Dashcams are extremely helpful to the average driver as they help you record your driving so you can monitor certain occurrences and possess solid evidence for special cases where you would need proof like an accident for insurance. Although they are very advantageous, they are electronic devices and therefore they require power from a consistent power source. Just like all other electric devices connected to the car battery like the radio and overhead light, dashcams have the potential to run down your battery. The question is, Does a dashcam drain your car battery?
They do, they drain your battery. It just depends on how the dashcams are used and when they are put on. There are lots of ways to prevent your battery from dying while using the dashcam.
What are dashcams?
Dashcams are recording cameras placed on the dashboard of most cars that help record footage of your trip through the windscreen. They are called dashcams because they are digital cameras on the dashboard. They have a high initial cost but they help save you money in terms of insurance and providing evidence that would help make your case.
Types of dashcams
Dashcams are divided into two major categories
Network cameras and SD cameras.
SD cameras: they use physical storage devices to store data. If the storage device on your dashcam becomes full, any footage taken after that point would not be recorded. You would have to take it out and carefully replace it with an empty one.
Network cameras: they store their data on the cloud through the internet. All the footage being recorded is automatically saved and backed up. There is more reliability with this type of dashcam
How exactly does a dashcam drain your car battery
Dashcams are electronic devices and therefore need power from the car battery to run. The dashcam starts recording immediately after you turn on your car. This would not be a problem if the dashcam is consuming energy from the car battery when the car is fully on because the car battery would be charged by the alternator; if you don’t start the engine and you simply just turn the car key slightly enough to power your radio, the dashcam would consume energy directly from the battery even as it is not being charged by the alternator. Dashcams when powered on, constantly use the car lights and if they are consuming energy directly from the battery, this could as well help in running down the battery. Also, dashcams constantly use GPS when they are functional; this could also contribute to the drainage of your car battery.
Will the dashcam still drain my car battery if I leave it plugged in a car that is powered down?
To be honest, there is still potential for the dashcam to run down your car battery even when your car is not on. The amount of energy consumed by the dashcam is significantly less when it is powered off but it still consumes energy to an extent; many other factors come into play. The best thing to do to avoid the embarrassment of finding your car battery dead when you need to use your car the most is to always unplug your dashcam and any other electrical device for that matter when you turn off your car.
How to prevent: dashcam drain your car battery
It depends on how you use and install the dashcam. Your battery can be preserved if you make sure you are doing these things right:
Only plug in the dashcam when it should be in use
You properly connect the dashcam when you want to start a trip and properly disconnect it when you end a trip. Doing otherwise would only lead to complications regarding battery charging and battery power management.
Connecting the dashcam directly to the car’s power system
This means the dashcam would not be getting its needed power from the battery but from the car’s electrical system. Your dashcam would be programmed not to come on unless the car is ignited. This task requires some knowledge of car mechanics and would probably need a technician to install it.
Purchasing a separate battery for the dashcam
This would allow you to leave your dashcam connected even when your car is off so it can have round-the-clock surveillance. Getting a separate battery for the dashcam would help preserve your car battery as a load of devices it powers reduces as a result. You can either use lithium-based or supercapacitor battery
Can dashcams cause other problems?
Some other problems caused by dashcams include:
- The driver becomes unfocused on the road: even though it might not be the driver’s intention to lose focus on the road while driving, there is always a tendency to stare at the camera recording because the placement of the camera on the windshield blocks a particular place in the screen that your eyes cannot avoid.
- It could attract unnecessary attention: because of how oddly placed the dashcam is, it attracts unnecessary attention from pedestrians which could also be a source of distraction. This attention from pedestrians could lead to unexpected pilfering.
Conclusion
As stated, dashcam do drain your battery, which is very obvious since it has to function through a source of energy which in this case is the car’s battery. All you can do is take care of a little negligence at your end, that could help save your battery from draining faster than it used to be while you were negligent.
