Honda's little black box: Drive Recorder car surveilance system

Taking a page out of those flight recorders on military aircrafts, Honda has released its own little black box called the Drive Recorder. Used mainly as a surveillance recorder on your Honda vehicle, this handy gadget detects impacts and saves information 12 seconds before and 8 seconds after a collision.

The box includes forward-view imagery with a 135-degree field of vision camera hung on your windscreen. The Drive Recorder keeps all the pertinent information such as speed and deceleration rates on an SD card included in the unit. This information can then be uploaded to a PC and reviewed at a later date.

Honda mentions that this system will help drivers become more mindful on the road. However, since the main purpose of the Drive Recorder is as a surveillance recording system, it can also become invaluable when making proper insurance claims should you get into a car accident.

The Drive Recorder is available in Japan for ¥54,600 (around US$ 500) and is only applicable for Honda vehicles.