THINKWARE - F70 PRO 1080P Dash Cam with Wi-Fi - Black

Thinkware F70 Pro Quick Overview ================================= In this day and age, it seems like a dashcam is a necessity to protect yourself from any possible issues that could arise including accidents, insurance fraud, theft, or other situations where some footage would help. There are many choices when it comes to dashcams, but Thinkware has made a pretty decent name for themselves in this space with high-quality options with lots of features at an affordable price. Let's see how this 1080p BT/Wi-Fi-equipped dashcam performs. Overall build ================================= No surprise, this thing is black plastic. I think it's interesting that most dashcams are black considering they will absorb the most heat when they're cooking in the sun during a hot summer day... It comes with everything you'd need (see pictures) including an angle-adjustable mount with double-sided tape, extra double-sided tape, cable holders w/double-sided tape, a long 12v wire and lighter plug, a Thinkware pry tool and an extra double-sided tape. Unfortunately there are no real instructions in the box - not even a quickstart guide! There's a small folded piece of paper asking you to scan the QR code to get to a site to then choose the PDF you'd like to download. It doesn't even take you directly to your exact model - you have to locate it. That aside, it was easy to install by test-fitting the mounting plate and camera then sticking it where I wanted. In hindsight, I wish I had powered on the camera and done all the pairing first, because there's no viewfinder, so no real way to confirm the view without the app. Having said that, the field of view is wide enough that mounting it far on the passenger side was still good enough to get the driver's view as well. Mounting and running the cables were easy tasks, but I'm an ex-car stereo/alarm installer. I don't see anything too difficult and at least Thinkware included some ways to help keep your cables nice and tidy. The pry bar included in the kit can help you find some gaps between panels and slide the cables behind them if needed. After getting it mounted and powered up, you'll see a green light and hear a voice wishing you a safe drive. After that you'll immediately want to download the app (on Android - Thinkware Dash Cam Link) and pair with the camera by pushing a button on the camera to make sure you're actually the owner of the camera. After being paired by BT, you can check the camera's settings and adjust things like sensitivity, night vision, date/time, etc. I left most of the things at default so I could test out the camera. Performance ================================= Driving around for two days of errands and shopping, checking the camera wasn't as easy as you'd think. Sure, you can connect via BT easily when you open the app, but getting connected via Wi-Fi for checking and downloading footage can be a headache. Once you select an option that requires a Wi-Fi connection (like checking recorded footage), the app will ask you to connect to the camera via Wi-Fi and you'll see a spinning wheel for about 30 seconds and may/may not get connected. If you get connected, great - you can then view and download the footage you need (or update firmware). If you don't get connected, it could be because of Android Auto. Android Auto is great to get your smartphone's controls and data on your car's screen, but how it sets up a connection includes using your BT connection to set up a Wi-Fi connection with your phone. This typically tries to reconnect to this custom Android Auto Wi-Fi while your phone is still connected to your car via BT. So to make it easier, go to your car's settings and disable your BT temporarily. Do this from the car side because your phone still needs a BT connection to the camera so it can set up the Wi-Fi! Sounds a bit annoying, right? I'd agree that it is annoying but not insurmountable and it shouldn't be something you need to do very often (I hope!). With that out of the way, the footage is clearer than my old HP-branded (probably a generic model that other OEMs used) "2k" dashcam and the connectivity options are miles better! Since my old dashcam required me popping out the microSD card to check footage, it would never happen unless we needed to check something. Now I can (after disabling the BT/Android Auto connection) check the F70 Pro and grab whatever footage I need. I think most security/video pros would agree that 1080p really isn't enough to read a license plate on a moving vehicle at any distance, so I do wish we got a 2k or 4k option. It's still pretty clear and could mean the difference if you need footage to prove your case against someone else. Conclusion ================================= Overall, this is a feature-rich dashcam for the price! You get a full 1080p with BT/Wi-Fi connectivity and all the supplies you need for a clean installation. I do wish there was a tiny display (that would have helped aiming it before installing it) and that accessing it via Wi-Fi was a bit cleaner (why not allow programming it to join my home Wi-Fi network?). Still it's a great choice from a company with a good track record!

I was really surprised how small and compact the Thinkware F70 PRO 1080P Dash Cam was when it arrived and I opened the box. But good things can come in small packages and I think this basic Dash Cam basically does the job. I had no trouble downloading the Thinkware Dash Cam Link application onto my phone after scanning the QR code on the box. I do admit that I would have preferred to have a Quick Start sheet before having to go to the application, but, alas, there was no guide. I did all of the setup of the F70 PRO in my house, before placing in my car. I have a portable battery backup that has a 12V port which provided all the power I needed for setup. I had no problem linking to the F70 with my phone and with my Wi-Fi. But I did find it confusing to switch between Bluetooth and WiFi for the different features of the application. If you have WiFi on your phone, why can't the application access the WiFi features like the Mobile Viewer using the WiFi on the phone without losing the Bluetooth connection? Anyway, it was not that difficult to record on the F70 PRO and be able to view it on the app. When I was watching the view, I noticed that the Dash Cam was recording my voice. This is not a feature that I care to utilize and so I started going through the Settings on the app and found it easy to disable. While I was going through the Settings pages, I found that there is a GPS feature that allows speed and location to be listed on the recorded display. Try as I might, I could not get the GPS feature to enable. Then I ran across a note that explained why: you have to purchase a GPS antenna separately. I guess I am spoiled, but I found this to be a bit cheapy. I prefer to remove the Dash Cam from the windshield and safely store it, when I leave the car. Better to not tempt someone. So, when I finally took the F70 PRO to setup in my car, I made sure to put up a strip of Dual Lock Reclosable Fastener Tape (the kind you use for your I-Pass) up on the window and a strip on the back of the adjustable Dash Cam holder. It worked great keeping the F70 PRO secure while attached and easily removeable when wanted. I know that it can be a pain not having a screen on the Dash Cam, but you only need the screen to make sure that you have it positioned properly. After that, you have to trust that the Cam is doing its job recording. So once you lock the position of the fastener tape and lock the rotational position of the Cam on its holder, you can remove the Cam when you want and put it back up in the same position with little effort. So, finally, how do the F70 PRO's videos look? When I reviewed the clips from the provided Mini-SD card on my computer, they appeared crisp and clear. I had no problem pausing the clips and seeing the license plate numbers of the cars around me. I feel confident that if some incident were to occur that the F70 PRO would keep a useful record. To sum it up, the F70 PRO does all the basics pretty well, despite some annoyances. This Dash Cam does the job that you need. I would suggest this to a friend or relative.

