The way we use dashcams has drastically changed over the years. From capturing road-trip moments to securing evidence in the event of a road accident, dash cameras these days now have another purpose: as a self-defense tool against traffic enforcers looking to make a quick buck.
It’s just the sad reality that at the other end of some traffic trap in the metro, you’d still often find a buwaya in the bushes, waiting for his next prey. And often, it’s the helpless, law-abiding motorists that get the short end of the stick. This is where trusty dash cams come in.
“Which dashcam should I get, then?” Why, we’re so glad you asked, because we actually have the ultimate anti-buwaya dashcam on our hands: the Transcend DrivePro 550.
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As you can see, this model has two cameras: one facing the front, fixed in its position, and one swiveling on the side. The latter can be rotated 180 degrees to capture certain angles on the road or to face the inside of the cabin. Position it properly near your car’s rearview mirror, and voila—you instantly have a device to record anything happening behind the wheel.
The forward-facing camera records in either 720p or 1080p, while the second camera records in 720p. Based on experience, both do an excellent job at capturing footage even at night, and the audio is pretty decent, too. That’ll come in handy whenever you get flagged for a violation you didn’t commit. Just twist the swiveling cam as needed and watch that dirty enforcer fold as he sees the lens pointing right at him.
Now, this comes at a pretty high price of P9,499 according to Blade’s official Shopee Mall account—that’s easily double or even triple of most decent dashcams available in the market. However, it does have a few added tools that make it a very competitive model.
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In addition to its ability to simultaneously record footage using two cameras, it also supports up to 64GB microSD cards. It also has WiFi connectivity, though I’ve never really used it that much. What I do find helpful are the safety features, which include lane-departure warning, forward-collision warning, and a speed-limit warning. Seeing as not a lot of cars have active safety tech like these, a dashcam with these capabilities is a huge bonus.
Other features the Transcend DrivePro 550 boasts include time-lapse recording, a snapshot button, driver-fatigue alert, emergency recording, and a headlight reminder. The dashcam also has a built-in battery so it has a parking mode feature, and it can be set to not shut down automatically the moment the car turns off.
The Transcend DrivePro 550 is also available here. Your thoughts on this one, readers? If you know of any other anti-buwaya dashcams out there, drop them in the comments section, please. If you’re looking into other dashcam models, you should consider those that have an automatic startup function, loop recording, and low-light capabilities. For tips on what makes a good dashcam, click here.
More photos of the Transcend DrivePro 550:
