Nextbase Cabin View Camera

Verdict

This Nextbase Cabin View is a compact, rear-facing add-on camera for Nextbase dash cams. It does a surprisingly good job of picking up what’s going on inside your vehicle, and what’s happening on the roads behind and to the sides. It can’t work miracles – you’ll need a light source inside the car at night – but if you’re driving a taxi, or just want a wider view than most rear-view cameras, it’s a useful upgrade.

Introduction

The Nextbase Cabin View Camera is a small rear camera module, designed to fit directly into a limited range of Nextbase dash cams.

It’s fitted with a wide-angle lens, designed to capture what’s going on inside your vehicle cabin, out the back window, and some of what’s happening to the sides.

Design, features and video quality

• A simple slot-in upgrade
• Adjustable aim
• Surprisingly clear video in most conditions

The Nextbase Cabin View Camera plugs directly into the slot at the side of the Nextbase 322GW, 422GW, 522GW and 622GW dash cams, pointing backwards into the cabin.

Its lens assembly is designed to be adjustable by a few degrees horizontally and vertically, so you’ll probably want to tweak its aim a bit the first time you use it – you can use the small preview on the main camera’s screen.

I found it a pretty effective system, allowing me to get a good view of my car’s passenger seats – as well as the rear and passenger side windows – from the high and slightly off-centre position in which I’d mounted the main camera.

If your dash cam is low or mounted behind the rear view mirror, you might get a less clear view of the cabin.

I was surprised by this camera’s performance. In daylight it had no problems exposing both the cabin, and the road behind and to the side of my car.

Footage clearly captured my sons mugging it up for the camera, but also the details of traffic behind and to the side of us.

While the latter wasn’t as clear as with dedicated rear-view cameras, particularly window-mounted ones, it would certainly help establish the facts in an accident that started behind you. In daylight, I could easily make out details including the number plates of cars following directly behind. Things weren’t as sharp to the sides, where parked cars move more quickly across the frame, but video was still clear enough to show pedestrians, cars and cyclists.

Unsurprisingly, things weren’t so great at night. With the cabin light off, it was hard to pick out activity in the back seats, even under streetlight. The camera also captured less detail from outside the car, although it was often possible to pick out the models and colours of other vehicles. Turning the cabin light on threw enough light to film rear seat passengers, but of course it didn’t help capture more detail from the road.

It’s worth mentioning that this camera may have an impact on the resolution of your front-facing dash cam, depending on the model. The Nextbase 622GW is unaffected, but with the 322GW you’ll be limited to 1080p front and 720p rear video only. With the 422GW or 522GW you can select either 1080p front and rear, or 1440p front and 720p rear.

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