Wolfbox X5 dash cam review: 4K? Phooey. Let’s go 5K!

Price When Reviewed

$300

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Wolfbox is a new vendor to us, but their first appearance has me wondering where the company has been all my dash-cam life. The three-channel (front/interior/rear) X5 delivers stunning 5K front captures in single-channel mode, and “merely” excellent front/interior/rear captures in 4K UHD three-channel mode.

Throw in GPS and a touch display with super-clever navigation and a star in the category is born. It would be darn near five-star territory with better night captures.

What are the Wolfbox X5’s features?

As mentioned, the Wolfbox X5 has three channels devoted to 5K maximum (5250×2160) front, 1080p captive interior, and 1440p rear cameras. However, you lose the interior and rear feeds if you set the front camera to 5K.

So the X5 is a 5K front-only, 4K UHD (3840×2160) with 1080p interior/rear, and 2.5K with 1080p interior and 1440p rear dash-cam system. Processing power must dictate these combinations, as the storage required for 5K (around 230MB per minute/h.264) was actually less than the 4K UHD (approximately 275MB per minute/h.264). Go figure.

Further reading: See our roundup of the best dash cams to learn about competing products.

The X5 has a fairly standard form factor — an approximately 3.8 x 3 x 1.5-inch black rectangle with a semi-permanent sticky mount/mounting plate.

While the interior camera is fixed to the angle of the main body, the front lens can be tilted approximately 10 degrees horizontally or vertically and rotated slightly in either direction. This is in addition to the forward/backward adjustment available from the mount/body pivot point.

The front/interior features a 2.5-inch (diagonal) display with four buttons on the bottom for browsing the settings menus, etc. Not having read the PR info, I thought that was it. However, the display is touch capable so you can also navigate using taps and swipes.

Throw in voice command such as “Wolfbox, lock video,” and the X5 is the least painful to adjust and operate dash cam I’ve ever used. I found the whole deal so clever, that I wonder why they bothered with the buttons. Nice job, Wolfbox!

On the left side of the unit is the SD/TF card slot (it’s covered with a captive plug — nice!) and the emergency save button, while the rear camera connector is on the right.

Both the power connector on the GPS mount and the aforementioned rear camera connectors are orientation-agnostic and increasingly common Type-C. Should you ever need to replace a cable, they’ll be readily available.

The rear camera cable is one of the thickest I’ve seen (it’s visible in the night interior shot in the capture quality section). Tucked nicely out of the way, this shouldn’t be an issue, but I thought it worth noting.

As part of the setup, the X5 uses the GPS info to automatically set the time zone and time, which I always appreciate. Why every dash cam with GPS doesn’t do this, I haven’t a clue. The GPS kicked in quickly as well. Perhaps within 10 seconds. I sometimes have to wait up to 10 minutes.

Of course, no modern dash cam is complete without phone connectivity and the X5 is no exception. You can see some screen caps above. The camera connects to your phone via its own 5GHz Wi-Fi hot spot, and it did so quickly and without fuss. This is not always the case.

Indeed, operationally, all props to Wolfbox. My X5 setup, configuration, and testing were like butter. At least with the second unit I received. The first proved defective and wouldn’t connect to its rear camera.

How much is the Wolfbox X5?

The X5 is $300 including the rear camera. That’s par for three-channel dash cam systems, if not a spectacular bargain. It does, however, include a 128GB memory card, which adds a bit of value — real and perceived. I should note that the best generally costs more, and given the touch display and excellent day captures, the X5 is quite arguably that.

What I do wish is that the camera was available in a cheaper single- or double-channel version. I like the 5K captures so much, I missed them when I put the camera into three-channel mode. Buying a three-channel dash cam and then using it as front-only does not make a whole lot of sense.

How are the Wolfbox X5’s captures?

Though the stabilization on the X5’s 5K captures was just a tad jittery on the edges, no doubt due, at least in part, to the 21:9 picture, the detail was absolutely fantastic and the color spot on. Hands down, the best I’ve seen. I was able to read license plate numbers of parked cars as well as those directly ahead. I’ve included two images so you can truly appreciate the detail.

There’s minimal fish-eye despite a wide 146-degree field of view. The interior FOV is 148 degrees, and the rear 136 degrees.

The camera actually ships set to 4K UHD to allow use of the interior and rear cameras, so obviously we tested that resolution as well. As the 4K UHD isn’t as wide an aspect ratio (16:9 rather than near 21:9) it was less prone to wobble and moire. Not that those were overly obvious at 5K.

Here’s a daytime capture in 4K, which is still, very, very detailed and colorful. More than adequate by our lights.

Interior captures, while only 1080p, were very good. I was in the sun for a good bit that day — the red is real.

The interior night captures were good, but the infrared lighting highlighted the back of the rear view mirror. Given more time, I would’ve adjusted it to a lower angle, but it’s something to consider when placing any interior camera.

I was not as ecstatic about the X5’s front captures at night. They were generally good with the headlights on, but the system was very slow to react to my turning lights off. Even after reacting, the video without my headlights on was extremely dark and lacking in obvious detail. It also had a blue tinge for a few seconds.

The detail is actually there, but you must adjust playback brightness and contrast to see it. Hardly fatal, but this should be taken care of in processing.

Additionally, side detail in front night captures seemed more susceptible to blur while the vehicle was in motion. To be fair, this seems to be the norm with Sony sensors such as the IMX678 employed by the X5 in the front and IMX335 in the rear.

There was also a noticeable lag in the interior camera switching on its infrared lighting. Don’t get stabbed in the first few seconds after you start your car!

The rear camera suffered no major issues and during the day, detail was good for 1080p — rich and accurate color.

Though you can make out the license plate numbers, the night rear captures are merely adequate in terms of detail and color. Light flare isn’t handled as well by the rear camera as it is by the front.

The X5 employs a 1.5 Farad capacitor which runs the camera for around 10 seconds after loss of power. I can’t verify that as the display goes off the minute you pull the power, but no videos were trashed, so however long it lasts — it’s long enough to save files, if not capture more action.

In the end, the X5 is the best dash cam, bar none for daytime captures — as a single-channel 5K model. I’ll call it tied with the Miofive S1 Ultra for best at 4K UHD. Night captures are good, but not in the same league as the aforementioned S1 Ultra’s, which are outstanding.

Should you buy the Wolfbox X5?

While not cheap, the Wolfbox X5 is the best three-channel dash cam system for day use that we’ve tested. Great captures, easy to set up and use (I love the touchscreen!), and the ability to switch to 5K to capture those trip highlights. Warning: The 5K is addictive!

For nighttime use, the X5 is still one of the better dash cams out there. But if you’re a ride-giver operating at night, I’d go for the Miofive S1 Ultra instead, which offers fantastic low-light performance.

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Author: Jon L. Jacobi, Freelance contributor