SJCam M10 as a dashcam

Okay I managed to get the swollen battery out. Had to puncture a hole and release the gases built up and used a vice grip to yank it out. Damn these lithium Ion batteries have an interesting smell.

I'll go test this out. My SJCam is updated to 1.4 now. I'm using a class 4 Kingston 32gb sd card and now I have no battery.
 
Didn't work. You see the file there, but it is corrupted. Can not open it. Car Mode is enabled.


I basically connected it to a USB power source. Ran it for a bit. Simulated turning my car off and cutting power by unplugging the USB power source. Put the SD card on my computer and it says can not open.

I also tried it with VLC players afterwards.
 
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Didn't work. You see the file there, but it is corrupted. Can not open it. Car Mode is enabled.


I basically connected it to a USB power source. Ran it for a bit. Simulated turning my car off and cutting power by unplugging the USB power source. Put the SD card on my computer and it says can not open.

I also tried it with VLC players afterwards.
Does that file play in the camera?
 
Okay I managed to get the swollen battery out. Had to puncture a hole and release the gases built up and used a vice grip to yank it out. Damn these lithium Ion batteries have an interesting smell.
.
could have been worse

 
That also seems like a bit of a liability

Why's that? Mobius instructions (http://www.mobius-actioncam.com/mobius/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/Mobius-Manual-23jan15a.pdf) state:

"Larger cards are most likely also supported but not yet available. To avoid card compatibility problems, always use quality cards with a speed rating of Class 4." and "For the best compatibility use cards with a class 4 rating if you have them. There is absolutely no advantage in using cards with a higher rating. The most compatible cards are genuine Kingston."

Just following the recommendations after last year I took a stance on using Sandisk Class 10 32gb SD card only to fail.

could have been worse

I agree and I knew the risks involved. I was being very cautious. Definitely don't encourage anyone to do that!


Does that file play in the camera?

No sir.
 
I would like to clarify that the SJ4000 guide that Pavle and I wrote was based on the SJ4000 WiFi only and with the latest firmware that was then available. There are later versions of firmware available for the SJ4000 not reflected in the manual. As Pavle states in the introduction to the online version of the manual, "Since nearly all SJCam cameras have similar user interface and software, large portion of the manual can be applied to cameras like: M10, M10+, SJ4000+, limited 5000x and x1000 and even SJ5000 series." In other words not everything in the manual always and necessarily applies to other SJCams.

http://pevly.com/sj4000-manual/
 
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I've been using my SJ4000 regularly for about 9 months as a dash cam with the battery installed and I don't have a problem with the battery swelling. To me it seems like the battery is simply defective but I don't know for sure. SJCam spare batteries are cheap so you might want to buy one and see if it causes any problems.

My SJ4000 works without a battery installed when connected to an AC adapter, 12V car adapter or USB power bank. Possible reasons why it might not work in a vehicle are that the 12V socket is defective (no power), the 12V adapter is defective, or the USB x microUSB cable is defective.
 
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I've been using my SJ4000 regularly for about 9 months as a dash cam with the battery installed and I don't have a problem with the battery swelling. To me it seems like the battery is simply defective but I don't know for sure. SJCam spare batteries are cheap so you might want to buy one and see if it causes any problems.

My SJCam4000 works without a battery installed when connected to an AC adapter, 12V car adapter or USB power bank. Possible reasons why it might not work in a vehicle are that the 12V socket is defective (no power), the 12V adapter is defective, or the USB x miniUSB cable is defective.

Mine works bit it would not record
 
Didn't work. You see the file there, but it is corrupted. Can not open it. Car Mode is enabled.


I basically connected it to a USB power source. Ran it for a bit. Simulated turning my car off and cutting power by unplugging the USB power source. Put the SD card on my computer and it says can not open.

I also tried it with VLC players afterwards.
With my SJ4000 I haven't had a problem with any corrupted files. In your video I noticed that the camera seemed to turn off immediately when you disconnected the power source. With my SJ4000 the camera stays on for a few seconds after the power source is disconnected (that's with the battery installed). Maybe those few seconds is the time it needs to write the last bits of data to the memory card but I don't honestly know.

Personally I don't remove the memory card to transfer its contents. I simply connect my computer directly to the camera. Using a Windows 7 computer, that method has always worked for me. When the SJ4000 manual was written I did test file transfer with the card removed as you've done and didn't have any problems.
 
Mine works bit it would not record
So if I can clarify, you do in fact have power at the camera, i.e., it turns on, but it doesn't begin recording automatically, is that correct? Have you tried pressing the OK/shutter button after it turns on to see if it records? Does the camera work without being connected to the 12V adapter?

Have you verified that you have a genuine SJCam by entering the code on the box on the SJCam web page? http://sjcamhd.com/safe/
 
With my SJ4000 I haven't had a problem with any corrupted files. In your video I noticed that the camera seemed to turn off immediately when you disconnected the power source. With my SJ4000 the camera stays on for a few seconds after the power source is disconnected (that's with the battery installed). Maybe those few seconds is the time it needs to write the last bits of data to the memory card but I don't honestly know.
What about without the battery? Have you ever had any corrupt files?

Personally I don't remove the memory card to transfer its contents. I simply connect my computer directly to the camera. Using a Windows 7 computer, that method has always worked for me.
The reason it's advisable to transfer the files with the card in a proper reader is because the camera's card slot is not design to be used as a high speed card reader and may cause undesirable file corruption when transferring them directly from the camera.
 
What about without the battery? Have you ever had any corrupt files?


The reason it's advisable to transfer the files with the card in a proper reader is because the camera's card slot is not design to be used as a high speed card reader and may cause undesirable file corruption when transferring them directly from the camera.
I've never had any corrupted files ever. That includes those times when I operated the camera without a battery but connected to a 12V adapter and it shut off immediately when I turned off my vehicle.
 
What about without the battery? Have you ever had any corrupt files?


The reason it's advisable to transfer the files with the card in a proper reader is because the camera's card slot is not design to be used as a high speed card reader and may cause undesirable file corruption when transferring them directly from the camera.
Are you still having corrupted file issues?
 
Anyone can really confirm whether the last video can be saved successfully (car mode) without the battery insert during the car engine off?

As the battery would swell and struck inside the battery housing after long time charging and heating through the hot summer season inside the car.

My current SJ1000 is an example of under this situation after about 2 years.:( I noticed the M10+ and the other SJCAM models use the similar battery.
 
Anyone can really confirm whether the last video can be saved successfully (car mode) without the battery insert during the car engine off?

As the battery would swell and struck inside the battery housing after long time charging and heating through the hot summer season inside the car.

My current SJ1000 is an example of under this situation after about 2 years.:( I noticed the M10+ and the other SJCAM models use the similar battery.

Here's the answer:
I've never had any corrupted files ever. That includes those times when I operated the camera without a battery but connected to a 12V adapter and it shut off immediately when I turned off my vehicle.
 
Thanks TeriTerryTarry for the quick feedback.

Few more questions:
No lose of camera settings like date/time?
Do they provide the 12V power adapter?
Are you using their supplied power adapter?
Or your own small USB car charger with USB female outlet then connecting with a USB male to male cable?
 
Okay I managed to get the swollen battery out. Had to puncture a hole and release the gases built up and used a vice grip to yank it out. Damn these lithium Ion batteries have an interesting smell.

I'll go test this out. My SJCam is updated to 1.4 now. I'm using a class 4 Kingston 32gb sd card and now I have no battery.

Is there a way to get the swollen battery out without puncture a hole as it might explode when you puncture it? Wondering if there are screws to dismantle M10.
 
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