If you’re shopping for a dash cam and want genuine 4K video without spending the sort of money that makes you question your life choices, the Miofive S1 is immediately appealing. It costs just £80 (and is £67 on Amazon
as this is published), yet it promises crisp footage, built-in GPS, fast Wi-Fi transfers, and a pleasantly compact design. On paper, it looks like one of the best budget dash cam options of the year.
The reality? That’s mostly true, but it’s not all perfect.
Unboxing the Miofive S1
Everything you need to get started is in the box. Almost. There’s the camera, a windscreen mount, a very long USB-C power cable, a 12V adaptor, a shorter USB cable for transferring footage to a laptop, and a trim tool for neatly tucking wires away behind bits of interior trim.
What isn’t there, but is essential, is a microSD card. The instructions insist that only a Miofive-branded card will work, but I slotted in a 32GB Samsung card, and it’s working fine. Pick a card with plenty of capacity, as 4K video fills storage quickly.
The camera itself feels more premium than the price suggests. It’s compact, especially considering it has a three-inch screen, and the textured finish around the body gives it a reassuringly solid feel. The front panel has a faux-carbon design, which won’t be to everyone’s taste, but it breaks up the otherwise minimal look quite nicely.
Installation is extremely straightforward. Slide the mount into the camera, stick the adhesive pad onto the windscreen, run the cable to your 12V socket, and you’re ready. The app connects over Wi-Fi, and it doesn’t force you to create an account — a nice privacy-focused touch. You can update firmware, transfer clips and tweak settings without handing over personal info, which in 2025 feels like a rare luxury.
The only slight disappointment is the mount itself. It works and offers decent adjustment, but the plastic feels a little cheap, and you can’t lock the horizontal angle. It hasn’t moved while driving, but it’s easily knocked out of alignment when cleaning the screen.
Design and everyday use
For a dash cam with a screen, the S1 keeps a low visual profile. The four physical navigation buttons are simple to use, and the three-inch display is perfectly clear for framing shots and checking recordings. Once you’re on the move, the screen switches off after a minute to avoid becoming a distraction, accompanied by an oddly formal voice message informing you that “Miofive continues to serve”. It’s slightly odd phrasing, but also a preview of a much bigger issue.
The headline feature here is 4K video, and this is where the S1 really impresses. Plenty of budget dash cams claim 4K, but often upsample from lower resolutions, leaving everything looking mushy. The S1, thankfully, avoids that trap. Footage is crisp, well-exposed and rich in detail, especially during the day. Number plates are easy to read, street signs are clear, and colours look natural if a little subdued.
Everything records at 30 frames per second, whether you choose 4K, 2K or 1080p. Higher frame rates would be nice, especially at lower resolutions, but it means most people will stick with 4K as it produces the best overall clarity. At around 250MB per minute of 4K video, a large SD card is essential.
Nighttime performance is surprisingly strong, too. The image softens, as you’d expect, but there’s far less grain than you usually get from budget dash cams. Headlights don’t blow out the image too badly, and pedestrians, markings and other vehicles remain clear enough for the recordings to be useful.
If all you care about is the footage, the S1 is one of the strongest budget performers around.
Where things get messy is with the “AI-powered” features. In theory, these are meant to help: reminders to move off when traffic ahead starts rolling, fatigue alerts, harsh-driving warnings and so on. In practice, the dash cam becomes far too chatty and intrusive.
The stop-and-go reminder is the biggest culprit. Even the tiniest shuffle from the car in front triggers the S1 to nudge you to “keep up with front,” whatever that means. In queueing traffic, it goes off constantly, as if you’re on the starting grid at Silverstone and ready to launch at any moment. It’s amusing at first, then annoying, then genuinely stressful.
The camera also announces screen behaviour, GPS lock, parking mode and other functions you already understand, turning routine driving into a slightly surreal one-way conversation. Yes, you can silence all of these AI-assisted prompts, but doing so defeats the point of the technology. If the best experience the camera offers is found by disabling its headline feature, something isn’t quite right.
The S1 includes a built-in speed limit and speed camera database, and will alert you accordingly. It’s not got traffic sign recognition, so it can be out of date sometimes — think temporary roadworks or variable limit motorways — leading it to confidently but incorrectly report speed limits. It’s something to keep an eye on and a reminder that drivers shouldn’t rely entirely on technology.
One genuinely helpful feature is the average-speed readout. When you’re crawling through endless roadworks dotted with average-speed cameras, being able to see your actual average is reassuring and stops you doing mental maths every two minutes.
Miofive S1 Dash Cam: The Average Joes verdict
The Miofive S1 has a lot going for it. The 4K footage is excellent, the hardware feels solid, installation is painless, and the fast Wi-Fi transfers put some pricier rivals to shame. If you judge a dash cam purely by the quality of the video it captures — which, arguably, is the most important thing — it’s one of the best budget options out there.
But the talkative AI features, the often inaccurate speed limit data and the slightly clunky mount all chip away at the overall experience. Most owners will end up turning off the driver alerts entirely, which is telling.
Even so, once the S1 stops trying to co-pilot your drive, what remains is a genuinely capable little dash cam delivering excellent footage for well under £100. Live with (or silence) the chatter, and it’s a very decent buy.
What: Miofive S1 Dash Cam
How much: £80 RRP
Average Joes rating: ★★★☆☆
He is the founder of Huff Media, publisher of Professional Pickup, Professional Van, Average Janes, Average Joes, and CALIBRE. His work focuses primarily on light commercial vehicles, pickups, and real-world vehicle use, with much of his time spent on manufacturer launches, industry events, and long-term vehicle testing.