All settings?

S

Sentinel

Member
Joined
Feb 17, 2016
Messages
47
Reaction score
0
Country
United States
I just bought a G1W-C (was supposed to be a -CB but, like many others what came in the box was the -C) and I have a few questions regarding all the settings. It came with a manual which explained a few and I researched online and found out a few more but it seems as though nowhere is there one place where all the settings and what they do is posted. So if I could get some help explaining them I'd appreciate it and I'm sure so would some others.

1. WDR [on/off]
I see on the screen is says WDR and in the settings there is a setting to turn it on or off but it does not say what it is or does. I think WDR stands for Wide Dynamic Range and increases the ability of the cam to record in low light situations. I have no idea why one would want this to be off for any reason if I am correct?

2. Auto Power Off [off/30sec/1min]

3. IR LED [on/off]
Turns a bright light on and off on the front of the camera but does not say what it is for. Seems kinda small for night shooting at such distance. Due to it's size and lack of power it has to be only to take photos in low light or something. Maybe to take still shots of an accident or something. Because it can't possibly help with distance filming while driving.

Also a few that I think I figured out but I'll post anyway to make sure:

4. Beep Sound
Turns the click sounds of pressing buttons on and off

5. TV Mode
For playback when connected to a TV I'm guessing.

6. Frequency
Should be set to whatever is correct for your country. In the USA I think this is supposed to be set to 60 hz to avoid flicker when playing back recorded videos on TV, but I'm not sure about this one.

7. And does the red LED flash all the time always during recording?

8. Screen Saver
Might be to shut the screen off after a few minutes while driving during recording. Again not sure here as it is called different things with different firmwares and different manuals.

9. How do I know what firmware I currently have?
On mine there is a setting called version but all it says it V1.
-
Pressing certain buttons during recording seems to have different features than when pressing the same buttons while not recording: Am I right on these?

-Pressing mode while recording seems to turn the microphone off or on so it does not record audio in the cabin.
-Pressing M while recording appears to lock the current file being recorded.
-Pressing the power button while recording seems to turn the IR light on/off.

If anyone has anything additional to add or can confirm any of this please do.
 
Hi Sentinel & welcome to DCT.

I'm guessing the manual that was supplied was probably more of a quick start guide. I found quite a comprehensive manual here;
This should answer most of your questions.

The IR LED will be the infrared light, which is supposed to improve night vision recording. However, most people find the glare from the light reflects off the windscreen reducing your own visibility!

Regards
Richard
 
Thanks. That manual does seem to have most of the setting in there so that is very helpful and much appreciated.

Still don't know about "auto power off" which sounds like it turns the unit off after a certain amount of time, which can't be because why would you want that? So I must not be understanding that setting right.

And I still don't know how to tell what firmware version I have.

Also, it says that you can put your plate number in there and I don't seem to have a setting for that. Although on the screen during recording it displays "AAAAAA" in the left corner which, I'm guessing, is supposed to be my plate number. I don't care because I don't really want to put my plate number in there but it is odd to have it displayed and yet no setting to edit it or remove it from the recording.
 
The idea of the auto power off, is to allow time for the camera to shutdown properly. Just like your pc, turning off, or disconnecting the power to the camera whilst it's operating could damage the software, so the camera has a build in battery (or capacitor) that provides enough power and time to allow it to shut down properly. Looking at the instructions, you can delay this shut down by 3, 5 or even 10 mins. Whilst it's not completely clear in the instructions, I would assume that if the auto-power was set to 'off' the camera will shut down safely straight away when you turn the engine off or disconnect the power lead.

Regarding the firmware version; the instructions suggest that there is an option in the menu, that when selected, will display the version number. I did a quick internet search and could only find a firmware update on the Spytech website, but this is dated May 2015 https://spytec.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/5000629859-g1w-c-current-firmware There is also a thread on this forum that suggests it's better to leave the firmware alone, as there are a few stories of corrupted updates https://dashcamtalk.com/forum/threads/how-to-update-g1w-c-firmware.6450/

Your right about the 'AAAAA' being where your plate number can be displayed. The instructions are a little bit vague on how to set this up and certainly doesn't give any clue about turning it off.

One other piece of advice, if I may; when you insert the micro SD card, it's always a good idea to format the card via the camera's menu (Page 10 of the manual). This ensures the memory card is set up properly for the camera.

Hope this all helps
Richard
 
auto power off
Ah, OK. Well it came set to off and it seems to work fine. And since this is a capacitor model I think I better leave it set to off because if I set it to 3 minutes I don't know if the capacitor power will last that long which may cause it to shut down incorrectly. Also I really don't need it recording when then car is off.

As I said, I did find the setting called "version" but in there it does not list the complete firmware version. All it says is V1.

Thanks for the help.
 
Auto power off is only for when the camera is in standby mode and not recording, if sitting idle it will power down at the designated time
 
Ah, OK. That makes more sense. They should really explain that a little better somewhere. In all my searching yours is the first explanation I have seen about that.
Very much appreciated.
 
Sentinel said:
They should really explain that a little better somewhere.
Click to expand...
You're asking too much! 😀

As for the "number plate", if your camera doesn't have that option in the menus you have to flash a different firmware to solve that problem. Read THIS post.
 
richardkhill said:
The IR LED will be the infrared light, which is supposed to improve night vision recording. However, most people find the glare from the light reflects off the windscreen reducing your own visibility!
Click to expand...
That is just a normal white LED, not an infrared LED as they want us to believe by naming it IR.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top