Dashcam - Dead Battery

[mrbrooks]

Hello everyone, apologies if this is in the wrong forum/section.

 

I have an issue with my dashcam.

 

I purchased a Nextbase 51GW from Halfords, 17th Dec 2017, so this about 15 months ago.  I have had it hardwired in by a mechanic/auto electrician from new. It had worked without issue until about 6-8 weeks ago when the battery in the camera stopped working.

 

The car has been off the road for some repairs, so I did not deal with it at the time, but since I have been running around in the car again, I have noticed that this is, in fact, quite a big problem.

 

The issues being these, firstly no battery means that there is no parking available, not that I used it anyway, but I suppose that's not the point. It also means, and this is the critical part for me, that when the engine is disengaged, the last recording is corrupted, aka the one that is/was recording just as you are pulling up and turning off the engine and getting out of the car.

 

This also means that every time you get back into the car or restart the engine, you have to manually 'OK' it before it will record anything, so any interruption in the power supply, even slight one, like an engine stall or cutout or you have just parked up but are sitting in the car, effectively sets the camera back to 'start', which is a PITA as well as being unreliable as it means that on every single trip out, there are files that are now corrupted and unreadable as they are susceptible to the power loss.

 

Now on the surface, this may not seem like a big deal, but, imagine if I am in a smash-up! My camera is recording the road in front and at the rear, as it should, then suddenly, smash, and there is no engine on, no power feed to the camera. Thus the recording is corrupted as mentioned above.

 

The result, I cannot show what has happened, or if my fate is worse and I am incapacitated either temporarily or permanently, the emergency services will also be unable to see what has happened on the road resulting in this crash and I may not even have footage for the minutes previous to such an event.

 

Now I know these things have a 12-month warranty, but to be fair, it is only 15 months out of the box. I feel a little bit let down, to be honest, and feel the device should not be experiencing such issues at this age under normal and expected usage.

 

It has been used in accordance to the manufacturer's recommendations, I remove the camera from the vehicle in hot/cold weather, and put it in the Nextbase camera bag, which I purchased at the same time. I have used the Nextbase cabling kits, I have used only Nextbase SD cards, which I clear/format usually once a month, and use only the Nextbase mounts, stands and stickers that came with the kit, all supplied by Halfords in official Nextbase packaging.

 

Thus, I have paid £145, plus extras, for a dashcam, that is now effectively useless at the time I would need it the most, in a severe accident, and this battery fault makes it unreliable and makes my wired in kit pointless, and as I see it, the device is no longer fit for purpose as I cannot rely upon this camera to perform its regular duty and certainly not under such circumstances as you would may experience in a heavy crash or accident.

 

I would be happy for NextBase to supply and fit a new battery, but I have read online that they are unwilling to perform such a service, even under warranty they have been reluctant, as mentioned by other folks on other forums, such as DashCamTalk, who have experienced the same issue. I have emailed Nextbase and asked about this, however, just in case they offer a cheap repair service, and to open up the communication.

 

Also, with the warranty expired three months ago, I am highly unlikely to get a replacement of either the battery or the unit so thought I would ask some of the experts here.

 

Thus, what I would like to know, and ask for, is any of the CAG members think this is something I could and should tackle? If so what angle should I push? What consumer laws should I be looking to utilise and throw at them?

 

Thanks in advance to you all and I look forward to some thoughts on the matter.

 

MB

 

Edited April 8, 2019 by mrbrooks

[AndyOrch]

Hi mrbrooks

Which Nextbase model is your camera ?

 

Andy

[mrbrooks]

Hi Andy, it is 512GW and I have the rear cam too that partners with it.

 

MB

[AndyOrch]

https://www.nextbase.com/en-gb/dash-cam-features/battery/

 

https://dashcamtalk.com/forum/threads/512gw-battery-not-charging-diy-replacement.35775/

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_CEewcBfSg

 

 

Not ideal but if you dont need the agro and your handy with your hands.

[dx100uk]

ive done loads of these 

typically the battery that comes with it esp if you are using the rear cam as well only lasts at best 18mts

esp on an a car that does a lot of on/off cycles

dirt cheap on amazon or ebay

very easy to replace 

 

you could try and got thru the RETAILER under CRA but you'll have a job convincing them about the number of charge cycles it been thru.

[mrbrooks]

Hi, thanks to you both for the replies, I may have a go at replacing it myself, will watch the YT videos and have a think about whether I am that 'handy'...

 

I don't really want to buy a new camera or mess about having another load of cabling fitted for another model, so I suppose a self-repair or a cheap replacement off eBay may be the sensible way to go...

 

Just seems like a poor quality thing to me, I don't use my car a lot, I only do about 6K a year and sometimes don't use it for days, so its not like its been on and off excessively, and it should not have required recharging, to be honest, it was rarely off the car power.

 

Still...it is what it is I suppose...

 

Thanks again to you both.

 

MB

[renegadeimp]

Did you post this on a well known facebook page a short while ago too?  Think you were advised to return it for repair, or do it yourself on there too.

[mrbrooks]

Hi Renegadeimp, nope, and nope, and nope again.

 

1 hour ago, renegadeimp said:

Did you post this on a well known facebook page a short while ago too?  Think you were advised to return it for repair, or do it yourself on there too.

 

You have made an incorrect assumption, aka you have the wrong person, wrong post, aka, nothing to do with me, I have not posted this anywhere else.

 

I did contact the support at Nextbase who have said they will send me a battery for £10 and instructions to fix it, which is fine if folks feel capable enough to take on such a task and this may well be a way to go.

 

Alternatively, they can do a fix for £31.20 which takes 7-10 working days, which is likely how I will go. As I say, this was via email, not Facebook, which I rarely.

 

I was just wondering what other CAG members thoughts were on were trying to tackle the manufacturer with such issues, as it is clear this should not be happening and thought I would ask before deciding whether to take it on or just move on.

 

Best wishes

 

MB

Edited April 8, 2019 by mrbrooks

[dx100uk]

its not a manu problem

retailer under CRA , but from my experience most Li-on batteries give up after about 1000 cycles

yours cant be that far away if not already passed that figure.

 

ps i'll do it for much less than that for you!!

 

[mrbrooks]

Thnx DX, I am not planning on going via a CRA approach, I am going to go with either the battery replacement, likely from eBay, your offer, which seems strangely attractive, or the service from Nextbase.

 

As I say, I just thought I would ask, and after reading the first couple of responses I had decided the best route was one of those mentioned above...

 

Best wishes.

 

MB

 

 

Edited April 8, 2019 by mrbrooks

[dx100uk]

you get the parts i'll do it.

though as you can see its very easy.

 

I sometimes wonder if this is a purposeful design as they do sell external packs which they recommend for long term use in parking mode

[ericsbrother]

built in obsolescence or warranty chip

Edited April 9, 2019 by ericsbrother