased this along with hard wire kit to replace a failed unit in my wife’s wee VW Polo. The install was very easy with the hard wire kit, so easy I later purchased the rear camera and installed that too. The performance of the cameras is excellent with nice clear vision day and night.
I had hoped for longer than 20 months service from Nextbase. Too many glitches, and sometimes it will not operate at all, inspite of repeated resetting. Disappointing.
The cam with the 64gb card is very good quality.
This kit is let down by the absence of a micro 2 piggyback fuse lead for the hard wire kit.
I wasn’t aware that this kit did not support the latest in-car fuse types.
I had to buy a set of 4 for 6.99 and wait a few more days before I could install it.
Please check your car fuse types
The much vaunted SOS function is not an inclusive feature of the webcam but a subscription service that must be paid for; currently 2.99 monthly; say 30p.a.; this is not mentioned in the product details as far as I can see. ALSO although the description states the mount is magnetic this only relates to the connection between camera and base unit. The mounting to the screen is by a sticky pad and this can be very hard to remove. The optional suction-cup screen mount is no longer included in the package but is described in the downloadable user manual and was one of the reasons I chose this model. In fact a quick call to customer support secured an immediate promise to dispatch one to me the next day, and the explanation given was that so many people just discard these mounts that they were withdrawn. This caused me some inconvenience as the item was needed that day; the service could not however have been better. The SOS pricing info was also provided by the supprt worker. The claim that the camera can be easily fitted and removed with one hand seems unlikely to work for me. The magnetic connection is exceptionally strong and even with the unit in both hands requires considerable force to seperate them. All other ratings are without the benefit (yet) of use on the road but build quality appears very good, set-up screens are simple and clear and pictures appear to be of reasonable quality. The polarising lens might be a mixed blessing as my experience from photography is that the effectiveness of these depends upon the direction of the light and so they need adjusting each time the camera is moved relative to that. This cannot be done while driving.
Had this nextbase camera fitted, it’s good quality, picture is good, have not got me head around night vision, will have to go into settings
Can see view from dashcam clearly and easily. Can send video to mobile phone
he product is good , but they can include the wire kit as in the package.
Design,size and picture quality. Maybe a bit more expensive than other makes, but with the quality of other people’s driving you need to protect your ca
Was good but stopped working just after the warranty. Seller iZilla refused to help. Don’t bothe
Transfer from dash cam to mobile device could be quicker. Nextbase app is not to fast with the transfer. Still prefer to connect my micro sd to pc drirectly
Every time you mount the camera it has moved. It does NOT come with the suction mount and the built in battery lasts about 8 mins so no good for parking mode if you use the power adapter supplied. This seams to be a step backwards compared to the older cameras by nextbase
my first foray into dashcams was a cheap and horrible experience. ‘Nuff said. This however is a very different league. Simple install, simple operation, Simply good quality cameras, fittings, video/picture – wide coverage and importantly (possibly) can read number plates. Thoroughly recommend for the average guy. Great VFM.
I liked the dash cam, found the quality better.
But Its a bit expensive.
I think it would have been worthy with this price if the camera has its own battery with greater power. It has to rely on the vehicle’s power source all the time, so that it can be used even without connecting to the vehicle.
Don’t know it will be possible to add a battery with this camera.
The picture is good enough for accidents but it won’t pick up say facial features unless they’re very close.
If the 622 was more affordable I would have got this for the 4K.
Image was stable and not jerky/ washed out/ reflective etc.
It stores files in 1min files but it is all continuous. The 1min files are easier to email/ save etc rather than downloading a whole hour of video to find one moment for example.
Set up was easy – my USB port is below my radio so I just plug that in and don’t bother with hardwire or hiding the cables.
I bought a 128GB Scandisk U3 card because it was so much cheaper than the Nextbase one. Formatted it straight away after reading all the reviews – works perfectly.
Downloaded the android app to set it up which I did in the house and this was easy. When I’m parked up somewhere and want to use the app, it does struggle to connect over WiFi. Sometimes it looks like it hasn’t connected but when you press ‘back’ you’re suddenly connected. Its fine because I plug the camera into my PC (downloaded the Nextbase Player for PC) and it works great – really great. Has speed info and a little map that shows you where you were.
Would definitely recommend but if you have the funds, get the 4K.
Keypoints:
1. The 3 inch display is clear, I have also used the Nextbase App on my iPhone, but I only really review recorded video using a laptop.
2. High G Sensor Activity. The default Medium setting resulted in a number of false RED Exclamation marks on the 522GW display, these recordings are automatically protected. I have since set the sensor to high, particularly as all recordings are saved anyway.
3. Speed Awareness. All recordings constantly display vehicle speed, so it’s a wake up call on the way you drive.
To sum up, excellent camera quality and stable recordings, I’m glad I bought this dash cam.
The 522gw dashcam was fine but the rear camera showed up as flashing white/purple PIP. Had to return tio yesterday.
Note that it needs a high speed SD card U3 rating for the rear camera.
Great camera and really good picture. Bought as a gift and I have previously installed a hardwire kit for the exact same camera in my own car.
After trying to install using various fuses I just couldn’t get it power up. After several hours and assuming I’d done something wrong I turned to Nextbase customer support. I had decided to ask for a replacement fuse tap, after they sent the incorrect one out the first time, I contacted them again and they then sent the correct one. This was the issue, a faulty fuse tap was in the original hard wire kit which camera with the bundle.
These things happen of course, but just be aware that you may also get a faulty piece of hard ware which could make you think the camera is faulty or something else. A real positive is the Nextbase customer service. I called and emailed them, far better to call if you can, it’s dealt with straight away and no ’email’ delays.
Hope this helps someone.
Everything really good bought the rear camera also and Nextbase 128gb sd card.
The only problem I have is while using the park feature camera drained battery enough so I couldn’t start car.
Had my car years and had no problems with car battery.
Since installing dash cam had problems with weak or no car start.
I have now bought a bigger car battery nearly double Ah .
I use the car for work every week day which is 16 miles a day travelling.
I’m hoping new battery will solve car not starting because of dash cam .
After disappointment with previous cheaper dashcams I hoped that I’d get what I paid for with the 522. I did. It wasn’t simple to set up but a call to their tech desk (answered Immediately) guided me through – set up perfectly in 3 minutes, the problems had been with my phone, not the dashcam. The quality is superb, it feels solid, unlike the cheaper plastic cams. Video is outstanding, wifi connection perfect. Worth every penny.
This is my second purchase of the same model. Good quality and peace of mind.
Tip: Format your SD card regularly, I do mine about once a month so that it has more space. Protected clips will not get overwritten unless you do a format or remove them individually. These start to take up more memory leaving your SD card with less space to record.
It works very well indeed. Video is pin sharp, Installation was not a problem following the comprehensive instructions provided. A little tricky but nothing a competent DIYer couldn’t handle. Only slight criticism: the camera attaches to the mount by magnets. The magnets are strong to prevent accidental separation, but this also makes for a rather difficult detachment; I haven’t managed to do so without changing the angle which always has to be slightly readjusted, although reattaching the camera is easy with the magnets. No other problems have troubled me. A great buy at a reasonable price for what you get.
I bought these for my wife’s car along with the matching hardwire kit. Took me a couple of hours to fit and set up correctly.
