Re. all written below, Damn, I just checked out Zetronix on the Rip Off Report, not good: But let it be known that the company responded to the Report and gave their side of the story, this info was dated March 2011, who knows who to believe????http://www.ripoffreport.com/directory/Zetronix.aspx
....
Chase Cam, Smarty Cam, Hero HD, Sony, Cannon, etc....these seem to be the norm. I don't know how I found it, but I dod, the so called trucker cam, specifically the Zetronix zBlack Box-2000 dash cam. It is windshield mounted and has some interesting features such as:

1. Automatically turns on when the car is started
2. Uses Sony ClearVid CMOS Sensor
3. Can use up to a 32 GB SD card, 25 min per GB in HD mode, 40 minutes per
GB in VGA mode
4. Date and Time stamp
5. HDMI Output
6. Auto Recording over aged video
7. GPS that records location, direction, sped of the car.
8. InfraRed Night vision recording on both lens,
9. Wide angle lens, 120 degrees front, 2nd 170 degree lens records driver and passenger. Philanders that use the services of truck stop "lot Lizards" must remember to tape over the lens....
10. Durable design to survive (Black Box) "the worst crashes...and document the events leading up to the event." God forbid a crash were to happen!

The down side, you need to connect to a PC to see the video...or consider the Zetronix zDrive-HDI unit. It has a video display but lacks:
1. GPS
2. Auto Recording over aged video...but still has 25 min per GB in HD mode, 40 minutes per GB in VGA mode with a 32 GB card.

I am thinking that a dash camera would be great to have on my daily driver, tow vehicle and would be great insurance in the race car. If I were ever in an accident, the entire event would be recorded. With cigarette lighter power, both of the above units could go car to car, easily.

See www.zetronix.com Note, not affiliation...just curious, and a guy that has had too many problems with in-car race cameras, forgetting to turn them on/off, etc. The units are made in the USA and are under $300 with a 1 year replacement warranty.

 

I use three different $38 HD cameras for my track videos. I've thought about using one as a dash cam in my daily driver, since they're capable of 32GB of recording with the oldest getting replaced as you go. They don't have a monitor on them, but can easily be hardwired in (or cigarette lightered-in) to the car. To see the video, you either connect a laptop or pop out the mini-SD card and put it in a laptop.

I mention it not because it's exactly the same thing you're talking about. But for someone looking for a very simple (but high-def) camera, it's an option.

Also keep in mind that some 720p cameras simply upscale an older sensor to a 720p output file. It pays to do some research on these cameras before you spend your money.

Here's a link if anyone wants information on it:

http://www.chucklohr.com/808/C16/

 

sounds great for truck racing

R+C

 

 

...to have on my tow vehicle and daily driver...race car, maybe....I may get one just for fun and try it out...