A329S 3CH Best Parking Mode Settings With Battery Pack

[Papylon]

I have a VIOFO A329S 3CH (Front &Rear & IR Interior Fisheye) installed in my car, connected to a dedicated 7500 mAh battery pack, along with the Hardwire Kit ACC USB-C (HK4-C). Everything works well — when the engine is turned off, the battery pack takes over powering the dashcam, and it recharges while the car is being driven.

That brings me to my question: the "parking mode" settings offer many options, and since this is my first dashcam, I’m not quite sure which ones to choose.
My main priorities are to maximize the power supply duration for the A329S, enable reliable event detection, and ensure video recording in various lighting conditions.

Can anyone guide me on the best settings to meet these needs? Or perhaps there are features I’m unaware of that I should consider. Thank you in advance for your help.

 

[Dan-UK1415]

I have a very similar set up.
I have the A329T with HK4 hardwired to a BlackVue B-130X battery pack.

The 'best' settings are subjective and based on your own needs.

I have it set to hybrid parking mode, with time lapse 1fps and 2 hour timer.
So it records for the first 2 hours in time lapse when in parking mode, then falls asleep until it detects an impact.

This gives enough time for general trips, but helps the battery last a lot longer overnight or park and ride (long stay parking) etc.
The 1fps time lapse is also better at night than other dashcams as it has a brighter image.

 

[Chuck McCoy]

the "parking mode" settings offer many options, and since this is my first dashcam, I’m not quite sure which ones to choose.
My main priorities are to maximize the power supply duration for the A329S, enable reliable event detection, and ensure video recording in various lighting conditions.

Hello, and welcome to the club.
Congrats on your A329S 3CH.
First , and foremost I would opt for the new HK6 instead of the HK4 for a couple of reasons.

1.) It will provide an additional parking mode parameter called Low Voltage Detection.
2.) It will display vehicle starter battery voltage, or in your case dash cam battery pack voltage in the text stamp of recorded footage of all three channels.
This will provide valuable diagnostic & troubleshooting information if a malfunction should occur.
See attached screenshot.

3.) The HK6 has been upgraded over the HK4 with these benefits;
a.) Plug & play removal & re-installation, to aid in diagnosis & troubleshooting.
Also the plug & play design will easily let you swap in a soon to be released optional hardwire kit module that has low voltage detection removed.
This is for dash cam battery packs “only” because it lets you squeeze out every last bit of capacity because all “protections” are provided by the pack’s built-in BMS (battery management system).
Based on my testing this provides 30 minutes to 2 hours of additional Low Bitrate parking mode.
But now that we have LPID this will increase by a factor of 10.
LBR = 4 Watts (average power consumption)
LPID = 0.4 Watts
b.) Load carrying power wires have been beefed up from 20AWG to 18AWG.
c.) All wires have been upgraded to what appears to be 100% Pure OFC Copper, instead of the previous CCA, (copper clad aluminum) or Tinned Copper.

Now lets talk about parking modes.
I would recommend trying LBR (Low Bitrate Parking) mode first to give you a baseline run time of your system with continuous recording with audio.
Most likely this will provide around 24 hours, (96Wh ÷ 4W = 24H).
If you want even longer parking mode operation I might try the new LPID (low power impact detection).
When LPID is enabled the camera will “go to sleep” and consume 0.4 Watts, (96Wh ÷ 0.4W = 10 days).
However, when an impact is detected the camera will wake up, and start recording video with audio in less than 2 seconds at approximately 5-7 Watts depending if the IR LED’s are illuminated on the Interior Fisheye camera.
When an impact wakes up the camera in LPID it will record for 1 minute.
If movement, or impact are detected during that time, recording will be extended up to 3 minutes.

Timelapse is a good option if you want continuous coverage, but don’t require audio, for example if you have a home/work security camera that monitors your parking space with video, and audio.

AED (automatic event detection) I have never really liked because it’s the least reliable in my opinion.
We see a constant flow of posts about AED missing something, or just constantly recording triggered by leaves, rain, etc.
I’m interested to see what @Nigel has to recommend, and many others.

Oh yeah, there’s a bunch of different optional settings you can enable / disable in parking mode to fit your need to increase operational run time;
HDR On/Off
Disabling remote cameras
GPS (I always wondered about this one)
Once you park your car will not be going anywhere so you don’t need constant GPS signal updates.
However, it your car is stolen, and loaded on a flatbed truck it will be logging all the juicy GPS data.
This might be helpful if the dash cam, or SD Card is ever recovered.
-Chuck

 

[Dan-UK1415]

I'm waiting to swap out the HK4 for HK6 when released.
I'm also interested/curious about the Viofo battery pack that has been spotted...

