The F70 is a small budget dash cam from the Korean company Thinkware, who have been selling a wide line of car cameras in the US for a number of years now.
This small stealthy camera records in 1080p (HD) at 30 fps with ide Dynamic Range and a wide 140 degree lens angle to capture all of the road in front of your car.
It has multiple recording modes, Smart File Management, and and Anti-File Corruption technology to make sure your files are recorded well and protected from damage. The multiple recording modes help save space on your SD card. Continuous mode records all the time while the car is running, but incident mode only records when there’s an impact. In both modes, the sensitivity can be adjusted to be more or less strict in recording an incident. There are also extra accessories you can order like a hardwire cable for parking mode and a GPS. Just like parking mode on any other dash camera, the THINKWARE F70 provides motion detection, impact detection, and a power saving mode that records as soon as an incident occurs and keeps recording for 20 seconds after the incident. You can also record on a time lapse mode to record everything while the vehicle is parked.
The F70 is capacitor based, meaning it does not use an internal battery which can cause issues in high heat or cold temperatures. This thermal protection allows you to film in more extreme temperatures, because it uses a capacitor rather than a battery. One thing to keep in mind about thermal protection is that it will shut off the camera if it surpasses its temperature threshold. Due to the camera’s super capacitor power source, it’ll save the video that was filming at the time of shutdown but won’t record anything past that. This is an important thing to keep in mind while using the camera in an environment with extreme temperatures.
There is an optional GPS module for F70 which plugs into the side of the unit. The GPS on the F70 notifies the driver of speed limits on roads and other information. The GPS also records vehicle speed and location (X, Y, and Z coordinates), which you can embed onto your videos. One final feature on this camera is Front Vehicle Departure Warning. This alerts the driver that the car in front of them has started moving, just in case the driver is not looking at the road when this happens. While many dash cams offer a GPS feature, many users find that GPS is more of a novelty feature, as the speed capture cannot be used to fight a speeding ticket in court and the lane departure warnings and other features often become an annoyance rather than helpful.
The THINKWARE F70s main assets are its low cost, basic features, and small size. This company makes other models, but this is the most cost effective option, especially for those who are only interested in one front facing camera. It has all of the basic features including options to add to its capabilities. The camera itself is quite small and compact and can fit easily behind a rearview mirror. It also does not have an LCD screen. While some people like to use an LCD screen while driving, others find it too distracting and are willing to sacrifice it for a smaller camera. The video quality is decent for a cheaper camera: you can still read license plates, but you have to be pretty close in order to truly see them. Night vision is also decent.
One feature that the THINKWARE F70 is lacking is a built-in WiFi connection. Other dash cameras provide a WiFi connection so you can transfer your videos to another device and share them with others at a faster rate. Other versions of the THINKWARE camera do have this option, so make sure you choose what aspects of a dash camera you’re looking for before you make a purchase. There is also no USB output, which means you can’t view video files by connecting the camera to your phone or computer. In order to view the video files, you have to use THINKWARE’s PC Viewer software and the MicroSD card adapter to plug it into your computer.
The camera comes with an 8GB micro SD card with configuration files, so be sure to use the card they provide you. The SD card also holds all of your user settings and applies them each time you turn the camera on. It automatically rewrites any footage without incident so you never have to worry about running out of storage in the middle of recording. This might be good for dash camera beginners who don’t have their own SD cards, but for people that want to use a different SD card or already have one of their own, this is an important thing to keep in mind.
Overall, the THINKWARE F70 has very good reviews. It’s a small camera without a lot of the more advanced features of the more expensive cameras, but it does its job well and is very fairly priced. Its customer support is active and it is a popular choice for dash camera users that aren’t interested in all of the bells and whistles of a higher end camera. This is definitely a solid single dash camera choice.
F70 Photos:
Full Specs
Dimensions: 3.07 x 1.4 x 1.24 inches
Video: 1080p Full HD
Image Sensor: 2.1 M Pixel 1/2.7″ CMOS 1080P
Frame Rate: 30 FPS
Display: None
Photo File: JPEG
Video File: MP4
Lens Angle: 140°
Storage: microSD (class 10) up to 64GB
GPS: Yes, with optional module
G-Sensor: Yes
Motion Detection: Yes
Parking Mode: Yes, optional hardwire kit required
Battery or Capacitor: Capacitor
Audio Recording: Yes (on/off option)
Temperature:
Storage Temperature: -20° – 70°C (-4° – 158°F)
Operating Temperature: -10° – 60°C (-14° – 140°F)
WiFi: No
APP: No
Dual Dashcam: No
Model Name: F70
Manufacturer: THINKWARE
User Manual
PDF user manual for Thinkware F70: Thinkware-F70-Manual.pdf
What accessories are included?
- F70 Dash Cam
- Windshield adhesive mount
- Replacement adhesive pad
- Cable clips with adhesive pad (3)
- Car charger cable
- 8GB MicroSD card and card adapter
- User Manual
- (Optional) GPS Receiver Cable
- (Optional) Hardwire Kit
THINKWARE F70 Dash Cam Video Samples
Day time video sample
Night time video footage from the THINKWARE F70
