DDPAI Mini2 vs Street Guardian SG9665GC v3

[tejr]

I've had my Mini 0806 for a while now, and its been problematic for the majority of that time! Either battery issues, or firmware.

I'm looking to replace it with something more reliable. The above seem to use supercaps instead of batteries, so should solve that issue.

The DDPAI has a better form factor and wifi, the latter just seems a lot more robust but pricier (£90 vs £150).

Any thoughts? Main concern is reliability tbh..

Anything else to consider? The SG seems more reliable than a straight forward A119, but maybe I'm wrong?

 

[estore009]

If reliability is your main concern,we recommend you Viofo A119 V2 version!

 

[thancam]

+1 for SG with the greatest support i've ever know

 

[Deleted member 46308]

+1 for SG with the greatest support i've ever know

Agree +1

 

[Yooshaw]

Having owned the Mini 2, SG9665GC, and A119S, if reliability is your main concern, then the GC is the way to go. My Mini 2 died completely, I suspect due to overheating. Of my two A119S V1's, one has had power problems (one with GPS mount). The other, without a GPS mount, have had no problems at all.

I'd stay away from the Mini2, as I'm not aware of any sellers outside of China, so warranty support is more problemeatic. You can find local resellers for Viofo and SG, and my experience for both for warranty support are excellent.

 

[DT MI]

For reliability here's another vote for SG. I have 3 (version 1 and 2) of them and none have ever failed to record.

 

[kamkar]

I had some focus shift on my SG9665GC V1, but as i recall it was pre-production camera, and since it was a camera sent to me for free by SG i dident bother them with the issue, i just fixed it myself, and to this day the V1 camera record every time my friend turn on his car.
I am also sure that had it been a camera i have paid money for and contacted SG the problem would have been fixed ASAP.
I would pay a little extra for a camera and buy it in my local market, many should do this to force the Asian brands out of their lair and into a area where we can get better service and support.
Only thing that have ever stopped a SG camera of mine in recording have been when a SD card decided to die in that camera, otherwise if the card is good the dashcam will record, and record pretty decent footage compared to other cameras.

 

[SawMaster]

SG9665GC is tops for reliability- none better in that and only a few equals The best after-sales service if bought from a recommend seller too
The A119 is a good cam but the QC doesn't seem to be where it should be. Service varies by seller. The Mini series just seems like it can't quite cut the mustard0- something wring with every model- but the 0906 may be better. I wouldn't count on that though, not for at least a couple more years of few reported problems.

Phil

 

[estore009]

SG9665GC is tops for reliability- none better in that and only a few equals The best after-sales service if bought from a recommend seller too
The A119 is a good cam but the QC doesn't seem to be where it should be. Service varies by seller. The Mini series just seems like it can't quite cut the mustard0- something wring with every model- but the 0906 may be better. I wouldn't count on that though, not for at least a couple more years of few reported problems.

Phil

0906 may be worse on its reliability according to our sales experience!

 

[SawMaster]

0906 may be worse on its reliability according to our sales experience!

Wouldn't surprise me given their track record of consistent dud designs Great little cams when they're working though

Phil

 

[thancam]

yeah, 0806 and 0805 are great camera with their price. I though they are best until i have to warranty.

 

[estore009]

Wouldn't surprise me given their track record of consistent dud designs Great little cams when they're working though

Phil

Anyway,we are still expecting 0906 to do better cameras.....

 

[Deleted member 46308]

SG9665GC is tops for reliability- none better in that and only a few equals The best after-sales service if bought from a recommend seller too

Phil

+1

 

[Yooshaw]

Don't discount the WR1 either - if you wan't wifi, that may satisfy you. I have a unit, planning on reviewing it this weekend.

 

[tejr]

Sounds like the Street Guardian is the way to go for an install-and-forget solution.

 

[kamkar]

well you cant really just forget all about the camera, the memory cards in them can often throw a fit, even the top of the like brand and card models.
It is recommended you have a look at the memory card every few weeks to see what is on it correlate to the latest drives you have taken, test play some of the clips, and look if some recording sessions have the last clip like on the road instead of you arriving at your driveway or other destination.

We had quite a few people in here that finally had a accident only to find that their camera stopped recording weeks ago, granted this are often on budget setups, but it is a clear and present danger even for a expensive setup.

It take me about 5 minutes to do so for a 64 Gb memory card that's full. ( you dont have to play whole files, just make sure they can launch in what ever player you use on your computer )
O and off course have a close look at a little of the footage, some times the focus can shift a little in hot weather.

Some cameras claim set and forget, but i would not trust that, but it is nice if the camera can give a alarm if it is not able to record onto the memory card.

You can also use registrator player to inspect your files on the memory card, it will flag any file on it that is not able to play, and those corrupted files are often a sign of impending camera or memory card problems.

Just put your memory card in your card reader, start up rigestrator viewer on the computer, and it will find your memory card inspect and group all driving sessions into groups so you can export as a single file a driving session made up of 39 3 minute files with a click of a button.

Here is a demo of registrator viewer where you can see how the program scan my SD card and bundle up the driving sessions on it, and not least flag all the problem files on the card.