How To Connect Backup Camera To Head Unit – Complete Guide 2023

Looking for how to connect backup camera to head unit? This is the right place for you. This guide will provide you with all the important information regarding the same.

When you are driving a car, the backup camera is a very important safety feature. It allows you to see what is behind your car when you are backing up, which can prevent accidents.

If your car does not have a built-in backup camera, don’t worry! You can easily connect a backup camera to your head unit. In this blog post, we will discuss how to connect a backup camera to the head unit. 

If you’ve ever had to back out of a tight spot in your car with no visibility, then you know how important it is to have some sort of rearview system. The backup camera wire color codes will provide that for us! 

It’s not just the safety aspect but also being able to see what is behind when parking or maneuvering around obstacles on our property. This simple installation can make all the difference when driving and backing up – so give yourself this gift today!

The head unit that we will be using for this is a double-din android navigation head unit from Aqwella. This is a high-end Android head unit with a large viewing angle and a built-in GPS module

Also, do you want to be able to see what is behind your vehicle while driving? If so, a backup camera can help make this possible. By following the steps in this article, you will be able to connect your backup camera to your head unit in no time. Once it is connected, you will be able to see what is behind your car when reversing without having to worry about anything else.

Steps How To Connect Backup Camera To Head Unit?

Do you have a backup camera installed in your car? If not, you should seriously consider doing so! A backup camera can be a lifesaver when it comes to reversing your car in tight spaces. 

But what if you don’t want to watch the screen on your backup camera all the time? That’s where the head unit comes in. By connecting your backup camera to your head unit, you can view the footage on a larger screen while still being able to see what’s going on around you. 

In this section, we will show you how to connect your backup camera to your head unit using a simple adapter cable. We’re going to connect one of the most popular backup cameras available on the market today to show you how it’s done.

  • First, start by turning off your head unit and unplugging it from your car’s power source before opening up the device housing. Once you’ve taken it out, look at where all of the cables are plugged into the head unit.
  • The first cable you’ll need to connect is a power cable that goes from your car’s fuse box to a relay that will turn on and off with a double-sided switch. 
  • This will be used for turning on and off your backup camera, as well as switching between powering it via power from the fuse box or the head unit’s internal battery (in case of an emergency). 
  • When you’ve done this, attach some electrical tape over both ends of the connections so they don’t accidentally come apart later. 

(We also recommend taping down all of the exposed wiring and connectors inside your device housing before putting it back together)

  • Now that you have your power cable connected, you can connect the input of the camera to be used. Notice that there are two sets of RCA connectors on one side of the device housing – these are for the front and rear backup cameras. 
  • We only have a single camera to work with, so we’ll need to tap into one of those cables. The wire labeled “Rear” is yellow/black, so we will use it as our connection for this walkthrough.

Take only the yellow end of an RCA connector and attach it to your yellow/black wire at the head unit’s end. 

  • Now that you’ve attached this RCA connector, take another short length of wire and attach it to the white end of the RCA connector. 
  • This is going to be used as a redundant connection in case the first one isn’t enough to power your camera – this way, you can connect another wire from this same head unit output directly to your fuse box as a backup connection as well.
  • Once you’ve done that, tape down both connections and use some electrical tape to cover up any other exposed wiring. Now we’re going to tap into BlackVue’s parking mode/motion detection trigger on its power cable. 
  • To do this, first, remove some insulation from around where that cable enters the device housing. Then cut a hole next to that area for our inputs (just like how we left holes when we tapped into the RCA cable for our camera’s input).
How To Connect Backup Camera To Head Unit

Now take that ground wire that you just cut off of the BlackVue power cable and strip it at both ends. Take your female spade connector and attach one end to the exposed ground wire on the head unit. 

Then attach another short length of green wire to the spade connector, strip both ends, and place some electrical tape over it so it doesn’t accidentally come apart. 

Use this green wire as a non-permanent way of connecting to your backup camera’s “stop” signal (don’t worry about what that means for now – we’ll get into more detail below). 