They have Alexa built in, which links through your phone to the car audio system and it seems to work quite well.
The picture quality of the cameras is excellent. Beware that you will need to fit the ferrite blocks on the cables near to the cameras – especially the rear if you have a DAB fin aerial, and it may still hamper the DAB signal a wee bit.
The app is reasonable, but is let down by the fact you can only have a single smartphone paired to the cameras. This is an issue when there are multiple drivers with their own phones (which is obviously very common). I’ve seen comments at online forums where Nextbase claim it’s under development, but that was over a year ago and nothing has changed so far.
I bought this after purchasing a new car. The installation was fairly straight forward following the in box instructions. I also searched on YouTube which was helpful too. As mentioned in the instructions of the installation kit if the admin spur/fuse tap doesn’t fit your car an email to customer service requesting the correct type is all that is required. NextBase customer service is NextLevel and the correct spur was efficiently posted for 2 day delivery. The camera quality is very good and connection to the camera easily sorted once the NextBase app and Alexa is downloaded. I’m really pleased with the installation and functionality of the app settings and once setup properly works off the ignition key. The footage is really clear to watch on a smart phone, files in both high definition and lower quality can be saved automatically. Obviously the HD quality takes a fair while to download as the file size is quite large. It’s easy to mark the file for keeping by pressing the red button on the underside of the front camera. If Alexa is running in the background you can instruct it to mark the video to protect for later viewing and inspection. Still photos can be taken during playback for zooming and closer inspection if required. The added bonus is that some insurance companies now give a discount for customers who have dash cams fitted to their cars. The other advantage with dash cam 522 is that speed and exact go’s locations can be set to record at the same time and saved with the date etc. This is very useful for insurance claims should the need ever arise, hopefully not in your case but nonetheless very useful if used in evidence.
Having been a Nextbase user for many years, I was expecting a good product but the ‘X22’ Series is excellent. Baulking at the cost of the 622GW, I opted for the 522 and the rear-view camera ‘bundle’ made sense. As I was replacing an older version in the front, it was 5-min job. The rear camera cable installation added probably an hour as I concealed the cable throughout its run using the vehicle cable conduits for the rear door; just fiddley, not difficult. The imagery produced is excellent, both front and rear and setting up using the touch-screen controls was intuitive and straightforward . Everything working so far so definitely 5-stars!
I haven’t used it at night yet but picture is good, my old cable fit so i didn’t need the additional wiring i purchased for the rear camera as it came with its own cable so returning was easy, my only fault with it is the battery, everything morning it tells you to connect to charger as the battery is low, not sure why the battery doesn’t stay full
A few people have mentioned they are having problems with the unit not powering up and just staying stuck on the blue light. Mine was the same.
The solution seems to be in the way you power up the camera.
Previously, I was leaving the cigarette plug in and just pulling the unit on and off the mount. It doesn’t seem to like that.
Instead, I now make sure my cigarette plug in unplugged, then I mount the unit, then plug in the cigarette plug.
To power down, I remove the cigarette plug to remove power, then dismount the unit from the cradle.
I have had zero failures since then
Hope this helps
Had a couple issues, most annoying where I’ve had to take the dash cam out of the car and to my pc and try to reset it or something, turns out I had to format the SD card, which was a nextbase 64gb one
Also every so often it asks me to format the card for some reason, I wish I could turn this off as it overwrites anyway
Also you can’t take the “nextbase” text off of the recording
This is the first dashcam I’ve owned so have nothing to compare it to. The video is very clear though I haven’t driven at night-time with it yet and it automatically records 2 different quality videos in 1 minute files to make it easier to upload to insurers. The screensaver setting offering a speed readout is useful because it keeps my wife happy as she can keep a check on me! Although I’d read in a revue that the memory card doesn’t overwrite when it’s full but needs to be formatted, that is incorrect. It does overwrite automatically but the advice is that it should be formatted regularly to maintain the recording quality. My only gripe is that the battery doesn’t hold it’s charge which means that the camera won’t operate if the car is hit when parked. In reality that’s a minor point for me otherwise I’d have sent it back
Great mounting system, no clutter and takes tiny fraction of space on your windshield. It tracks telemetry and gps location while recording. This can be previewed in the mobile application together with video. Polarization filter is included, so there will be no dashboard dazzling.
Video quality is only Ok-ish, expected it to be more clear. No SD card in the package and very old school mini USB connection. Rear view camera is a quite expensive add-on.
Brilliant I had an older version of nextbase dash cam but this one is better. I like the way it’s held on with a magnet, easy to get off the holder, the touch screen is so much better non of this going through menus to find what you want.
The whole feel of it is better with the size and large screen, night mode is clear and picks up all colours. I’ve not had chance to use the alexa function yet but I’m sure it would be just as good
A big improvement over cheaper dashcams I’ve previously owned. Very secure screen mount, quick detachment feature useful but tricky to do one handed as magnet and clip are strong. But not a bad thing. Screen menu navigation straight forward, not tried the Alex’s setup. I got a Next Base micro SD card as there are reports of it having problems with other makes, that would be my only criticism.
My old camera packed up after 6 years ( not nextbase) so this time I decided to go for front and back cameras. Nextbase seems to be regarded as the market leader so I went for this. Once installed it’s very easy to set up and I’ve had it about 5 weeks and I’m very pleased with it. The picture quality is very good both night and day and it’s so far performed perfectly. What’s really nice feature is when it saves footage from front and back it names the files in a format that the free PC software recognises as linked and you view front and back footage playing simultaneously in split screen. The only difficulty I had was mounting. The front camera is kind of offset due to its shape and in my car the mirror assembly is really bulky so the camera ends up a fair bit off centre in the windscreen when mounted on the passenger side of the mirror. I deliberated for ages but that was the best spot I could find. The rear camera is easy to mount but difficult to tidy the cable in a hatchback and as it’s on a magnetic ball mount if you are not careful dangling cable will move the camera when you open and close the boot. I have a Range Rover. All in all very good though and I would recommend
This is very good quality dash cam with brilliant video quality. The only niggle I have is that because of the wide angle lenses videoed traffic appears to be further away than it actually is. You have to assess the distance by using road markings and other items of roadway furniture to get some degree of distance. this is the same with all wide angle lensed cameras and not a criticism of this camera. It is not the cheapest of cameras but you do get what you pay for. I am very pleased with it and recommend it.
Having had a Nextbase 312GW dash cam previously (very happy with it – except for the sucker mount, as every few weeks, it would fall off the screen, triggering my car alarm), I decided to upgrade to the 522GW. I love the semi-permanent adhesive windscreen mount, the large touchscreen, and the fact you can add a rear view module to the main camera (which I did). The ease of connection to view the pictures from the camera is commendable. However, I decided to remove the app from my phone, as the extra battery drain on the phone wasn’t acceptable. Overall, extremely happy with my purchase.
