522GW Parking mode not working

[KevInC]

Hi, my first post here, I bought a Nextbase 522GW with Rearview camera for Christmas and have only got it going in the last few days.

The camera does normal recording while driving OK, however, Parking Mode does not work at all or more like it doesn’t stop working!

I initially had the unit on a switched live connection using the cigarette lighter for power, but the battery would only last literally minutes in parking mode before going dead.

I then wired the camera to a permanent live using the Nextbase hardwire kit. The issue I have is the camera is constantly been activated by the G sensor, recording a 30 sec clip of nothing on two camera’s followed by a 3 minute clip over and over again.

if the car is out in wind and rain I can understand but the car was parked in the middle of a covered car park today while I was at work for 9 hours and I had 75 protected files along with 150 unprotected files. At the moment the camera is filling a 128Gb card in less than 12 hours...




Can anyone shed any light in what is happening here, how are you even supposed to find the file is the was an incident when the car was parked?

@NextBase Support can you advise on what to do here?


Thanks

Kevin

 

[Nextbase Support]

Hi there,

I'd like to do some further investigations into what's causing this please. The time scale between the Protected Files is not consistent, so we need to find the root cause of the triggering.

I'd recommend doing a further indoor test to see whether the same result happens when the camera is charging in a location that you know has no external vibrations or triggering.

1) Take the Camera indoors. Un-plug the rear Cam.
2) Power the Cam using the Nextbase provided USB cable
3) Turn the Camera on. Make sure Parking Mode is on. Start the Dash Cam recording.
4) Leave the room.
5) Return after 3-4 hours.

Was Parking Mode ever triggered? If so, how frequently?
If not, that narrows it down to external factors in the car park or the current to the camera in the car.

What size/make/manufacturer is the SD card you're using please?

Which model Hard Wire Kit do you have please?

Let me know how you get on.

Regards,
Millie- Nextbase

 

[PatB]

Hope ypu have better luck than me at getting some actual support that helps.

Parking Mode Problem

Hi all, Pat here. I purchased a 522gw, a rear window camera, a 64G Nextbase sd card and a hardwire kit on the 16th Sept 2019. It is installed and wired to a permanent live feed. I am a professional mechanic by trade so I know its installed correctly. My problem is that when parked the camera...

dashcamtalk.com

 

[KevInC]

Hi, just to report back here, originally I thought I had the exact same issue as Pat above as lengths of recording were the same he was getting.

I started testing by removing the rear camera cable to see how it worked without it. The camera worked fine in parking mode.

To prove the problem was the rear camera I plugged in the rear camera cable again, however, this time the parking mode worked exactly as it should and has done ever since, very odd!

 

[PatB]

I bet your problem will return, my similar issue might clear up for a few days then camera crashes and its back.

 

[motovibe]

I'm following this post, I have the same problems but now my 522cw died and I'm trying to get it replaced. Best Buy says I'm two days late for return.
it worked for about 20 days

 

[Nextbase Support]

I'm following this post, I have the same problems but now my 522cw died and I'm trying to get it replaced. Best Buy says I'm two days late for return.
it worked for about 20 days

Hi there,

I've messaged you on the other forum you posted on regarding this issue.

Thanks,
Millie- Nextbase

 

[JamesP]

Hi, my first post here, I bought a Nextbase 522GW with Rearview camera for Christmas and have only got it going in the last few days.

The camera does normal recording while driving OK, however, Parking Mode does not work at all or more like it doesn’t stop working!

I initially had the unit on a switched live connection using the cigarette lighter for power, but the battery would only last literally minutes in parking mode before going dead.

I then wired the camera to a permanent live using the Nextbase hardwire kit. The issue I have is the camera is constantly been activated by the G sensor, recording a 30 sec clip of nothing on two camera’s followed by a 3 minute clip over and over again.

if the car is out in wind and rain I can understand but the car was parked in the middle of a covered car park today while I was at work for 9 hours and I had 75 protected files along with 150 unprotected files. At the moment the camera is filling a 128Gb card in less than 12 hours...

View attachment 50075
View attachment 50076

Can anyone shed any light in what is happening here, how are you even supposed to find the file is the was an incident when the car was parked?

@NextBase Support can you advise on what to do here?


Thanks

Kevin

I have experienced a similar problem. The same model dashcam hardwired connection, in my vehicle. When the dashcam is left in parking mode, it activates periodically without reason (even with the G sensor turned off), sometimes the dashcam crashes and needs a reset. There are occasions when the Alexa Skill loses its link. At first I thought maybe the wifi network in my home cause interference but after reading other comments by other users with the same issue, I can rule that theory out.

