Cobra SC 201 Dash Cam Review: Outstanding video, GPS, cloud uploads - mercersheill

At a Coup d'oeil

Expert's Military rating

Pros

• Superior video, peculiarly at Night
• Front and interior cameras for ride-givers
• GPS with automatic setup
• Included 16GB SD card

Cons

• No captures without 12-volt
• Buggy software at the time of testing
• App does non support smartphones running Humanoid 7 or elderly

Our Verdict

The Cobra SC 201 forepart/interior dash cam is user-friendly to set up and use of goods and services, it captures fantastic video, offers GPS cloud uploads (with A8), and it even throws in a 16GB Mount Rushmore State calling card. Just if you're rocking an older Android phone, access with caution.

Sprint cams are altogether about capturing the action at law, and few perform it better than the front/interior Cobra SC 201 Smart Dash Cam (currently $179.95 on Amazon). The outside night video, especially, is unsurpassed in its ability to show up inside information in dark surroundings and it offers a laundry list of features including GPS and cloud uploads. The companion even includes a 16GB SD card. It's well worthy the money for what you get—just don't examine to use the cloud functionality with an aged speech sound OS.

This review is part of our current roundup of the best smash cams. Go at that place for selective information on competing products and how we tested them.

Design and features

Dart cams generally move into two rudimentary shapes: rectangular, and cylindrical. The Security Council 201 opts for the latter, which allows the most place for an interior camera. Both the front and interior cameras conquer at 1080p. Most interior cameras are 720p, so this is an upgrade.

While 1080p might seem a piece dull in a world that offers 1440p and 2160p, it's more than adequate for legal and even off viewing purposes, plus IT saves you a ton of retentivity card space and wear-and-tear. Put another style, information technology's a lot cheaper in the end.

The front photographic camera has a practiced 140-degree field of view. Cobra declined to put up a number for the interior camera, but claiming that it's wide enough to gaining control the entire cabin. That tried accurate in testing. Foursome unseeable lights surround the interior genus Lens to make sure the fulfi is captured regardless of how the cabin is aflare.

The Sc 201 sports a two-inch color display with four buttons happening the underside of the camera, whose prevailing function is revealed away icons on the bottom of the display. We found the buttons easy to press, and navigating the menus and settings quite easy. The screen testament straight-grained flip to fit the orientation of the camera.

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The Cobra SC 201's color show and handily set (bottom) buttons make using the camera a breeze. That the GPS mechanically sets the date and time helps hugely.

One very prissy features of the SC 201 is that IT sets the time mechanically using the GPS info, and tracks speed right out of the corner. A few of the dart cams we've tested offer that dismantle of sophistication. You can also turn the GPS/time and driver ID video watermarks on and off.

Name any other desirable dash cam lineament, and you'll likely recover information technology on the SC 201: lane departure warnings, speed alerts, collision warnings, parking surveillance mode, et cetera. You can buoy adjust precisely about everything as well.

You should as wel take ease in Cobra's self-constituted position American Samoa a dash cam vendor. That includes a one-year warranty—increasingly rare in a field rife with 90-24-hour interval limits.

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The Driver Smarter app connected to the SC 201. The app allows a live view, and a number of other conveniences. If you seat get it to process your phone.

Alas, there were package issues with the older Honor 8 phone at the start used in examination, which is running the older Android 7. The mapping and alert software, iRadar, crashed repeatedly when linking with the SC 201, and the Cobra Drive Smarter app used for viewing, uploading, and changing settings wouldn't link at all. iOS 13.1 or newer is required as considerably.

Cobra cannot technically cost faulted for supporting only Android 8 and later when Google itself has kicked anything older to the curb. But it could certainly do a better line of work of letting users know some the requirement—I found nobelium requirement notices on the website operating room the box. Examination was fattening on a Google Pixel 4X, where everything was hunky-dory until a microcode update killed the link again. Cobra might want to have a sit-down with its software team.

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Cobra's iRadar location and mapping app. It will show you where you've been when playacting rearwards videos with GPS data enclosed.

Video tone and battery

The SC 201's video is generally top-tier. Thither's a trifle of fisheye effect (an occupational endangerment of astray fields of view), but it's nicely color-saturated and detailed, and it handles rough roads decently without any appreciable image tearing or other flaws. 4K dash cams may get all the attention, but in real number life we recommend 1080p flash back cams to extend the lifespan of store cards.

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This daytime bewitch is included to show polish off the color. The GPS hadn't initialized yet, but you can see that in the capture below.

The GPS hadn't kicked in quite eventually on the capture above (most bolt cams with GPS need up to five transactions to do soh after powering connected the car), so a indorsement is included to show that IT actually works. Note that the camera handles good afternoon public eye even when your fomite is headed nearly directly toward the insolate.

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This second daylight exterior enchant shows that the GPS works, and as wel that the SC 201 handles harsh glare dextrously.

There's a startling amount of detail revealed in the exterior dark capture shown below. This is two hours aft sundown, and the the scene is nowhere near as nitid as information technology seems to be in the capture. Disdain the high amount of point, the SC 201 manages to tone down headlight flare successfully.

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This is absolutely owing nighttime video. The scene was nowhere near this bright in real life.

Interior captures are also crack, capturing enough of detail despite the contrast between the smart outside digestible and the shaded DoI.

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Put on't thinker the centenarian guy in the driver's seat. This beguile demonstrates that the SC 201 will capture all of your cabin, even if Cobra wouldn't inform us of the actual FOV.

Thanks to the four unseeable lights close the interior camera, night captures in the cabin also show impressive detail. The cabin was highly dark at the time this was arrogated.

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The Cobra South Carolina 201's Night interior captures reveal detail even when IT's non visible to the naked eye.

You should have no issues with the SC 201's captures. They are universally clear and detailed, albeit non rather as detailed as those from any of the better 4K units. But you South Korean won't go broke buying Mount Rushmore State cards, either.

The only possible fly in the capture emollient is Cobra's use of a big condenser instead of a battery. Super capacitors have their advantages: a lot much send cycles and better resistance to cold. However, this detail unit provides but enough run metre to save files. That's overnice, but if your 12-volt is scorched in an accident, you won't capture any action subsequently that. A rare situation, but not unheard-of.

Great—if your phone is compatible

The SC 201 is real serious at the basics and comes with a long warranty from a vendor with a top-notch report. If you are running Android 8 or later (or iOS), put it on your short list of advanced/interior cameras.

Source: https://www.pcworld.com/article/393832/cobra-sc-201-dash-cam-review-outstanding-video-gps-cloud-uploads.html

Posted by: mercersheill.blogspot.com

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