Had my thinkware f770 dashcam installed today along with the cellink. It is all hardwired. Havent used it much but seems to work ok. I thought if I didn't want parking mode I could just turn the cellink off. But what happens then is when i start the engine the continuous recording doesn't start. So the dashcam still needs the battery pack on when driving even though it uses the car battery. I guess in certain instances if I don't want parking mode I will have to turn it off via the app or remember to turn the cellink back on.
Is this the only way to do it?
The Cellink B V2 is a very primitive and simple external battery pack system.
If you do parking record, then the Cellink B V2 will continue to record until its battery pack is flat!
That means that if you don't have enough memory card, then the memory card will do loop recording, and record over what has been recorded previously.
Now, if you arrive at home in your garage, and you choose to switch off the Cellink B V2 battery pack, then fine - the dashcam immediately switches off.
However, in the morning when you leave for work, you MUST remember to power the Cellink B V2 back on - otherwise no power for your dashcam!
Turning the Cellink B V2 on, not only enables the car battery to recharge the Cellink B, but it also enables the car battery to power the dashcams while you drive.
In summary, Cellink B V2 must be manually switched on to be recharged by the car itself, and to power the dashcam.
Cellink B must also be manually switched off if you don't want to park record, but switched off also means that it will NOT recharge, nor will it be able to power the dashcam during driving.
Thus, I actually had to swap my Cellink B V2 for a Vicovation Vico Power Plus power management system.
Luckily for me, I usually need only several hours of park recording at most, so the Vico suits me fine.
The Vico is more advanced and more clever than the Cellink B V2.
Instead of the Cellink B V2's tiny and probably not so durable On/Off switch, the Vico has a LARGE rocker Bypass/Activate switch!
Notice how the Cellink B has On/Off - meanwhile the Vico has Bypass/Parking On!
Bypass is NOT Off; bypass is bypass.
When the Vico is Bypassed, it is not actually off, but rather the Vico will automatically power on if the engine is switched on - thus automatically powering the dashcam - without having to be switched on unlike the Cellink B.
Furthermore, the Vico has a second advanced feature that sets it apart from the primitive Cellink B V2.
The Vico has a built-in timer!
It can be set to power off after parking for 2/6/8/10/12/24/36 hours etc etc.
Thus the Vico has a second smaller switched with either Timer/Normal options.
I always use the 2 hour timer.
If I switch it to Normal, then it will record until other parameters kick in, eg low voltage of 12.4 Volts, hi temperature, or hi current etc.
My greatest concern with my Vico is that it is constantly using the car's battery, and will accelerate its use by date.
The second concern is that with the Vico using the car's battery, we obviously can't record 12 hours/day, and 5 days/week.
The Cellink B V2 allows us to record 12 hours/day and 5 days/week, and does little damage to the car's 12 V battery.
However, with the Cellink B V2, we must
manually [pain in the arse] open the central console bin, and switch the Cellink B on and off all the time, because it lacks the bypass and timer features.
Now, if Cellink B can combine its FeMnPO4 heat resistant large capacity external battery with more sophisticated electronics like the Vicovation Vico Power Plus's bypass and timer feature, then we have a combined winner.
I can't wait till this day comes.
Right now, if you only need park recording once in a blue moon, and only for a few hours, then go Vico.
If you continually record 12 hours/day, and 5 days/week, you must go Cellink B V2, and just put up with manually switching it on and off.
OP, you haven't specified how often you use parking mode, and for what duration?
Another factor to keep in mind is installation.
The Vicovation Vico Power Plus needs clever hard wiring to the fuse box, and not everyone can DIY.
On the otherhand, the Cellink B V2 is simply plug and play.
Plug the Cellink B into a cigarette lighter socket so that the car will recharge the Cellink B, and then plug the dashcams into the Cellink B's output 12V socket.
Of course, the Cellink B can be hardwired to the fuse box, but you'd hardly want to take the more difficult and less portable option.
Presently, there is no perfect option...
