Land Rover Defender Mini Rig

Aussie Overlanders: Mini Rigs

The Land Rover Defender might be likened to the old Meccano set of parts. Hundreds of misaligned objects that actually resemble something. Having owned two Land Rover Series models and a single Defender before, and knowing how easy it is to 'tinker' and make various modifications to the base vehicle, I have been left with a desire to rebuild a Series II Landy. Thankfully, I have not needed to go from zero capability to full rebuild without the ability to practice on slightly smaller options. Introducing the Mini Rig Defender:

Navman MiVue 530 Dashcam Review

Welcome to the dashcam, where your view, your voice and your location are being recorded!

Roll back to 2007 and the demand for a TomTom GPS satnav had the motor vehicle industry buzzing with in-car tech gadgets.

Google image search: Dashcam photo

Roll onto 2015 and standalone gadgets are almost a thing of the past with the majority of new vehicles (except for the Land Rover Defender) integrating the radio, satnav, phone and vehicle ECU information into a single console.  In fact, some vehicles allow you to start your car with your mobile phone!

Yet, one gadget remains... the dashcam.  Better known for those strange YouTube vehicle accidents where a driver narrowly misses a bus or a motorcyclist almost collides with a cow! Police and Insurance companies are still getting to understand the personal media and how it impacts evidence.

My need for a dashcam was purely to capture those interesting driving moments, and to potentially upload to YouTube. Dashcam footage on YouTube is becoming one of the most popular watched genres due to the ridiculous near-miss accidents that occur worldwide.

Navman MiVue Dashcam

Navman was established in 1986 in Australia and was eventually sold to MiTAC (MIC).  It is a sister company to Magellan and is a worldwide leader in consumer GPS products.

The Navman MiVue dashcam has three options available in the latest 500-series. The entry level, the MiVue 530 has 1080p recording, integrated GPS, Photo mode, Emergency mode and parking mode. The MiVue 560 and MiVue 580 include touch screen functionality, and night vision mode (580 only).