A119 Mini 2 Test & Review PP

TonyM said:
How do these three cameras fare on a stationary dimly lit scene with few bright highlights, such as a parking lot? I'm currently evaluating a low light camera that out-performs my A139 Pro for parking mode or surveillance in very low light.
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Have a look at these three screenshots here; https://dashcamtalk.com/forum/threads/viofo-a119-mini-2-test-review-pp.48947/post-593722

It was very, very dark. I could barley see my hand in front of my face. The only illumination was from the moon, and a single street lamp off to the right.

You can see the street lamp in these videos of the train crossing;

Viofo A119 Mini 2 Test & Review PP

How about a round of applause for @viofo? It looks like they’ve done it again. I started reviewing dash cams for Viofo June 14, 2022. In the past 11 months they’ve released the original A119 Mini, A229 Duo, A139 Pro, WM1, and now the A119 Mini 2. All of them in my opinion are “class leaders”...
dashcamtalk.com dashcamtalk.com

The original Mini does very poorly in low light compared to the Mini 2 & A139 Pro.
 
Panzer Platform said:
Have a look at these three screenshots here; https://dashcamtalk.com/forum/threads/viofo-a119-mini-2-test-review-pp.48947/post-593722

It was very, very dark. I could barley see my hand in front of my face. The only illumination was from the moon, and a single street lamp off to the right.

The original Mini does very poorly in low light compared to the Mini 2 & A139 Pro.
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Thanks - I forgot you had posted those screenshots recently. Your results are similar to what I've seen comparing my Starvis 1 and Starvis 2 cameras.
 
Here’s some random test footage with the Mini 2 just before sunrise on the rear window.
 
I’ve been complaining about the low volume level of the audio on the Mini 2.
You can barley hear your voice speaking directly to the camera.
Turns out it’s great at picking up wind noise. Lol
 
Panzer Platform said:
I’ve been complaining about the low volume level of the audio on the Mini 2.
You can barley hear your voice speaking directly to the camera.
Turns out it’s great at picking up wind noise. Lol
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Cameras are made for the windshield. Therefore, the windshield is not affected by the wind. so since the microphone is on the main camera
No special effort was made to prevent wind noise.

Wind noise is evident as all the wind will gather at the back when you open the window. However, the insulation of the rear of the vehicles is weaker than the front, and it will make a slightly louder noise than the front, even if the window is closed.

In addition, the microphones of the cameras must be in the same position during the test.

microphone positions of the cameras may change. For example, a microphone placed to the right of the camera can record the sound differently when the driver is on the side. If you position the same camera to the right of the mirror or under the mirror in the middle of the glass, the sound may be different. For example, you mounted it on the right side of the mirror and if the microphone part of the camera is close to the mirror extension, a different sound will be produced.
so if one camera is to the right of the mirror and the other to the left or in the middle of the windshield yes it gives an overall impression but it's not a fair race.
 
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I wish I had found this forum and your test results before placing my order today. Hopefully Viofo has the bugs worked out soon since mine will probably be here in 12-15 days.

The bit rate and sound quality seem to be the biggest 2 issues you’ve ran across this far?
 
So far the Mini 2 looks like it's going to be a great overall dash cam, I'll have no problem recommending it.
The only Con is the audio volume level is too low.
 
This will actually be my first dash cam (I know, welcome to the 21st century). I watched Vortex Radar’s recent “best dash cam’s of 2023” review and decided on this new model. I’ve been lucky as an early adopter in most things. Hopefully the A119 mini 2 will be no different. (I’m certain that firmware updates will help out with the audio and any other bugs that pop up).
 
Well most cameras come a bit rough, but most brands also know this and push updates, generally things work just fine from day 0 but there will still be some rough edges to smooth over, ATM the sound thing seem the worst to me, even if i dont really care much for audio as i have to mute the sound anyways, well at least for things i share, or the music playing in mu car will generate copyright issues.
But ! sound are big for a lot of other people, and i also prefer it to be working as it should.
 
I wish I knew this cam was coming out before I bought the mini 1st gen. I wasn't expecting any upgrades for a bit longer and why I pull the trigger. Oh well Ill wait for things to be figured out in next few months and decide if its worth the upgrade to the mini 2. Wm1 has been great for a rear camera though. Thought about returning the wm1 and just waiting for mini 2 and put the first gen mini in rear but I cant stand the window heater lines in the video. Wm1 is just high enough out of the way I cant see them. I think that cam is fine where its at.
 
