Can I use the USB outlet in my vehicle to power the dash cam?

Unfortunately, this is not something we would recommend as the USB power source in some vehicles can only provide upwards of ~500mA to ~550mA worth of current, which is not enough to power a dash cam where it requires at least 12V from a cigarette lighter adapter. This is why dash cams typically include a cigarette lighter adapter cable (also known as a 12V power cable).

Instead of powering your dash cam using the 12V power cable, we always recommend our customers to hardwire install the dash cam into your vehicle so that they can activate parking mode protection too.

Our Viofo cameras specifically are able to be powered via USB, if enough power is supplied. The cigarette lighter cable can be taken out of the adapter for this, however this USB needs to turn on/off with the vehicle. If it stays on when the car is off, the camera could potentially fully drain your vehicle battery.

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Can I use the USB outlet in my vehicle to power the dash cam?Updated 2 years ago

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