MARCH 2021 PCWorld 73that level of sophistication. You can also turn
the GPS/time and driver ID video watermarks
on and off.
Name any other desirable dash cam
feature, and you’ll likely find it on the SC 201:
lane departure warnings, speed alerts,
collision warnings, parking surveillance
mode, and so on. You can adjust just about
everything as well.
You should also take comfort in Cobra’s
well-established position as a dash cam
vendor. It includes a one-year warranty—an
increasingly rare offering in a field rife with
90-day limits.
Alas, there were software issues with the
older Honor 8 phone initially used in testing,
which is running the older Android 7. The
mapping and alert software, iRadar, crashed
repeatedly when linking with the SC 201, and
the Cobra Drive Smarter app used for viewing,
uploading, and changing settings wouldn’t
link at all. iOS 13.1 or newer
is required as well.
Cobra cannot
technically be faulted for
supporting only Android 8
and later when Google
itself has kicked anything
older to the curb. But it
could certainly do a better
job of letting users know
about the requirement—I
found no requirement
notices on the website or
the box. Testing was finished on a Google
Pixel 4X, where everything was hunky-dory
until a firmware update killed the connection
again. Cobra might want to have a sit-down
with its software team.VIDEO QUALITY & BATTERY
The SC 201’s video is generally top-tier.
There’s a bit of fisheye effect (an occupational
hazard of wide fields of view), but it’s nicelyThis day capture is included to show off the color. The GPS hadn’t
initialized yet, but you can see that in the capture below.Don’t mind the old guy in the driver’s seat. This
capture demonstrates that the SC 201 will capture
all of your cabin, even if Cobra wouldn’t inform us
of the actual field of vision.