VIOFO A329S: The Dash Cam That Became Part of the Journey

I spend a lot of time behind the wheel, so a dash cam has become less of a gadget and more of a useful bit of kit.

Over recent months, the VIOFO A329S has travelled with me in several different cars, covering everything from airport runs to Heathrow and Gatwick to long journeys for car launches. One of the biggest tests was a trip from the Midlands to Loch Lomond for an automotive event, putting plenty of motorway miles on the clock.

The reason a dash cam comes in handy on journeys like these is simple. You can drive perfectly sensibly and still find yourself involved in something that isn’t your fault.

The A329S provides an independent record of what is happening around you. If another driver cuts across you, brakes unexpectedly, or an incident occurs ahead, there is footage to refer back to rather than relying on memory.

The version I’ve been using combines a 4K front camera with a 2K rear camera, using Sony STARVIS 2 sensors. The front camera can record in 4K at 60fps, while HDR helps deal with challenging lighting conditions. There’s also GPS, so location and speed information can be recorded with the footage.

That is particularly useful on the sort of journeys I do. Leaving for an airport before dawn, driving through changing weather and traffic, then returning late at night means the camera needs to cope with very different conditions.

The A329S largely just gets on with the job.

That’s one of the things I like about it. Once installed, you don’t need to keep interacting with it. It records continuously, with loop recording managing the storage, while the GPS quietly logs the journey.

There is also Wi-Fi 6 for transferring footage, which is useful when you actually need a clip rather than simply knowing it exists.

But perhaps the most interesting test came when my eldest daughter, a new driver, transferred the A329S into her Vauxhall Corsa.

For her, it wasn’t really about having a high-tech camera. It was about confidence.

Driving on your own for the first time can feel very different from learning with an instructor or parent sitting beside you. Knowing that the dash cam was recording gave her some extra reassurance that, if something unexpected happened, there would be an independent record of it.

It didn’t replace concentration or good driving, of course. But that additional safety net helped her feel more comfortable behind the wheel.

It also gave me some reassurance as a parent. Rather than constantly worrying about what might happen when she’s out driving, I knew she had something recording the road ahead and behind.

That made the A329S feel like more than an insurance accessory.

For me, it has proved its worth on long journeys, particularly when I’m driving unfamiliar cars or covering hundreds of miles to launches and airports. For my daughter, it’s provided an extra layer of confidence as she gets used to driving independently.

And that’s probably the biggest compliment I can give it.

After moving it between several cars, I’ve reached the point where I simply expect it to be there. Because when you’re spending as much time on the road as I do, having a reliable record of the journey is one less thing to worry about.