A129 Pro Duo - Questions

tsitalon1

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Thinking of picking this up for Christmas, a few questions:

1. Is this still the best Viofo in late 2020? I have the 119 v2 and I'm pleased with it, so I assume the A129 Pro Duo will be significantly better (based on YT vids I've seen)
2. Does this overlay the rear over the front, or are the video files separate for Front/Rear?
3. How do you guys like the parking mode of this model and is it better than the older A119 V2?

Thanks guys !
 
1. If you want 4K resolution then yes, otherwise, or if you drive much in the dark then the A129 Plus Duo might be a better choice. I think the best one is the A139, but that isn't quite available yet.

2. Seperate video files, the overlay is on only available on the screen.

3. Not familiar with A119 V2 parking mode, but I believe there are considerable improvements, for A129 Plus and A129 Pro.


 
Thank you for the info!

I think 4k would be beneficial for grabbing plate info when not very close to the car.

Haven't read about the A139, what's expected to be different about it and what is the expected launch date?

Nevermind - found info here:

Not sure I need interior video and really wouldn't be willing to drop from 4k to 2k just for interior video..
 
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Not sure I need interior video and really wouldn't be willing to drop from 4k to 2k just for interior video..
If you don't need the interior then it is the A129 Plus or Pro, the Plus being 2K with better low light quality, the Pro being 4K with better sunshine quality. The 4K can read plates at greater distance, the 2K can read plates at faster speed. If you want to make movies then go for the 4K.
 
See reports of this unit overheating.

I live in Alabama, very hot and humid days, would I be asking for trouble with the A129 Pro Duo?

I believe internal car temps can easily reach 130 º F
 
See reports of this unit overheating.

I live in Alabama, very hot and humid days, would I be asking for trouble with the A129 Pro Duo?

I believe internal car temps can easily reach 130 º F
Generally it only overheats when used for parking mode on sunny summer days and will start recording again when it cools down, if you are not going to use parking mode then it should be OK, although if you return to a very hot car then it may not start recording until it has cooled down. The same is true of all 4K dashcams, they use more power than lower resolutions so overheat easier.

The A129 Plus as far as I'm aware does not have any overheating issue, although I think it was released after mid summer so hasn't been fully proven yet. I don't expect any since it runs a lot cooler.
 
I would want to use buffered parking mode, but now days because of Covid, the car sits in the garage alot anyway...


Advertising for the A129 Plus lists -4 to 149º F temp range
Advertising for the A129 Pro lists up to 85º C

I believe those are the same, so in theory, it should be fine.
 
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149 is actually 65!

I think those are guaranteed survival temperatures rather than the temperature at which they decide to shutdown.

In practice the A129 Pro will shutdown over midday on a hot summer's day if parked in the sun, I expect the A129 Plus to keep going, the original A129 Duo certainly keeps going, never heard a report of that shutting down. It is not much of a problem that it shuts down to protect itself, just that it won't be recording at that time.
 
Sorry, yes, meant 65 º - LOL

ok, so my choice is 4k with a good chance of overheating during summer days outdoors, or 2k without overheating.

Since my only reason to upgrade from A119 v2 would be for dual channel with 4k (for increased chance of obtaining detail at a distance) I guess I should go for the A129 Pro Duo and hope for the best..
 
Sorry, yes, meant 65 º - LOL

ok, so my choice is 4k with a good chance of overheating during summer days outdoors, or 2k without overheating.

Since my only reason to upgrade from A119 v2 would be for dual channel with 4k (for increased chance of obtaining detail at a distance) I guess I should go for the A129 Pro Duo and hope for the best..
I think from what you have said, that I would move the A119 to the rear and put the A129 Pro (not Duo) at the front. It will not overheat so easily with only the one channel recording and you will get 2K at the rear instead of 1080 from the A129 Pro Duo rear camera. Of course you also end up with video on two memory cards with the file start timing not synchronised, but you also have some redundancy for if one memory card fails.
 
Viofo has also changed the firmware so the Parking Mode records in 1080P, so it decreases the overheating potential.
 
You have some valid points, but I'm leaning against that idea for the following reasons:

Double the wiring for power
No buffered parking mode for A119 v2 (that I know of)
 
No buffered parking mode for A119 v2 (that I know of)
Ahh, sorry, I was thinking of my V3.

Seems you have made the decision, and @CaptureYourAction 's advice is good, he will have a better idea of your temperatures than me, you could buy it from them if you want good support for any issues.
 
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