A high-quality driving recorder that also records the drivers and their passengers

Garmin Dash Cam Tandem is a high-definition driving recorder with distortion, thanks to its second rear-facing lens, designed to capture the lens inside the car. This is a compact camera and a convenient way to automatically record a more complete view of any collision.

One of the few dual-view driving recorders

Useful interior view for taxi drivers

Won't suit everyone

Author: Alistair Charlton Posted on November 21

We are already big fans of the Garmin Dash Cam series, uh, Dash Cam. In addition to the lack of imagination, these are first-class cameras, with good video quality, simple and effective design, easy-to-use applications, and a moderate amount of additional features.

The model you see here follows Garmin's serious nomenclature, and since it has two cameras instead of one, it is called tandem. Through the front and rear view, Tandem keeps an eye on the road ahead like any other dash cam, but at the same time records the internal situation, and if you need to prove your innocence after a collision, you can create additional evidence.

The £299.99 Dash Cam Tandem is not cheap - you pay £100 more than Garmin's Dash Cam 67W to get the interior view - but for parents who are keen to keep an eye on their kids or taxi drivers It may be worthwhile to seek extra protection for unruly passengers. Is this one of the best driving recorders? Most likely, it is worth noting that it can be combined with other Garmin driving recorders to become one of the best front and rear driving recorders.

From the front, Dash Cam Tandem looks almost the same as Garmin's Dash Cam 66W, with a black matchbox design, a corrugated plastic body as a radiator, and a short windshield bracket with ball joints.

The lens protrudes farther than the 67W lens, but only slightly protrudes when mounted on the windshield, not enough to take up any additional space. Like other Garmin dash cams, Tandem comes with a coin-sized sticky pad that can be glued to the windshield and then attached to a short bracket with a magnet. There is a spare magnet in the box, so the camera can be easily interchanged between the two cars; only a coin-sized magnet remains on the windshield after removal. This is a simple mechanism, but very effective.

Turn the Garmin Tandem, and the main difference between it and 67W appears. The second rear lens. This one barely protrudes from the body and sits next to a button that can be pressed to manually save a part of the video-perhaps because you saw the accident ahead, but the camera's gravity sensor was not triggered.

On the bottom edge is a microSD card slot (including a 16GB card) and a button to turn recording on and off. There is a microUSB port for power supply on one side, a vent on the other side, and an active fan for additional cooling at the back. Garmin 66W can run very hot with just one camera, so we are not surprised by Tandem's extra cooling.

Two USB cables (long and short) can be selected and included in the box, as well as a 12V adapter for powering the dash cam from the lamp holder. This adapter has two USB ports, so you can power the dash cam and other devices (such as smartphones) from the same socket.

The feature set of Dash Cam Tandem is very similar to that of Garmin 55W and 66W. GPS can provide accurate position, direction, and speed data, HDR video recording can improve clarity in harsh lighting conditions, automatic event detection, surprisingly good voice command effects, and a parking mode compatible with hard-wired cables sold separately. 

The front camera records at a resolution of up to 1440p and HDR at 30 frames per second. This can be reduced to 1080p, which takes up less storage space, but since this does not unlock a smoother 60fps shooting mode, we recommend sticking to a higher resolution for more detailed recording. Both lenses have a 180-degree field of view, which is wider than most driving recorders from other manufacturers. This provides excellent views in both directions, but may cause fisheye distortion in external material.

The rear-facing internal camera is locked on the lower resolution of 720p HD at 30fps, and there is no HDR. Both cameras can manually adjust their exposure value to between -0.1 and +0.1, although most users will find that the default value is zero. For vehicles with smaller greenhouses and less natural light inside, you may need to increase the exposure of the internal cameras.

One feature that distinguishes Tandem from its Garmin counterparts is how the internal camera has an infrared night vision function called Nightglo. When the ambient light is below a certain level, this mode is automatically turned on, and the material is recorded in black and white instead of color. This helps to produce clearer images of the driver and his passengers, as well as views through the side windows and rear screen.

Anyone who has used a Garmin dash cam recently will know what is going on here. Tandem can produce clear and clear high-quality video, but naturally it cannot match the details of the 4K footage captured by some competitors. In other words, for most buyers, full HD video is sufficient, and the picture is clear enough to see key details such as road markings and vehicle license plates.

Due to the HDR function of the front camera, harsh lighting conditions can be handled well, and the field of view of the internal camera is wide enough (180 degrees) to see the entire cabin, and 720p HD resolution is sufficient in such a short distance. It is useful to know the camera outside the side window, the back screen will be saved when a collision is detected. In this way, for example, drivers can provide evidence against claims that they are distracted.

A dedicated rear camera mounted on the rear screen can give you a clearer picture of what's going on behind the car, but it doesn't hurt to have an extra lens to help protect you from accusations.

Taxi drivers and drivers will also find this view useful because the footage of misbehaving passengers can be saved to the camera's microSD card. Just make sure your passengers know that they are being recorded, we recommend turning off Garmin Tandem's recording (by pressing the button at the bottom of it or talking to the voice assistant).

Like its relatives, Dash Cam Tandem can be used with Garmin's Drive smartphone app, which is free for iOS and Android. This is a quick and useful way to check the view of the camera when you set it up in your car, you can find options to adjust settings and check for software updates here.

Connecting to the driving recorder via a combination of Bluetooth and Wi-Fi works seamlessly for us, making it very easy to set up the camera, adjust settings, and view saved videos and photos. The app’s interface looks a bit dated, but it works well-besides, once you set up the camera, there is almost no need to use the app again.

Not everyone wants the dash cam to be pointed at your face all the time, and there is no doubt that some passengers don't want that. But for those who want the extra peace of mind that the interior landscape brings, Garmin Dash Cam Tandem has done a great job.

The view in front is like other Garmin dash cams, as are the design, aesthetics, windshield mount, voice recognition and smartphone apps. The internal camera is only 720p HD, but if you need to protect yourself after a collision, it can record additional evidence well. The infrared night vision system that automatically turns on and off can also work well to overcome the darkest indoor environment.

Since the long cable of the dedicated rear camera needs to go through the roof lining, it is more difficult to install, Garmin Tandem is a simpler way to better understand the situation around the vehicle.

It’s not cheap, it’s £100 more expensive than Garmin’s best single-lens dash cam, but it’s hard to beat for drivers who want an extra field of view, and it is undoubtedly one of the best dash cams.

Alistair is a freelance automobile and technology journalist. He is signed on well-known websites such as BBC, Forbes, TechRadar, and most importantly T3, and covers topics ranging from classic cars and men’s lifestyle to smart home technology, telephones, electric cars, autonomous driving, Swiss watches, and more . He is an experienced reporter who writes news, features, interviews and product reviews. If this is not enough to keep him busy, he is also the co-host of the AutoChat podcast.

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