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A collision can happen in seconds. Whether you walk away with a settled claim or a legal dispute often depends on what your car was recording at the time. Dash cam sales have grown steadily as more drivers learn that insurers and courts treat clear footage as decisive evidence. Not every dash cam captures footage worth submitting, though, and performance varies widely even within the same price range.
Consumer Reports evaluated five models on daytime and nighttime video quality, audio quality, and ease of installation to identify the ones worth buying.
1 / 5
Priced at $150, the Redtiger F7NP Basic is the top-scoring model in Consumer Reports' current dash cam ratings, earning an overall score of 72. CR's testing found excellent scores in daytime video quality, audio quality, and ease of installation, with midlevel scores for nighttime video and versatility. Standard features include a secondary rear-facing unit, a 3.2-inch display — one of the largest in the test group — a hardwiring kit for always-on power, and a vibration-triggered parking mode.
