http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=16300
Answers most of your questions. Others will need to chip in regarding reliability. I have a Blackvue DR-400G-HD, but it does get very hot and some have reported device or card failures. Mine has worked fine. Advertising for the newer version, the Blackvue DR-400G-HD-II version, say the heat problem is solved.