Only difference between the 522 and 620 is 4k video. I bought the 522gw excellent powerful camera glad I went with nextbase. Installed it with the rear view nextbase camera the two of them work a treat together. Camera comes if the car gets a bang while parked day and night vision works a treat and connects to my Bluetooth connection to phone first time everything. Good experience wired with the hardwire nextbase kit camera switches on and of with the ignition car key. Highly recommended easy to navigate the menus etc and so simple to hardwire. If your in the market I’d recommend nextbase make sure you buy the right micro sd card for video dash cams. No problems so far
Eugene
Dubli
Good camera, bought with hard wire kit although piggyback fuse didn’t fit my car fuse box. To be fair though 2020 model so uses newer fuse design so had to buy separate piggyback fuse. Easy to install, great compact suction bracket. Good quality pictures and features, like the current speed screen saver, much less distracting than video playing. Only negative and 1 star deducted is for poor battery storage overnight. Full to empty with low battery even though no recordings. Seems fine during the day so I suspect linked to cold temperature at night. Car used daily and tried plugging in the house for hours but makes no difference.
I originally bought the 322GW just for the peace of mind if anything were to happen while driving but I found the video quality to be rather shocking as an advertised ” 1080p” camera , honestly looked more like 480p.
Returned and bought the 522GW, a fair bit more money but the video quality is much better, I also paired it with the rear facing camera to have more evidence if anything were to happen.
The price can look steep but for the video quality alone it’s worth the increase over other models.
The bottom line here is that it’s easy to get seduced by a dashcam – the videos all look so good don’t they? The picture looks good on this – from what I can see and the system looks like it should capture the right things. But, fitting and set up are the tricky parts.
I hired an experienced auto electrician who does this for a living (good reputation too), he fitted it, and it looked good! Four things to bear in mind: –
(1). I lost my DAB radio; the electrician says it’s a known fault with Nextbase; Nextbase says it’s not installed correctly and has sent me two attenuators to clip round the wires to shield the interference – I’ve yet to do this, I will try to update – but the key here is to check whilst installing.
(2). The magnet to the camera is very strong, so taking the camera off the permanent mount moves the mount and you will have to set it up each time you do.
(3) You try getting the micro SD card out of the camera without taking the camera down to review the footage.
(4) The PC download says the PC app cannot be downloaded securely; the Android App takes ages to pair with the camera and update – and the size of each 1-minute file on the camera is about 185mb so takes forever to download to the phone – hence why you need to get at the Micro SD card and plug it in a PC!.
I do find this frustrating and will update this review if I find a solution – I hope I can overcome these issues because the actual camera looks good.
The bottom line here is that it’s easy to get seduced by a dashcam – the videos all look so good don’t they? The picture looks good on this – from what I can see and the system looks like it should capture the right things. But, fitting and set up are the tricky parts.
I hired an experienced auto electrician who does this for a living (good reputation too), he fitted it, and it looked good! Four things to bear in mind: –
(1). I lost my DAB radio; the electrician says it’s a known fault with Nextbase; Nextbase says it’s not installed correctly and has sent me two attenuators to clip round the wires to shield the interference – I’ve yet to do this, I will try to update – but the key here is to check whilst installing.
(2). The magnet to the camera is very strong, so taking the camera off the permanent mount moves the mount and you will have to set it up each time you do.
(3) You try getting the micro SD card out of the camera without taking the camera down to review the footage.
(4) The PC download says the PC app cannot be downloaded securely; the Android App takes ages to pair with the camera and update – and the size of each 1-minute file on the camera is about 185mb so takes forever to download to the phone – hence why you need to get at the Micro SD card and plug it in a PC!.
I do find this frustrating and will update this review if I find a solution – I hope I can overcome these issues because the actual camera looks good.
The App is very hit and miss with connecting to the camera which is quite a pain. The app would be a strong app if it weren’t for its connectivity issues.
The Parking mode, fantastic if you want to record a bump to your car in the car park when you’re not in your car. However, there is no way to set a delay on it which means when you turn the engine off and get out your car and shut the door, it triggers the parking mode to record a protected file. Same with the boot, and when you then get back in your car. This means you have to keep formatting your memory card as the amount of space gets smaller and smaller as it begins to fill up with all these useless protected files of you getting in and out of your car. I cannot understand how no one in the design of this did not think to put a customisable delay on parking mode starting so as to avoid accidental triggers like this.
The App is very hit and miss with connecting to the camera which is quite a pain. The app would be a strong app if it weren’t for its connectivity issues.
The Parking mode, fantastic if you want to record a bump to your car in the car park when you’re not in your car. However, there is no way to set a delay on it which means when you turn the engine off and get out your car and shut the door, it triggers the parking mode to record a protected file. Same with the boot, and when you then get back in your car. This means you have to keep formatting your memory card as the amount of space gets smaller and smaller as it begins to fill up with all these useless protected files of you getting in and out of your car. I cannot understand how no one in the design of this did not think to put a customisable delay on parking mode starting so as to avoid accidental triggers like this.
This is a great product, picture quality is fantastic for playing back. Only thing that lets it down is the poor app, it constantly crashes when you try viewing footage on your mobile or iPad, drops off WiFi connection so you have to end up removing the memory card and watching it on your computer. Other than that it would not be so frustrating trying to get footage which should take minutes if the app would work properly.
Update on my dash cam.
I have been using this for just a year and have issues with it freezing or coming up to format the memory card, this I have done on countless occasions but the problem continued. I’m using the correct Nextbase memory card with it, I found out the only way to correct it is to delete all the footage from the card and start again. Something you may want to bear in mind when your purchasing is to buy a spare memory card incase you need the footage and you don’t have time to mess around downloading it.
This is a great product, picture quality is fantastic for playing back. Only thing that lets it down is the poor app, it constantly crashes when you try viewing footage on your mobile or iPad, drops off WiFi connection so you have to end up removing the memory card and watching it on your computer. Other than that it would not be so frustrating trying to get footage which should take minutes if the app would work properly.
Update on my dash cam.
I have been using this for just a year and have issues with it freezing or coming up to format the memory card, this I have done on countless occasions but the problem continued. I’m using the correct Nextbase memory card with it, I found out the only way to correct it is to delete all the footage from the card and start again. Something you may want to bear in mind when your purchasing is to buy a spare memory card incase you need the footage and you don’t have time to mess around downloading it.
This dashcam was a purchase to feel safer on the roads. It was super simple to install and everything you need is in the box.
The dashcam is small and fits snugly behind your rear-view mirror.
The connect to bluetooth via the app is brilliant so you can view, align and download all videos from the device. You can update and change settings via the app so no need to keep pulling the camera down to update.
The footage is great quality and you can filter out screen glare with a twist of the lens.
Upgrade the memory for loads of recording time.
I highly recommend this dashcam
The Nextbase 522GW – Series 2 dash cam sits neatly at the high end of dash cams, and out competes many of them. It comes with all the bits in the box you’d need, with the only exception being the micro sd card – which you can use up to 128gb (class 10 or higher)
Its really easy to set up, clear and intuitive touch screen buttons, just set and go!
I personally prefer the stick on mount, but there is a suction mount for those that move their cams a lot. The power cord is long enough to hide away around all car or van trims.
This cam offers a quick release from its mount via a powerful magnetic connector.
I found the g sensor settings a little sensitive, these are used to lock a video file in the event of a bump, so I’ve turned mine off. There is however a central button on the screen side of the cam which locks the current file being recorded by a single press, so at any point press this to lock a file.
