Anker Roav DashCam C1 Video Review

USDashCamera

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Hey guys, so another accessory company has jumped into the dash cam market, this time Anker. I personally love anker products so I was excited when I saw they released a dash cam and bought it myself so this was not provided for review. I bought it here from Amazon.

I think there are gonna be a lot of negative opinions on this cam around here, but actually like it for several reasons even if it won't be my most recommended cheap camera necessarily. I like that it is a wedge design, and it feels very high quality.

It uses a Novatek NT96658 chipset, and a Sony IMX323 sensor. It provides decent quality footage, but comparing it to the A119/S or several others it doesn't seem as crisp. But it's not the worst out there either. whether or not you are going to want to choose this over the A119/S is really gonna come down to if you trust anker enough as a brand, and if you want the g sensor based parking mode.

So the big draw for most people here will likely be the 470 mAh battery it has. No super cap in this cam. The reason is this is how it runs its parking mode. You don't need to hardwire it to use its parking mode, and can supposedly according to Anker record 30 clips (each about 30 seconds long) on battery power from impacts. I think I recall some cams used a g sensor based parking "guard" mode but I was never able to test them and from what I read they still required hardwiring and an additional accessory (mini 0806 I believe?). So this one out of the box has this interesting g sensor based parking mode, which could be ideal for people who want a parking mode but motion detection like on the A119 would not work since in busy areas the motion detection just results in continuous recording. I have had instances where my work parking lot was so busy that I had to turn off motion detection on my blackvue and only use g sensor parking, other wise it would record non stop all day long from cars constantly driving by.

But the main drawback with this mode is from my testing it takes about 7 seconds from impact (which isnt any worse than some motion sensor based parking modes if tested the last year), to recording. If someone backs into you there is a good chance they will still be on cam before they drive off as they react to their mistake (unless they truly book it out of there quickly). But for one you need to back into a parking spot always unless you are using this as a rear cam, and two will this be admissible evidence? I am a bit worried that since it doesn't capture the actual impact, if it doesn't capture them driving away and moving your car, they could still deny it. I think if you had to go to court over something like this, it would come down to whether or not the judge believes it is good enough evidence based on their understanding of how these cams work. This is for sure where a buffered parking mode is much better.

One other drawback I didn't like too much, is the touch buttons. It looks nice, very sleek, but it may annoy people who want to hit the emergency button but their is no tactile feedback of physical buttons.

In regards to the battery though, Anker claims it can run in temperatures as high as 149 degrees F. If these cameras start dying from hot summer heat at a high rate I am interested to see how Anker handles the RMA services because it offers a 1 year warranty. When I bought a 5 port USB hub from Amazon, and one of the ports stopped working, I emailed them and they asked if I did the trouble shooting, I said yes, and they sent a new one without asking for the old one back. So worst case scenario I do think Anker will do good on any problems, but that may bite them in the ass if it does end up being a big issue and then they might change their design or warranty. But on the flipside, many people have used battery based dash cams with no problem either. It could just mean these cam's batteries die after a few years tho, outside of the warranty period.

Basically my conclusion is, for the price of $100 an A119/S is a better buy if you just want better video quality. But the parking mode could appeal to SOME people, and anker has been a trust worthy brand from my experience.

Check out the video below:


Update 9/5/2017:

As I feared and what many people were expecting, there have been many people with issues from overheating. I did also receive an email about the recall and they are sending out new ones. I have been very busy the last few weeks with my day job and also moving so I haven't had much time to get around to it but I do plan on RMAing my unit.

They claim the new one has been reworked so the battery does not get as hot.... if that prevents the issues is yet to be seen. Of course many people will argue a super cap is always the better option.

I live in Minnesota so I don't have as hot temperatures as man people in the south so its hard for me to make claims for people in hot climates but anyone who lives in hot climates should beware if they plan to use the parking mode feature, or even if they just park in the sun for long periods of time.
 
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Thanks for the review. I like Anker as a brand, and almost bought this model. The Wi-Fi capability is a big appeal to me, and I guess one day it will be a must-have feature, but it seems to have too many other bugs right now.
 
This dashcam has proven to me to be no good.
A month in from having it and with summer heat coming in it has begun failing already on the hot weather - and it's only around 80F out.
It has to go back for this and poor image and bad sound reasons.
Our a119's perform much better.
 
It probably would last one day here in Texas. Our high today is 97F.
 
My review is I had it hardwired at bestbuy 4 weeks ago on front of my Camry. On the rear I have A119C. The anker Roav started making beep noise after a week of driving. I had the sensitivity to low and parking mode to off but the beep noise didn't stop. I did firmware upgrade and it didn't help. Anker sent me a replacement one and it has been a week and so far I have had no beep issue on this one but who knows , maybe it will start beeping after sometime like th old one . The other thing is the Roav gets extremely hot , untouchable by hand, when the temperature is 86f or above and mine is outdoor parking. The quality of video at day and night is decent though not stunning
 
I dunno what the beeping could be from. I still have mine so I might test it this summer when its really hot. I live in minnesota so usually july/august are the hottest months but before june it can be cold still.
 