I gave up using the Parking mode and just turn the dashcam off when I have finished driving for the. Kind of defeats the purpose of purchasing such an expensive item.

Hi there,

I'd like to do some further investigations into what's causing this please. The time scale between the Protected Files is not consistent, so we need to find the root cause of the triggering.

I'd recommend doing a further indoor test to see whether the same result happens when the camera is charging in a location that you know has no external vibrations or triggering.

1) Take the Camera indoors. Un-plug the rear Cam.
2) Power the Cam using the Nextbase provided USB cable
3) Turn the Camera on. Make sure Parking Mode is on. Start the Dash Cam recording.
4) Leave the room.
5) Return after 3-4 hours.

Was Parking Mode ever triggered? If so, how frequently?
If not, that narrows it down to external factors in the car park or the current to the camera in the car.

What size/make/manufacturer is the SD card you're using please?

Which model Hard Wire Kit do you have please?

Let me know how you get on.

Regards,
Millie- Nextbase

 

[Nextbase Support]

I have experienced a similar problem. The same model dashcam hardwired connection, in my vehicle. When the dashcam is left in parking mode, it activates periodically without reason (even with the G sensor turned off), sometimes the dashcam crashes and needs a reset. There are occasions when the Alexa Skill loses its link. At first I thought maybe the wifi network in my home cause interference but after reading other comments by other users with the same issue, I can rule that theory out.

I gave up using the Parking mode and just turn the dashcam off when I have finished driving for the. Kind of defeats the purpose of purchasing such an expensive item.

Hi James,

The G-sensor setting is unrelated to the Parking Mode Setting; changing one will not effect the other. The G-sensor Settings are for normal driving cases and does not change the Parking Mode G-sensor.

If Parking Mode was turned on, any movement against the vehicle could have triggered a recording. Such as something on the roof (a bird or squirrel) or a strong gust of wind.

Regarding crashing, this sounds like an SD card fault. What SD card are you using please?

Regards,
Millie- Nextbase

 

[JamesP]

Hi James,

The G-sensor setting is unrelated to the Parking Mode Setting; changing one will not effect the other. The G-sensor Settings are for normal driving cases and does not change the Parking Mode G-sensor.

If Parking Mode was turned on, any movement against the vehicle could have triggered a recording. Such as something on the roof (a bird or squirrel) or a strong gust of wind.

Regarding crashing, this sounds like an SD card fault. What SD card are you using please?

Regards,
Millie- Nextbase

Samsung 128G 3U

 

[JamesP]

Hi James,

The G-sensor setting is unrelated to the Parking Mode Setting; changing one will not effect the other. The G-sensor Settings are for normal driving cases and does not change the Parking Mode G-sensor.

If Parking Mode was turned on, any movement against the vehicle could have triggered a recording. Such as something on the roof (a bird or squirrel) or a strong gust of wind.

Regarding crashing, this sounds like an SD card fault. What SD card are you using please?

Regards,
Millie- Nextbase

Okay fine any movement, or activities such as a small rodent bumping the vehicle may activate the dashcam while the parking mode is turned on. But why are there times when the dashcam and Alexa skills stop obeying voice commands?

And disabling and reenabling the Alexa skill doesn't always resolve the problem. There have been several incidents where I have cleared cache for the Nextbase app and setup the dashcam and Alexa Skill process again. In order to have the skill function correctly. I purchased this dashcam in December of 2019; I have lost count of how many times I have uninstalled the app restarted by mobile device, reinstalled the Nextbase app and went through the setup process all over again, because the Alexa skill has stopped functioning correctly.

The Alex skill is what got my attention for the Nextbase dashcam.

 

[DiverRich]

I have this exact same issue with parking mode. I've tried a switched power source as well and it just does this over and over until the battery on the 522 is dead. Then, of course, the camera doesn't work at all, defeating the whole reason for the parking mode.

 

[Kevver787]

I’ve had my 522GW for 5 months and it’s worked perfectly until about 3 days ago when it started doing this for no apparent reason.
It will record a protected file every 5 mins when parked up with a power supply, or, when I unplug it, it will record a protected file repeatedly until the internal battery is dead (about 3 mins) and then obviously not work at all.

 

[DiverRich]

I’ve had my 522GW for 5 months and it’s worked perfectly until about 3 days ago when it started doing this for no apparent reason.
It will record a protected file every 5 mins when parked up with a power supply, or, when I unplug it, it will record a protected file repeatedly until the internal battery is dead (about 3 mins) and then obviously not work at all.

