SillyBear Posted May 8, 2015 Report Share Posted May 8, 2015 (edited) Hi all, I bought a dashcam recently and I've noticed that it stays powered on for a while after I shut my car off and lock it. I've been unplugging it because I don't want to risk draining my battery for no reason. My questions are, how long until accessories powered by usb or 12V are turned off? And do I need to worry about waking up in the morning to a dead battery? Thanks in advance Edited May 8, 2015 by SillyBear Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fbov Posted May 8, 2015 Report Share Posted May 8, 2015 I have a dash cam, too. Chelyabinsk wouldn't have been the same without them. For a while, I had mine plugged in to the cargo area socket, which is on 24/7. No issues with the car, but I only have ~2.6 hrs of recording time, so it had lots of parking lot footage, and very little driving. I then moved power to the console. Now, the camera chimes when I open the door as if to acknowledge power-on. It still records in 2 minute files, and has an onboard battery. I don't find partial files, so I suspect that when the console socket goes dead, it runs on the internal battery until that 2-minute segment is done, then shuts down. Working on the car, it won't chime every time I open the door unless enough time's passed. I suspect yours is staying on using internal power, too. See what happens when you unplug it after you know its on. HAve fun,Frank Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill-N Posted May 8, 2015 Report Share Posted May 8, 2015 My questions are, how long until accessories powered by usb or 12V are turned off? And do I need to worry about waking up in the morning to a dead battery? Roughly 10 to 15 minutes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SillyBear Posted May 8, 2015 Author Report Share Posted May 8, 2015 (edited) My camera is a capacitor version with no battery. So when it loses power it shuts off after 5 seconds. I guess if it stays powered for another 10-15 min it's no big deal. Thanks for the info! Edited May 8, 2015 by SillyBear Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SillyBear Posted May 14, 2015 Author Report Share Posted May 14, 2015 Is anyone aware of a way to force the car to cut power to the outlets after locking the car? Having my camera stay powered for 15 to 30 mins after is really making it difficult to sort through my driving videos. Also videos of the car parked are taking up lots of space on my SD card. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
irishprince Posted May 28, 2015 Report Share Posted May 28, 2015 You can try this - http://thedashcamstore.com/advanced-dashcam-installation Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdbob Posted May 28, 2015 Report Share Posted May 28, 2015 My dashcam is powered using the 12V outlet in the center console, I just unplug it before leaving the car and plug it back when I get back in the car. How is yours powered? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jackalopetx Posted November 8, 2017 Report Share Posted November 8, 2017 It will be totally fine. I have 4 dash cams, as I've replaced them with newer models and then just decided to use all. They don't use enough power for it to matter that they stay on for 10 minutes. But you CAN get a cigarette lighter extension cable with a built in switch Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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