19.09.2024 
Over the years, dash cams have become must-have gadgets for drivers. They give us useful videos during accidents, help with disputes, and even insurance claims. Garmin, one of the manufacturers known for its high-quality GPS navigators, also makes excellent dash cams. The company’s latest premium model is the Garmin Dash Cam X310. In this review, I take a look at the X310, from unboxing and hardware specs to features and performance in real life. Here’s what you should know about the Garmin Dash Cam X310:
Garmin Dash Cam X310: Who is it good for?
The Garmin Dash Cam X310 is a great option for drivers who:
- Want a dash cam that records in 4K Ultra HD
- Are looking for a dash cam with excellent video quality, day and night
- Need alerts for red lights and speed cameras while on the road
- Prefer a durable, compact dash cam with a solid design
Pros and cons
There are many good things to say about the Garmin Dash Cam X310:
- Great video quality with the ability to record in 4K with HDR
- Details such as license plates are clear both during the day and at night
- Wide 140-degree field of view that covers multiple lanes
- Small and discreet, fitting nicely behind the rearview mirror
- Supports voice commands, making it easy to control while driving
- Has a built-in GPS to log your speed and location
- Dedicated parking mode for catching hit-and-runs or vandalism
- Easy to use Garmin Drive app for Android and iPhones
As for the negatives:
- Despite its premium price, an SD card is not included
- Parking Mode requires a paid subscription and a special cable that’s not included in the box
Verdict
The Garmin Dash Cam X310 is a well-rounded and reliable dash cam that excels in video quality, ease of use, and additional features like built-in GPS, Parking Mode, and voice control. Its discreet design and durability make it a solid choice for drivers looking for a high-performing camera that won’t get in the way. However, considering its premium price, some may not like the fact that the dash cam doesn’t come with a micro SD card. The same may be true about the need for a special cable plus a paid subscription in order to use Parking Mode. While not a perfect product the Garmin Dash Cam X310 offers great performance and features, especially for those who prioritize top-notch video clarity. If you have the budget for it and want one of the best dash cams, the Garmin X310 is an excellent choice.
Unboxing the Garmin Dash Cam X310
When you first get your hands on the Garmin Dash Cam X310, the packaging immediately reflects the brand’s attention to detail. The box has a minimalist design, showing a picture of the dash cam and listing some of its key features, such as 4K Ultra HD recording, voice control, and built-in GPS.
The box of the Garmin Dash Cam X310
When you open the box, you find the following items neatly packed: the Garmin Dash Cam X310, a 4 meters long USB Type-A to Type-C charging cable, a low-profile adhesive mount, a Dual USB power adapter that lets you simultaneously charge your phone and the dash cam, a user manual, the warranty, and some other documents.
The accessories that are bundled with Garmin Dash Cam X310
The packaging looks good, the box has everything you need to mount the dash cam immediately, and everything is securely held in place, ensuring protection during shipping.
Design and hardware specifications
The Garmin Dash Cam X310 is all black and features a sleek, compact design that won’t obstruct your view while driving. Its low-profile, discreet appearance means it can easily blend into the rearview mirror area of your windshield without being too noticeable.
The Garmin Dash Cam X310 is a compact and discreet device
The dash cam is compact, measuring just 7.00 x 4.22 x 1.95 cm (2.76 x 1.66 x 0.77 inches) in width x height x depth. Moreover, it weighs a mere 78 grams (2.75 ounces), so it’s not only discreet but also lightweight. Despite being so small, it has a 2.41-inch TFT LCD screen with a 480 x 272 pixels resolution. This translates into clear visuals for navigating the camera’s functions and settings.
The dash cam is small and lightweight, but its LCD screen is large
The camera lens has a 140-degree field of view (diagonal), capturing wide scenes in front of the vehicle with minimal distortion. The lens is also polarized, and the camera supports HDR, ensuring clear footage in harsh light conditions, as well as reducing the unavoidable glare of the windshield.
The dash cam has a large FOV, HDR, and polarized lens
When it comes to video quality, the Garmin Dash Cam X310 is also impressive in terms of footage resolution and the framerates it supports. It can record in 4K resolution at 30 frames per second with HDR. Alternatively, you can opt for 1080p at 30 frames per second with HDR, or 1080p at 120 frames per second without HDR.
The dash cam captures high quality footage
When it comes to storage, the camera supports microSD cards of at least 8 GB and up to 512 GB. Clearly, you can have a lot of space to save your recordings if you want so, but the not so good news is that you need to purchase the card separately. Garmin doesn’t bundle one in the camera’s box.
The memory card is not included
The Garmin Dash Cam X310 has Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, allowing for easy wireless data transfer and access to footage via the Garmin Drive app. Unfortunately, the company doesn’t state the Wi-Fi or Bluetooth standards that it works with.
The Garmin Dash Cam X310 has Wi-Fi and Bluetooth
Built-in GPS automatically logs your location and speed, which are valuable information in case of an accident. As you can imagine, it also has sensors for detecting impacts, regardless of whether you’re driving or your car is in Parking Mode. This feature records any activity when your car is parked and turned off. It uses sensors to detect motion or impacts, capturing anything suspicious or any potential damage while you're away. However, for it to work, you need a constant power source for the dash cam. Fortunately, Garmin also makes (and sells, separately) the Constant Power Cable, a cable that you can connect to your car’s OBD port to power up the dash cam day and night (from your car’s battery).
