Wireless camera iPad integration experiences?

[life_w_vagabonds]

Now that I don't have a tailgate my backup camera is gone. I had intensions of just mounting it on the camper but it has to be centered and at the right height to work properly, not an option with the back door on the Khaya. We also bought the XLT package without navigation, after years of Toyota Entune we decided just to forgo factory nav. Our plan with this truck was to just use an iPad running Gaia.

Was hoping to hear y'alls experience with wireless cameras for this application and look forward to any recommendations. Any issues with the iPad integration?

I understand the Garmin Overlander has the ability to add a wireless camera(s) but it is a bit spendy and I don't think you can watch movies in bed with it!

 

[yfarm]

Can you detail the pros and cons of the wireless cameras you reference?

 

[life_w_vagabonds]

The Garmin nav units are able to pair with either BC30 or BC40 or both - I don't know if that's universal across all Garmin dash nav units but I'm pretty sure it's almost all of them. Older Garmins that don't have built in wifi can't pair with the BC40.

BC30
Some Garmin nav units require the use of a receiver built into the power cable, which is included in the BC30 kit but once you have that cable it also can pair with multiple BC30 cameras so you could select whichever one you want onscreen. If you have a newer Garmin nav unit you may not need the cable and can just pair the unit straight with the add-on camera . The BC30 camera is small but connects to a transmitter that can be mounted anywhere, powered by +12v and begins transmitting whenever it is supplied with power. You can wire it to your reverse lights so when you shift into reverse, the camera gets power and turns on and the nav unit begins displaying the video. In other words, works like a factory reversing camera. This is how I have it set up in my Ram, with the camera itself installed hidden in the location where a factory reversing cam would be. If you wanted a front bumper cam for parking, or rock cameras or a load camera for your trailer, etc just set them up with switched power and that's it. I don't remember the limit for how many you can pair but I'm pretty sure it's at least 4 cameras. Incidentally, if your Garmin unit supports traffic/weather but didn't come with the traffic receiver cable, the camera receiver cable also will enable HD traffic and limited weather/alert functionality in your nav unit.

BC40
This camera is battery operated and requires no wiring to install. It is compatible only with newer Garmin nav units that have wifi built in. (Newer Garmin units also use wifi to update themselves so you don't have to bring them in the house and plug them into a USB port to update them periodically if your wifi extends to the garage..) . The BC40 doesn't automagically activate when you shift into reverse but can be selected from the on screen menu or activated by voice command. I believe the BC40 also has higher resolution than the BC30, but this is also dependent on the nav unit you use because for example the drivesmart 51 has pretty low resolution while the almost identical driveluxe 51 has a much sharper LCD .


For what it's worth, I have a NuviCAM (older, non wifi, with constant recording forward dashcam) in my Ram using a BC30 as a reversing camera. I have the camera hooked up to the reverse light circuit in my 7 pin trailer wiring harness. Connection is wireless between the camera and the nav unit so no new wires run into the cab, etc. It's been flawless going on 5.5 years. I also have a Drivesmart 51 in my other car(s) ... it's been doing its thing across several vehicles and works awesome with the BC40. I have not attempted to use both a BC40 and a BC30 on the same vehicle but I believe on modern, BC40 compatible nav units you can use both. So, for example you could have a BC30 on the rear of the vehicle as an automatic reversing camera and also have a BC40 in the front as a parking/rock crawling camera activated by voice command or onscreen menu selection. If you get one of the newer dashcam units like a DriveAssist for example you could have the always recording forward dashcam plus any combination of BC30 and BC40's wherever they're useful.

I hope that helps.


(There is also a BC35 camera, it appears to be almost identical to the BC30 but has a different field of view - however it is only officially compatible with a small group of commercial trucking focused nav units. I don't think it can be used with the non-trucking-focused nav units)

Thanks for taking the time to explain these options. How is the NuviCAM for backcountry navigation? Are you buying map updates? We use Gaia and iOverlander on our phones now. I also have a bluetooth connection to our solar controller in the camper, I'm guessing you can't add apps to current Garmin platforms.

I am kind of out of the loop with add on GPS units and I am probably biased by experiences, and frustrations from 10 years ago when smartphone tech, and Google maps, were starting to get much better.

 

[life_w_vagabonds]

Regarding backcountry navigation that's a subject that can get subjective since we all go about the process a bit differently. The important part here is that on public land it is illegal to drive off road. That's why many people refer to what we do as off-pavement or off-highway, because Rubicon is legally a road. And it's in the Garmin. Not counting private land, private hunting parks and such, more often than not every backcountry route I want to be on is in the Garmin as a little grey line. Sometimes weather events will change the route a little but once you're onsite if you've got any business at all leaving civilization you can pretty quickly catch your bearings and make choices to get you where you need to be.

