Swift Hitch’s hand-held monitor gives a clear view from the camera.Photo: Swift Hitch
I don’t know if I’ve ever tested a towing product and said, “these guys thought of everything,” but the Swift Hitch is darn close.
Designed as a rear-view camera system specifically for putting a hitch ball under a trailer coupler, this $259 kit really gets the job done.
The Swift Hitch camera, housed in a metal case, is sealed to withstand the elements, and its well-designed cover fits over the back of the camera to protect the antenna, indicator light and switch from dust and water.
The camera is mounted on a ball-type, swivel head attached to a sturdy steel base with a strong magnet.
The base can be mounted permanently with countersunk mounting holes on the magnetic foot. Transmission range is more than enough for hitching purposes at 100 yards.
The cool part of this kit is the hand-held monitor that allows you to see what the camera sees as you position it.
The monitor itself has a nice 2.5-inch display that provides a clear picture with a 960-by-240 resolution.
The monitor includes a video-out jack and a cable so you can view the camera’s image on a TV or other monitor if you don’t want to use the hand-held.
The camera’s view can be toggled from straight-ahead to mirror-image with a push of the power button.
Swift Hitch’s monitor and camera come with rechargeable Lithium-ion battery packs for long battery life (up to 4 hours, 3 hours with infrared on).
And both camera and monitor can be charged at the same time using the one charger, which plugs into your pickup’s power point or cigarette lighter.
Because both camera and monitor are highly portable, you can use this system with any of your vehicles throughout the day and store them in the glove box, console or door pocket when not in use.
The only aspect of the Swift Hitch that would make it better as a general purpose back-up camera is a wider-angle view.
Otherwise, this is a good product. No matter how good you are at using mirrors, you can’t see the hitch ball without a little help. The Swift Hitch can hook you up.
