Monday 16th June 2014

GoPro on the go

Car videos made easier as BMW gets clever with dash-cam enabled GoPros

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So far cameras in cars have been all of the safety variety, for example showing what's behind while reversing. But in a nifty bit of interaction between BMW and the makers of suckered-on cameras GoPro, that has now moved into the domain of aftermarket cameras used to provide footage of track day heroism or evidence of nutty driving on the evening commute.

You still need an aftermarket camera in the form of a wireless-enabled GoPro (Hero3 onward), but instead of switching them on before driving, they can now be controlled from the car's in-dash screen.

For this to work your car must be fitted with BMW's ConnectedDrive offering with BMW Apps, or Mini's Connected option. The BMW version was available from 2012 so existing owners might be able to join in too. Then you download the app onto an iPhone 4 or later, which shows up on the dash screen once you've connected the phone either via an iPhone USB cable or the BMW adapter.

According to BMW the app can control cameras plural, which means if you're driving with a camera suckered onto the bodywork somewhere as well as one looking through the screen, set-up will be a lot easier.

The wireless connection means you can preview what the camera sees on the dash screen (although not when you're moving) and it'll also show elapsed time, battery life, and wifi signal strength. BMW also says you get six pre-set camera modes: Leisure Drive Facing Out, Night Driving, Sport Drive Facing Out, Drive Camera Facing In, Winding Road Time-lapse, and Straight Road Time-lapse. If you're new to GoPros, this mammoth thread will get you up speed and there's a YouTube demo of the BMW GoPro app in a BMW M4 being driving on track by Justin Bell (Derek's son) alongside older M3s.

It's only a matter of time before the increasing number of cameras embedded into the car itself will record footage for download onto your phone, in-car processor maker Qualcomm told PistonHeads earlier this year.

In the new Tesla Model S you can already view what's going on behind while on the move via screen footage from the rear view camera, and Tesla is constantly updating that huge 17-inch screen, even providing new buttons on occasion, so who knows how far away a record function is?

When that happens the ability to press a button marked 'save last five minutes of footage' after some idiot has bumped into you will make insurance claims a hell of a lot easier.

[monthefish]

Good result for GoPro.

[Impasse]

monthefish said:

Good result for GoPro.

Yeah, but not so much for viewers of YouTube.

[Munich]

Article said:

When that happens the ability to press a button marked 'save last five minutes of footage' after some idiot has bumped into you will make insurance claims a hell of a lot easier.

but won't make them any cheaper.... unfortunately.

[sonnylad]

And probably still won't make the Gopro turn on when needed

[Shaoxter]

sonnylad said:

And probably still won't make the Gopro turn on when needed

And drain the battery in less than an hour.

[loudlashadjuster]

How long until two(or more) wide-angle 1080p cameras are an option on most cars? That 'last 5 minutes' thing would be incredibly handy and if the devices are powered by the car and CANbus-enabled then the possibilities are intriguing.

[matthias73]

Even if you don't have a BMW, the latest go pro can still be controlled wirelessly with the remote that comes with it and you can stream video to your ipod. I dont' see the need in streaming the video to the car because you're actually there as it happens!

So just buy the latest go pro and control it from within the car once you're happily sat in the drivers seat.
This won't be real news until the camera is properly mounted and plugged into the car so it has a sustainable power source. Until that happens, you may as well use the gadgets already supplied in the HD HERO 3!

[Craikeybaby]

I agree with the limitations mentioned above, especially with regards to battery life and I don't think using the BMW control system to control the GoPro will be much easier than directly using the buttons on the camera.

However it does show an interesting merger of consumer electronics and vehicle infotainment integration - this is going to be a big thing over the next few years.

The BMW system is controlling an app on your smart phone, whilst GoPro is good for headlines, this opens up a whole load of new opportunities.

[CraigyMc]

loudlashadjuster said:

How long until two(or more) wide-angle 1080p cameras are an option on most cars? That 'last 5 minutes' thing would be incredibly handy and if the devices are powered by the car and CANbus-enabled then the possibilities are intriguing.

I rented a Nissan Note earlier this week. It's a roughly Micra-sized MPV thing. It was one one of the smallest cars I've rented in ages.

It came with front and rear parking cameras, as well as side ones (for the virtual 20ft overhead looking straight down at the car shot, as well as a parking-kerb cam). If something as cheap and cheerful as that can have umpteen cameras, they should all be recording on a loop that get stopped shortly after a big impact.



(Offtopic: it was a 1.2 litre supercharged petrol triple, running the miller cycle like an old mazda - a genuine 70mpg capable little car. Interesting drivetrain! The only reason I looked into it was that when revving the tits off it, it sounded like the transmission was whining itself to death - I was actually hearing the supercharger...)