(and other gadgets!)
Ever had your phone display start to go really dark when you've been on holiday? Thats more than likely its heat protection kicking in to protect itself from failure or even damage.
Electronic components are normally ok in hot weather but in extreme temperatures, things might start to go wrong if you don't follow the manufacturers instructions especially with memory cards.
Dashcams are mounted in locations that are normally already hot and are built to take these temperatures. Most good dashcams can work ok between -10 deg C and + 70deg c and outside of this range some may also have extreme temperature protection (the GNET range have this). So when the camera exceeds a safe temperature level, it will automatically shut itself down and this is perfectly normal.
Some compact Dashcams may run fairly hot to the touch, depending on ambient temperature as the camera body also acts as a heatsink to disperse heat.
When you are driving this is not a problem but if you have Dashcams that run when they are parked for parking mode then this applies to you.
Dashcam Memory cards
NEVER BUY CHEAP MEMORY. Whats the point in investing in a good dashcam to then find out that the memory card has failed prematurely, especially when you need it because of an incident. Don't wait, make sure to buy good memory cards now.
Depending on vehicle usage, it is also recommended to buy new replacement cards every 12 months and if you dont have format free dashcams, you should really format the memory every month or so.
Connecting to the dashcam regularly ensures its in tip top shape and also most dashcam, automatically check for any new firmware updates that could fix bugs/improve the dashcam functionality. Dashcams can be writing video information to the cards constantly and the memory cards do only have a set lifetime of writing information.
Dashcam issues in extreme heat when parked is normally because the memory card has either exceeded its lifespan OR more likely, the memory card temperature has exceeded its operating temperature limits. When the memory card gets hotter than its operating temperature, it may cause spurious actions like the Dashcam rebooting or saying that the memory card has failed.
SanDisk & Toshiba Exceria M301 SD, SDHC, microSD and microSDHC memory cards are capable of withstanding operating temperatures from -13ºF to 185ºF (-25ºC to 85 ºC). Shock and vibration proof: SanDisk SD, SDHC, microSD and microSDHC memory cards are capable of withstanding up to 500Gs of shock.
If you use your dashcam parking mode and the temperature outside is excessive or extreme, it is suggested to turn on sleep mode and/or High temperature shutdown. The Camera will then go to sleep after you have parked up to stop the memory card getting too hot. You should do this with each camera, within the settings. You could always unplug your dashcam if you don't have sleep mode or high temperature shutdown.
To summarise:
Note that in extreme temperatures the dashcam / dashcam memory may need to cool down.
If you get an error on your dashcam, repeated speech or even random reboots then this is more than likely because the memory card has exceeded its operating temperature range and the memory card may be overheating. You will need to cool the vehicle cabin down and then re format the memory card.
If you are unable to format the memory card then you will need to replace it.