Its also very easy to update to the latest software by linking to a pc via included USB cable, this is recommended before use, as is a 2 hour charge.
All in all a brilliant cam, high quality footage (I set to 1080p 60fps) reliable cam.
The Nextbase 522GW – Series 2 dash cam sits neatly at the high end of dash cams, and out competes many of them. It comes with all the bits in the box you’d need, with the only exception being the micro sd card – which you can use up to 128gb (class 10 or higher)
Its really easy to set up, clear and intuitive touch screen buttons, just set and go!
I personally prefer the stick on mount, but there is a suction mount for those that move their cams a lot. The power cord is long enough to hide away around all car or van trims.
This cam offers a quick release from its mount via a powerful magnetic connector.
I found the g sensor settings a little sensitive, these are used to lock a video file in the event of a bump, so I’ve turned mine off. There is however a central button on the screen side of the cam which locks the current file being recorded by a single press, so at any point press this to lock a file.
Its also very easy to update to the latest software by linking to a pc via included USB cable, this is recommended before use, as is a 2 hour charge.
All in all a brilliant cam, high quality footage (I set to 1080p 60fps) reliable cam.
Well made, solid, should stand up to a lack of suction or two!
Circular Polariser works really well daytime, but the tradeoff is not good night vision, very dark.
The big negative is actually down to the software;
(1) Very old fashioned and quite slow.
(2) Setup, well, let’s just say not very intuative by todays standards.
(3) Sometimes creates unplyable files (no matter what playback software you use.
(4) The most important negative…..sometimes simply does not record and this is to an expensive Integral Ultima 128GB V30 10 U3 A2 card. So, unless this does have something to do with the unit not liking this microsd card, it comes down to a major problem of RELIABILITY.
Nextbase aren’t the cheapest of what are available and I’m sorry to say, honestly, I expected more.
Would like an opportunity to test drive the new 622 when it becomes available.
The front camera is very good generally. I use the suction cup to attach it to the windscreen, and in very hot weather sitting in the sun for long periods it has twice fallen off. No problem, I just stick it back on. I’d rather that than use the adhesive version that also comes with it and then find I can’t easily move it.
The internal battery is very weak, and discharges a full charge very quickly. In the car that isn’t a problem as it draws power from the car. But if the car sits undriven for a long time, the camera may take several minutes to fire up when the engine is started as the camera battery has drained even in standby. A small problem unless you are concerned about coverage from the very start of a journey.
It also works well with the rear camera.
Biggest gripe is the app that comes with it which is total hogwash, doesn’t work at all. After the first connection to the camera, forget ever getting it to connect again — not going to happen. Given the app is how the manufacturer expects you to download video, edit it etc, this is a serious flaw and has lost the camera a star from me. Instead you are talking about either removing the camera from the car To plug into a computer or removing the SD card from the camera if you have a reader in a computer you can plug it into. Overall the app looks great but just doesn’t work, and Nextbase don’t seem to be doing anything about that.
I would have given 5 stars if they stated needs a U3 speed micro card for front and rear camera to record, the magnetic ball rear camera is bad design for a hatchback car because when the tailgate is opened the magnetic ball camera can move into a bad recording position, should have done more tests with that Nextbase, I used double sided tape to overcome that one.
Nice price of kit love the phone connectivity but the only draw back I work nights and when it goes dark compared to my 45 pound old dash cam it’s not up to the same quality it’s ok when you have street lights but on dark lanes and unlit motorways not so good but it has caught a near accident so far and to be able to download it to my iPhone great overall it’s good not great customer service at nextbase really good if you have to contact them even in these trying times
This is our third Nextbase dash cam and our second 522GW. We have one in each car now.
The quality is excellent hence our repeated purchases. I hardwired the most recent one (mk3 Focus) took around half an hour.
If you’re thinking of doing the same (Mk3 Focus RHD), use fuse number 85 (moon roof) in the passenger footwell and trace the wire around the passenger side door seals for the forward facing camera.
If you have the rear camera as we do, trace the wire towards the drivers side door seals (the connection for the rear camera is on the right hand side of the front camera) as this will make it a neater job and won’t double up the wires in the door seals. (Saves using a 12v socket which may not be in a good position for powering the dash cam).
The camera includes a small plastic tool for helping to tuck away the wires in the headlining and door seals.
Other car makes and models, just use a fuse that is on a system that only works when the ignition is turned on.
The cameras are really easy to use presuming you know how to download an app. If you don’t have a smart phone, don’t worry, your camera footage is saved on the dash cam micro sd card and can be viewed on the camera itself or plug the camera into a pc/mac with the cable provided. The camera software should download the first time you plug it in (it did for me, Mac user)
Would recommend the camera, 522GW, and the seller. Prompt delivery too.
10/10.
Does what I needed it to do, linked to a rear camera. I use a generic sandisk memory card and not the Nextbase card and works fine. It’s a separate purchase which is silly, and a very specific card (must be U3 or you waste your money). Had it professionally installed at a cost of 150, Halfords would do for c90. I wonder what their quality control is looking at some reviews. My first camera didn’t work with the rear camera, the replacement did, and that doesn’t look an isolated issue! Overall happy.
My first dash cam so I did all the research to find a suitable cam for my needs, decided on this one.
Did not like the instructions to fit it to the car and then enter all the settings, easier to sit down and do it at home.
Set it all up with the usb cable provided at home and understood all the functions.
Put in the car for initial testing and works well.
Removed the cam and connected to the pc to view recordings, all was fine.
Connected to my TV but would not recognise the file format? It’s a new Samsung TV.
Tried various recording settings – 1080P, 1440P. 60FPM, 30FPM but no luck. No problem, maybe its my tv but downloads on my PC ok.
My car is little used so the cam is still in the testing phase, power cable just run out in the air not pushed into any car panels.
After about 10-20 hours of use the cam went dead, no power. Checked the 12V car socket and ok.
Could not test the cable because the plug/socket pins are difficult to access.
Bought a new cable and now works fine.
After abou
Never had a Nextbase product previously, but after researching and watching countless videos on YouTube etc. i realised i should invest in one.
I chose this version as it was deemed the best according to review sites.
I am not disappointed. It’s very easy to set up, the app connects with your phone seamlessly and on viewing footage back, the clarity and image quality is fantastic.
I use a sandisk 128gb micro SD card in it, which are reliable in themselves and have absolutely no recording or write issues. it also stores plenty of footage.
Very impressed.
I have had this dashcam for a while now and am writing this review after moving it to a different car.
In general I agree with most of the reviews that say this is a good device.
However, the first car I used it on (a Volvo) had a heated front windscreen and I was very disappointed that it was almost impossible to read other vehicle registration numbers even in good weather. I tried tweaking the polarising lens and adjusting some settings but this made no difference.
I have since changed cars to one that does not have a heated front windscreen and it is much, much better.
I guess it is the windcreen at fault not the dashcam but just wanted to make people aware.
5/5 if you don’t have a heated windscreen.
The picture quality is great, it doesn’t wobble around, it stays firmly on the windscreen using the suction cup (you receive both a suction cup and permanent sticking options) and the sound picks up decently enough.
