If you drive a car, you should have a dashcam. Need convincing? All I ask that you do is search for “dashcam compilation” the next time you’re on YouTube. You will see what I’ll politely call “varying standards of competence” when it comes to other drivers on the road. These people share your highways, side streets and shopping centre car parks. They walk (or drive) among us.

Your car is likely to be one of the most expensive and prized purchases you ever make. A dashcam is the kind of no-brainer purchase as an additional layer of protection for you should the worst happen. Roads more congested than ever. E-bike riders think they are indestructible. Pedestrians are willing to run the risk of a premature crossing rather than wait a few moments for safety. In the event of a major or minor problem on the road, an operating dashcam is the difference between an open and shut case with insurers, or a lengthy debate and process of one person’s word against another.

With the above considered, I recently picked up a Navman MiVue™ True 4K PRO Surround – the most comprehensive vehicle surveillance system in its class. One of the reasons that this model stood out was inclusion of both front and rear cameras. The front is a true 4K Ultra HD, and the rear camera is a 2.5K Quad HD with an ultra wide lens. Another feature is that the rear camera also has an internal view, allowing you to see the inside of the vehicle and out the passenger windows in the back seat. The quality of the footage is crisp, with finer environmental details being clear and obvious on the footage we captured.

Inside the box you’ve got all the hardware to get set up, the two main camera pieces (including mounting stickers) and all the cabling required to draw power from a 12v in-car charger and connect the rear camera to the front. Helpfully, it also comes with a 128GB Endurance micro SD card, so you do get EVERYTHING needed for out of the box success. Installation will differ depending on your car type as far as how you want to run your cables, but I found with a bit of help from a friend to tuck the wires into the car trim that’s it’s unobtrusive inside the vehicle. Each camera swivels and moves to help you get the best view out of your unique installation point. You can opt to buy a Smartbox-IV kit that hardwires the unit into the car to directly power it at all times – great to monitor any action happening when your car is parked. This should really be installed by a qualified auto electrician. In fact, if your retailer offers this installation service at time of purchase, for a flush, professional finish I would say it’s a worthwhile thing to do even for the non-hardwired version.
In terms of features, the MiVue™ True 4K PRO Surround is stacked with everything you would expect from a premium product. It’s designed around safe driving, and from the moment the car is activated offers a polite reminder to ‘drive safely’ as you’re pulling out of the driveway. It knows when you’re approaching a school zone and will alert you to changing speed limit conditions. Advances Driver Assistance Systems including forward collision, lane departure, stop & go and rear collision warnings and driver fatigue alerts assist you to be a safer driver on the road.

One of the things I love is how easy it is to pull the footage. The unit connects simply via its own wifi network to your phone (via the MiVue™ Pro app), and you can drop whatever footage straight into your photo album. This speedy transfer of data is simple in the event of you witnessing an incident. You can pull over safely and within a few minutes be able to share with those involved to help their claims. Much easier than having to remove the SD card or plug the unit into a computer and fish around for the files.

Even down to the tiny details of the Emergency record button being the furthest right-hand location – the closest button to the driver here in Australia – Navman have thought about the user experience and putting the things you need for safe and swift operation right where you need them.

Buying a dashcam is a must for people who put safety front of mind when driving. An extra layer of security for those that use their vehicle professionally, or need it for day-to-day life. I’m delighted with the performance of my Navman MiVue™ True 4K PRO Surround so far and the peace of mind it has given me. While I hope I never have to use the footage gathered, I can rest easy knowing I have an extra set of eyes watching out for me and my vehicle.