Yep, totally. The people who can afford an accessory like this, and not worry that it'll be stolen, are the same people who already have it built into their vehicle.
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Dozens of Former Apple Employees Team Up to Launch ‘RearVision' Vehicle Camera
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Yep, totally. The people who can afford an accessory like this, and not worry that it'll be stolen, are the same people who already have it built into their vehicle.
Neat concept, but there are other wireless solutions at $50 to $100. So not only is your device prohibitively expensive (remember the original price of the iPhone?), it is just begging to be stolen. Better do a rethink.
Good idea, bad execution, terrible price. The market fit just isn't right for the price. There are $125 versions of this that are wireless and work with iPhones already. Add to that the diagnostic port hookup (better be a passthrough!), which just means that a thief won't just steal the frame, but will also break a window. Solar-powered and collision alerts are cool, but not $375 and a chance of a broken window cool.
I like everything said here, except about it being the governments job. Its the consumers job to not buy something dangerous or not well made. And I see what you are saying about the cheap cars selling better, but if price was the main sticking point, then the nissan versa would be selling a lot better than a kia soul or honda civic.
It would be nice if consumers did think that way, but some don't. If a person's car buying decision affected only themselves, then I wouldn't care at all. They can choose to expose themselves to whatever danger they want. Unfortunately when we're talking about a ton of steel hurling down the street at high speeds, that purchasing decision affects the safety of a whole lot more people than just the buyer. I don't think a person has the right to expose me and my friends to certain dangers, and that balancing act of trying to find the fair middle ground between hundreds of differing views on what is safe and proper and make those standards uniform is precisely the role of government.
Sure it is... harness adapters are cheap. I swapped out the factory head unit in an '07 Honda with a Kenwood unit with CarPlay for under $500. That included the head unit, face plate surround, harness adapter, rear camera, and an ASWC-1 steering wheel adapter so I could retain all the steering wheel controls.
Total DIY project. Took about an hour to install it.
OEM harness adapters typically run about $25. The most expensive I've see was $49.
Absurdly expensive. For that kind of cash, you can have an aftermarket camera and a full size monitor installed in your car.
I agree there are a number of solutions but they all are kludges to one degree or another; such running wires, tapping into power supplies and backup lights, drilling holes in body to run wires, etc..This solution, while expensive, is pretty elegant in comparison.
Yes, they are cool but with more and more manufacturers going to propriety busses they won't work; this from someone who is a shade tree mechanic who enjoys tinkering with his cars.
They're out of their minds. $500 for plastic that will break within a year. Talk about a piece of ****.
And if it took 50+ former Apple employees to launch this POS, clearly there's a reason why they don't work at Apple anymore.
And if it took 50+ former Apple employees to launch this POS, clearly there's a reason why they don't work at Apple anymore.
$500 for something on the outside of the car that isn't an integrated part of the car? No thanks.
if you're including labor, they're pulling your leg and probably about 70% of the cost. also, i know not every camera kit would be $500 but i'd rather spend more and get it done right than having a license plate frame which i hate anyways. all personal preference.
I was going to say the same. Not that it's actually enforced, but this would be illegal in Texas.
Yep. And anyone who can afford a $500 backup cam would likely have already bought one of these newer models.
Those who cannot afford a new car will probably resort to the rather primitive use of reflectively coated silicon glass strategically combined with dynamic biomechanical cranium swivels.
While it may appear to be an attractive theft target, there are some ways to make it much less attractive. Since it uses the OBDC, the dongle could code in the vehicles VIN, making the device useless on another vehicle. I have a diagnostic cable for my car that does just that, if I exceed the limit on number of vehicles I can get it erased by the manufacturer or buy a more expensive unlimited version designed for use by a shop. They could also tie the camera to the dongle so that it only works with the originally supplied one; and register them to the owner so if you buy a replacement they only sell to the registered owner. Cincinnati Microwave adopted such an approach for repairing radar detectors by not fixing any reported stolen to them or with missing serial numbers.
Finally, the theft value assumes there is demand for the unit beyond a tif simply wanting to grab one for themselves. Unless it is easily and quickly converted to cash the test value is relatively low; even with a $500 price tag.
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Why? Some of us like our older, paid for, car. There are plenty of enthusiasts that drive older cars but would like some of the more modern features, such as bluetooth and better sound (which is why there are expensive aftermarket radios and speakers); a backup camera is a nice addition and not that expensive considering other things you might add to a vehicle.
Finally, the theft value assumes there is demand for the unit beyond a tif simply wanting to grab one for themselves. Unless it is easily and quickly converted to cash the test value is relatively low; even with a $500 price tag.
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Why? Some of us like our older, paid for, car. There are plenty of enthusiasts that drive older cars but would like some of the more modern features, such as bluetooth and better sound (which is why there are expensive aftermarket radios and speakers); a backup camera is a nice addition and not that expensive considering other things you might add to a vehicle.
Cool, let's aim for an even $1,000 backup cam that requires an iPhone to operate.
Wait! Let me switch from Maps to my special backup cam app so I can turn around! Ok, now I'll just switch back to Maps and we can resume our trip...Isn't this backup cam the coolest gadget ever? So much easier than mirrors!
I can understand that older model vehicles don't have those and I can see why they would buy it...but when it is integrated when purchasing a car would be a better ideal.
Having backed up everything from small cars to trucks into a loading dock using mirrors, and cars with backup cams; my opinion i start the backup cam adds a significant amount of information that is useful in conjunction with actually looking around to make sure it's safe. YMMV