A329S Test & Review PP

[Chuck McCoy]

I’ve been using / testing Viofo telephoto cameras for 15 months, and they never fail to amaze when I analyze my test footage, (especially night footage).
The 2K (IMX675), and Viofo’s HDR tuning are a wonderful combination.
The “high quality glass” of the telephoto lens is a simple marvel that 4K wide angle cameras just can’t compare when trying to resolve far reaching details like license plates at night.

@Vueroid will have “post production digital enhancement” with their patented AI License Plate Restoration on the S1 4K.
I can’t wait to test, and see the difference of these two different approaches to resolve a plate at night.
Vueroid = 4K (IMX678) with “software” enhancement after the footage was filmed
Viofo = 2K (IMX675) with “hardware” enhancement in real time

I’m going over my night time test footage from last night, and I’m seeing all kinds of stuff I didn’t notice when I was actually driving.
When I drive my car I try to focus 100% of my attention on the task of driving, and trying to predict, and avoid potential threats, (other motorists).
When I drive a rental car, I buy the optional “walk away” insurance, and it falls to around 70%. lol

Let’s look at the first 5 Seconds of the 2K Telephoto, and 4K Front clip.
At 0:00 there is a small pickup truck parked across the street almost directly in front of me.
At 0:01 I turn on my low beam headlights, and the front license plate lights up like a billboard. lol
CA Plate #7S81308 2005 Chevrolet Colorado Z71
(yes, I have low quality, cheap, non-DOT approved, aftermarket LED bulbs in my traditional reflector headlamp housings, not ideal)

I had my trusty laser range finder with me for measuring exact distances just for occasions like this, but I was not aware at the time I would need the measurement.
Next time I leave the house I will measure, and update this post with the exact measurement.
Using my “Kentucky Windage” I would say the distance is around 25 Meters.
Let’s see how good my guess is.
*****(edited 8/4/25 8:18PM well I was way off, I just got back from measuring the distance with my laser range finder, and it's a whopping 42.2 Meters!)*****

Here are some screenshots, and a split screen video.
The first two screenshots are the original size.
The last two screenshots are “zoomed in”.

Will we ever get a 4K IMX678 Telephoto?
Hmmm.

 

[Nigel]

@Vueroid will have “post production digital enhancement” with their patented AI License Plate Restoration on the S1 4K.
I can’t wait to test, and see the difference of these two different approaches to resolve a plate at night.
Vueroid = 4K (IMX678) with “software” enhancement after the footage was filmed
Viofo = 2K (IMX675) with “hardware” enhancement in real time

Unless Vueroid have access to James Bond technology for zooming in to a recording with digital enhancement increasing the original sensor resolution at each level of zoom, then you are going to be disappointed! There is a reason that they call it "restoration" and not "recovery". With the Viofo, you actually have the sensor resolution necessary for reading the plate.

Will we ever get a 4K IMX678 Telephoto?

Someday we may, but I think it might give you a wider field of view compared to the 2K, rather than more zoom than the 2K...

 

[Augustus]

Unless Vueroid have access to James Bond technology for zooming in to a recording with digital enhancement increasing the original sensor resolution at each level of zoom, then you are going to be disappointed! There is a reason that they call it "restoration" and not "recovery". With the Viofo, you actually have the sensor resolution necessary for reading the plate.


Someday we may, but I think it might give you a wider field of view compared to the 2K, rather than more zoom than the 2K...

Resolution is still plenty for the 2K telephoto, but any resolution bump would be nice. Surprised more manufacturers haven't done more telephotos, but as soon as they do, the dominos will fall and the 4K will come.

 

[Chuck McCoy]

Random Waterproof Rear test footage.
Thank god I wasn’t speeding.

 

[Chuck McCoy]

Random Test Footage
Front 4K & 2K Telephoto.
Filmed 23 Minutes before sunrise.
Rare summer thunderstorm.

Here’s the original / raw files, (please download within 24 hours);
(2) 3 Minute clips.

A329S Front & Telephoto - Thunderstorm - Google Drive

drive.google.com

Here’s a 10 Second Loop of the “good part”, (adjust 0.25 playback speed with YouTube gear icon settings, and “4K quality”

Here’s the original / raw 3 Minute files uploaded to YouTube for easy viewing;

 

[Chuck McCoy]

Here’s a demo of the status LED on the A329S rear camera in;
1.) Normal / Driving Mode
2.) Low Bitrate Parking Mode
3.) LPID Parking Mode (low power impact detection)
This may apply to other remote cameras with status LED’s, (Telephoto, IR interior).
See attached screenshot for firmware version.

 

[amdpowered]

Sorry for bumping this thread, but it's the only one that has a good discussion about boot times on the a329s/t platform.
Is there an expectation of faster boot times on the A329s/t series from a firmware update in the future? Or is it what it is due to a newer generation processor at this point?