  • Notice that several wires are coming out of the camera and that one of them is pink. 
  • We’re going to attach the other end of the female spade connector to that wire using a different green wire, so strip both ends and place some electrical tape over it before connecting.
  • Now you have everything connected up – power cable, RCA cable for video input, and also an extra cable from the BlackVue’s “stop” signal in case anything goes wrong with your backup camera.
  • Now go ahead and put all of the wiring together 

(We also recommend taping down all of the exposed wiring and connectors inside your device housing before putting it back together)

  • Now you can put everything back together – make sure to use some electrical tape on any exposed metal contacts, especially around where the BlackVue’s power cable enters the device housing.

Once you’ve done that, it should look something like this:

  • Notice how we have a line with 3 lines running through it at the bottom there – that is just one long piece of black electrical tape that marks off our area to cut out for our USB port. 

(Remember to do this carefully as to not cut yourself or your device housing – we highly recommend using a rotary tool like the Dremel. Be safe!)

Once you’ve got that line of black electrical tape cut out, simply pop off the USB port cover and take out the internal connector inside:

Now disconnect that internal connector from its socket, plug it into your new Aqwella head unit’s male USB port, and then put everything back together! 

Congratulations – now you have a fully functional head unit with built-in Bluetooth music streaming + voice control as well as a dedicated front-facing dashcam screen on top of all else. You can use this built-in camera for both regular day-to-day video recording as well as motion detection-based “parking mode” footage.

For the ones who are struggling to find a good connect the backup camera to running lights, do not worry at all. We have got you covered. In the next section, we have listed a few amazing backup cameras for you so that you can choose the right one according to your convenience. 

Backup Cameras For Your Car: Which One Is Right For You?

When you’re backing up your car, you need to have complete confidence in what’s behind you. That’s why a backup camera is such an important safety feature. But with so many different types of backup cameras on the market, which one is right for you? 

In this section, we will discuss the different types of backup cameras and help you decide which one is best for your needs.

When looking for a backup camera, you need to consider the type of car you have and what features you’re looking for. There are three major types of backup cameras: wireless, wired, and rear-view mirror backup cameras. We will discuss the differences below.

Wireless Backup Cameras

A wireless backup camera is an excellent choice if you want a flexible system that can be installed on any vehicle regardless of make or model. They tend to provide a wider field of view than wired cameras, making them particularly useful in larger vehicles with longer blind spots. 

If your vehicle has a large amount of metal around where the receiver is mounted (i.e., commercial trucks), then this might be the best option for you since they typically have a longer range and work through metal better than most wired cameras. 

Wireless backup cameras use radio waves to send signals from the camera itself to the receiver, which is mounted on your car’s rear window or license plate.

Wired Backup Cameras

How To Connect Backup Camera To Head Unit

If you want a reliable backup camera that requires less setup and installation time, then a wired system might be right for you. Wired backup cameras wire directly into your vehicle’s electrical system using composite video cables. 

These types of systems are best suited to vehicles with less metal around where the monitor will be mounted (i.e., cars) and can provide great results when installed properly in clean factory locations such as under or behind the license plate, behind the bumper, or inside the trunk lid. Cracked bumpers and chipped paint on a vehicle can interfere with the wireless signal of a backup camera significantly.

Rear-View Mirror Backup Cameras

Many drivers prefer a rear-view mirror that also doubles as a backup camera since it doesn’t require installation or additional equipment. These systems use either an existing rear-view mirror in your car or add on to an aftermarket one. 

They typically consist of a small, wide-angle color LCD screen embedded in the rearview mirror housing itself. Rear-view mirror cameras are best suited for smaller vehicles such as cars and SUVs due to limited viewing angles and varying quality of pictures between models.​ 

Additionally, they’re often more expensive than other options and may be seen as a more permanent solution due to the specialized equipment.

Conclusion

So there you have it! Your complete guide on how to connect backup camera to head unit. If you follow these simple steps, you’ll be able to safely and easily view what’s behind your car while backing up.  

We hope this guide has helped answer your questions about how to connect a backup camera to the head unit. If you have any other questions, we’d be happy to help!

Also, whether you choose a wireless, wired, or rear-view mirror backup camera, we hope this guide helps you make an informed decision about which option is best for your needs and budget!

That’s all there is to it! Be safe out there and make sure you have a backup camera installed in your car!

William R. Keen

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