Mvgratz said:
I wish I had found this forum and your test results before placing my order today. Hopefully Viofo has the bugs worked out soon since mine will probably be here in 12-15 days.

The bit rate and sound quality seem to be the biggest 2 issues you’ve ran across this far?
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I think you can rely on Viofo above all other manufacturers to issue regular firmware updates based on feedback from users, so don't worry too much. Most of their cameras seem to be a bit rough around the edges at first.
 
Panzer Platform said:
So far the Mini 2 looks like it's going to be a great overall dash cam, I'll have no problem recommending it.
The only Con is the audio volume level is too low
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Have you opened up the Mini 2 to see where they placed the MIC?
 
CaptureYourAction said:
Have you opened up the Mini 2 to see where they placed the MIC?
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No. I doubt I could reassemble without damage.
When I reported this identical issue 11 months ago on the original Mini, I was told they would replace the bad MIC with an upgraded MIC.
It looks like they are still using the bad MICs.
 
Panzer Platform said:
I’ve been complaining about the low volume level of the audio on the Mini 2.
You can barley hear your voice speaking directly to the camera.
Turns out it’s great at picking up wind noise. Lol
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The wind noise is very evident. Perhaps they didn't expect the dashcam to be installed on the back window?

I noticed that the video seems to be stepping eg slight pause between some frames. This used to happen on another of their dashcam's. With a bit of firmware manipulation I think they fixed it.

Cheers
 
LateralNW said:
Perhaps they didn't expect the dashcam to be installed on the back window?
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People keep saying I'm mounting my cameras on the "wrong" window. lol
There is no restriction where a dash cam can be mounted.
Heck, I just saw video of someone using their dash cam on a commercial airliner going 622km/h. lol
That's kind of the whole point of "test & evaluation" and experimentation.
But yeah, this is probably not fair to the camera because maybe my car has a lot of wind turbulence at the rear window with all four side windows rolled down.
But then again, this could be fixed for pennies by the manufacturer by adding a small "dead cat" (small piece of fuzzy material over the mic).
-Chuck
 
LateralNW said:
The wind noise is very evident. Perhaps they didn't expect the dashcam to be installed on the back window?
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I've had an A119 V3 mounted in the rear window (on the headliner with the lens just behind the sliding glass panel) of my truck for over two three years now and there's been no problem with the sound or wind noise. I don't see why that should be an issue with the Mini? I think Viofo just needs to sort this out, whatever the issue may be.
 
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Panzer Platform said:
People keep saying I'm mounting my cameras on the "wrong" window. lol
There is no restriction where a dash cam can be mounted.
Heck, I just saw video of someone using their dash cam on a commercial airliner going 622km/h. lol
That's kind of the whole point of "test & evaluation" and experimentation.
But yeah, this is probably not fair to the camera because maybe my car has a lot of wind turbulence at the rear window with all four side windows rolled down.
But then again, this could be fixed for pennies by the manufacturer by adding a small "dead cat" (small piece of fuzzy material over the mic).
-Chuck
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I wasn't picking on you for your placement. I agree it should be able to handle wind noise. On an older model of Viofo Dashcam they had a thin film over the mic... I assumed it was to reduce ingress of dust/dirt but it may have also helped in reducing wind noise. here is a picture of it ..
FRdPje6.jpg


The dashcams I have tested probable don't have a microphone in the rear camera.... .I might pull one apart and have a look.



Did you also see the stepping/jerking in the video?



Cheers.
 
In-car cameras are made for the windshield. Those who want to record from the back, inside and from the side will have 2-channel and 3-channel models. External cameras do not have a microphone. Therefore, if you install a single main camera at the back, it may be affected by wind noise when the window is opened. This is something that can vary from vehicle to vehicle.

If there is a 1ch camera on the back window, I always go with the window open, those who say that they will not be affected by the wind should turn to action cameras. Or, if you insist on having a single camera and a dash cam at the back, you can take the a139, a229 1ch and take an external microphone and position the microphone in the front so that it is not affected by the wind.

Remember, some phones are waterproof and some are not (up to certain conditions).
In summary, it is important to use it for its intended purpose and to follow the advice.
 
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