This is a really bad product. Don't buy it. Not even as a gift. Poor quality. It's really bad with the quality of the recording.

The Thinkware F70Pro is a bit of a conundrum. On the positive side, the camera works well, and the daylight images are excellent. Thus, if a buyer only wants or needs is a basic dash camera with virtually no features, this should be fine. I found pairing my Android phone to the camera to be confusing as the manual is unclear about pairing via Bluetooth versus the labeled button “Wi-Fi.” The camera has one status light that changes color to advise of the condition. Buyers need to know this is a small camera, about the length of my index finger, approximately 3.1” It lacks a screen, so the only way a user can determine what has been recorded is to use the phone app or remove the supplied MicroSD Card and view it in another device. The Thinkware F70Pro comes from a company with a good history of producing reliable dash cams, a bonus. But that bonus comes with a hefty price compared to other basic dash cams. The F70Pro seems to be begging the owner to buy ever more “accessories.” Want to be able to move the camera to another vehicle with a suction mount rather than the provided unremovable/permanent adhesive? It’s extra. Want to have parking protection? That requires the hard-wire kit that costs extra. GPS? Sure, if you want to buy the accessory that provides that feature. The box contains the camera, adhesive pads, the permanent windshield mount, the plug-in power cable, an installed MicroSD card, adhesive wire clips, and a nice tool for concealing wire. There are no printed instructions or quick-start guide, just QR codes that quickly load these. The manual is clear, if a little overwhelming with lawyer-required warnings: I didn’t know I could be “electrocuted” by the 12V outlet. In sum, as a basic camera that lacks a lot of what makes a dash cam convenient to use, the Thinkware F70Pro is fine. It works as a camera, but not as a good value.

A good value on a basic dash cam. Has audio cues so you don’t need to mount it where you can see it. Before I installed it, I wanted to see how the image would be framed using the live view feature of the smartphone app but I couldn’t get the camera to connect. I was holding the camera in my hand when I tried to connect and I think the movement kept interrupting the connection. I set the camera on the dash and didn’t touch it and then it connected. When you are setting up the app you must select to allow it access to find devices on your network or it won’t be able to connect to the camera over wifi. Upon connection it asked to update the firmware so I did that and then switched it to live view and it connected to my phone over wifi. Then I was able to hold it up behind the rear view mirror and see where it needed to be attached. I cleaned the windshield in that area and attached the mount. I didn’t route the electrical cable just yet, I just let it hang down and plugged it into a power point on the truck. The park mode of the camera is not available unless the camera is installed using the optional hardwired cable so I’ll hold off until I pick up one of those but I took the truck on a five hour road trip to see how it did. The default sensitivity setting is on low, I found that the camera was triggered to record every time we crossed an rough expansion joint on an overpass or if an asphalt road patch was a little rough. It’s supposed to be triggered by impacts so even low sensitivity seemed a little high. I have the camera mounted in a 3/4 ton truck, I’m thinking the stiffer suspension is causing the false triggers? But I guess it’s better to record extra than to miss an event. The camera was recording the 30 seconds before the event and 30 seconds after so each save is a one minute video clip. In the case where it was triggered again before it was done writing the previous event it does continue another minute in a new save and marks it as a continuous event so you know. There is a manual record button on the side of the camera and it will save a one minute recording starting about 20 seconds before you pressed the button so you could capture an event without an impact if needed. It marks those in the save files so they’re easy to pick out of the list. I found the app a little slow to connect to the camera to view the saved files or the live view but it did eventually connect. I had it randomly close and kick me out a couple times as well. Not as impressed with the app as the camera, three stars for the app, four for the camera. The camera itself is full HD at 2.1 megapixels, great for capturing vehicles in front of you but unless a vehicle is directly in front of you and close it’s hard/impossible to read license plates. I took screenshots and I’ll add them so you can see the difference between a vehicle in front of you and a vehicle that you record that is parked on the shoulder as you pass. GPS antenna is not included so you need to purchase that separately if you require GOS data in your recording. The camera does monitor the vehicle’s battery voltage and you can set a threshold in the app for when the camera should power off so you don’t come out to a dead battery. There is also a feature to disable recording in colder months to leave the battery charge higher. Comes with a 32gb micro sd card, you can download files from the camera when it is stationary or you can remove the sd card and insert it into a pc and use their program to view and save files. It is a micro sd card, my laptop required an sd card adapter to fit the reader which was not included.