Dead G1W-S, any ideas?

sixfeetfree

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Evening fellow cams,

I purchased two G1W-S's 18 months ago, give or take, and have been unable to update their firmware. The problem I was having is, neither would keep the date and time accurately, they would reset overnight. Both are powered via cigarette lighter plug with the OEM plug that came with the cam. Both have Transcend 64gig cards formatted with the recommended gui file from here. I read, on here, that perhaps a firmware update would solve this issue. It did not.

Additionally, when attempting to update one of them, it has completely stopped working. Neither my pc usb or the power cord in the car will power it on. Attempting to remedy this issue, thinking it was an internal contact problem at the plug, I disassembled it and gently pushed the pins in a little more - to no avail, it still does not work. Resetting it has not worked, either. I'm open to ideas and/or suggestions.

FWIW, I have replaced the dead cam with an A119S. I haven't had any issues with it since it's only been in operation for a few days.
 
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Second cam has the same issues, it will not hold the correct time and date. Powered via OEM lighter plug that came with it. Transcend 64gig card. I have NOT tried to update this came because the last one (above) stopped altogether after the attempted update.

Any ideas?

Bueller? Bueller?
 
Sounds like a bad RTC (button battery on the PCB that holds real time clock)
Contact your seller for warranty service.
 
I purchased both from you via Amazon, but it's been over a year. I replaced the one that stopped completely with a A119S, from you. Was hoping for some guidance to get it working again.
 
The RTC button battery is not easily replaced without some serious surgery level soldering skills unfortunately. G1W was built to a specific price point.

The A119S is definitely a better choice for a longer term investment to make it through the harsh vehicle environment through multiple summers etc. be sure to update to firmware 2.4
 
Sounds like a bad RTC (button battery on the PCB that holds real time clock)
Contact your seller for warranty service.

My G1W-S came without any RTC battery to begin with, but you can see where it would go if it had one. IMG_20180405_221250 copy.jpg
 
A random 10 year old would be on firm and equal footing with respect to my soldering skills, so I dare not start digging around with a soldering iron. Obviously the price point is such that 2 Texas summers on those cams is fair, I think. One still works although it doesn't keep the date or time, more of an irritation, however, and the last time I tried updating the firmware on a cam, I bricked it... so I may just leave it as is until I buy a replacement.

The wife has the newer A119S in her car and so far it seems to be fine. Much like insurance, you don't know how good it is until you have to use it, so there is that.

OCD Tronic, do the A119S cams come with updated firmware?

The G1W I have that won't power on, would anyone like it before I trash it? You pay postage and I'll ship it.
 
I'm not seeing the Fulfilled by Merchant option.
 
Evening fellow cams,

... The problem I was having is, neither would keep the date and time accurately, they would reset overnight. Both are powered via cigarette lighter plug with the OEM plug that came with the cam. ....

Hi Sixfeetfree, I suspect your cam is battery powered not via capacitor so you don't need the RTC battery, as it would be supplied by the camera battery.
Have a look at the photo below see if you have something similar in your cam.

I think you said you live in Texas which I believe can get very hot 40C

You may find if you have a battery it has expanded and has failed. The charge cct on the battery may have also failed. This may be why you have no clock/time. It is replaceable and being in America I would suspect easy to source. You may need to solder the leads on to the cct (Circuit board)

I had a cam that the battery expanded and stopped the buttons working correctly on the cam. Pulled it apart and found it had expanded bulging. I replaced it but had to modify the case as the battery I sourced was slightly thicker. Worked fine until it got really hot over the summers and it expanded again. Can't remember if it worked for a year or three!


Li-po battery example small.png
 
Hey Lateral, thanks for the info. That cam lasted about two years so I can't really be disappointed, especially for the price point. I suspect you are correct, the heat finally killed it.

I have recently purchased two A119s cams, one back in February or March and another one within the last month. The first one has stopped working and I'll need to contact OCD Tronic for a replacement, if it's under warranty, I'll have to check. The second one hasn't been installed yet.