 

[Chuck McCoy]

Sorry for bumping this thread, but it's the only one that has a good discussion about boot times on the a329s/t platform.

I just re-tested this the other day. lol

Is there an expectation of faster boot times on the A329s/t series from a firmware update in the future? Or is it what it is due to a newer generation processor at this point?

The A329S 3CH (2025) & A329 2CH (2024) have the same processor.

BOOTUP SPEED TEST
13.69 Seconds A329
21.69 Seconds A329S

Here’s what it looks like from behind the cameras;

Is there an expectation of faster boot times on the A329s/t series from a firmware update in the future?

Better to ask Viofo directly here; SUBMIT A TICKET

 

[amdpowered]

Ticket submitted to Viofo. I think the boot time really needs to come down as I normally start the car and take off fairly quickly. Thus if there was an incident, the dashcam may not capture that event if it takes 21+ seconds to boot.

 

[viofo]

Ticket submitted to Viofo. I think the boot time really needs to come down as I normally start the car and take off fairly quickly. Thus if there was an incident, the dashcam may not capture that event if it takes 21+ seconds to boot.

The boot time will be optimized in the future firmware update. We are working on that, which requires a lot of work for the SDK update.
The optimization will be applied to the A229 and A329 series.

 

[amdpowered]

The boot time will be optimized in the future firmware update. We are working on that, which requires a lot of work for the SDK update.
The optimization will be applied to the A229 and A329 series.

Thanks for the insight and look forward to the update.

 

[Chuck McCoy]

Here’s a random screenshot showing the difference between S1-4K & A329S IR Interior FOV.

Both are able to capture plates of passing cars;
CA Plate# 9CMF296 2022 Tesla Model 3 Long Range

145° Measured Horizontal FOV S1-4K
179° Measured Horizontal FOV A329S

I’ll follow up with night time footage in IR B&W, and also show how accurate / fast each camera is at transitioning from B&W to Full Color, and back to B&W.

Here’s a photo showing how both IR Interior cameras are mounted;
Nobody ask what the star trek tribble is, (it’s a dead cat for wind noise). Lol

 

[Chuck McCoy]

A329S vs. S1-4K - Power Consumption / Heat Signature / Parking Mode Wake Up Speed Test

Q: What is the difference between A329S vs. S1-4K?
1.) Power Consumption: ELPM (Extreme Low Power Mode) vs. LPID (Low Power Impact Detection)
2.) Heat Signature: ELPM vs. LPID
3.) Parking Mode Wake Up Speed Test: ELPM vs. LPID

A:
POWER CONSUMPTION: ELPM vs. LPID
1mA x 12.6 Volts = 0.0126 Watts S1-4K
35mA x 12.6 Volts = 0.441 Watts A329S

HEAT SIGNATURE: ELPM vs. LPID - Garage Ambient Temperature 81℉ (27℃)
85.7℉ (29.8℃) S1-4K
92.2℉ (33.4℃) A329S
6.5℉ (3.6℃) A329S Hotter

PARKING MODE WAKE UP SPEED TEST:
1.11 Seconds A329S LPID
1.18 Seconds S1-4K ELPM

TESTING NOTE: Performing the parking mode wake up test is extremely difficult because it requires me to start the clock, and trigger an impact at exactly the same time.
This introduces my own human error of reaction times into the test data.
I practiced this around 10 times, and when I got it down I performed multiple tests to get an average time for each camera.
We need these results to be confirmed & verified by other testers.
I can see the clock on the S1-4K at 0.87 Seconds, but it’s so dark I don’t think its useful, so I’m going with 1.18 Seconds when the image illuminated to almost full brightness.

LMAO! I just watched the Sony Action Cam footage in 1/4 slow motion, and it looks like I start the clock about 0.25 Seconds after I slap the table.
Man, I’m way off. lol

Check out the videos to see what I mean;

 

[Chuck McCoy]

TonyM asked;
Q: Does A329S Rear & IR Interior cameras wake up from LPID parking mode same time as the Front camera?
A: Yes
The Rear camera wakes up with the Front Camera.
The IR Interior camera will have to wait a bit because I only have one, and it’s installed in my car.

Here’s the parking mode videos from the front & rear cameras, and the video from the “control” Sony Action Cam;

 

[Chuck McCoy]

A329S vs. S1-4K - Normal / Driving Mode - Power Consumption & Heat Comparison

Q: What is the difference between A329S 3CH & S1-4K 3CH in power consumption, and heat signature in Normal / Driving Recording Mode, (daytime driving conditions).
A: See Below

A329S Settings;
3CH Front + Rear + IR Interior
Firmware V1.2_250708
256GB Viofo SD Card
Wi-Fi Off
LCD Screen Off
Maximum Bitrate
HDR Off (front & rear)
HDR On (interior)
IR Interior LED’s Off

S1-4K Settings;
3CH Front + Rear + IR Interior
Firmware 1.2.0
256GB Vueroid SD Card
Wi-Fi Off
LCD Screen Off
Maximum Bitrate
Driving Recording Only Memory Allocation (to prevent going into parking mode)
HDR On (default)
IR LED’s Off (there’s no On / Off / Auto setting so I had to put a light in front of the interior camera light sensor to make sure they did not illuminate)

I let the both cameras operate in normal / driving recording mode for 1 hour.
I used the MIN / MAX / AVG function on my Fluke 115 & 117 to get the average amperage / current draw.

