The Ultra Battery (B-124X), which can be hardwired, includes a cable to that effect, but the B-112 only provides a cigarette lighter power socket. Please note: while all BlackVue dash cams can go into Parking Mode whether hardwired or not, models from other brands may require to be hardwired to do so. As you can probably imagine, this is not an optimal solution for a car owner looking for complete dash cam protection. If the dash cam is not hardwired nor connected to an external power source, it will simply shut down as soon as you turn the ignition off. While it’s not an issue when you’re driving, it gets a bit more complicated when the car is parked. Most of them (for example all BlackVue dash cams) record continuously when you drive, without you having to worry to turn it on or off.īut since they record all the time, there is the concern of draining the car’s battery (as most of the dash cams get the power from your car’s battery, of course). To put it simply, it’s a camera that you stick somewhere on the dashboard or windshield of your car. Dashboard camera, or dash cam for short, is a device that allows you to record what happens in front (and sometimes behind and inside) your car while you drive. But it doesn’t necessarily have to.īefore we get to the long answer to this question, we need to understand how a dash cam works. So, can your dash cam drain your car’s battery? In this article we will explain if – and if yes, when and why – your dash cam can drain your car’s battery.

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