Nextbase - 2K Piqo Dash Cam – Compact 2K with GPS, WiFi, Bluetooth, Parking Mode & SOS - Black

For those want to provide their driving experience more security without much effort, the Nextbase Piqo 2K Dash Camera is a good choice. For daily commuters, road trippers, and rideshare drivers equally, this camera combines excellent performance with ease thanks to its small size and quality 2K resolution. Drivers who wish a camera that won't block their view or draw notice will find great benefit from the Piqo 2K's simple, understated appearance. The Piqo uses far less windshield real estate than more weighty dash cameras. It also feels strongly constructed using sturdy materials that resist regular use and sunlight. Its mount is among the most handy aspects as it makes removal and attaching simple. It just clicks in place; you won't have to battle complicated installation techniques or wires. This simplicity of setup comes especially handy if you intend to regularly move the camera between vehicles and also comes with a spare mount. The 2K resolution offers shockingly clear footage and is the main attraction of the camera. Even at great speeds, license plates, road signs, and other elements are easily seen. Often a weakness of many dash cameras, the improved clarity is evident during the day and at night. Knowing that the camera records clean footage in low-light environments gives great comfort. One small negative, though, is that the 2K resolution uses extra storage space even if it catches outstanding detail. If you intend to save longer footage, you will want to buy in a larger-capacity microSD card; if you only need recent recordings, you can just set the camera to override old clips. The Nextbase Piqo performs quickly to power on and start recording. The camera picks activity as soon as the car starts, so you never have to worry about missing the first moments of your drive. Good coverage is also given by the wide-angle lens, which catches a broad perspective of the road and the surrounds. Parking situations also benefit much from the motion-detection ability of the camera, it detects motion or a collision when the car is off if you wire it for continuous power it will instantly begin to record, therefore providing you with defense against hit-and-run or other events occurring away from the car. This Piqo 2K includes built-in audio recording. Although in dash cameras audio quality is not as important as video quality, it is a good feature. For further background during events, the microphone catches up talks within the car as well as outside noises. Common with dash cameras to prevent overheating problems, the Piqo lacks an internal battery. Rather, it depends mostly on the rather constant power source of the car. If power be abruptly lost, the camera does support a function to prevent any data loss during unplanned situations. The Piqo 2K boasts among other things built-in Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and GPS. This lets the Nextbase App provide simple access, editing, and sharing of video. Managing your recordings and changing settings on the move is easy with the app since it is itself simple and understandable. Your car is watched with Smart Parking and immediately notes any knocks or bumps while you're away. Guardian Mode Lite provides more control and peace of mind by allowing you establish restrictions for everyone borrowing your car. Another clever addition is the voice-activated Witness Mode Lite, which, when linked to Bluetooth, immediately notifies an emergency contact should an event occur. Under an emergency, this might literally save lives. Advantages: Quality of high-resolution 2K video Compact, understated style with simple mounting Dependable parking mode and motion detection Simple, quick app-based file transfers Good night vision performance. Cons: • Greater video resolution consumes more storage. App could make more use of customizing choices. There is no built-in battery so depends on car power. A great option for a variety of drivers, the Nextbase Piqo 2K Dash Camera strikes a mix between ease and high-quality video capturing. Though it lacks certain sophisticated tools, this is a trustworthy choice that executes the basics really brilliantly. If you're in the market for a mid-range dash cam that doesn't sacrifice clarity, its simple setup, excellent video quality, and dependability recording make it worth thinking about. If your main concerns are storage and personalization, you could wish to go for alternative choices nonetheless, the Piqo 2K is a wise investment for daily use and consistent protection on the road.