Blackvue for example, when you pair the battery with the camera, you can see live % so know how long is left directly on the camera, rather than having to manually check separately via Bluetooth direct with the battery.

It would be nice to see if Viofo have any upcoming battery packs, and what, if any cool features they've got when paired with the latest cameras.

(Sorry, slightly off topic there).

Would also be good to seen HK4 and HK6 comparison reviews/videos as it becomes available to more people/public. I can only see 2 people on the forum that have it so far.
(Not even seen how it compares visually between the two, as the only photos are it in a packet, or bundles up).

 

[lumper]

I have a VIOFO A329S 3CH (Front &Rear & IR Interior Fisheye) installed in my car, connected to a dedicated 7500 mAh battery pack, along with the Hardwire Kit ACC USB-C (HK4-C). Everything works well — when the engine is turned off, the battery pack takes over powering the dashcam, and it recharges while the car is being driven.

That brings me to my question: the "parking mode" settings offer many options, and since this is my first dashcam, I’m not quite sure which ones to choose.
My main priorities are to maximize the power supply duration for the A329S, enable reliable event detection, and ensure video recording in various lighting conditions.

Can anyone guide me on the best settings to meet these needs? Or perhaps there are features I’m unaware of that I should consider. Thank you in advance for your help.

I have the A329, and the Powercell 8 battery pack hardwired and a 4tb sd drive connected.
Your best bet is to watch the usage of the battery pack, I use an app to monitor mine, mine shows I have around 20 hours of time before the battery depletes when fully charged, and as long as I don't use it for that long without driving the car to recharge it, it will be fine.
But depending on which parking mode you select will determine how much power is used and the quality of coverage you get.
I prefer the best images I can get when in parking mode in the event of an incident I want to clearly see what happened and how, so I keep an eye on the battery and make sure to drive for recharge between uses or disable it when I can't.
Timelapse 1 fps is supposed to be the most energy efficient setting I think? but to me, I want event detection, however you end up with a lot of videos about nothing depending on where you park the sensitivity of the camera sensors and battery level to begin with.
In my case, I can't really use it as I want, because I park more than I drive, so the battery will die in a day or two if I leave parking mode on all the time, so now I use it when I park somewhere I think might present an issue for me.
I can also add another battery pack to extend the length of time I can run parking mode but for me, for now, I am using it selectively.

 

[Nigel]

I’m interested to see what @Nigel has to recommend, and many others.

Different people have different requirements.

I tend to only want parking mode when parked in the supermarket car park, and then I want it to record as much of an event as possible, not just the 10 seconds prior and 30 seconds after, so I use Low Bitrate parking mode, which is guaranteed to record everything, including the audio, in full detail.

With the LPID taking so little power, there is no harm in using that, even if parked in a pitch black garage, so it makes sense to use the Hybrid Low Bitrate -> Impact Detection mode, with a 3 hour timeout, mid range voltage transition, and with that configuration, the low voltage cutoff doesn't need to be very low; it can be kind on the battery.

 

[Accomplished_Arm_447]

It would be nice if there could be a hybrid method that switched to Time Lapse 1FPS Night Mode whenever it is too dark to see anything, and at other times ran LBR mode to get all the action and sound but also filtered out the periods when there was no activity like Auto Event, even on cameras without low-voltage detection. As it is now, you have to choose between having getting videos of black screen at night, or missing events or missing what happened before a event, or having to visually search a 1-minute Time Lapse video that covers a 30-minute period looking for the event without any audio clues of bumps or scrapes.

 

[lumper]

Different people have different requirements.

I tend to only want parking mode when parked in the supermarket car park, and then I want it to record as much of an event as possible, not just the 10 seconds prior and 30 seconds after, so I use Low Bitrate parking mode, which is guaranteed to record everything, including the audio, in full detail.

With the LPID taking so little power, there is no harm in using that, even if parked in a pitch black garage, so it makes sense to use the Hybrid Low Bitrate -> Impact Detection mode, with a 3 hour timeout, mid range voltage transition, and with that configuration, the low voltage cutoff doesn't need to be very low; it can be kind on the battery.

I came out to find a dent a few months back which is why I got the dash cam in the first place.
I was going to get the thinkware U3000 for its radar event detection parking mode, but I decided to go with viofo A329 for the better starvis chips.
But now when I park at work, or certain days where I live when my neighbor's business is op[en and I want to monitor the car.
I do wish it had bluyetooth/wifi/cloud service so I could check on it from anywhere during the day, but short of that, I am equipped to use it whenever I am concerned about where my cart will be parked for a few hours or all day,.
It is a great service to have when you need it.
That being said, best parking mode IMO thinkware U3000, also Id look at the Omni 4k, it has a few features that make it compelling for a decent parking monitor as well.

