Dash cam keeps saying format Micro SD card yet won't work

Mio NoVue

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I received my v3 yesterday and started to try it out. I put a sd card in and it recorded immediately. No problems.

I went to format the 128gb card and then the screen kept saying format micro sd card and it refused to record. Every time I pressed record it would then say format the card, even though it had recorded before I selected format within the dash cam.

I put card in to pc to find its not been formatted at all. All the files are still there, old files and the files I just recorded before selecting format.

I format using the PC - exfat, put back in the camera but the exact same happened.

I tried again with a 32gb and the exact same thing happened again, although when formatting in the PC it was fat32.

These cards work perfectly fine in my Mio Mivue and have been forever.

I tried connecting the dash cam to the PC to update firmware. The PC recognised the camera yet it doesn't show as file manager mode - so there's no way of accessing it to update firmware. I've seen YouTube videos on how to do it but it won't allow my camera to do that.

I've contacted Viofo support as I think I have a faulty camera but in the meantime I wondered if I was doing something wrong that you guys could point me in the right direction.

Yes, was using all supplied cables.
 
Well they got back to me with a suggestion of using the format tool listed on their website. GUIFORMAT2.
It actually seemed to work. It formatted the SD card and it could then be recorded on with the camera.

HOWEVER

Any time I try to format the car, or any card, from within the dash cam itself then 1) it doesn't format it (when later plugging the card in to the PC to check if it's been formatted) and 2) when i select format within the dash cam it STILL then renders the card useless (as in you can't record on it) until you then use GUIFORMAT2 again.

And 3) I still can't connect the dash cam to the PC to update the firmware. The PC just wont recognise it.

So to me it's faulty. They responded within 1 day with their GUIFORMAT2 suggestion but now it's been about 4 days with no response. Not happy. I'd heard their customer service was good but this is not what i'd call good at all.
 
And 3) I still can't connect the dash cam to the PC to update the firmware. The PC just wont recognise it.
You need to use a data cable, not a charging cable.

Well they got back to me with a suggestion of using the format tool listed on their website. GUIFORMAT2.
I suggest following Kremmen's advice in post #2, and then use guiformat.

Otherwise, how the card gets formatted depends a bit on the computer and operating system, so then we don't know if the issue is down to the camera or computer.
 
You need to use a data cable, not a charging cable.


I suggest following Kremmen's advice in post #2, and then use guiformat.

Otherwise, how the card gets formatted depends a bit on the computer and operating system, so then we don't know if the issue is down to the camera or computer.

Regards the cable - I used the short cable they supplied and not the long cable. https://www.viofo.com/en/blog/viofo-firmware-update-guide-step-by-step-b34.html

OS I'm using is Windows 7 64bit. I know plenty of people will turn their nose up because it's not Windows 10 but it's been working fine enough for me.

I will follow the advice in post 2 as it's another box to tick and then I'll report back.
 
win 7 was nice, i got my win 10 looking as much as it as i can.
 
OS I'm using is Windows 7 64bit.
Nothing wrong with that, I'm still using it :)

Also you have the correct cable, that should all work, bit puzzled as to why you are having issues.
 
Well that's a refreshing change. I'm used to the moment i type Win 7 people online come at me with their pitch forks. That is on a computing forum though so I guess they always want the latest and 'greatest'. It's never done me any harm, although when i get round to sorting through the 1000s of files i've accumulated over the years I'll eventually switch to Windows 10 I suppose.

And perhaps I have a faulty unit as i suspect? From previous experience with any electrical device, when the usual 'try this, try that' doesn't work and you're doing exactly what the guides are telling you to do then it generally means that it's busted and needs replacing - from my experience that is. Someone elses experience may have the usual 1st step 2nd step thing work but that's not mine.
The dash cam should be able to format the drive. It's a pretty basic function. It can't do it and not only can it not do it but it's rendering it useless when it tries. Not just over 1 SD card but a few. If it was 1 then we could say card, if they were all the same brand then we could say card but it's different brands too and different capacities. That to me says camera. Couple this with the fact the short cable doesn't connect it to the PC as it should and again it says to me that it's the camera.

I'd like to say that i've tried what Kremmen suggested, however we're now nearly an hour & half since I started & the progress is only at 19% on a 32GB card. I didn't know this would be something i'd have to start first thing in a morning. lol
 
Well that's a refreshing change. I'm used to the moment i type Win 7 people online come at me with their pitch forks. That is on a computing forum though so I guess they always want the latest and 'greatest'. It's never done me any harm, although when i get round to sorting through the 1000s of files i've accumulated over the years I'll eventually switch to Windows 10 I suppose.

