I am in the other camp with this one. Toward the end of the review comments, folks started responding that it is not meant to be a GoPro; it is a safety camera and that is how Garmin positioned it. It is big and heavy relative to the radar, but it is about right sized for a device that does all three functions.

If you are in normal riding conditions, the picture and video quality is very good. Maybe in edge scenarios (dusk or dark) you might need a dedicated camera with a bigger lens to capture details, but then riding open roads in the dusk or dark is a safety risk no matter what your equipment.

As a safety device, you want something that might help identify the vehicle that wronged you. It automatically captures the 30 seconds preceding the event. That is 1,800 frames. The odds are exceptionally high that you will find many frames with clearly identifying information in those 1,800. Or, if you need evidence that a vehicle was at fault, you do not need much detail to show the vehicle was the cause.

Check out the real-life video example. The truck pulling a trainer came up fast and passed within a couple feet of the other rider. Scared the crap out of him. No front plates in this state, but I am sure police could have tracked down the truck through the big "RENT ME" company sign on the trailer if they needed to. https://www.slowtwitch.com/...ria_RCT715_8321.html

I received mine today and it's great! It's massive and heavy but the mount is solid and I like having it there knowing that I'm capturing video footage just in case. I've had some experiences where I wished I had footage to send to local authorities, now I will. I have no intention of ever using it like a GoPro and I'm sure there will be quick improvements coming in the app. Plus I would think that V2 is years away.

Go look at GPLama's footage. Even in ideal conditions you could barely make out the plates of the cars passing. In night conditions you couldn't make out the car make, model, or even colour. Not sure how this is currently set to pass as a dashcam safety device.

I have the Cycliq which isn't exactly great and died the first time a droplet of water touched it but at least the camera was good enough to get even the most basic of information required.

1440p scaled to 1080p with a higher bitrate and some basic stabilization would make this absolutely worth the price.

Same, I appreciate Ray's review as always but I currently run a Fly6 (light/camera) with a separate Varia RVR315 (radar only) and it would be nice to get everything in one package. I typically look at the Fly6 footage only 1-2 times/year, at home after the ride if I think someone passed too close. I prefer the camera running at all times, so issues with incident detection don't matter to me (I have it turned off on the Fly6) and I'll never use the app to access videos - instead I'll access them on my computer directly from the MicroSD card.

If I want to make a race/ride video, then the Fly6 comes off and the GoPro Session 4Ks or Hero 10 go on. I don't expect devices like the Fly6 or Varia to capture video worth displaying on the big screen - for me, the video from these devices is merely utilitarian and doesn't need to be pretty.

YMMV may very of course but if you intend to use this as a "set it and forget it" device, it seems a good tool for the job.

---

Amateur recreational hobbyist cyclist
https://www.strava.com/athletes/337152
https://vimeo.com/user11846099

I saw their footage. My point is that you only need one readable frame of a license plate, and you will have 1,800 to choose from. DCR said "I’ve got plenty of footage, from bright daylight to near-midnight pitch black. And in almost every scenario, I could make out license plates." I am happy to concede that poor lighting may miss a plate; that is challenging for any camera. But, I would probably never be riding an open road in those conditions. (I have never ridden at night in my lifetime.)

When you are using this thing in normal lighting situations for most cyclists (morning, mid-day, cloudy, pre-dusk, etc.), the picture quality is very good. If you were a cyclist frequently in dusk or dark situations, then I would recommend a GoPro front and back along with a separate radar in the back.

Isn't this where best practice would be to also run a front facing camera?

Front plates are required in my province so its less of an issue, but if the aim is to capture the license plate and provide a recording of the incident, you'd want both views.

I completely agree. If I were adding camera to my bike, I would not put it just in the back. Only 30 states plus DC require front license plates. So in my state, the rear-facing camera would help establish fault of the driver, and the front-facing camera would be the one that helps catch the driver.

I wonder if the next generation Garmin head units will have cameras???

I always ride with a headlight (flashing during daylight) and would guess that the front camera would be integrated with such a light, though I'm not sure what a flashing headlight would do to image quality.

Not on the unit I have. There's a lot of variables though. My shitty image quality could be the angle of the sun here at the moment, the speed of the cars passing, the road vibrations... and even the complex images it's capturing that's pixilating the images with the bitrate it uses. Bottom line is that it's extremely difficult to correctly identify license plates from the footage I have under what I'd call normal riding conditions.

I'm not expecting miracles from a 'safety' camera, but I do expect a LOT more than what they're shipping.

---

Shane Miller - GPLama
YouTube | Web | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Strava

I wonder if they have quality issues in the early units. The one I used was close to perfect. I did not have any vibration or pixilation. The lighting I used it in was early morning, cloudy, and direct sun. I did not experiment with dusk or dark, though.