But it's not 100%, sometimes the recorded legal route ends a mile short of where the traveled tracks end. Sometimes the recorded legal route keeps going but the local authorities have bouldered it off and installed an ugly nope sign. My experience is if I've done my part pre-scouting on google earth and stored a picture of the region in my mind so I know what I'm hoping to find, and I use the Garmin alone I can almost always get straight to where I'm going within the USA (this is never a measuring contest, for context I am a 50 state traveler and have been at this many years if that helps you decide how to evaluate my contributions to the discussion) . Add to that a phone or laptop or tablet to fire up if something doesn't look right, and a paper atlas for picnic table planning and I feel like an outdoorsman can own North America handily.

For updates, just buy any Garmin unit with "LM" in the model number. That means lifetime maps. They've historically been really good about that... I had no difficulty putting 2019 maps on a handheld Garmin I bought in 2001.. I never even used the thing anymore by that point but went through the exercise just to see if I could (before giving it to a thrift store) .

On the topic of model numbers if it says LM that means lifetime maps are included. LMT means lifetime maps and traffic. There are 3 different methods of acquiring traffic which differ by model, I am not in any way affiliated with Garmin I'm just a user so I apologize I don't have them all memorized but the breakdown is like this: there's "regular" traffic which uses regular FM somehow (built into the power cable, there's a brick about 5 inches from the usb plug) and updates on about a 5 minute basis to tell you about traffic congestion on major highways and help route you around it. Useful if you're going across country and passing through cities. I think this has the widest coverage area since it piggybacks on local FM broadcasts or weather channel or something.
Then there's HD Traffic which uses digital radio broadcasts. This adds some secondary highways and city arterials, plus carries a weather forecast for where you presently are, the reported temperature and can tell you what kind of traffic problem is reported like a collision or construction or one lane closed, etc. It also updates much faster, like every minute or so. HD traffic is not available as many places geographically but it defaults back to regular traffic in places where HD isn't available but regular traffic is. This is also built into the cable, little brick close to the plug.

The third traffic method is through an app on your phone. It offers even more granular information than HD traffic and fast updates, like every minute or so. But it relies on your phone's data and relies on you pairing your phone with the Garmin which is "greater than zero hassle" and therefore I dislike it for that reason alone. The phone data thing isn't such a big deal since you can expect if you're out of range of data, you're probably not somewhere that experiences traffic anyway. But I prefer the HD traffic cable because it means your phone never has to talk to the Garmin and therefore you never at any point have to lift a finger to manage their friendship with each other. One nice thing with the newer Garmins.. well, at least with the Drivesmart 51 (and probably most/all the others) - if you add the BC30 camera cable to it they automagically get HD traffic through the cable as a bonus. Or, if you buy a used HD traffic cable for ten bucks on ebay... same deal the cable delivers the traffic data and the nav unit is smart enough to be inherently compatible.

As you can probably tell I hate finnicky products so when I praise Garmin's "Just Works" experience that's about the highest brand of praise I carry in my inventory.

Agree, don't even like the term "off-road", we were in Mojave a couple months ago it was frustrating to try to stay on actual trails and not get lost amongst the "informal" ones. We stay to stay on numbered roads on public land other than pull offs for camp sites. Sounds like there is at least enough detail to reference to the paper topo maps, which I also carry. Which brings up another need to go this route, the wife usually is focused on the map instead of enjoying the scenery.

Thanks for the part number tip, that is very useful. Traffic data is a plus as well, we often do go through and stop in cities. More so now that we have moved to a slide-in, cities were a bit of a hassle when we had the Chaser.

 

[Nitromethane43]

Zus Cameras also offers an app for Apple Products, I am not too sure how well it works on apple, but on the Android version you do need to switch over to the app manually and is not automatic as a wired in camera.

 

[life_w_vagabonds]

So, I have some time on my hands...

Took the factory backup camera out of my tailgate, taped it under the camper to do some testing. Nothing but blue screen.

Pulled the seven pin connector out and it works. Took the connector apart and realized the trailer brake actuator pin is being used. Removed that wire and viola! the camera works. Assuming stop/start will also work now. Yes, I’m one of the three people that like this feature.

So now I am in the process of re-wiring the camper connector. The camper has separate amber turn signals and of course the truck using a single wire for stop and turn. Which is why the installer used the brake actuator pin. I could add a modulator but they won’t work with LEDs.

Oh well, I have time....

 

[dman93]

@Shovel Thanks for your comments. I have been a GPS skeptic for a while, since owning an older Garmin with a clunky user interface and non lifetime maps. So I switched to using my phone: always with me, multi-functional, etc. And I have no problem finding roads and may hiking/MTB trails accurately mapped on downloadable maps from maps.me or Avenza, so lack of cell coverage has not been a concern. But the advantages you describe, plus the ability to use wireless cameras (up to 4 with some Garmin I learned) and much lower prices plus lifetime map updates are making re-consider. Do you work for Garmin?

 

[gillbrak]

Anyone using something like this or a similar set up for a front cam? I opted not to get the front cam on my new power wagon and am kicking myself for it.


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