I’ve put off getting a dashcam because of their large size. I really don’t want to see the camera or have it obstruct any of my view while driving. After installing the Piqo dashcam, I was able to hide it behind my rearview mirror (see pics). Doing so resulted in some compromises. The button on the device, opposite the camera, is blocked a little by the rearview mirror, but I’m still able to push it if needed. Also, the plastic shroud in the center top of my windshield is in the field of view of the camera, resulting in the top right portion of the recording blocked. However, the camera was still able to record oncoming traffic from the right side (see pic). Now that the camera was set up properly, which was pretty easy to do, I continued with pairing it to the Piqo app on my device. I have an Android phone and was successful following the instructions on how to pair the device for the first time as well as updating it to the latest firmware. After using the Piqo dashcam for about a week, here are my thoughts on this product. Pros: Very good video quality. The 2K image is clear during the day and at night. The camera can capture the license plate of a car 10 to 15 feet ahead of you in both day and night settings (see pics). As mentioned earlier, the device itself is not too big. If properly mounted, it can stay mostly hidden from view. The package includes a 32 GB micro SD card to allow you to begin recording immediately after setting up. It has the ability to continuously record video when the car is parked. You’ll need to run the included USB C cable and car adapter to the car’s auxiliary power outlet (aka cigarette lighter) that maintains power when the car is turned off. If this is not an option, Nextbase sells two other power adapters that can plug into your car’s fuse box or OBD2 port, both which are usually found under or near the dash. These alternative connections run continuous power even after the car is turned off. The dashcam has a g-force sensor that automatically detects when your car experiences a hard bump, turn, or crash. If triggered, the dashcam automatically protects the current video being recorded so it does not get written over by future recordings. I found that it is usually triggered if I hit a sizable pothole or when I’m turning into a driveway that has some uneven concrete. I believe you can adjust the sensitivity setting in the app. The Piqo dashcam can respond to basic voice commands, like asking it to protect the current video being recorded. I found this feature works well and is consistent. It almost replaces the need to physically touch the button on the camera. This is something I appreciate since my button is mostly hidden behind my rearview mirror. Cons: When connected and near the Piqo dashcam, it can take anywhere from 30 seconds to a minute to establish a connection for viewing and downloading videos. Sometimes it fails to connect, but it always works on the second attempt seconds later. To download a recorded video from the dashcam to your phone, it can take around 3 minutes to download a 1 minute video clip. So, the app isn’t ideal for downloading multiple videos at once. To do that, it is easier to remove the SD card from the dashcam and connect it to a computer. The SD card slot is physically located on the side of the dashcam, so it is easy to access and remove. The device comes with limited instructions. Many of the features are described within the app, but not with much detail. For example, it took me awhile to figure out how to upload videos to the Nextbase Cloud system for safekeeping. First, cloud storage is only available with subscription. However, the device does come with a free 30 day trial. Even after signing up, I still didn’t have a clue on how to use the cloud storage option. I had to look online and found instructions from Nextbase’s UK website. To upload a clip to their cloud system, you’ll need to download the clip to your phone first, then choose the Share option, enter your email address, and press the Upload button (see picture). Uploading takes just as long, if not longer to upload the clip to their server. Once completed, Nextbase sends you a link to your video. You can use the link to access the video outside of the app; and it can also be shared with others if needed. The Geofence alert system is a nice feature in theory, but from what I can tell, it’s not that useful if your phone is not in the car and connected to the Piqo dashcam. From what I can understand from the instructions, the dashcam recognizes if your vehicle has moved from a designated location of your choosing. However, because the Piqo does not have its own wireless network connection, it cannot send you alerts informing you that your car has moved. Instead, it saves and protects the footage from being erased, so you can retrieve it at a later time. Again, I may be misunderstanding how this feature works, but the instructions and descriptions in the app are limited. Overall: The Piqo is a relatively affordable 2K dashcam. It’s always better to capture video in higher quality, which makes this dashcam very competitive. If your main concern is capturing video and are not too concerned with the other features within the app, this dashcam will not disappoint. I found some features useful and others not so much. Plus, the subscription feature is totally optional. I’m perfectly happy using this dashcam without a subscription. I still get access to all the recordings and can review and download the ones I want to my phone anytime.

It's compact. Gives a clear picture. Well worth the money to protect you investment

