http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Topic: Affordable rear camera options? en Tue, 19 May 2026 06:08:02 +0000 http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=20664#post-353129 Mon, 26 Jul 2021 15:47:23 +0000 ejstubbs 353129@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>@Yodhrin: <em>The Fly6 is also only 720p IIRC, that seems like it might cause issues pulling number plates from the footage.</em></p> <p>This is a screenshot of footage from my Fly6:</p> <p><img src="https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51337534875_9477587095_o.png"></p> <p>That's about as close as the following vehicle* had to be for the registration plate to be adequately visible (it's actually easier to read in the video, rather than as a still). I think it's OK if you want evidence of being harrasssed/close-passed. Maybe not so great if the vehicle was passing in the other direction (in which case you might have blur issues as well anyway) but that's why you also have a front-facing camera, n'est ce pas?</p> <p>I like the spinning red light around the lens that subtly reminds drivers that they are being videoed. The actual rear light functions are pretty good too.</p> <p>You may be able to find second-hand Fly6s on eBay, especially if you don't actually want the latest all-bells-and-whistles version.</p> <p><em>* The vehicle in question in this case having followed me through the Braid Road closure (<u>before</u> it was opened up southbound), including mounting the pavement in order to get past the barriers. It was an Interserv van, for what that's worth.</em> </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=20664#post-353113 Sun, 25 Jul 2021 20:13:40 +0000 Yodhrin 353113@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Yeah the Cycliq stuff is nice but pricey. The Fly6 is also only 720p IIRC, that seems like it might cause issues pulling number plates from the footage.</p> <p>The idea occurred to me - do any of the more affordable/older(so bought secondhand) action cams allow you to film while "charging"? You can get pretty compact reasonably high capacity battery banks for ~30 quid these days, and I'm sure I could rig up some shonky mounting system for both. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=20664#post-353112 Sun, 25 Jul 2021 19:39:33 +0000 Frenchy 353112@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Earlier versions of the <a href="https://cycliq.com/bike-cameras/fly6ce/">Cycliq Fly6</a> would probably have fit your criteria, at just under £100 and with ~6 hour battery life. </p> <p>Unfortunately the new version added a load of bells and whistles like Bluetooth connection and a Smartphone app, and the price went up considerably. They're now £200, although I think they do fairly frequent sales - I bought mine in a "Black Friday" sale at, I think, a 40% discount.</p> <p>I realise this didn't exactly answer your question, but it might be helfpul anyway. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=20664#post-353091 Sat, 24 Jul 2021 16:35:13 +0000 Yodhrin 353091@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>As I ride more on the roads, I begin to feel the need for a rear camera(and one of those lovely neon "you are being filmed" icon signs I've seen floating about cycling twitter), but frankly I'm not rolling in spare cash at the moment - are there any affordable options?</p> <p>From the various listicles and reviews, my first impression is that the cheap options either don't provide enough resolution to guarantee catching a license plate, or have teeny-weeny batteries that will last 90 minutes if you're lucky; then there's a jump up into the multi-hundred-quid range without much in between. Am I missing something? </p>