2014 VicoVation Marcus-3, 1080p-60Fps, Super HD 2304 x 1296р, 3DNR, WDR, LDWS, FCWS , GPS, CPL

[itsHIM]

this over sharpening is an A7 problem at the moment

"At the moment"... Does that mean this is fixable in firmware, and is it likely to get fixed? With a little googling I see others had this issue with the WF1, also.

 

[jokiin]

Yes it's fixable

 

[venezian]

I screwed up... I mounted half of the suction on the part of the glass with the black dots and now it won't stay put because it's indented on the plastic... I'm hoping leaving it pressed up against the glass in tomorrow's 80* sun will smooth it out again.

 

[woorich]

I've been using a DOD300w but I just got the Marcus 3 and moved the 300w to the rear window. I was very excited about the Marcus 3, but now reviewing the video I took today I'm deeply disappointed.

The quality is terrible compared to my 300w; compression artifacts and sharpening halos abound. It's worst in super-HD mode (60fps HD), but hardly any better in regular HD. I made some comparison shots (edit: I used the 30fps HD mode on the Marcus 3 for these comparisons), but because I'd already installed my 300w in the rear window, they're shots from different days (I re-drove a route I already had a 300w video for).

First, 300w on the left, Marcus 3 on the right (not in the same location, but I tried to get a similar car at a similar distance):

Here, 300w on top, Marcus 3 on bottom (both cropped but not scaled):

Here, Marcus 3 on the left, 300w on the right (sorry I'm not consistent!):

Is this normal for Vicovation products? The only dash cam I've ever had is the 300w, and it's performed superbly with the exception of an annoying dead battery. The Marcus 3 has a wider field of view, which is nice, but at this point I'm probably going to return it unless anyone has any better advice.

For a fair test, you not only need to compare the same locations/same distances, but you also need the same sort of ambient lighting -- that's why side-by-side tests are best. (Those, or tests performed along the same route within minutes of each other.)

The lighting was different at the times you photographed, and that may be contributing significantly to the results. In the top panel, the Vico image appears to partly include the reflection on the windshield. That effect seems to be more likely to occur when driving into sunlight, and the Vico had the sun above and ahead on the right. When the sky is overcast, or when you are driving with the sun behind you, that effect seems to be much less likely to occur. (I'm no expert, but I am assuming this based on the posted images I've seen of various cameras.) The 300W in the top panel had sunlight further off to the right, so the windshield reflection was heavily attenuated or absent. In the second panel, the 300W image was taken on an overcast day, while the Vico image was taken on a day with some clear sunlight out. The difference in the third panel is even clearer -- there are obvious shadows on the left but almost no shadows on the right, and you can see the hills in the distance on the left but the cloud cover largely obscures the hills on the right. (Even so, the Vico image does look pretty miserable in that bottom panel, where you can't even see the outlines of the large letters on the yellow sign.)

It may be that the Marcus 3 as currently configured simply takes inferior images all around compared to the 300W. But I'm not sure you can conclude that yet because of the problems with the tests.

 

[mirobolaur]

Regarding the CPL filter, the back of the filter mount is not covered with anything (like a cap, or just pure plastic, it's just a round frame with the filter in front and no cover on the back; the mount diameter exceeds the width of the camera by about 3-4mm on each side), so light enters inside the casing and causes a small reflection of whatever is behind the camera (metal, windows, etc).

http://imgur.com/a/vWcC5#0

Hello there;

I noticed the same "behind the camera" reflection (see example 2); I also noticed the CPL filter is not working as intended, see examples. The object in the middle of the screen (a lighter) can be seen in first example along with the recflection from the left/ right side of the dashboard; I rotated the filter until the lighter dissapeared but the reflections from the left/ right sides of the screen are still there. I don't know if it's the CPL filter's fault; I will try with another 52 mm CPL filter from a photo accessories shop (I personally don't trust much the Vico filter since it's a no-name) and I will post here the conclusions.

Example 1: http://i.imgur.com/4Ze3Ym5.jpg

Example 2: http://i.imgur.com/h0T1Mwd.jpg

 

[Milamber]

Interesting, I do not get this result from my CPL lens. When I'm back from my trip my review will be complete. Any anomalies like this will be highlighted.

 

[iuda]

Hm my firmware is different.

and my Transcend 64GB card does not work.

why is diference between firmware M3 whit firmware v1.0 and 1.1

the answer from vicovation :

Currently English Software is V1.0 and cannot activate GPS features yet. V1.1 is for Chinese Version and soon we will release new software for English package. Please stay tuned. Thank you.

 

[Blaze9]

Who are you contacting (e-mail) for vicovation? I'm trying to keep in touch with them for the latest information.

So far, the image quality at night isn't great, but hopefully the new updates work great.

 

[isdoo]

Who are you contacting (e-mail) for vicovation? I'm trying to keep in touch with them for the latest information.

So far, the image quality at night isn't great, but hopefully the new updates work great.

service@vicovation.com taken from http://www.vicovation.com/catalogshow.asp?IDno=7&lang=en

 

[iuda]

and here https://www.facebook.com/VicoVation?fref=ts

 

[venezian]

Do you guys know if using a power controller is bad for the marcus 3?

I have a blackvue "power magic" power controller hardwired and lately I've noticed my marcus 3 would restart. It's recording then it will play a sound, the red light goes off, the screen comes on, then about 3 - 5 seconds later it begins recording again. Not sure if something is wrong with the device or if the power controller is doing it. I did not have this issue with my old BV cam.
I will plug it into the normal 12v today to see if it does the same thing.

 

[cheery3853]

Do you guys know if using a power controller is bad for the marcus 3?

I have a blackvue "power magic" power controller hardwired and lately I've noticed my marcus 3 would restart. It's recording then it will play a sound, the red light goes off, the screen comes on, then about 3 - 5 seconds later it begins recording again. Not sure if something is wrong with the device or if the power controller is doing it. I did not have this issue with my old BV cam.
I will plug it into the normal 12v today to see if it does the same thing.

First, I would like to know what is your power magic configuration voltage setting.
It seems your battery voltage is around somewhere close to the configuration voltage.
Please check out the voltage of your battery.

 

[venezian]

First, I would like to know what is your power magic configuration voltage setting.
It seems your battery voltage is around somewhere close to the configuration voltage.
Please check out the voltage of your battery.

It set do that if the battery drops below 11.6v it will automatically turn off. If the car is running it has power even if the switch set to OFF. The cam had restarted while the car was on and drawing power.

 

[iuda]

new firmware for M3 and M1

http://www.vicovation.com/catalog.asp?KeyId=3&lang=CHT

not very impressed

 

[isdoo]

new firmware for M3 and M1

http://www.vicovation.com/catalog.asp?KeyId=3&lang=CHT

not very impressed

What issues are there with it? Also is it English?

 

[iuda]

in the archive is two firmware and english manual. I'm very disapointed because is noise in videos. I think the reson is the WDR.

sorry for my english

 

[iuda]

samples here http://fastupload.ro/051079ed99adb3823d8ace5ea7343150.html

1.0 is the first firmware , 3.1 is the latest
1080p 30fps

 

[Blaze9]

Not seeing any major difference between the two sets of videos. Not fairly impressed either.

 

[cheery3853]

in the archive is two firmware and english manual. I'm very disapointed because is noise in videos. I think the reson is the WDR.

sorry for my english

You can low the exposure value to -0.5 and turn on WDR at night.Nosie reduction works well.

 

[iuda]

usless to modify the exposure value,