The Nextbase piqo is an incredibly small, unobtrusive front-facing dashcam with 2K recording. It really excels thanks to the Nextbase app that enables voice activation "Hey Nexy" for urgent safety recording and the annual ESOS plan is a bargain for the features (notifies emergency services in an accident, extends warranty to 3 years, cloud based recordings). -= In the Box =- - Nextbase piqo with mount - very long USB C to USB C cable (with right angle connector for Piqo) - 12V dual USB C car charger - spare mounting clip - 2 x protected by Nextbase stickers - wipes to clean windshield - spudger tool to help hide USB cables - 32GB micro SD card (required) and a standard SD adapter -= First Impressions =- The Nextbase piqo is tiny, but feels solid. There's no passenger facing camera, but it does have a large front facing button that has an LED ring. The microSD is on the left, the USB C is on the right. -= Setup =- There's a QR code in the box to ensure you download the right Nextbase app. I recommend using the QR code and not just searching the AppStore, just so you get the right Nextbase app. Download the app BEFORE you install the piqo in your car, as it walks through pairing steps and installation. Registration is required to use the app. Pairing was easy via Bluetooth, there was a firmware update when I first started the setup but it was very fast - like wow fast. Installation took of the camera itself takes all of a minute - I recommend having the piqo camera on live view. I installed mine just to the right of my mirror. The slower part of installation is (if you're like me) trying to hide the USB C cable and finding the right spudging path for the cable. You should use the right angle USB C cable pointing up, so you can go above your windshield, just give yourself enough give so you can remove the piqo (the mount slides on/off - a spare mount is included, if you plan to use the piqo on multiple cars, don't spudge the cable). Also, another tip, install with the mounting tab facing down (lower right hand side so you can slide the piqo on/off easily). -= What's Good =- I think the piqo is near perfect. I've used multiple dashcams and for simple safety, piece of mind, and smarts - as well as the size - the piqo is incredble. It pairs very fast after starting your car, about 10 seconds. Video quality is crystal clear (2K, 1440 at 30fps) and you can adjust the recordig to 1080p 60fps if you want to capture more images. Videos are time stamped with GPS coordinates, time, and speed - you can also enter your license plate in the app so video will be time stamped with your license plate. Video transfers pretty fast (the piqo creates an adhoc WiFi network for transfering video). The companion Nextbase app (I tested on iOS) is very intuitive, well designed, and so far has been trouble free. I would really encourage plaing with the app, there's lots of features in there including a smart parking feature that will record if you car is hit in a carpark (although this requires a professional install for continuous power. -= What's Not So Good =- Like all dashcams, if you have a long video, you are better inserting the microSD card in a computer for the fastest downloads. This is not something unique to piqo just a friendly reminder. I found WiFi connection to the piqo was faster when I was not in WiFi range of my home, but I think that's iOS biasing towards the strongest signal. The industry really needs a better solution for AdHoc WiFi networks. And a word of warning, if you hold the front button for 10 seconds you can erase all data and settings - kind of wish that reset option was hidden under the mount. -= Final Thoughts =- I genuinely love the piqo. It's a great small dashcam and I love how it looks in my car. When everyone sells subscription services, the Nextbase Piqo is one of the best value offerings on the market that actually offers genuine benefits.

One of the more important add-ons someone can get for their car is a dash cam. I’m a big proponent of dash cams and think that everyone should have one. It gives a lot of peace of mind when driving. The problem I think most people have is integrating them into their cars. Installation and preparation of the camera can be burdensome. Fortunately, this particular dash cam is the answer to that problem. The Piqo 2K Dash Camera is a great travel companion. It’s easy to use and very affordable. Here are some things I really like about it. First, it comes with a microSD card. The camera can accept up to 256GB SD card. I can never seem to find an SD card when I need one, which is why I’m glad that a 32GB one is included. Next, it comes with all the tools needed for a successful installation. One of the big issues I have with dash cams is running the power cable. The Piqo comes with a 13-foot USB-C cable and a car power adapter. If you place the dash camera behind your rearview mirror, which is where the installation guide suggests, you should have plenty of cables available to route around your windshield. A fitting tool is included so that you can properly manage the cable and tuck it into the car’s frame. Once the camera is physically installed, you can make sure that all your settings are set just the way you want using the mobile app on your phone. Now, here is where I found a little bit of an issue with the system. Any time you want to access the camera, the app has to establish a WiFi connection between your phone and the camera. While you typically wouldn’t be accessing data on the camera while you are driving, this poses a problem for me since I use a device that has wireless CarPlay functionality when I’m driving. Since you can only be connected to one WiFi network at a time, this is a bit of an issue for anyone who wants to use a device that requires a WiFi connection. I also think that some of the features’ names are a bit confusing. For example, the Smart Parking feature is designed to record events when there are hits or knocks on your car. While I love that this feature exists, I thought ‘Smart Parking’ would somehow provide assistance while I was in the process of parking. I did find the recording functionality to be superb. It is very sensitive and actually recorded some actions when I was setting up the camera. I guess I bumped it a couple of times, and the camera interpreted that as an event it needed to record. I thought the quality of the video was excellent, and it was easy to tell what the events were from the thumbnails in the video library. I love the Live View mode, but again, I wish the connection could be made without establishing a WiFi network between the camera and the phone. This is a very robust dash camera system for the investment you make. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend it to anyone and I would get it again.