POWER CONSUMPTION:
446mA x 12.6V = 5.6 Watts (A329S 3CH)
626mA x 12.6V = 7.9 Watts (S1-4K 3CH)
2.3 Watts More S1-4K

HEAT SIGNATURE (highest observed temperature)
Garage Ambient Temperature 76℉ (24℃)
147℉ (64℃) A329S
166℉ (75℃) S1-4K
19℉ (11℃) S1-4K Hotter

 

[Chuck McCoy]

60fps vs. 30fps Comparison

1.) A329S Front 4K60fps
2.) A329S Rear 2K30fps

 

[Chuck McCoy]

A329S vs. Vueroid S1-4K 3CH
NIGHT TIME CITY TEST LOOP

Settings;

A329S
Firmware: V1.2_250708
Bitrate: Maximum
HDR: On All Channels
CPL Filter: Front On
CPL Filter: Rear On

S1-4K
Firmware: 1.3.1
Bitrate: Maximum
Video Enhancing: HDR + IPC (front camera)
Video Enhancing: HDR (rear & interior camera)
CPL Filter: Front On
CPL Filter: Rear Not Supported

Front;

Rear;

IR Interior

Bonus Footage;

 

[qusejr2]

A329S vs. S1-4K - Normal / Driving Mode - Power Consumption & Heat Comparison

Q: What is the difference between A329S 3CH & S1-4K 3CH in power consumption, and heat signature in Normal / Driving Recording Mode, (daytime driving conditions).
A: See Below

A329S Settings;
3CH Front + Rear + IR Interior
Firmware V1.2_250708
256GB Viofo SD Card
Wi-Fi Off
LCD Screen Off
Maximum Bitrate
HDR Off (front & rear)
HDR On (interior)
IR Interior LED’s Off

S1-4K Settings;
3CH Front + Rear + IR Interior
Firmware 1.2.0
256GB Vueroid SD Card
Wi-Fi Off
LCD Screen Off
Maximum Bitrate
Driving Recording Only Memory Allocation (to prevent going into parking mode)
HDR On (default)
IR LED’s Off (there’s no On / Off / Auto setting so I had to put a light in front of the interior camera light sensor to make sure they did not illuminate)

View attachment 85483

I let the both cameras operate in normal / driving recording mode for 1 hour.
I used the MIN / MAX / AVG function on my Fluke 115 & 117 to get the average amperage / current draw.

POWER CONSUMPTION:
446mA x 12.6V = 5.6 Watts (A329S 3CH)
626mA x 12.6V = 7.9 Watts (S1-4K 3CH)
2.3 Watts More S1-4K

View attachment 85484
View attachment 85485

HEAT SIGNATURE (highest observed temperature)
Garage Ambient Temperature 76℉ (24℃)
147℉ (64℃) A329S
166℉ (75℃) S1-4K
19℉ (11℃) S1-4K Hotter

View attachment 85486View attachment 85487
View attachment 85488View attachment 85489
View attachment 85490View attachment 85491

S1 4k has embeded Hardwire kit. that's why the temperature is higher. ( the input voltage of S1 is 12V , and make 5V inside the S1, it make some heat).

 

[Chuck McCoy]

S1 4k has embeded Hardwire kit. that's why the temperature is higher. ( the input voltage of S1 is 12V , and make 5V inside the S1, it make some heat).

If I perform the comparison again powering S1-4K through Type-C input, (5V instead of 12V) will the temperature be lower?

Most of my testing / comparisons provides little value.
This was to satisfy my own curiosity.
I doubt the camera would experience overheat / malfunction in normal driving mode, driving down the road with A/C & airflow.

 

[qusejr2]

If I perform the comparison again powering S1-4K through Type-C input, (5V instead of 12V) will the temperature be lower?

Most of my testing / comparisons provides little value.
This was to satisfy my own curiosity.
I doubt the camera would experience overheat / malfunction in normal driving mode, driving down the road with A/C & airflow.

Yes . but we don't recommend it since the parking mode is not supported with usb-c power supply. and even S1 is higher temp , we guarantee the normal operation within guaranted temp (65 celsius). and also we are preparing new firmware even over guarated temp while driving , S1 stop recording and wait until the temp is lower than guaranted temp. But it is very rare case the temp is over 65 while driving.