We have seen tutorials on YouTube on how people can turn their old phones into security cameras for homes. They all are DIY (Do It Yourself) kind of guides and no companies would voluntarily announce any value-added features for old devices, as they prefer the owner to trade in the offer for a new model.
However, Google is reportedly working on a feature that can turn select Android and Pixel phones into handy dashcams for cars.
Eagle-eyed folks at 9to5Google have detected the 'Dashcam' feature in an APK (Android Package Kit) of the Personal Safety app supported on several Pixel phones and even Android including Nothing Phone(1).
It seems like Google accidentally incorporated the feature before making the public announcement, as the feature is not active. The code has just mentioned the name 'Dashcam' in Personal Safety v2023.04.27.532191641.8-dogfood.
[For the uninitiated, dogfooding in software terminology means a new product or service developed by a company, is meant only for its engineers for testing purposes, before being made available to customers.]
The new Dashcam feature Personal Safety app will be able to record good quality for 24 hours and ensure the files are compressed (30MB per minute of recording) so that it won't hog all the memory storage.
Add to that, it will offer an option to autodelete content after three days, so that old unrequired videos get deleted in timely intervals and clear space for new recordings.
Also, Dashcam will offer an on/off button for audio too. Even when the Dashcam feature is under use, people can also use other apps such as Google Maps for navigation or else lock the screen to save battery life.
And, the Dashcam can be auto-triggered when the phone automatically connects to Bluetooth of the car's dashboard turns on.
On social media platforms, we have seen videos of several road rage incidents across the world including India, particularly in cities, where people are known to have short fuses.
Due to stress and slow-moving traffic, most get agitated and men handle victims and run away from the sight of the accident.
Here, with the Dashcam feature, people can repurpose their old Android phone instead of buying expensive gadgets, which by the way most of them have a really bad camera compared to handsets.
Yes, there are apps on the Google Play store that can convert Android phones to the dashcam, but most of them are not reliable and there are too many ads that ruin the user experience. Also, some have made in-app purchases to increase cloud storage to store recorded video.
The native Dashcame feature for Android phones will save a lot of money for the salaried class.
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