My only two gripes are 1. that the instructions say to charge it for at least two hours before use, however the internal battery is pretty redundant as it lasted for less than ten minutes. It does need to be permanently plugged in (or hard wired if you prefer) but the cigarette socket charger holds in place well, the USB provided probably won’t reach. 2. The connectivity through WiFi from mobile app to the camera is always dropping. I haven’t yet been able to install the latest firmware and whenever I press anything on the app I get a connectivity message.
Overall it’s a good quality camera and picks up well in all conditions. The memory card comes separately.
The picture quality is great, it doesn’t wobble around, it stays firmly on the windscreen using the suction cup (you receive both a suction cup and permanent sticking options) and the sound picks up decently enough.
My only two gripes are 1. that the instructions say to charge it for at least two hours before use, however the internal battery is pretty redundant as it lasted for less than ten minutes. It does need to be permanently plugged in (or hard wired if you prefer) but the cigarette socket charger holds in place well, the USB provided probably won’t reach. 2. The connectivity through WiFi from mobile app to the camera is always dropping. I haven’t yet been able to install the latest firmware and whenever I press anything on the app I get a connectivity message.
Overall it’s a good quality camera and picks up well in all conditions. The memory card comes separately.
I bought the 512 last week, and have returned it
First NO ONE said that the rear camera was no longer available for it except from 3rd party sellers on amazon for 150, 150!!!!!. Also the old rear camera is massive.
THIS new 522 which came today is built better, made better and the touch screen more up to date, BUT it is S L O W, as in 20 year old touch screen tech, it works, eventually and does not always react the first or third time.
The lens on the left is a boon as it allows the camera to move more to the right behind the mirror. The quality of the video is just not up to that of my GoPros I have, i now have just one on the RH side of the mirror and replaced the LH one with this, at 4K the GoPro is better
Don’t hesitate get one.
APART from that the camera is excellent, the video quality is great, and it connects to the phone with ease too so you can see the view live from your phone. Its does not have a strong signal but I am impressed with it for a tiny little dash camera.
The reasons I chose this dash-cam above others with extra features are the built-in polarising filter, the GPS logging, and the option of 60fps for the 1080 lines full HD. The wifi and Alexa etc are nice to have for some people, but I’ll not be needing them as I don’t use a phone in the car.
The on-line instruction manual pdf and firmware update support are both good, and it has a reasonable menu system and user interface on a good touch panel display. Everything works as advertised.
The first thing I did after checking the supplied 64GB SDXC chip was to update the firmware in the camera to v19.1. Then I tested and configured the system with both cameras sitting next to the computer, much easier than after installing them in the car. I decided against using the optional ‘Dual File’ system (hi and lo res for each camera), simply to have more hi res recording time on the chip.
I installed it with the separate hardwire kit and added extra ferrites either side of the converter, just in case, to ensure the DAB and FM radio kept working. If the radio stops working after installing a third-party hardwire kit, try the accessory socket lead supplied with the camera. Some of the cheap hardwire kits are not fit for purpose and radiate vast interference.
Bear in mind that the polarising filter will compromise the night vision performance slightly (the camera is effectively wearing dark glasses), but it is a great advantage in eliminating reflections off the windscreen. Fortunately the night vision is excellent.
Read and understand the full on-line instruction manual at least once before trying to use the cameras, because there are several useful tips that might prevent the unwary from making silly mistakes. A few minutes here could save a lot of time later. The quick start guides are not really good enough, especially when compared with the vast amount of options available shown in the full manual.
The G-sensor is way too sensitive, and I’ve ended up switching it to Low although I considered Off. Low is fine for a normal softly suspended family balloon. This sensor comes into its own when the system is in the Parking Mode, and will allow recording of hit and runs or merely people walking into front or back of the car.
There is no image stabiliser function (anti-shake). Not a problem if using a secure mounting with the adhesive pad and adaptor.
There is no zoom function, the field of view is always 140 wide angle, I would have preferred the option of 120 which is what I chose to use on my old G1W dash-cam .
Mounting and connecting the cameras was simple, even if getting the relevant interior trim panels off the car undamaged was not — too easy to break fiddly retaining clips and spares required and not a task for the faint hearted or anxious. Access to the car manual helped a lot, showing exactly where all the clips are and the correct methods for removal. Finagling the rear camera lead through the least populated flexi-tube to the hatchback was ‘interesting.’
The one weakness in the combined set of front and rear cameras and memory chip is the Nextbase own brand 64GB memory chip, one of the slowest ‘U3’ ‘V30’ SDXC chips in that size I have tested recently (using H2TestW) at only 20.5Mbytes/s write and 21.2Mbytes/s read; it did not reach the 30MB/s suggested by the speed marking. (On other supposedly slower ‘U1’ chips I’ve seen writes around 30MB/s and reads over 60MB/s.) The capacity is indicated as 59360Mbytes (62,243,471,360 bytes including 393,216 of exFAT formatting overhead) with no errors. However, this chip is still fast enough for not too much compression of images from the pair of cameras bearing in mind that I’ll only be using 1080p 60 on the front camera while the rear camera is limited to 720p 30, however if the front camera was 1080p 30 then the rear would also be 1080p 30.
Now that we have cameras hardwired in each car at least they will always both be in use and not stranded in limbo between cars as was often the case with the old G1W.
The magnet connection on this camera to window holder is so strong I wasn’t expecting that lol.
Camera is great and video and picture is amazing.
I didn’t want to spend so much on a camera but when I had tried so many others which they wouldn’t stay on window or you couldn’t see a number plate infront properly then I had to upgrade.
Last camera I had died after 2 weeks and wouldn’t stay on window when I went around corners.
This camera needs a hard pull to take off and features on phone app not bad.
Got this one for alexa but doesn’t work by voice unless you push button but when driving I use google so doesn’t bother me too much.
Will only take their own rear camera device has it is a special connection but is well worth the money.
Voice recording even caught kids singing in their own way which was funny to see their face when you play it back to them lol.
The auto lock video is good cause if you did get hit then it saves the video but I think mine is set to mid lvl and every time I go over a speed ramp abit hard it safes video lol.
Very expensive but worth the money just don’t get alexa one if you use google in car and save some money.
Holds about 30-40 5min videos at 1080p before it starts recording over old and with the time stamp and speed stamp you can put on it makes it so much better if the unthinkable happens.
Not the cheapest dash cam on the market, but if you want excellent video quality (day and night), along with the option to add a rear camera, this is a great solution. You will need to add an SD card (I’d recommend 128GB) and if adding the rear camera option ensure this card is fast enough – read the instructions! I’ve not used the suction mount as it’s permanently installed in my car, I also recommend the permanent wiring kit so you have access to the 12v socket for your phone etc.
Had my 522 for only a few day , and WOW! unbeliveble quality compared to other dash cams I have had .
I wired it through my OBD2 port for quicknes and to save cigaret lighter port , and now camera is in park mode 24/7 , so even when ignition is off , camera keeps working …..which is what I wanted .
If your thinking of getting a dash cam , get the nextbase 522GW .
Love the fact that I can send images/video to my iphone ,which can be stored on cloud for safe keeping , so even if camera is nicked from my van , I got cloud images saved …………
As a dash cam, this is a great device. I have mine hooked up with the hardwire kit and rear view camera (the one you stick to the back window). The quality is great, and the camera fires up every time I start the car bar the rare software hiccup.