I dunno what the beeping could be from. I still have mine so I might test it this summer when its really hot. I live in minnesota so usually july/august are the hottest months but before june it can be cold still.
Yes we shall see. The hot summer weather started recently and we will experience more and will know a lot about this dashcam let's say after a month. One thing I am so happy is they have outstanding customer service. Within 12 months of purchase, they will replace with new one if something if it goes bad and can even refund you if that's what you choose. That is a piece of mind. There are many so called warranties on many purchases but Anker stands out cos they act fast and won't charge you anything for replacements or full refunds
 
Yes we shall see. The hot summer weather started recently and we will experience more and will know a lot about this dashcam let's say after a month. One thing I am so happy is they have outstanding customer service. Within 12 months of purchase, they will replace with new one if something if it goes bad and can even refund you if that's what you choose. That is a piece of mind. There are many so called warranties on many purchases but Anker stands out cos they act fast and won't charge you anything for replacements or full refunds
Yea thats why i was on the fence. I know anker backs their products very well, but it makes me wonder if they will just give up on it if too many people have issues. I was pretty happy when they replaced one of their products, and let me keep the old one when 1 of 5 USB ports stopped working. The only question they asked was if I went through the trouble shooting and I just said yes.

Worst case scenario people in very hot climates could just not use parking mode or even take it down if parked out in the sun for extended periods of time. But at that point I dunno if the camera is worth it since the g shock parking mode is sort of the whole interesting part, so then another camera with a super cap would be better anyways. I personally would be too lazy to take it down all the time I'm parked out in the hot summer sun so I can't expect everyone else to do that too.
 
Yea thats why i was on the fence. I know anker backs their products very well, but it makes me wonder if they will just give up on it if too many people have issues. I was pretty happy when they replaced one of their products, and let me keep the old one when 1 of 5 USB ports stopped working. The only question they asked was if I went through the trouble shooting and I just said yes.

Worst case scenario people in very hot climates could just not use parking mode or even take it down if parked out in the sun for extended periods of time. But at that point I dunno if the camera is worth it since the g shock parking mode is sort of the whole interesting part, so then another camera with a super cap would be better anyways. I personally would be too lazy to take it down all the time I'm parked out in the hot summer sun so I can't expect everyone else to do that too.
Hey, what settings do you have on the MENU of the Roav cam?

What is your " sensitivity? I have it to low, and yet most of my recorded video files are getting locked and they all have "key" logo on them. I am not driving aggressively or driving on rough or pot holes and yet I could hear the beep noise like that of a guiter just once every now and then while driving and when I check the files, almost all of them are locked with key logo.


I am getting sick of this. If I set the " sensitivity" to off, I fear that during the real incident such as an accident, the file won't be locked and saved.
 
I've seen reviews mention that the shock sensor is sensitive enough that it will respond when you just close the car door. It might take that as an accidental impact and start recording 30-second clips in case you need to review later. I think they are locked (labeled with a key) to avoid being over-written.
 
I've seen reviews mention that the shock sensor is sensitive enough that it will respond when you just close the car door. It might take that as an accidental impact and start recording 30-second clips in case you need to review later. I think they are locked (labeled with a key) to avoid being over-written.
The Roav cam doesn't say sensor or G sensor. There is " sensitivity" in the menu and I believe that is the G sensor? I have set the " sensitivity" to low and yet almost all the files are getting locked and I could hear occasional noise like that of a guitar once every few mins of driving! I am not doing anything crazy and yet all the files are recorded and locked with key logo.
 
They probably call it it "parking mode," and I suppose you can turn it off or on, and set the sensitivity to low, medium or high. Try setting it to off to see if the problem goes away.

This video

discusses the parking mode sensor at 12:35. Note that there is an "off" option in the sensitivity menu at 13:54. but they might have changed the menu software since then.
 
They probably call it it "parking mode," and I suppose you can turn it off or on, and set the sensitivity to low, medium or high. Try setting it to off to see if the problem goes away.

This video

discusses the parking mode sensor at 12:35. Note that there is an "off" option in the sensitivity menu at 13:54. but they might have changed the menu software since then.
In the menu, there are video quality setting and then " sensitivity ","parking mode " "wifi" etc . The " sensitivity " option is set to low and I have the set the parking mode to off. Why do most of my recorded videos are still getting locked with key logo? I am not driving aggressively or acting crazy while driving
 
Since you are using a newer model and few other people here have it, your best bet is probably to send your questions to Anker. In my interactions with them for other products, they are always very responsive.
 
Since you are using a newer model and few other people here have it, your best bet is probably to send your questions to Anker. In my interactions with them for other products, they are always very responsive.
Thought you said you too own the Anker Roav and that's why I asked you if you see what I see in the menu and your settings
 
I bought a Viofo A119 about one week before the Roav was introduced. I would have considered the Roav for its wi-fi capability, which the A119 doesn't have.
 
I have the Anker Roav dashcam and it was put to the test on our recent roadtrip to Galveston, Texas. I left it mounted on the windshield while I left the car on the open parking lot for a few days. Summer is in full swing in Texas and at one point, it got really hot inside the car that I was unable to hold the dashcam with my bare hands to insert the memory card. It turned on regardless of the heat and I don't see any signs of the windshield mount failing or melting. I don't use parking mode so I can't really comment on the battery but so far this dashcam has passed the summer heat test.

I do have an issue with reflections/glare. At one point yesterday during a drive around town (this was already after the road trip), the camera was focused on the reflection instead of the road ahead and so the resulting video was blurry. I don't think there is a way to manually set the focus on this dash cam. If it happens again, I will have to contact Anker support.
 
so far this dashcam has passed the summer heat test.

I do have an issue with reflections/glare. At one point yesterday during a drive around town (this was already after the road trip), the camera was focused on the reflection instead of the road ahead and so the resulting video was blurry. I don't think there is a way to manually set the focus on this dash cam. If it happens again, I will have to contact Anker support.

Doesn't seem like it. What you've described sounds like a heat related focus shift.
 
Doesn't seem like it. What you've described sounds like a heat related focus shift.
Interesting... I have never heard of such a thing, but this is my first ever dashcam and so I have lots to learn. Sounds like I need to some more reading on here.
 
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