Cheap dash cams are a dime a dozen on Amazon, but if you want a dash cam that can do more than just record the road ahead, you’ll want to check out the new Nextbase iQ AI-powered dash cam. It’ll keep tabs on you and your vehicle while you drive, then double as a security system when the car is parked.
Announced back at CES 2022 last year, Nextbase is finally ready to release its AI-powered smart 4K dash cam this spring. It does everything a regular camera can, but then so much more. The dash cam is an LTE-enabled smart camera capable of live-streaming video of your car (on the road or parked) to the Nextbase app or cloud storage, thanks to T-Mobile connectivity.
It has all your usual high-end dash cam features, like 4K video recording with a wide-angle lens, night vision, and internal storage to keep all your recordings safe.
However, the team at Nextbase also integrated AI smarts and LTE that’ll help the camera keep an eye on the road ahead, keep you in your lane, and even alert you to thieves or a parking lot hit-n-run in real-time.
The Nextbase iQ has two cameras, one pointed ahead and one into the cabin. You can also get an optional add-on 3rd lens for the rear window. Thanks to the AI smarts inside, it’s essentially OnStar for any vehicle and can notify emergency services (or your preferred contact) in an accident. That’s on top of monitoring the speeds of cars ahead, offering voice-activated recording, and much more.
Other features include:
- Witness Mode: Voice-activated hands-free recording, cloud upload, and live stream sharing to an emergency contact to provide safe and secure video evidence during accidents, road rage, or carjackings.
- Guardian Mode: Enables triggers that’ll alert owners to specific conditions while the car is parked, at valet, in the shop, or used by family members or children. You can instantly access the camera’s live feed for remote viewing or track the vehicle location with LTE.
- Smart Sense Parking Mode: Thanks to proximity-sensing Spatial Awareness Technology, the iQ anticipates and records exactly what happens leading up to or during a parking incident, break-in, or other situations and notifies owners with a text message and live video feed. Plus, always-available recordings on the cloud.
- Emergency SOS: Automatically dispatches Emergency Services, supplying location and other critical details following a serious incident.
- and more
Then, thanks to the internal chipset and 4G LTE connectivity, Nextbase plans to offer several more features later in 2023 via software updates. Those include a DMS (Driver Monitor System) like we see in new luxury cars that can use the cabin camera to watch for distracted or drowsy drivers, which will help keep the road safe for everyone.
Another feature coming at a later date is an advanced vehicle-aware system that can monitor the road ahead and the distance of the car in front of you. Then, warn drivers about potential collisions, pedestrian danger, and more with audible or visual alerts.
It’s a dash cam, a car security camera, and a driver safety system all in one. Nextbase says it’ll be available this spring for under $500, and LTE connectivity starts at $9.99 per month.