The software is what let’s this camera down. Even though I have auto off switched off, if I’m stationary for any period of time it will still turn itself off. As soon as I start moving again it will switch back on, so it’s only a minor annoyance.
The Alexa functionality is flaky at best. Sometimes the device won’t respond, no matter how often or loud you call for it, or it will respond as if it’s completed a task, when it hasn’t. It won’t play Spotify from my phone, but will play amazon music.
In summary, if you’re looking for a good quality dash cam you can attach a rear view module to, this is great. If your looking at this to add Alexa to your car in addition within a single device, it’s not really there yet.
Initially had a Nextbase 422GW for years but for some reason it had a lot of difficulty being attached to the windscreen of my old Volvo XC70. Nextbase support sent a couple of replacement suction cups to no avail and only when using the 3M foot attached to the windscreen it worked. The XC70 was replaced by a XC90 and I had it hardwired but still used the 3M that came with it. It automatically switches on, the footage is fabulous as bright and sharp as the images come (guess this is where the difference lies with cheaper dashcams) and during night time as well. I guess when one becomes involved in an accident the 130 or so that I paid is peanuts in the bigger picture if the details can not be shown properly. Connects easily to the app on the phone to view footage and I purchased a 128Gb micro sd card for hours of footage. I also purchased the add-on rear cam …. see the review about that but caveat emptor, a separate cam attached to the rear window and connected through a cable is properly worth its money as it is hard to find a proper place to place the dashcam as it needs to be positioned in such a way using the add-on rear camera that it can almost only be attached in the middle. And when you have a Volvo, you know how massive the rain sensor/City Safety camera’s area around the rear view mirror base is so please keep that in mind.
The camera comes with an additional holder and slots in place properly but takes some effort to take off. But then again, as it also responds to shocks when parked, I never take it off and leave it always on to be “protected” when being parked too. I think Nextbase is still ahead of the game with this one !
I bought this model for the bigger screen. I couldn’t find any difference between this and the 422 other than that.
As a dash cam, this is a great device. I have mine hooked up with the hardwire kit and rear view camera (the one you stick to the back window). The quality is great, and the camera fires up every time I start the car bar the rare software hiccup.
The software is what let’s this camera down. Even though I have auto off switched off, if I’m stationary for any period of time it will still turn itself off. As soon as I start moving again it will switch back on, so it’s only a minor annoyance.
The Alexa functionality is flaky at best. Sometimes the device won’t respond, no matter how often or loud you call for it, or it will respond as if it’s completed a task, when it hasn’t. It won’t play Spotify from my phone, but will play amazon music.
In summary, if you’re looking for a good quality dash cam you can attach a rear view module to, this is great. If your looking at this to add Alexa to your car in addition within a single device, it’s not really there yet.
Initially had a Nextbase 422GW for years but for some reason it had a lot of difficulty being attached to the windscreen of my old Volvo XC70. Nextbase support sent a couple of replacement suction cups to no avail and only when using the 3M foot attached to the windscreen it worked. The XC70 was replaced by a XC90 and I had it hardwired but still used the 3M that came with it. It automatically switches on, the footage is fabulous as bright and sharp as the images come (guess this is where the difference lies with cheaper dashcams) and during night time as well. I guess when one becomes involved in an accident the 130 or so that I paid is peanuts in the bigger picture if the details can not be shown properly. Connects easily to the app on the phone to view footage and I purchased a 128Gb micro sd card for hours of footage. I also purchased the add-on rear cam …. see the review about that but caveat emptor, a separate cam attached to the rear window and connected through a cable is properly worth its money as it is hard to find a proper place to place the dashcam as it needs to be positioned in such a way using the add-on rear camera that it can almost only be attached in the middle. And when you have a Volvo, you know how massive the rain sensor/City Safety camera’s area around the rear view mirror base is so please keep that in mind.
The camera comes with an additional holder and slots in place properly but takes some effort to take off. But then again, as it also responds to shocks when parked, I never take it off and leave it always on to be “protected” when being parked too. I think Nextbase is still ahead of the game with this one !
There’s not a lot to say really other than it really is easy to install although be careful sticking the base into position if you’ve never installed one before as you only really get one chance and once it’s on it doesn’t easily come off. The wiring is the usual threading long wires under the head lining and in and out of rubber door trims, under and through panels and so on. Not a pleasant job and always worrying with plastic clips breaking but slowly does it and you’ll get there.
The picture quality is great and way better than the 720P unit we had last time.
The software is easy to use and you can set it to store either HQ and SQ videos or just HQ along with setting the duration of each video too. You can stitch together three or four videos to make one long one but remember it’s 4K and the file sizes get very big very quickly. We also bought the rear window camera and it seamlessly saves both feeds with ease.
Be warned though the magnet used for holding the front camera in place is really strong and not so easy to remove the camera and replace it without messing up it’s aim at the road ahead so you may have to check that every time you put it back in. One irritating thing is that once you’ve removed it the “shock detector” in it continues to work when it’s in your pocket or bag so don’t be surprised if you have lots and lots of black or blank videos if you take it out at the end of every journey.
The polarising lens is really good and if you follow the instructions with the bit of paper setting it up you get so much better results in bright sunshine with little or no reflection off the dashboard.
I suppose it depends on your vehicle but ours gave no vibration of the picture at all and I think some of that is the magnetic mounting but mostly the vehicle.
Overall definitely worth the money
You must (no ifs, no buts) but a SD card that’s suitable for constant video recording. At this point that’s the Sandisk High Endurance card or Nextbases own brand.
Any other card will make the camera fail. It might look, at first, as if it’s working but it will fail (see my initial review below). Even super expensive Sandisk extreme cards will not work.
Once you’ve bought the right sd card, this camera works a treat. Great night video quality, works well with the options rear view cam. Beware that it records your speed as well, so drive lawfully.
Original rant –
it’s basically unreliable. You cannot depend on it to record an incident because it may have locked up, or look like it’s on but not responsive or screen is almost white and non responsive or almost black and non responsive or it will reset randomly.
Plus you need to find an expensive U3 class SD card – and good luck finding one of those – you’ll have to use online because PC world and the like don’t carry them.
Was getting sick and tired of reading reviews on which dashcam was better than the other etc… So bit the bullet and got this – It’s fantastic especially with the rear glass add on module.
Word to the wise though, if getting the rear cam module then you do need to get a decent sd card which can handle writing front and back cam footage at the same time… Tried a non nextbase SD card which didn’t work so went for the nextbase and works fine.
Haven’t used the Alexa functionality etc but am very happy with the dashcam
The app; this is where the 522 loses a star. It’s a 3.5 star review really as the app interface is such an integral part of the sales pitch by Nextbase. The app has real potential, you can see when using it that a lot of thought has gone in to how they want it to work but the connection of the camera to the app is painfully unreliable. Initial connection is via Bluetooth with the suggestion that it reverts to a WiFi connection for high-speed downloading of videos, however I’ve never managed to download a 1 minute high quality video without the connection dropping out. Even trying to adjust settings via the app can be hit and miss with it occasionally freezing.
So in summary, a great camera with good image quality and easy to access via the memory card and a laptop but the app is a long way from being the finished article and it does let the whole package down.
