The Dash Cam rabbit hole is a big one. There are multiple form factors (behind the windshield stick-on ones, rearview mirror replacements, ones that blend into the car's trim) and configurations (single camera, dual camera, triple camera). Since you're looking at swapping the cameras across different cars, the traditional stick-on ones would probably be the most convenient.

It's also important to think about how you're going to power the camera. Most cameras come with a 12V or USB plug that you can just put into an open port on your car. While that's a simple solution, the downside is that it's apparent to potential thieves, a little cluttered and doesn't allow you to enable any parking mode features (if someone bumps into your car while it's parked, it's supposed to record that event). More permanent solutions include hardwire kits (that usually means finding an empty slot in your fuse box) and battery backups. The hardwire kits are generally cheaper, but some run the risk of draining your vehicle's battery. There are also cameras that can be run via the OBDII port or your powered rearview mirror, but that is very model specific and those don't universally support parking mode features.

Your budget's probably going to determine the best recs. Viofo's flagships are generally considered the best in terms of visual fidelity and they've been around long enough to know they won't just cut and run on products. They do have a Windows desktop app, but very few people talk about it. Most of the attention is given to their mobile offering. I imagine most do offer the ability to just plug the Micro SD card into a PC and dig around the files.

Which reminds me, you'll want a High Endurance MicroSD card. Dash cameras are constantly reading/writing to the card, so general purpose ones will fail quickly.

 

My first dashcam was a DOD LS460W with GPS.

It came with a player which could replay the trip and show a map with the car's movement because of the GPS.

After Google maps changed and DOD didn't update the player it no longer worked.

I also have a Uniden radar detector which has GPS and alerts for red light cameras.

The next dashcam was a Garmin 46. It's very small, came with 2 dime-sized magnets that glue to the windshield.
The dash cam snaps to the magnet securely. So it could be used in 2 cars quite easily especially if you can two cables.

It also has GPS and alerts on red light cameras, lane changes, traffic ahead starts moving etc. And it has
software for the phone to transfer files.

It came with a player that no longer works and is not supported.

There is a free one that does work - not very elegant

Cam Geo Player - Video GPS Player Freeware