Garmin also sells a Constant Power Cable
Last but not least, it’s worth noting that the X310 also includes a rechargeable lithium-ion battery that can power it for up to 20 minutes.
If you want to check out all the official features and specs, you should visit this webpage: Garmin Dash Cam X310.
The Garmin Dash Cam X310 feels solid, its compact design means that it won’t obstruct your view, and its specifications are those of a premium device.
Using the Garmin Dash Cam X310
Setting up the Garmin Dash Cam X310 is easy and doesn’t require a lot of your time. Once you’ve chosen the right location on your windshield and you’ve installed the camera’s adhesive mount, you can start routing the long power cable around the edge of the windshield to your car’s power outlet. Routing the cable this way helps in maintaining a clean, wire-free look.
The Garmin Dash Cam X310 mounted on my car's windshield
If it’s connected to the car’s 12-volt power port, the dash cam automatically powers on when you start the vehicle, so you don’t have to manually begin recording each time you drive. Worth noting, the camera’s charger has two USB-A ports, which is nice, as it allows you to charge another device too, not just the dash cam.
The 12-volt charge has two USB-A ports
The 2.41-inch LCD screen is bright and clear, allowing easy navigation through settings. The menus are logically laid out, making it easy to save footage, view live or saved videos, adjust camera settings, and enable or disable features.
The display is bright and large
One of the Garmin Dash Cam X310’s best features is its excellent video quality. In 4K (Ultra HD) mode, videos are sharp and detailed. License plates, road signs, and other vehicles are easily identifiable, as they’re captured as clearly as possible. Furthermore, the wide 140 degrees wide lens gives us a generous field of view. It offers a good balance between capturing a wide scene and an image that’s not distorted. Thanks to the camera’s support for HDR, the footage it records during daylight is smooth and clear, and color reproduction is accurate. That’s true even in challenging lighting conditions like in direct sunlight or when lots of shadows are falling on your windshield. Here’s a 4K sample to get an idea of what to expect:
Night performance is also good, although such low-light videos obviously have some noise. However, the quality is good, and the footage is quite detailed. License plates are readable, especially in urban areas or on highways with street lighting. Check out this 4K sample video to understand what the dash cam can offer during the night:
The built-in GPS is an excellent feature, as it allows the dash cam to add location and speed data to videos. This can be really helpful for insurance claims or police reports, as it shows clear proof of your speed and route. The speed camera alerts are also quite useful because they warn you when you’re near known speed camera areas, helping you stay aware of speed limits.
Because it’s never a good idea to take your eyes off the road, the voice command feature is also a handy hands-free option, pun intended. 🙂 You can activate it by saying “OK, Garmin” or “OK, dash cam,” and it allows a few simple but useful spoken commands like “Save Video” or “Record Audio.”
The Garmin Dash Cam X310 supports a couple of voice commands
The Garmin Dash Cam X310 also has a cool feature called Travelapse. This feature captures still photos from your recorded video and arranges them into a fast-motion video of the places you traveled. The rate of capture depends on how fast you drive, and no audio is recorded during Travelapse. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to use this feature while reviewing the cam because I didn’t go on any long trips.
The Garmin Dash Cam X310 impressed me with its high-quality videos, thanks to its 4K resolution, HDR support, and polarized lens. I also liked the easy-to-use touchscreen, the helpful alerts, and the wide-angle lens that cover the entire road.
The Garmin Dash Cam X310 software
The Garmin Drive app is the mobile companion for the Garmin Dash Cam X310, making it easier to use and manage the dash cam. It works on both Android and iOS, letting you control the dash cam from your smartphone, download videos, get real-time alerts, and change settings without touching the device.
The Garmin Drive app dashboard and settings
One of the best features of the app is that you can access videos instantly without needing to handle the camera or micro SD card. Whether you need footage after an incident or just want to share something interesting, the app makes it quick and easy.
The video gallery in the Garmin Drive app
Unfortunately, some features of the Garmin Dash Cam X310 are behind a paywall or require additional purchases. Vault Storage, for instance, lets you store your dash cam footage securely in Garmin’s cloud storage and access it from your smartphone but requires a monthly subscription.
Some features are behind a paywall
And the same applies to Live View Monitoring and Parking Guard, two related features that let you remotely check on your car using the dash cam’s live feed and get alerts on your phone if incidents happen while your car is parked. These features require a constant Wi-Fi connection and the special power cable I mentioned at the beginning of this review, which is sold separately. Plus, both these features also require you to have a paid Vault Storage subscription.
Overall, the Garmin Drive app feels like a great companion for the Dash Cam X310, making video management easier, offering remote control, and providing real-time monitoring. However, some of the features are available only through a paid subscription.
What’s your opinion about the Garmin Dash Cam X310?
The Garmin X310 dash cam is a high-end device that offers top-notch performance and plenty of useful features. I really enjoyed using it, and I’m confident that anyone who owns it will feel the same. Unfortunately, its price is quite high, so not many people will consider purchasing one. Before closing this review, I would like to know how you feel about it. Share your thoughts and opinions in the comments section below.
