Reduce Your Risk in Reverse with the Best Backup Cameras of 2023, Tested

Welcome to the future. The Wolfbox G840S has it all and then some: a massive 12.0-inch display that doubles as a mirror, a high-quality camera that performs fantastically well both day and night, and an integrated dashcam built into the display for recording what's going on in front of you as well.

Setup for this camera is mostly straightforward. The mirror display is powered via a 12-volt cigarette lighter plug, which also charges the internal super capacitor for snapping photos even when your vehicle is off. The camera is powered via a hard-wired connection, and the video signal is sent over a cable, which terminates in a mini-jack that plugs into the mirror display. This does mean you'll have a cable running through your vehicle, but the 20-foot length should be more than enough to tuck it away out of sight as much as possible.

As visible in the image above, the touchscreen display for this camera is actually an attachment you strap over your rearview mirror. When the display isn't active, it works perfectly fine as a rearview mirror, but turn it on and put your car in reverse, and you get a high-definition image from one or both of the cameras in the system. In addition to the 1080p rearview camera, you also get a 4K dashcam built into the mirror attachment.

Both camera feeds can be shown on the display at the same time, or you can view just one at a time for a better field of view. Beyond simply showing the camera feeds, the Wolfbox G840S can also record video from one or both of the cameras at the same time. Other neat features include a gyro-based automatic recording mode, loop recording for constantly documenting your driving, and even a time-lapse parking monitor mode that will snap a still image once a second to help you see if anything happened to your vehicle while you were away.

Of all the cameras we tested, the image quality from this system is unmatched. This is likely aided by the high-quality display. The sensors and lenses are very capable, providing excellent low-light video with negligible flaring when cars or lights are behind you.

While it does require you to retrofit the display over your existing mirror, this backup camera and dashcam system are levels above nearly everything else we tested and a great value as a whole.

Of all the cameras we tested, the LeeKooLuu Backup Camera had the most straightforward installation process. It was as simple as running the camera cable from the trunk of the car through the cabin to the front seat, where it plugs into the display. That display, in turn, is plugged into a 12-volt cigarette lighter plug, which powers the entire system. This does mean you're limited by the 30-foot cable, but that length should be more than enough for all but the longest of pickup trucks or RVs.

Image quality is lacking across the board, with low resolution and less than stellar nighttime performance. But it's more than clear enough to see any reasonable obstacles with relative ease. And while the cables might be a pain, being hard-wired means there's essentially zero lag between what the camera is capturing and what's shown on the display.

This system didn't "wow" us in any sense of the word—but considering how tough some of these backup cameras were to install, we very much appreciated the plug-and-play nature of this system.

The EWay Wi-Fi Backup Camera isn't your standard backup camera. This entirely wireless system is a use-as-needed camera designed to be magnetically attached to the back of a car, trailer, RV, or whatever else you might be towing. It's powered via an internal battery that's charged over USB-C and uses a local Wi-Fi connection to display the image on your smartphone.

While the setup is straightforward, the instructions are confusing, and finding out which app to download can be tricky (hint: it's this one for Android and this one for iOS). Image quality was poor, but the wide-angle lens did allow for a comprehensive view of the backup area, particularly when the device was mounted higher on the vehicle.

And while its setup simplicity is nice, it also means you'll need to attach the camera every time you want to use it, ensure it's charged between uses, and connect your phone to its local hotspot every time. Not exactly elegant. But if you use it on an RV or trailer, as is recommended, it's a simple solution for retrofitting older equipment with the modern convenience of being able to see whether or not you're peeling a hole in the side of your '80s Airstream.

While the name Garmin might conjure fond memories of a decade-long sweet spot between Mapquest and the advent of Apple/Google Maps, the navigation gurus also make backup cameras such as the Garmin BC 40.

While this tiny camera is convenient in that it is wireless between the camera and display (when hard-wired into a 12-volt power source such as a reverse light connection), that display must be one of Garmin's compatible navigation units. That means unless you already have one of said units, you're not only shelling out for the $150 camera but also for one of Garmin's GPS modules, which may or may not be overkill. For our test, we used the BC 40 alongside Garmin's DriveSmart 65 GPS unit.

Image quality from the BC 40 looked great in daylight conditions and offered a nearly 180-degree field of view, meaning everything from the plane of the backup camera was visible. Dynamic range is decent and despite the signal being entirely wireless, there was almost zero lag. Image quality changed dramatically in low-light conditions, however. As you can see from the image below (which was captured with a perfectly clean lens), any light behind the camera caused terrible flares, washing out the image and making it very difficult to back up, particularly in a crowded parking lot as headlights go by.

While we're not optical engineers, we do have experience using and writing about cameras and lenses in the photography world, and it's quite clear that Garmin failed to put any kind of optical coatings on the lens elements and failed to properly protect the ultra-wide-angle lens from stray light. Considering the image quality looked great when we tested blocking stray light from above, it's a real shame this wasn't improved, as the sensor otherwise holds its own in both day and night.

If you already have a compatible Garmin GPS unit or planned on getting one anyway, the BC 40 might make sense for you. Outside of that, considering the investment required and the concerns with nighttime image quality, we can't recommend it.

Our parents always taught us to not say anything at all if we couldn't say anything nice. Unfortunately, our editor won't let us leave this section blank, so let's be frank: Don't pick the Auto Vox CS-2 backup camera. While it's one of the most purchased cameras on Amazon, everything about it proved to be a struggle.

Image quality was the worst out of every camera we tested, both during the day and at night. The wireless transmission proved very unreliable, and there was considerable lag between the camera and display. Once we got it set up, it did work—but getting there wasn't worth the price of admission. Considering the other options on the market, we can't recommend this backup camera.

Remember, kids: Just because something sells well on Amazon doesn't mean it's a fantastic product.