Buying a dash cam can be a great investment. Whether you want to use it to relive some of your more memorable drives or if you installed it as a security measure, a dash cam can be helpful in so many ways.

Once you have fitted your dash cam in your vehicle, it is imperative that you learn how to save and view your footage for use on a later date. Whatever kind of camera you have (rear view, built-in with your sat nav, etc), this is a valuable skill to know.

How To View Dash Cam Footage on a PC

Viewing your dash cam footage on your laptop or desktop PC is probably the easiest way to do so. You should be able to do it with no problems if you follow a few easy steps

Remove the Memory Card

Every dash cam will have a memory card inserted into it that is used to store the collected footage. Park your car, turn off your dash cam, and remove the memory card.

Slide Memory Card into Adapter

If your memory car is a micro SD card, you will need to slide it into an adapter. The adapter most likely came with the purchase of the micro SD card.

Some memory card readers can accept the micro SD card on its own, so this step may not be necessary. It just depends what your memory card reading set up is like.

Insert Memory Card into Card Reader

In order to view your dash cam videos on your computer, you will need to use a memory card reader.

Some particular computers already have a memory card reader built into their hardware. With others, you will need to purchase a separate device.

Open Video Files and Copy to Your PC

Once you have properly inserted your memory card into your computer, an 'AutoPlay' window will appear on your display. Choose the option 'Open folder to view files.'

Now, you will be able to access the folder with the dash cam videos. From here, you can simply view the videos.

If you want to free up some memory on your micro SD card, cut and paste the video files to your desktop.

How To View Dash Cam Footage on a Tablet

If you want to view your dash cam footage primarily on your Apple or Android tablet, then it is important to consider which dash cam you purchase.

To view dash cam footage on your tablet, you will need to purchase a dash cam that is wifi-enabled. If your dashcam is wifi-enabled, you can simply wirelessly connect your dashcam to your tablet.

Nextbase is a brand that has several models of GPS and wifi-enabled dash cams.

These include the Nextbase models 312GW, 412GW, or 512GW. Any of these models will allow you to connect them to your tablet so that you can download footage using the Nextbase app.

Once you download your dash cam footage to your tablet via wifi, you can do whatever you want with the videos.

How To View Dash Cam Footage on a Smart Phone

If you would rather view your dash cam footage on a smart phone, then again, you will have to purchase a wifi-enabled dash cam.

Viewing your videos on a smart phone is much the same as viewing them on a tablet. Simply connect your dash cam to your phone via wifi and download the videos to your phone using the smart phone app.

Downloading a viewing your dash cam footage may seem like a daunting task at first, but it really could not be easier. If you want to mainly use your smart phone or tablet to view your footage, it is best to purchase a dash cam that is wifi-enabled.

If you think that you will mainly be using your PC to view your dash cam footage, then buying a wifi-enabled device is not necessary. You can get away with purchasing a cheaper camera that has a removable SD or micro SD card.