A few questions from a new VIOFO A229 Pro 2CH owner

[Paulbri]

Hi,

This is my first VIOFO dashcam, after my old trusty dashcam packed up after 8 years of service I decided to give VIOFO a go as per good reviews on the internet.

I hardwired it with an HK4 kit and there is my first question, what setting is recommended to use for the power cut off 11.8 / 12 / 12.2 or 12.4v? I don't run parking mode all settings are off related to parking.

My second question is what would you recommend for the bitrate? I understand the higher the bitrate the better video quality but hence more space is used on the SD card? I got a 128GB SD card but I already can see I will probably need to upgrade it to have a longer recording at least to last me 8 hours of archive on 2 channels. Is the higher bitrate worth the extra space in your experience?

My third question would be is there a software to view recordings on the MAC/PC that would show you a map with a route on it with your car's location while watching back the video like in the screenshot?
Same for the iPhone on VIOFO's marketing images they show a map but I don't have that on my app is this just cool marketing or I'm missing something?

Thank You

 

[Karagandinez]

Welcome to the forum

I hardwired it with an HK4 kit and there is my first question, what setting is recommended to use for the power cut off 11.8 / 12 / 12.2 or 12.4v? I don't run parking mode all settings are off related to parking.

If the parking mode is off, set it to 12-12.2V.

My second question is what would you recommend for the bitrate? I understand the higher the bitrate the better video quality but hence more space is used on the SD card? I got a 128GB SD card but I already can see I will probably need to upgrade it to have a longer recording at least to last me 8 hours of archive on 2 channels. Is the higher bitrate worth the extra space in your experience?

I always set the maximum resolution and maximum bitrate. For me, video quality is more important than space on the memory card.

My third question would be is there a software to view recordings on the MAC/PC that would show you a map with a route on it with your car's location while watching back the video like in the screenshot?
Same for the iPhone on VIOFO's marketing images they show a map but I don't have that on my app is this just cool marketing or I'm missing something?

This will help you: Dashcam Viewer for Mac and Windows
You can read about it here:

Thread 'Dashcam Viewer for Mac and Windows'

Feb 24, 2014

Hi everyone. We just released version 1.2 of Dashcam Viewer. This version supports the 3-axis shock sensors in the Mini 0801. Data from these sensors are displayed in the Graph window. Current DCV users can download the new version using the "Check for new version" feature under the Help menu. Or anyone can download it from:

http://dashcamviewer.com

We are also pleased to announce the release of Dashcam Viewer for Windows. The Windows version offers the same capabilities as the Mac version, plus some additional controls for the brightness and contrast of the video. Although the...

• traveler
• Replies: 1,220
• Forum: Dash Cam Software / Development

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[Paulbri]

Thank you @Karagandinez appreciate the reply answers all my questions

 

[haiou_f]

To save storage space, I usually only turn on the front and rear cameras

 

[Nigel]

Same for the iPhone on VIOFO's marketing images they show a map but I don't have that on my app is this just cool marketing or I'm missing something?

The map is only shown if you download the video to the phone, then view it. Otherwise, the phone doesn't have all the GPS data since it is spread throughout the file.

I hardwired it with an HK4 kit and there is my first question, what setting is recommended to use for the power cut off 11.8 / 12 / 12.2 or 12.4v? I don't run parking mode all settings are off related to parking.

If you are not using parking mode then it will not make much difference, since it will always turn on/off with the ignition anyway.
If you want to use just a bit of parking mode, then I recommend using the parking duration timer to limit it to 30 minutes, or 3 hours, then the car battery will never go flat as long as you don't only drive 5 minute journeys. If using parking mode then 11.8V is good for AGM batteries, 12.2V is good for standard lead acid batteries.

Is the higher bitrate worth the extra space in your experience?

If you are driving fast under trees then yes, I recommend Maximum. Around the city you would find it hard to tell the difference from High. If you actually want to store many hours on the card then you can go for lower bitrates and it still works OK, but better quality is probably more important than longer recordings for most people. Memory cards tend to have a maximum number of write cycles before they wear out, so larger cards generally last longer, and in the long run do not cost more.

 

[Paulbri]

Thanks for your advice @Nigel

 

[viofo]

Finally, VIOFO will release an official VIDEO Player for Windows and MAC soon.