My second Nextbase dashcam. Bought this one as I wanted the quick release magnetic mount and easy cannection of a rearview camera while still retaining the polariser lens. The recorded quality is extremely good. I haven’t used the 4k settings as I prefer the 1080pfor both front & back camera setting. The desktop application has improved a lot with the ability to join several clips and also able to clip ‘dead’ footage from the beginning and end makes for easy & simple editing. Not very keen on the constantly shwing a red screen reminding you the mobile phone isn’t connected though it’s not really noticeable due to being hidden from the drivers view by the rearview mirror. It can be annoying for passengers though.
I don’t rate the touchscreen highly as for me the screen is too small to warrant a touchscreen. Great if your fingers are 2mm diameter, not so great with normal sized fingers.
Easy to install with a hardwire kit, even easier if you just want to use the supplied 12v aux plug connector.
Remember to research the legal requirements for placing a dashcam. I see so many people driving with the camera showing the footage continuously in full view of the driver. This practice is a road traffic offense and you can be stopped by the police which will likely cost you money & points.
Some things to note;
The camera lens is very wide angle (I would guess 24 or maybe 21mm) and as a result the recorded footage gives an appearance of greater speed than you are in fact travelling and passed or passing objects will come into and out of frame much more quickly than you will perceive by eye (which is the equivalent of a 50mm focal length I believe). The cam view as seen on the cam screen on the camera does appear more wide angle than the recorded footage when viewed on a computer I’ve found, not sure why.
The camera itself when connected to a computer simply mounts as an external volume enabling you to search by date and then view the chunks of footage with your usual media player though free video editing software is available from the maker’s website which is rather generous.
The recorded video quality is excellent and I suspect that reviews stating poor quality is a result of viewing the low resolution version of the footage which is the default setting; a high and lo-res version of each chunk of recorded video. I changed this so mine records hi-res only.
I’ve had occasional GPS drop out which is corrected by one tap on the screen which is safe enough while driving and is no fault of the camera.
Likewise I’ve had two lock-ups where the screen freezes or turns blank which is rectified by pulling over and pressing the little reset button on the camera; I suspect this could just be a read/write error to the SD card that confuses the dash cam and puts it into a terminal loop.
Finally I can confirm that if your cigarette lighter socket is wired to ‘ignition on’ you can leave the power socket from the cam plugged in all the time without draining the battery.
All in all highly recommended.
Some things to note;
The camera lens is very wide angle (I would guess 24 or maybe 21mm) and as a result the recorded footage gives an appearance of greater speed than you are in fact travelling and passed or passing objects will come into and out of frame much more quickly than you will perceive by eye (which is the equivalent of a 50mm focal length I believe). The cam view as seen on the cam screen on the camera does appear more wide angle than the recorded footage when viewed on a computer I’ve found, not sure why.
The camera itself when connected to a computer simply mounts as an external volume enabling you to search by date and then view the chunks of footage with your usual media player though free video editing software is available from the maker’s website which is rather generous.
The recorded video quality is excellent and I suspect that reviews stating poor quality is a result of viewing the low resolution version of the footage which is the default setting; a high and lo-res version of each chunk of recorded video. I changed this so mine records hi-res only.
I’ve had occasional GPS drop out which is corrected by one tap on the screen which is safe enough while driving and is no fault of the camera.
Likewise I’ve had two lock-ups where the screen freezes or turns blank which is rectified by pulling over and pressing the little reset button on the camera; I suspect this could just be a read/write error to the SD card that confuses the dash cam and puts it into a terminal loop.
Finally I can confirm that if your cigarette lighter socket is wired to ‘ignition on’ you can leave the power socket from the cam plugged in all the time without draining the battery.
All in all highly recommended.
Make sure you get the right micro sim (
64GB Micro SD Card 4K Ultra-HD Video Premium High Speed Memory Microsdxc Up To 100MB/S V30 UHS-I U3 A1 C10, by Integral) U3 is what you need to look for, other wise it will not record footage.
The camera works well, however, I had to upgrade the micro SD card as the Sandisk endurance from the previous camera was not compatible, even though it should have been (was U1 bagged but camera didn’t think so). So I had to purchase the SanDisk high endurance (U3) and all worked well.
The clip length is only a minute. Need to find out how to lengthen this, as I often miss the incident I wish to record (by pressing the button) as it takes a little while to compose yourself enough after you’ve had a near miss to remember to less the button.
I’ve not had time to look at the app in detail, but it was handy in positioning the camera initially. The magnetic mount or great. I was able to Quickly remove the camera and phone it at am idiot that cut me up due to texting in his phone….. I could then replace it in the mount very easily without taking my eyes off the road.
All in all. Well worth the upgrade. Since buying the original camera in August 2014, I have covered 155,000 miles (review date September 2019), so it has seen a lot of use. I hope this one is as reliable.
The camera works well, however, I had to upgrade the micro SD card as the Sandisk endurance from the previous camera was not compatible, even though it should have been (was U1 bagged but camera didn’t think so). So I had to purchase the SanDisk high endurance (U3) and all worked well.
The clip length is only a minute. Need to find out how to lengthen this, as I often miss the incident I wish to record (by pressing the button) as it takes a little while to compose yourself enough after you’ve had a near miss to remember to less the button.
I’ve not had time to look at the app in detail, but it was handy in positioning the camera initially. The magnetic mount or great. I was able to Quickly remove the camera and phone it at am idiot that cut me up due to texting in his phone….. I could then replace it in the mount very easily without taking my eyes off the road.
All in all. Well worth the upgrade. Since buying the original camera in August 2014, I have covered 155,000 miles (review date September 2019), so it has seen a lot of use. I hope this one is as reliable.
Did a lot of research into current dash cam quality and availability (or lack of for quality models anyway) and settled on this as a close first against the Garmin dash cam 55.
Previously had the 302G and the 312GW which both failed due to the inability to handle the heat of a car during a Scottish summer, which isn’t exactly a hot climate even by UK standards. Both batteries puffed up and lost all charge but still ran while the car was on. Hopefully this unit will fair better.
This camera has the same great quality footage, high bitrate and the polarising filter works very well. Number plates are very clear even at high speed. Nighttime footage also looks great but number plates can be a struggle. I’m not sure if it isn’t on any dash cam though.
The sticking point for me with Nextbase is the pitiful software. While it seems an effort has been made since previous units and the app does play video and list data for the drive very nicely, the download feature over Bluetooth/WiFi direct is awful. I can’t say I didn’t expect it as previous models were the same but good luck trying to download footage. It either takes a long time or fails repeatedly.
I gave up and simply bought a Type C micro SD card reader and not only is it blindingly fast at transferring files now, files can still be opened in the app or you can avoid their software all together if you like.
Touch screen is great, plenty of settings and Alexa integration is occasionally handy. The gyro is a bit too sensitive and tends to lock files quite often but a regular format sorts this.
So far I really like this product I hope it lasts longer than its brethren.
Did a lot of research into current dash cam quality and availability (or lack of for quality models anyway) and settled on this as a close first against the Garmin dash cam 55.
Previously had the 302G and the 312GW which both failed due to the inability to handle the heat of a car during a Scottish summer, which isn’t exactly a hot climate even by UK standards. Both batteries puffed up and lost all charge but still ran while the car was on. Hopefully this unit will fair better.
