To dashcam or not

MANILA, Philippines - I‘ve hesitated to get a dashcam installed in my car. 

Why? 

I guess I’ve always felt that I never really needed one. 

I watch the news, almost daily, and I know just how effective a good dashcam can be, if I wanted to be a detective. But, as a driver for the most part of my life, I have preferred to keep safe by keeping a safe distance from the car in front of me, taking the well-lit streets during nighttime and not stopping for anything or anyone when I am driving alone late at night. 

But, through the years, and with traffic the way it is nowadays, I have seen how drivers can lose their cool at a moment’s notice. I mean, really, how often have I encountered cars, motorcycles, tricycles, buses and jeepneys counterflow  where signs of “No counterflow” are clearly displayed. And, if you’re coming from the right side of the road, these wrong drivers are even the ones with the nerve to give mean stares. Sigh!

Enter Shark Dashcam

 Still, the reluctant dashcam convert that I am, I ask a few friends if I can join them for a ride in their Shark Dashcam-installed cars. 

As I settle in the passenger seat, I am given a front seat view of just how the dashcam works – and how well I am able to get a view of the road – no matter how dark it is.

“But we are not allowed to install anything on our dashboards, right?” I ask Joey.

“Oo nga eh,” Joey replies. “But, I think that this Shark Dash Cam attached to the rearview mirror should not be included in that new LTO ruling, right?”

“I guess not,” I reply.

The Shark Dash Cam Stealth that Joey installed in his car is neatly placed behind the rearview mirror, which makes it virtually invisible.  

“The good thing is the Shark Dash Cam Stealth captures 1080p 30 ps videos from that spot,” Joey adds. “Its large f2.0 aperture with six-glass lenses allow for maximum viewability with minimum distortion, even at night.”

Joey also tells me that I should install the Shark Dash Cam Stealth pronto since I do a lot of driving at night. He warns me of the many crazy drivers out there – and how safety on the streets is a must – whether it’s night or day.

I have with me the Shark Dash Cam Stealth — still unsure if installing it is a good idea. As I look at the literature that comes with it, I find out that the device is compatible with any smartphone, Android or iOS. The smartphone becomes the screen of the camera, which can be switched on to view roads ahead (and to the side) live or can be downloaded and viewed later through an app. Added to this, the Shark Dash Cam Stealth is capable of two hours of continuous cycle recording.

Impressive. 

“Do you think I really need it?” I ask myself.

Joey gives me a nod – no need for words.

“ If you need it, it’s there — if not, it’s still there,” he says. 

Joey continues the drive, and I admit that I’m impressed with the clarity of the Shark Dash Cam. 

“I could be one of those reporters on radio,” I add.

“But the dashcam is not just for doing radio reports. It’s for keeping you safe as you drive. And, in a hard-to-call accident, the footage you take could be your only way to prove that it wasn’t your fault. If it wasn’t, that is,” he adds. 

That’s when I got the Shark Dash Cam Stealth camera installed.