So I think I figured it out. I was reading a previous reply by the manufacturer that it could be a current problem. I also read somewhere that the camera pulls 2.8 amps (I haven't confirmed that), but the connection kit comes with a 2 amp fuse. So, I popped in a 5 amp fuse and it hasn't misbehaved since. Works exactly as it should.

 

[Kremmen]

Just a shame the manufacturer hasn't been here since April.

 

[DiverRich]

Just a shame the manufacturer hasn't been here since April.

Yeah when I emailed them they were only interested in my proof of purchase and wanted me to make a video of what it was doing. That would be a pretty long video to send via email.

 

[Kevver787]

So I think I figured it out. I was reading a previous reply by the manufacturer that it could be a current problem. I also read somewhere that the camera pulls 2.8 amps (I haven't confirmed that), but the connection kit comes with a 2 amp fuse. So, I popped in a 5 amp fuse and it hasn't misbehaved since. Works exactly as it should.

I’ll take a look at that later but I’d be surprised if that was the issue. I’m using the cigarette lighter power supply cable that came with the camera, so unless that has a fuse in it, the camera is running from the 15amp fuse for the lighter socket. It also wouldn’t explain why it has the parking mode fault when unplugged from the power (keeps recording protected files until the internal battery is dead (about 3 mins, despite being on charge in the house for 6 hours and powered in the van for an hour)).

 

[DiverRich]

I’ll take a look at that later but I’d be surprised if that was the issue. I’m using the cigarette lighter power supply cable that came with the camera, so unless that has a fuse in it, the camera is running from the 15amp fuse for the lighter socket. It also wouldn’t explain why it has the parking mode fault when unplugged from the power (keeps recording protected files until the internal battery is dead (about 3 mins, despite being on charge in the house for 6 hours and powered in the van for an hour)).

Well that’s the interesting thing. Mine worked fine when it was connected via the power port (cigarette lighter) socket. Only had the issue after I installed it using their connection kit.

 

[SawMaster]

I’m using the cigarette lighter power supply cable that came with the camera, so unless that has a fuse in it....

Don't have the cam and can't tell from the pics, but many are fused. Press in on the central contact on the plug and turn anti-clockwise with fingers. If it keeps rotating there's no fuse underneath, but if it stops at one point, slowly releasing the inward pressure then will let it come apart and reveal a glass fuse inside.

Phil

 

[Kevver787]

A bit long-winded but bear with me:

I had a day off yesterday so did a bit of testing. I charged the camera fully overnight, formatted the memory card, and put the camera in my van on the drive. I plugged in the lighter power supply that came with the camera (cigarette lighter socket is permanently live) and turned parking mode on, pressed record and locked up the van.

I checked back 10mins later and the camera was ‘asleep’. I opened the van door and it woke and began recording a protected file (exactly as it should). It then recorded a normal file or 2 before going back to sleep. I left it 10mins and then slapped the windscreen and it did exactly the same again (so far, so good). I let it go back to sleep again and repeated the test. This time, it did the same as before but after the 5mins (ish) it wouldn’t go back to sleep and then went into the cycle of recording protected files every 5 mins and normal files in between. It continued doing this until I turned it off.

Having read a couple of posts about the current draw (2.8amps?) and the fuses being too small (2amps) I took the fuse out of the power supply cable. It was a tiny 250v fuse and I couldn’t see the current rating on it. It also said on the side that it was a 1.5amp power supply.

I decided to swap the power supply with a normal USB/Mini USB cable and my Sat-Nav lighter adaptor (no fuse). I connected it all up and repeated the tests; it worked perfectly all day (about 7 hours).

I had a 2 amp fuse in another charger so I swapped it over and tried the tests again with the original power supply and it worked fine to start with but after about half an hour just went back into the 5min ‘loop’.
So, it looked like the power supply was the problem. However, today, using my USB/Mini USB cable and Sat-Nav adapter that worked perfectly yesterday, I drove to work (1hr). Locked up the van and left it.

Went back to the van an hour later and it was stuck in the 5min loop again! When I checked the files it had started the 5min loop as soon as I’d parked up. So it’s not the power supply cable that is the issue.

As a side note, despite it being connected to power since taking it off charge at home, when I unplugged it in the van it went to sleep, immediately woke and began recording a protected file. 12 seconds into that recording the battery indicator showed only 1 bar and it went back to sleep. A quick tap and it woke again and started recording but dropped to empty on the battery and switched off after about 5 seconds. It wouldn’t come back on.
Bugger. So now I’m back to square one.
More tests later/tomorrow.