I had the front facing Fly camera/light on flash. The image quality was good enough to see license plates.

I have another retail version RCT715 in a fresh box sitting on my desk now. I'll use that one for future rides/tests. I really need to find a lens protector for it as the gravel tyres I run flick stones like nothing else.

---

Shane Miller - GPLama
YouTube | Web | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Strava

Thank you. I'd be interested in a front cam, more for the fun side of taking pics/videos - how is the Fly for that purpose? Is there an easy was to take a still pic, or get it later from recorded video?

I had the original Fly 12. The image quality was OK and you can use the inbuilt Windows Photo app to grab a photo. The latest version of the Fly 12 is supposed to be much better.

The original silver Fly 12 could well be the ugliest, most un-aero thing ever mounted on a bike. The new black Fly 12 looks OK.

The current Fly12 looks fine but it's quite heavy and Cycliq missed the boat by not balancing the unit below the GoPro mount (the unit wants to tilt forward). For useable footage, you really need a very stiff metal mount (the Cycliq mount is actually really good for this purpose). But that means you need to clamp the mount to a round bar. With more and more bikes using integrated cockpits and GoPro mounts, the heavy Fly12 will likely break an integrated mount, and even if it doesn't, the footage will look terrible due to vibration. Both of my road bikes have integrated cockpits and my Fly12 has been gathering dust for a long time now.

With a stiff metal mount, the Fly12 footage is fine for documenting incidents and catching license plates, but if you want to capture videos that people (including you) will actually want to watch, you do NOT want the Fly12 and will want a GoPro. I prefer the Session 4Ks because they're nice and small but the Hero 10 gives the very best image quality.

---

Amateur recreational hobbyist cyclist
https://www.strava.com/athletes/337152
https://vimeo.com/user11846099

Hey guys!
My typical ride times for me can vary from 1.5 to 4 hours. Can anyone tell me what the all around “best” settings for the radar / camera would be to keep battery going for a 4 hour ride?
Would you suggest keeping those same settings (whatever they are) for the 1.5 hour rides or change settings for shorter v.s. longer rides?

I did not experiment with all the battery and ride duration scenarios. But according to Garmin's spec, the RCT715 will go 4 hours in tail light solid high. This is the normal setting and how I would use it unless you know you are riding longer than 4 hours. In that case, set it to day flash.

I have had the regular Radar for years, and I prefer its solid-on light setting. That goes to flashing when a car approaches, so it changes your visual appearance to a car. Plus, if you are riding in a group, others can see your tail light change from solid to flashing and know a car is coming also. So, that is why I would use its default solid on setting and only change it for the long ride edge cases.

Thanks- good info.
I was also wondering in terms of continuous videoing v.s. only on incident or approaching vehicle?
I think there is some setting to that effect?
I don't have mine yet but just trying to sort out best settings to be able to not lose the battery only longer rides.
I'm thinking to just set it to take clips upon approaching vehicle (if that's a setting) and makes the most sense.
I'd like to be able to do continuous but as I understand it that can get very tedious to go back and find the "right" clip ..................

Doh, sorry I misunderstood. I also asked the Garmin team this exact question, and they recommend continuous recording. Their reasoning is that if you are in an area with typical traffic, the end result ends up being very similar to continuous recording, so why not just save everything.

I would install a much larger micro SD card regardless. Then, it does not matter how you have it save the recordings.

I would also make the size of the clips larger. Default is 90 seconds, and that means many more clips. If you make them longer, like 5 minutes, then I think it is easier to find content. I did not experiment with the best size for me, but I would probably bump it up to at least 3 minutes.

If you are using a computer file manager to find video clips, it is much easier. I honestly never used the app with it - I considered that an emergency use case. It is just way easier to plug the card into a computer and see everything at once.

Yep- that makes sense (using the computer instead of the app).
I think 128 GB is the largest it accepts (per DC Rainmaker).
I suppose that 3 minute clips would be good. And maybe would not effect battery drain too much (probably not as much as continuous light) ...............

I doubt that file size affects battery life much if at all. I went ahead and increased video file length to 5 minutes from the default 90 seconds. I'll happily increase further if future firmware updates allow.

---

Amateur recreational hobbyist cyclist
https://www.strava.com/athletes/337152
https://vimeo.com/user11846099

I run the rear and sometimes the front Fly and love taking screenshots from the video for posting online. I download it to my computer and scroll through to find interesting or funny images. Pretty great quality, and I'm often off road.

Interested to know if this (5 minutes) worked for you.
I set mine to 5 minute recording and it refused.
Recorded the default time for my entire ride ..................................