The heat here in north Texas is blistering in summertime. The forecast for the next week or two has temps from 98f-102f, something not many electronic devices can survive for very long. We try to keep our vehicles in the shade, but even the carports and window shades don't prevent the heat from burning up anything left in the car. And, spending $300+ on other electronics seems a dubious solution considering they don't withstand the heat any better. I do, however, practice the old adage of "buy once, cry once" but don't want to buy an expensive cam, have it die in the heat and then go through mounds of red tape trying to return/exchange it.

I'm curious how other cams fare in extreme climates, specifically the heat.
 
Hey Lateral, thanks for the info. That cam lasted about two years so I can't really be disappointed, especially for the price point. I suspect you are correct, the heat finally killed it.

I have recently purchased two A119s cams, one back in February or March and another one within the last month. The first one has stopped working ......
The heat here in north Texas is blistering in summertime. The forecast for the next week or two has temps from 98f-102f, something not many electronic devices can survive ....

I'm curious how other cams fare in extreme climates, specifically the heat.

I had devil of a time during Melbourne Australia summer. I tried to use my Iphone 8 to take photos of how hot the unit was (using an infrared meter) but the Iphone complained and shut down the camera!
I also had a dedicated temperature electronic device that I was using but it melted its battery compartment! The A119 showed no signs of any damage from the heat externally... which I think is quite a feat given it is stuck to the windscreen and I couldn't touch the windscreen it was so hot.

If I can find the photos I'll post them.

My problem was the dash cam wouldn't always start. I put it down to overheating. Others say that doesn't happen.
I drilled many extra holes in my dashcam and I think it helped it dissipate the heat. If I find those photos I'll post them too.

At the time we had temps around 39c (102) to 42c (107.6F)
 
Maybe put a piece of reflective window film on the inside. From the top edge of the windscreen down to just in view of the camera. I cut a piece of blue poly with a cut out for the suction mount. could hardly see it for the window tint.

Sun shining into the car heats it up but sun shining on a black dashcam raises the temperature even more.
 
Maybe put a piece of reflective window film on the inside. From the top edge of the windscreen down to just in view of the camera. I cut a piece of blue poly with a cut out for the suction mount. could hardly see it for the window tint.

Sun shining into the car heats it up but sun shining on a black dashcam raises the temperature even more.

Do you have your A119 connected to a suction mount? Usually they come with 3M tape and are stuck directly to the windscreen so they can't avoid the transfer of heat from the glass.
I do get what you are suggesting though. I was thinking of doing that to try to prevent relecflections from the dash, so above and below it.
 
My G1W's had suction mounts that, surprisingly, only disconnected a few times. The A119's have the tape. While the video is steadier with minimal shakiness on less than perfect roadways with the tape, it seems to get a bit hotter than the suction mount.

OCD Tronic suggested I do an update on the dead A119S, I'll post those results when I do.
 
My G1W-S came without any RTC battery to begin with, but you can see where it would go if it had one.
Hi Sixfeetfree, I suspect your cam is battery powered not via capacitor so you don't need the RTC battery, as it would be supplied by the camera battery

The photo of your old G1W-S did you take that? I read on another forum that another person also had that model of dashcam and was missing the RTC battery. Seems really unusual but stranger things have happened.
I'm just curious now. I don't like giving out incorrect info.

I'm happy with my A119 with the GPS mount. Various firmware updates helped to iron some odd things.
 
Lateral, no, the picture posted is not mine. The one I had found the trash can. However, I still have a G1W in my son's car, maybe I'll give it a shot and try updating it. I would attempt to peek inside it but my skills are geared toward things less... delicate. The last one I tried opening looked like an old tuna can opened with a rusty screwdriver by a blind hobo.
 
Good news, I updated the A119S that stopped working, it was frozen with a split screen. OCD Tronic directed me to the update and boom, works again! Maybe the heat didn't kill it after all.
Will update the G1W that still works but doesn't keep the date or time - will post results after I do it.

Thanks for the responses!
 
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