tldr; Reddit has mixed feelings, praising its advanced features and video quality but criticizing night plate readability and high cost.
Check pricesScores based on sentiment analysis of topic-related comments
Best praise vs top criticism for Thinkware U3000
“Based on what you are after, thinkware u3000 or vueroid d21 4k. Both devices are very low maintenance. There is no need to wipe the sd card Both have impact recording capabilities (low power mode and energy saving 2.0) where the camera will wake up on impact only. Thinkware is 1 second, and Vueroid is 2seconds wake up time. Thinkware has a radar parking mode. In this mode, the camera goes to deep sleep until motion is detected within its FOV. The camera wakes up and records. The suggestions for viofo are good too, but not exactly what you're after. Negatives, being it doesn't offer impact based recording only. The camera would be on continuously, so only expect 4h or less of parking recording unless you add a battery pack. An additional home surveillance system pointing at the street will also help.”
“this is what my smooth brain has to say. The thinkware u3000 does use a barrel style connector that requires 3 connections. Power, ground, ignition. This is important and we'll circle around back to this. Typically dongar or any generic powered mirror to usb adapters only supply ignition and ground, which would allow USB powered cameras to turn on and off with the vehicle. In your case, stepping it from 5v to 12v would still only give you an ignition and ground source. The missing constant 12v power is the issue. Going back to the Thinkware unit, as mentioned it requires constant power and ground. The ignition is simply a switching source inside the unit which tells the unit to enter driving mode or parking mode. This camera will not power on with just an ignition and ground connection. Sure you can connect both power and ignition leads together, but Considering what this unit cost, not properly hardwiring it for the radar parking mode is a waste of dollars. Toyota/Lexus vehicles are hands down the easiest vehicles to take apart. The panels you need to take off are simply clipped into place. If hardwiring via fuse taps is out of your technical capacity, you can always use the included OBD2 power cable. Plug it in, run some wires and done. Its important to safely route the wires away from the airbag. Which is why we have plenty of videos showing the removal process of the Airbag pillar. Airbag pillar comes off easily on toyota/lexus.”
333 Reddit opinions analyzed • Last updated 2/24/2026