Why You Can Trust CNET Drive smarter with the Waylens Horizon dashcam
If a GoPro camera and a performance data recorder had a baby, it would be the new Horizon dashcam.
Cars such as the Chevrolet Corvette and the Cadillac V-series lineup, along with the F12 Berlinetta, 458 Speciale and LaFerrari models from Ferrari, come with built-in performance computers, letting you review revs and g-forces after hot laps. Alas, we can't all buy brand-new cars to take to the track. Enter the Waylens Horizon camera and data recorder, an aftermarket solution for those wanting to get more information from their track days.
Waylens Horizon Camera
MSRP
Waylens took me on a jaunt through the mean streets of San Francisco, not necessarily the place to get high revs and massive g-forces, but it still gave me an idea of what the system can do.
A smartly designed HD camera mounts to the windshield and connects to the car's OBD II computer through Bluetooth. The camera records not only video and audio but also receives speed, rpms, turbo boost, g forces and pitch and roll data from the OBD II dongle.
Swipe up or down on the camera's small touchscreen to choose settings, swipe left or right to view data points. You can keep the screen on video or set it to display any one data point, so if your car doesn't have a turbo-boost meter, for example, you can use the Horizon to view PSI numbers in real time.
A remote attached to the steering wheel connects to the camera through Bluetooth as well. A tap of the remote highlights the current section of the drive, so you don't have to wade through all the camera's footage later.
In the future, Waylens intends to trigger the camera automatically to highlight sections of video based on rpms, speed or g-forces.
The camera gets its juice from the car's USB port or 12-volt outlet, and an integrated battery gives an hour of recording time at its highest 1080p setting. You can extend that time by turning off some of the settings and recording at 720p or 360p. Waylens expects to offer a hardwire kit in the future.
When you're finished with your fun, the Waylens Horizon app lets you edit your clips, add or delete data points, add a music track, and share to YouTube and Facebook or to the news feed within their app.
Although I didn't have the opportunity to take the camera out by myself on a track, I was pretty impressed with the whole setup. Accessing the settings is intuitive, and using the app to edit was really easy. I would love to try it out in my off-road race car, once they come out with the promised weatherproof case and multiple mounting options. My race car is an air-cooled Volkswagen and doesn't have a computer, but the Horizon camera contains the axis motion sensor, barometer and GPS, so I could still get pitch-and-roll data as well as speed and ambient temperature.
The Waylens Horizon camera is available to preorder starting today for $499 at www.waylens.com. Customers can purchase directly from the website on October 31.