I got the Thinkware F770 front and back system for both the missus' car and mine. Front unit is pretty discrete - it has a slightly bigger footprint on the windscreen than the Blackvue650, but is still very subtle as it sits on the tinted area of the screen that shades the rear view mirror, and can be placed so as not to be seen from the driver's side.
It has Sony Exmor hardware and is full 1080P front and back, has built in car battery protection shut off modes (no need for a magic box) for when you're using parking monitoring.
I had the Blackvue 650 - it overheated in about a week's use (apparently a known issue), and the Thinkware's low light night footage quality is marginally better. Once you add a magic box, the BV650 is about £100 more than the Thinkware F770 (F770 RRP is £250 for the 2CH variant with hardwiring leads).
Absolutely no overheating issues with mine (been in since last Oct) or others I know that have bought them in last few months so maybe this issue has been resolved.
Have you been through a Summer with it yet? That'll be the true test although I think mine fried around Easter time, when it wasn't yet hot. SD brand card choices maybe to fault, or perhaps firmware version. Either way, right now it is a pricey proposition, seems the price of it has shot up since Brexit from lows of £230 when I bought my BV650.
For someone looking to buy now, the BV650 is not worth the extra £100 over the F770 for a slightly more subtle front cam and a lower res rear cam IMO.
Cheapest I can see the F770 for right now is £239 from http://www.cameracentreuk.com/thinkware/thinkware-f770-full-hd-dash-cam-front-rear-hardwire-32gb-kit-4637-646-6514.php. I got mine on Black Friday for £209.
Cheapest I can see BV650 without a magic box (to allow parking monitoring is £259 from https://www.eglobalcentral.co.uk/blackvue-dr650s-2ch-2-channel-gps-wi-f-car-video-recorder.html#in_the_box, but you will need a magic box and possibly a hardwire kit - description unclear (cheaper than I thought I would find it , these were around £329 a few weeks ago). Potentially only £50 in it to get both battery monitoring.
I'm not disputing that yours had an overheating issue, but as yet I've not had any problems. As said in my earlier post I got it in Oct so fairly obvious that it hasn't been through a summer yet, but I can vaguely recall a few sunny warm days here and there and the unit did not heat up at all. It has been shown that some sd cards can cause it to run hotter but the one I'm using is not one of these. Will see what summer brings and if it overheats, you'll be the first to know, lol.
There is quite a lot of choice in dashcams and the Blackvue is certainly on the pricier end of the spectrum no doubt, but it's worth consideration. When I purchased mine it was via a Blackvue group buy I had set up elsewhere so there was discount and in fact I'm running a second one st the moment.
Another unit at least comparable to the Blackvue DR650S is the QVIA AR790, which has a better resolution rear cam than the Blackvue and no need for the Power Magic Pro box for hardwiring in and Parking mode recording as it is in-built. This had not been released when I was buying but it's another one to throw into the hat.
https://lukashd.co.uk/product/qvia-ar790-wd-2ch-dash-camera/I have no doubts the Thinkware F770 is a good unit and it was originally on my shortlist but I didn't like the profile of the front camera, preferring the sleeker barrel unit of the Blackvue, but that's just personal preference.
Anyway I'm sure Sootchucker has lots of food for thought and will make his own mind up. One thing is for sure I wouldn't be without one, and I know of 2 people who have recently been involved in accidents who have dashcams and the footage has helped no end with their insurance claims.