 

[Papylon]

I’d like to thank everyone who responded to my question. I’ve learned a lot about my A329S, and thanks to your insights, I now have a better understanding of how both the parking mode and hybrid mode work.

 

[cappy]

Hello everyone,

Perhaps the pros here can help me a bit and answer a question or two. 😊

I'll soon be getting two A329S 3Ch for my cars (VW T-Roc and Hyundai Staria).

One of the reasons for the dashcams is parking surveillance. For the VW, both when out and about (work) and at home, as it parks on the street. The Hyundai parks on the property at home, so the settings are mainly for when out and about/work.

I'm currently wondering which settings are the most sensible for parking.

My first thought was to use the Auto Event Detection mode for this. Until today, I found out it works differently than I thought 🙈. Also, I only read today how much power this parking surveillance consumes. That really surprised me.

My current consideration is to use the Hybrid mode. With a timer of 8 hours. But which of the modes makes sense? And will my car battery last? 🤔 That worries me the most.

What settings are actually sensible on the HK4? I believe both vehicles have AGM batteries.

A purely theoretical question: If I use a battery pack, can it be hardwired, and then the dashcam connects to the battery pack with the HK4 cable?

Is it worth waiting for the Viofo battery pack? Probably just comfort features like a battery indicator in the dashcam? 🤔

I would appreciate any tips and recommendations.

Regards, Cappy

 

[Vortex Radar]

I'm experimenting with hybrid right now, auto event detection for 6-8h and then low power afterwards.

How long it lasts will vary though.. how big is your battery, how old is it, how cold is it outside, etc. Hard to give a one-size-fits-all answer.

 

[Bamsy]

I have a VIOFO A329S 3CH (Front &Rear & IR Interior Fisheye) installed in my car, connected to a dedicated 7500 mAh battery pack, along with the Hardwire Kit ACC USB-C (HK4-C). Everything works well — when the engine is turned off, the battery pack takes over powering the dashcam, and it recharges while the car is being driven.

That brings me to my question: the "parking mode" settings offer many options, and since this is my first dashcam, I’m not quite sure which ones to choose.
My main priorities are to maximize the power supply duration for the A329S, enable reliable event detection, and ensure video recording in various lighting conditions.

Can anyone guide me on the best settings to meet these needs? Or perhaps there are features I’m unaware of that I should consider. Thank you in advance for your help.

I'm interested to know how you did your cabling with HK4 and connected it to a USB-C Power Bank.
Would you please post your wiring diagram how to connect the three HK4 cable to the USB-C wires?

 

[Papylon]

I'm interested to know how you did your cabling with HK4 and connected it to a USB-C Power Bank.
Would you please post your wiring diagram how to connect the three HK4 cable to the USB-C wires?

I’d be glad to answer your question, but the installation was carried out by a professional workshop that specializes in car audio, alarm systems, and dash cam setups.
What I do know is this: the battery pack is connected to the cigarette lighter socket, so it charges via 12 VDC when the car is running. In that state, the VIOFO camera is powered by the car’s electrical system.
Once the car is turned off, the battery pack takes over and continues to power the VIOFO.
With my current parking mode settings, the battery pack provides enough power for up to 7 days. That was exactly the goal for setting up parking surveillance this way.
I’m using the "Low Power Impact Detection" mode.

 

[Briseide]

What battery did you install?

 

[Papylon]

What battery did you install?

Do you mean the technical specifications of the battery pack or the brand of the battery pack manufacturer?

 

[Accomplished_Arm_447]

I’d be glad to answer your question, but the installation was carried out by a professional workshop that specializes in car audio, alarm systems, and dash cam setups.
What I do know is this: the battery pack is connected to the cigarette lighter socket, so it charges via 12 VDC when the car is running. In that state, the VIOFO camera is powered by the car’s electrical system.

The battery packs I've looked at which can plug into the cigarette lighter will charger slower than if they are wired in directly to the fuse, because the CL can only provide about 5 amps or 60 watts at 12V. Being only 10 times more than what a dual camera consumes, it means that driving around for an hour gets you barely 10 hours of running time in parking mode. Bigger batteries need to be hardwired to get > 10 amps for 20 hours usage after an hour of driving.

Once the car is turned off, the battery pack takes over and continues to power the VIOFO.

The hardwire kits I've seen don't switch between sources, they only turn them on or off. ie. the dashcam must be connected to the battery pack not the car battery, and the battery pack connects either to the CL to charge while the engine is on only, or directly to the car battery and with a sensor wire attached to an ACC only circuit to ensure it only charges only while the engine is on.

So, I too am interested in seeing how yours is wired up.

With my current parking mode settings, the battery pack provides enough power for up to 7 days. That was exactly the goal for setting up parking surveillance this way.
I’m using the "Low Power Impact Detection" mode.

