Bad GPS mount, no power

budster

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On a recently purchased A119 V3, found out that the dashcam would not power on while connected to the GPS mount, which was connected to the power. If the dashcam was directly powered while still connected to the GPS mount, then it would power on fine and could also receive the GPS signal. So it's not a connection problem between the GPS and dashcam, but instead points to a problem with the power input of the GPS mount. The mini-USB port on the GPS looks fine visually to me so I'm not sure what the issue is. I have another working A119 V3 with GPS and swapped mounts/dashcams between the units, and everything points to a defective GPS mount for the recent purchase.

Contacted the retailer and I'll be sending back the dashcam and GPS mount (sans accessories) for them to verify the issue before getting back replacements. So I'm glad I bought from an authorized retailer, but kind of disappointed that Viofo's quality control missed this. I wonder what kind of testing, if any, is done on a component like a GPS mount. When I mentioned this issue to the retailer's support, they said that they had come across similar power issues with Viofo's GPS mounts for a few other customers and were following up with Viofo on this. So seems I'm not the first one to run into this issue. Has anyone else here run into the same issue?

I'm aware the the A119 V1 had connection problems with its GPS mount that could cause it to lose power when the GPS mount was connected to power, but I understand this different issue was resolved on the V2 and V3.

I'm wondering now though why the GPS receiver is built into a separate mount instead of made part of the dashcam itself to avoid these kind of issues. I realize there may be business reasons to do this like offering a cheaper version of the dashcam for those that don't want or need GPS. Function-wise though, seems it would be better to have it all integrated unless I'm missing other reasons to keep it separate. Are there other dashcams that have GPS built into the dashcam itself?

Just giving a heads up on this as I never gave thought to testing the power input of the GPS mount before trying to install. Prior to installation, I did make sure that the dashcam could power on when powered directly, with or without the GPS mount connected, and that it could receive GPS data. So need to make sure that power to the GPS mount is added to my testing steps in the future.
 
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I'm aware the the A119 V1 had connection problems with its GPS mount that could cause it to lose power when the GPS mount was connected to power, but I understand this different issue was resolved on the V2 and V3.

I'd say improved rather than resolved. A few people have had similar problems since the contacts were redesigned, and the general consensus is that powering to the cam is best- the GPS still works that way.

I'm wondering now though why the GPS receiver is built into a separate mount instead of made part of the dashcam itself to avoid these kind of issues.

I can't say why for certain, but an outboard GPS doesn't add to heat in the main cam body, and it also makes EMI shielding easier to do and more effective. And it could be to do with cost too as you mentioned. So probably several reasons together making that decision.

Definitely sounds like you've got a bad GPS mount; likely a wiring issue somewhere between socket and the mount contacts.

Phil
 
I'd say improved rather than resolved. A few people have had similar problems since the contacts were redesigned, and the general consensus is that powering to the cam is best- the GPS still works that way.

The main reason why I wanted to route the power into the GPS mount was because the mini USB port is on the back of it, while the mini USB port on the dashcam is on the right side. So the USB cable would need to bend a bit to plug into the dashcam while the wiring would be cleaner and more straight if plugging into the GPS mount. Also, if the dashcam is positioned to the left of the rear view mirror (when you're in the car), the mirror mount can get in the way and there might not be enough space for the cable to plug directly into the port on the dashcam's right side.

I realize I could try one of those right angle mini USB adapters, but it's another small expense and potential point of failure. Has anyone had experience using such adapters? I wonder how well it would hold up over time and be reliable.

I like how on the A118C, the power port was on the back of the dashcam instead of on a side. I wonder why the port placement was changed on the A119. Maybe part of it was trying to have a sleeker form factor and reduce the thickness of the backend.
 
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