A139 + Bluetooth remote button

Nath

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Germany
Dash Cam
Triple Viofo A139-3CH, Dual A129Pro-2CH, Blackvue DR900S-2CH
Hi,

do we have here some users which do have this combination? I noticed interesting thing recently - I haven't used two bluetooth buttons with two A139 units for quite a while and few days ago when I tried to use them, nothing happened. I though it could be due to dead batteries but when I checked them at home there was nothing wrong with them. It seems like the buttons just got unpaired by itself (never seen it with A129Pro).

I have to admit I noticed similar behaviour when I tried to use alternative bluetooth buttons with Viofo cameras but because it was happening quite often I ditched them and bought the Viofo's ones hoping I won't need to re-pair them again. It's a bit of a hassle, since both units are in the same vehicle and for some reason both buttons do like more the dashcam unit at the back of the car :D (not to mention it's probably the only solution now to bypass that annoying issue with self-locking buttons).

Thanks for any input
 
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They need to be paired again after any update or factory default. Perhaps this was the cause?
 
Nope, not the case. I'm aware of that. :giggle:
 
Today again, I noticed both buttons are lost and need to be re-paired (again, not used much ever since the original post). The cameras are both powered via batterypack so not even a power-loss could cause this (the capacity is enough for 48hours for both cams which is well over i need for parking).

Strange.
 
Are multiple buttons able to be paired at the same time or just one?
 
@mentadent
Camera can only be paired to one button at a time.
Not true. It's possible to pair both remotes to a single A139 unit. (don't know what's the limit though) That's even the reason why it's so annoying to get them paired to each unit again (especially when you noticed it during drive).

Interestingly enough, even "not officially" supported remotes with more than one button are able to pass their information to Viofo cams (or Novatek based cams in general?) - but I know this for sure only in case of A129Pro. For example XiaomiYi remote has two buttons and both are reflected in cam's log as different commands, yet of course only one button of them actually flags an event. The problem with XiaomiYi remote is that on every reboot of a cam it gets unpaired on the cam side but the remote still "thinks" it's paired so one needs to even take battery out of the remote to be able to pair it again.

If anybody is interested, at least A129Pro looks for four specific bluetooth remotes... :geek: Besides VIOFO-RC1, XiaoYi_RC is working for A129Pro and A139, the rest I was not able identify to be able to test them.
Code:
Scanning for ...

BLE RMC

VIOFO-RC1

XiaoYi_RC

HIMEDIA

EDIT: Ok, so "BLE RMC" seems like a CINBTCT-A remote for Insta360. Not a particularly cheaper alternative to Viofo's remote. :ROFLMAO:
 
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If anybody is interested, at least A129Pro is looking for four specific bluetooth remotes... :geek: Besides VIOFO-RC1, XiaoYi_RC is working for A129Pro and A139, the rest I was not able identify to be able to test them.
Code:
Scanning for ...

BLE RMC

VIOFO-RC1

XiaoYi_RC

HIMEDIA
have you looked at which remotes the A139 scans for?
 
have you looked at which remotes the A139 scans for?
Nope, that's why I've mentioned that those are from A129Pro's list. But because XiaomiYi remote works even for A139, I would assume it's the same or similar.

I'll probably try to inspect one of my A139 units in the near future as well. :)
 
@mentadent

Not true. It's possible to pair both remotes to a single A139 unit. (don't know what's the limit though) That's even the reason why it's so annoying to get them paired to each unit again (especially when you noticed it during drive).

Interestingly enough, even "not officially" supported remotes with more than one button are able to pass their information to Viofo cams (or Novatek based cams in general?) - but I know this for sure only in case of A129Pro. For example XiaomiYi remote has two buttons and both are reflected in cam's log as different commands, yet of course only one button of them actually flags an event. The problem with XiaomiYi remote is that on every reboot of a cam it gets unpaired on the cam side but the remote still "thinks" it's paired so one needs to even take battery out of the remote to be able to pair it again.

If anybody is interested, at least A129Pro looks for four specific bluetooth remotes... :geek: Besides VIOFO-RC1, XiaoYi_RC is working for A129Pro and A139, the rest I was not able identify to be able to test them.
Code:
Scanning for ...

BLE RMC

VIOFO-RC1

XiaoYi_RC

HIMEDIA
Interesting. I specifically asked Viofo this when the remote first came out and was told you can only pair one at a time.
 
Nope, that's why I've mentioned that those are from A129Pro's list. But because XiaomiYi remote works even for A139, I would assume it's the same or similar.
different development team so may not be the same, depends if any of those are default in the SDK, and if they use the same SDK version or not
 
Hmmm, I'm now wondering if my question to Viofo was actually if one remote can be paired to two cameras at the same time. So, have one remote trigger a saved file for two separate cameras in the same car.
 
Last few days I use only one A139 unit in my car and interestingly enough, I almost directly encountered the moment of failure. The button worked in the morning and then stopped working in the afternoon (event button on the camera worked and settings of the camera are still the same). The only thing which constantly changes is Normal/Parking mode (could be caused by the same "issue" which changes/used to change settings to 60fps in 1Ch by itself for no apparent reason).

When I asked Viofo about this, I haven't received any reply regarding this issue. :unsure:
 
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have you looked at which remotes the A139 scans for?
So A139 scans for exactly the same list of bluetooth remotes. :)

It's a bit more chatty than A129Pro, but chipset console seems disabled. :cry: (at least not straight away enabled and any of my attempts to initialize a communication failed)

EDIT: My bad, I was probably tired and soldered coloured wires in different order than I intended. Console works as well. :ROFLMAO:
 
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@viofo @VIOFO-Support Since you are both quite active again, any feedback on this? :) Both cams seem to lose bluetooth buttons randomly.
 
Did you check if the Bluetooth buttons' battery is dead? Use another spare battery to have a try.
 
@VIOFO-Support As I've mentioned in the first post, batteries are perfectly ok.
 
Hi Nath!

May I confirm that there are two A139 main units are installed separately in the front and the rear of the vehicle? So you need to use two Bluetooth buttons to separately remote control them in one car?

Is the problem you're meeting that both Bluetooth buttons are hard to be paired with and often lose connection with the dashcams?
 
May I confirm that there are two A139 main units are installed separately in the front and the rear of the vehicle? So you need to use two Bluetooth buttons to separately remote control them in one car?
Correct

Is the problem you're meeting that both Bluetooth buttons are hard to be paired with and often lose connection with the dashcams?
The problem isn't being hard to pair them, the problem is the buttons for some reason keep unpairing themselfs from the dashcams. And therefore I have to pair them quite often. (for my taste...)

I though the button should be set&forget device, extending the range of the event button. (at least the very same button worked for my A129Pro with no such difficulties)
 
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