This camera has the same great quality footage, high bitrate and the polarising filter works very well. Number plates are very clear even at high speed. Nighttime footage also looks great but number plates can be a struggle. I’m not sure if it isn’t on any dash cam though.
The sticking point for me with Nextbase is the pitiful software. While it seems an effort has been made since previous units and the app does play video and list data for the drive very nicely, the download feature over Bluetooth/WiFi direct is awful. I can’t say I didn’t expect it as previous models were the same but good luck trying to download footage. It either takes a long time or fails repeatedly.
I gave up and simply bought a Type C micro SD card reader and not only is it blindingly fast at transferring files now, files can still be opened in the app or you can avoid their software all together if you like.
Touch screen is great, plenty of settings and Alexa integration is occasionally handy. The gyro is a bit too sensitive and tends to lock files quite often but a regular format sorts this.
So far I really like this product I hope it lasts longer than its brethren.
Hiding the wire is a different story and your ease of doing this will vary with each vehicle. I completed mine in about thirty minutes after working out the routing.
The camera has some great fetures and is linked using the Nextbase app on your smartphone and bluetooth to keep the two connected. This enables you to download any footage to your phone without having to remove the camera from the car. This can also be done relatively easily as it is connected to the mount by a magnetic fitting. It is a very strong fitting and you will change the angle of your mount each time you remove it, meaning you will want to reset the view when you then replace it.
On the side of the unit is a connector similar looking to an HDMI port and this is used to add additional camera modules such as the rear view camera.
The camer resolution is a great 1440p at 30fps, but if you prefer you can use it to get 60fps at 1080p. This also can vary when you add a rear camera where the resolution of the rear camera will be either 720p or 1080p.
I initially had problems setting up the 522GW awith Alexa, but deleted both the Alexa and NextBase apps from my device, forgot the nextbase in bluetooth and restarted my phone. Now after restarting installed apps again and when accessing the Alexa via the nextbase app setup, it correctly opened and found my nextbase 522GW. After adding it to Alexas devices, it worked. Now, the dashcam microphones pick up the Alexa wake word that connects to your phone by bluetooth to control the Alexa app. Works really well but very reliant on a good mobile signal!
The camer powers up when starting my car as I have not hardwired it. I have therefore turned off the parking mode that leaves the camera in standby on its internal battery. I found I did not travel enough to recharge the battery but if this changes I can easily reenable the option. The device is controlled via the touch screen which works well and gives access to the menu and even adds an Alexa button to the screen once set up.
Lots of menu options to change to your liking or just leave relatively alone. I am a techie person and understand the more involved settings with no difficulty.
Overall a great camera, great quality and the bonus that may be good for you is a potential discount on your car insurance when using the Nextbase!
Hiding the wire is a different story and your ease of doing this will vary with each vehicle. I completed mine in about thirty minutes after working out the routing.
The camera has some great fetures and is linked using the Nextbase app on your smartphone and bluetooth to keep the two connected. This enables you to download any footage to your phone without having to remove the camera from the car. This can also be done relatively easily as it is connected to the mount by a magnetic fitting. It is a very strong fitting and you will change the angle of your mount each time you remove it, meaning you will want to reset the view when you then replace it.
On the side of the unit is a connector similar looking to an HDMI port and this is used to add additional camera modules such as the rear view camera.
The camer resolution is a great 1440p at 30fps, but if you prefer you can use it to get 60fps at 1080p. This also can vary when you add a rear camera where the resolution of the rear camera will be either 720p or 1080p.
I initially had problems setting up the 522GW awith Alexa, but deleted both the Alexa and NextBase apps from my device, forgot the nextbase in bluetooth and restarted my phone. Now after restarting installed apps again and when accessing the Alexa via the nextbase app setup, it correctly opened and found my nextbase 522GW. After adding it to Alexas devices, it worked. Now, the dashcam microphones pick up the Alexa wake word that connects to your phone by bluetooth to control the Alexa app. Works really well but very reliant on a good mobile signal!
The camer powers up when starting my car as I have not hardwired it. I have therefore turned off the parking mode that leaves the camera in standby on its internal battery. I found I did not travel enough to recharge the battery but if this changes I can easily reenable the option. The device is controlled via the touch screen which works well and gives access to the menu and even adds an Alexa button to the screen once set up.
Lots of menu options to change to your liking or just leave relatively alone. I am a techie person and understand the more involved settings with no difficulty.
Overall a great camera, great quality and the bonus that may be good for you is a potential discount on your car insurance when using the Nextbase!
I suppose the main feature that I’ve not yet seen anyone else mentioned is the Screen Saver option, instead of having the screen showing being blank or showing what your recording, instead you can choose Speed Display, which after around 40 seconds, will display your current speed which is a really nice idea.
The camera is brilliant. I have a rear camera added to this and it works great.
Lots of mounts and sticky pads. Fits really well and looks rigid and robust. Tested it for a few days now and seems to be performing well.
Alexa by amazon is built in, this is a great feature as you can ask her anything whilst driving and she will run off and sort it for you.
Footage quality with analytics is fantastic. Also has reversing camera function.
Built in lens flare which is a true help with sunny days. Now its crystall clear.
For the price you cant go wrong. They’ve come down in price and really an essential bit of kit for anyones vehicle.
Reccomend this anytime to anyone!!!! A+++++
Update 21 July 2019. In desperation I removed my dash cam from the list of devices to which the Alexa app on my iPhone was allegedly paired then went through the connection process again. SUCCESS!. Now I can instruct Alexa by voice while driving to play music, answer questions etc totally hands free. If Alexa continues to work I will be delighted and will give the Nextbase 522GW the full 5/5.
Still working beautifully so I’ve changed my rating to 5/5.
Make sure your mobile is charged up sufficient before you start downloading the Nextbase app ( I didn’t and had to sit charging my phone while I ran the car lol) The download is super quick so no worries about sitting for ages. I’ve been using is for a week almost and I also got the rear cam as well…definitely worth the extra 50.
(If you do add on the rear cam, when fitting the wire I’d recommend you fit it to the main dash cam at the front, then feed the wire to the rear cam at the back. I did it the opposite way and ended up with a mahoosive coil of wire at the front. At least at the rear you can feed this into the side panels out of view.
Make sure your mobile is charged up sufficient before you start downloading the Nextbase app ( I didn’t and had to sit charging my phone while I ran the car lol) The download is super quick so no worries about sitting for ages. I’ve been using is for a week almost and I also got the rear cam as well…definitely worth the extra 50.
(If you do add on the rear cam, when fitting the wire I’d recommend you fit it to the main dash cam at the front, then feed the wire to the rear cam at the back. I did it the opposite way and ended up with a mahoosive coil of wire at the front. At least at the rear you can feed this into the side panels out of view.
The dashcam does work as advertised and it does recognise my 128Gb Sandisk Extreme Plus. I recorded both on loop and on time lapse and both are working properly. The collision sensor is kind a too sensitive on a medium setting but this easily can be changed in setting. Video recording is good and clear with not image disturbances or shake video. For me it does the job that was intended too. I will soo use the dash on a longer trip and will review when able. Great seller with fast response time to my questions.