I still use Win 7 (Pro) too. I run it as a virtual machine on a second monitor on a Mac and it does everything I need. :happy: As a bonus, since it runs inside a virtual machine it is very secure and sand-boxed.
 
The dash cam should be able to format the drive. It's a pretty basic function. It can't do it and not only can it not do it but it's rendering it useless when it tries. Not just over 1 SD card but a few. If it was 1 then we could say card, if they were all the same brand then we could say card but it's different brands too and different capacities. That to me says camera.
agree, I have seen this issue when the card was previously used in a different device though as the formatting can sometimes be non standard (you mentioned the cards working fine in another camera??), as a test try using SDformatter to to do a full overwrite (not quick) format which will set the card back to default settings, then format in the camera
 
I can't recall which cam, but I do remember having formatting issues with one. The cause turned out to be that while the cam would work and record in EXFAT, it would not format it that way. SD formatter and h2testw showed no problems. Once I formatted the card with freeware to fat32, it would format in the cam. I also inadvertantly set a partition size wrong once; the card worked in any cam but the one I wanted. Since then I do everything in fat32, always formatting in-cam before use, and if the cam wants to change that to EXFAT it can. Seems to work in everything so far including the new A139 so it should apply to the V3 as well ;)

If after this and everything else tried, it's either got to be a firmware or hardware problem.


Phil
 
Just what I was going to post :)

Windows will not format any card over 32Gb in FAT or FAT32. Plus a lot of dashcams do not recognise exFat.

As said above, you need another PC program to format the card as FAT32 (or just FAT), see which works.

Most here use SD Formatter.
 
I was trying it on a 32GB. Would the program you mention format the 128GB card I have in FAT32? When I tried standard Windows formatting it was EXFAT or NTFS. If this is no good to the camera yet it can take up to 256GB then how does that work?

I'll have to either do this on the weekend where I can leave the PC running all day or try it overnight. I just hope it isn't unfinished if trying overnight as then I'd have to do it all over again as I'd be needing to leave for work.
 
SDformatter won't format large cards as FAT32, (anything larger than 32GB is exFAT by default, NTFS is not for memory cards) what it will do though is put things back to how it should be as it was formatted when new and fix any recoverable errors (must use the full overwrite option, don't use the quick format option), once you have a card back to its correct settings then try formatting in the camera
 
A 32GB card should be fat32 by default, as that is the factory spec for this size. Windows should be offering this option which leads me to suspect the card has problems.
Same as ever, Windows bloatware isn't often the best at any task.

Run the SDformatter tool (full overwrite) then the h2testw tool (again doing a full overwrite). The last should show nearly as much usable space as card size when completed; a tiny bit of the card is reserved for it's file system. Then check the properties of the card aftwerward- it should be fat32 and that should format in the cam. If it isn't fat32, then freeware like guiformatter, fat32 formatter, MiniAide or similar can set it to fat32. After that it should format in-cam. If this still doesn't work then re-flash the FW in the cam and if it still doesn't go then it's going to be a hardware problem with the cam. I've never heard of something like this being a hardware problem before, hence my suspicion of a card issue.

Phil
 
Saw aster, I think I've confused you. My fault.

What I was saying was when I do anything larger than 32 FAT32 isn't an option with the windows formatting that I was trying. It's exfat or ntfs only.
Since the camera needs a FAT32 card I was wondering how it will accept cards larger than 32gb which must be exfat or ntfs, no?

The 32gb cards I've been trying with are FAT32 and haven't been changed from that.

Hope that clarifies now :)
 
Oh dear. viofo have responded.

1) they can't find my order despite me giving them the order number.
2) they want me to return it to China. I can't have bought it from China because it arrived rapid to be fair.

Shipping charge to China and wait times. Sounds like its going to get costly.

If I have to return to China then I'd rather just a refund in full.
 
With other cams I've had good luck converting cards 64GB and 128GB in size to fat32, including loading of firmware. I seem to recall once having an issue loading FW this way but can't remember which cam. I also make it a practice to keep a good 32GB card on hand just for FW installs, cam testing, and as a backup card.

I've developed card habits that work which has eliminated card problems for me except for their wearing out.

Having to return to China isn't good at all if you bought from an official approved seller :mad: I would have thought better than this would be the case. Quite sad indeed :cry:

Phil
 
Out of interest I've just checked my card in my V3, using the V3 as a card reader:

It's 128Gb, formatted by the V3 as FAT32 and has no label.

kccxLCs.jpg


Something to aim for.

I can't remember how the card arrived, Ntfs or ExFat but as SawMaster said, try a tool to format as FAT32.
 
Having just re-read your first post, you don't need to attach the cam to a PC to update the firmware.

Wipe the 32Gb card, put the firmware .bin file on it, then just power up. Takes a few minutes max.
 
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