can anyone recommend cameras for dash recording and outside

GoPro

 

Gopro is excellent and they offer many methods to be able to mount almost anywhere on the car. It's nice that they are battery operated and the data card fits in the camera itself. I used a chase cam for a while and it was much more involved to mount and move between cars. Also, if you are collecting data make sure the camera system will work with your data system so you can overlay data/video. Good luck, let us know what you end up with.

 

I am no Pro,
simply offering an alternative to Go Pro

Got this set up last year, Love it

Sony DSC-QX100 Digital Camera Module Basic Kit for Smartphones

20 mgp still and HD movies, excel. sound quality as well.
best off is the zoom to set your field.
all Controlled from your smart phone.
and a 3 cup tripod mount

Oh, They do make a less expensive version as well..18 mpx
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1002615-REG/sony_dsc_qx10_digital_camera.html
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Gizmodo Puts Six Different Action Cameras Through a Thorough Review

 

Here are my suggestions.

If you're real serious and intend to do a lot of video recording, then GoPro is a good choice, especially if you use a protective housing. But the top of the line GoPro cameras aren't exactly cheap and you have to ask yourself how much video you really intend to shoot. In my case, the answer is , not much.

But if, like me, you want to do a little bit of video work (I want to record some of the Mille Miglia) then perhaps all you need is your normal P&S camera and a suction cup mount. I bought a high quality suction cup mount to hold my Sony RX100 twenty megapixel camera. It shoots great video, it's small, and it actually records pretty decent sound considering it's actually a still camera with video capability as a bonus.

So if you have a P&S camera which will shoot video, buy a good mount and experiment. After fooling around with my rig, I'm quite sure I don't want to take it up a notch, so a GoPro is not on my near term horizon.

If in the future your existing P&S camera doesn't meet your long term requirements, then you can always buy a GoPro camera and use the mount you just purchased.

 

Are you saying that you want to be able to record the instrument panel at the same time that you record what's going on outside? That's a tall order.

 

Take a look at this. Camera is separate from recording unit, can easily mount camera wherever you want and it's small. Recording unit is very robust. I have this, used in rain, HD quality, runs on 4 AA batteries.

https://vio-pov.com/pov-hd

 

This little guy takes really nice 720p video and can be attached with velcro almost anywhere:
Mini DVR 808 16 V3 Lens D Car Key Chain Micro Camera HD 720P Pocket Camcorder | eBay

I use one on my RC planes. Youtube has side-by-side comparisons with GoPros, and while GoPros are definitely better they're not 10x better, and if one of these falls off the outside of your car it's a lot less painful than if it's a GoPro.

 

Cheap one on WOOT today. Bought the one Nurburgringer mentioned above just yesterday however.

Gear Pro 720p HD Sport Action Cam

 

In addition to RC plane videos forgot I also made one with the 808 #16 "keychain" cam when I was thinking about selling my CRX.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=61Kbzmz0gDo

Just velcroed it to the bill of a baseball cap.

Also velcroed it to my helmet to record the "Milwaukee F-Chat Kart Challenge" last year:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4g-AshdgQs

The 808's wide angle lens (Lens 'D') does have some significant "barrel distortion", but not too bad IMO considering the size and price.
If you don't need such a wide field of view there are also A and B lens versions.
Nice comparison here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=euJlH6HIh9c

 

I use a Replay XD. Since its just slightly larger than a lipstick tube, its easy to mount and doesn't get in the way. I especially like the 60 frames per second in 720p in sport mode.

http://replayxd.com/

 

Received this camera this week and have only messed with it a little, but it seems to do quite well and it is SMALL...literally the size of a key fob remote.
I only seem to have about 70 min of battery time, but that could be a recording setting that I am still messing with. I did buy a 32gb SD card from BestBuy online, and a 70 min recording only took up ~6%. The wide angle lens has a nice, not distorted field of view.
I bought a suction cup mount, and mounting base. The suction cup is SOLID when in place.

Pretty good deal for ~$50 (+$30 for the SD)

 

The Mobius is pretty good, too.

 

cool! If you need more recording time some people have opened them up and swapped in a larger battery, but I never had the need.
This guy is the worldwide expert on all "keychain cams", did such good critiques of early models the designer/manufacturer in China now pays him to help develop their latest models:
808 Car Keys Micro Camera Review - Version #16

There's a MASSIVE thread about yours on RCgroups, some searching would net you tips/tricks and instructions on how to install a larger battery if desired.
The ORIGINAL #16 HD keycam thread (read posts #1-#5 BEFORE posting questions) - RC Groups

Post up some vids!

 

If anyone is thinking about buying a GoPro and can wait until June (2014), the new GoPro 4 will be out, it's rumored to be one heck of a little camera with frame rates up to 240 fps in 720, 120 fps in 1080 and 30 fps in full 4k video.

 

Ferrari of North America is trying to clear out their telemetric units which comes with 2 cameras and a recording unit. They are extremely cheap right now. I would contact one of the dealers here and inquire about it.

 

Holy crap. I've been dying to get a 720p/240fps+ camera for years.
My 3 year old Lumix ZS20 does 240fps, but only at 320 x 240 res. Still looks very cool but 720p would be AWESOME
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fSWcaqRvB0

Several times I've almost pulled the trigger on a Lumiz FZ200 mainly because it can do 240fps at 640x480, but 720p (1280x720) is a BIG step up.
Once GoPro comes out with 720p@240fps it should be appearing in bridge-type cameras soon.
Of course in 10 years we'll have 10,000fps in 4K resolution and will laugh at the primitive cameras we have now... but right now it's amazing what's out there!