I thought that needed the HK6 to take full advantage of the LPID? It sends car battery voltage readings to the A329S to switch between modes.
The HK4 plugs into the dash cam and has an sensor wire to an ACC only circuit but only tells the camera to go in and out of parking mode. It's designed to be hardwired to the car battery or a battery pack, but you could attach a CL adapter to it. But you'd still need to to attach the ACC sensor to something circuit that's switches off with the engine to get any parking mode out of it. Perhaps you have all 3 wires attached to a CL adapter (red and yellow to + tip, black to the side contacts), then that give you parking mode. But where does the battery pack fit in?

 

[Papylon]

The battery packs I've looked at which can plug into the cigarette lighter will charger slower than if they are wired in directly to the fuse, because the CL can only provide about 5 amps or 60 watts at 12V. Being only 10 times more than what a dual camera consumes, it means that driving around for an hour gets you barely 10 hours of running time in parking mode. Bigger batteries need to be hardwired to get > 10 amps for 20 hours usage after an hour of driving.



The hardwire kits I've seen don't switch between sources, they only turn them on or off. ie. the dashcam must be connected to the battery pack not the car battery, and the battery pack connects either to the CL to charge while the engine is on only, or directly to the car battery and with a sensor wire attached to an ACC only circuit to ensure it only charges only while the engine is on.

So, I too am interested in seeing how yours is wired up.

I thought that needed the HK6 to take full advantage of the LPID? It sends car battery voltage readings to the A329S to switch between modes.
The HK4 plugs into the dash cam and has an sensor wire to an ACC only circuit but only tells the camera to go in and out of parking mode. It's designed to be hardwired to the car battery or a battery pack, but you could attach a CL adapter to it. But you'd still need to to attach the ACC sensor to something circuit that's switches off with the engine to get any parking mode out of it. Perhaps you have all 3 wires attached to a CL adapter (red and yellow to + tip, black to the side contacts), then that give you parking mode. But where does the battery pack fit in?

I was not present during the installation of the Dashcam in my car. The information I have comes from the installer, and I have not had the opportunity to verify how the installation was carried out. I placed my trust in the company, which, as I mentioned, specializes in audio installations.
I do know that my battery pack (which I can monitor via a Bluetooth app) allows the parking mode I selected to operate for about 170 hours once fully charged, with the car’s ignition off. In this mode, the camera draws approximately 40 mA — solely from the battery pack.

One more piece of information: after about an hour of driving, the battery pack reaches a full charge. It’s possible that it’s connected elsewhere rather than through the cigarette lighter. I am unable to verify this.

I am unable to provide answers to other, more detailed technical questions.

 

[VIOFO-Support]

I thought that needed the HK6 to take full advantage of the LPID? It sends car battery voltage readings to the A329S to switch between modes.
The HK4 plugs into the dash cam and has an sensor wire to an ACC only circuit but only tells the camera to go in and out of parking mode. It's designed to be hardwired to the car battery or a battery pack, but you could attach a CL adapter to it. But you'd still need to to attach the ACC sensor to something circuit that's switches off with the engine to get any parking mode out of it. Perhaps you have all 3 wires attached to a CL adapter (red and yellow to + tip, black to the side contacts), then that give you parking mode. But where does the battery pack fit in?

With the HK4, you can also use the LPID.

 

[rcg530]

I thought that needed the HK6 to take full advantage of the LPID? It sends car battery voltage readings to the A329S to switch between modes.

You can most certainly use a HK4 to power the A329S and use the LPID parking mode. The "difference" is the hybrid parking mode feature set which has LPID as part of it. For the hybrid parking mode feature to know when it should switch from the "traditional" parking mode to LPID parking mode is based off one or two "cut-off" [switch-over] monitors. The first cut-off monitor is time based. You can use the time-based cut-off monitor with a HK4 or HK6 hardwire kit. The second cut-off monitor is voltage based. You can only use voltage based cut-off to switch from the "traditional" parking mode to LPID parking mode when the HK6 is powering the dash camera.

 

[DavomM97]

You can most certainly use a HK4 to power the A329S and use the LPID parking mode. The "difference" is the hybrid parking mode feature set which has LPID as part of it. For the hybrid parking mode feature to know when it should switch from the "traditional" parking mode to LPID parking mode is based off one or two "cut-off" [switch-over] monitors. The first cut-off monitor is time based. You can use the time-based cut-off monitor with a HK4 or HK6 hardwire kit. The second cut-off monitor is voltage based. You can only use voltage based cut-off to switch from the "traditional" parking mode to LPID parking mode when the HK6 is powering the dash camera.

That's really helpful. Thank you.