Because of the company quality... planing to return mine.

[in2ndo]

Hello Everyone.

Just have to say and I think people should follow.
I have dealt with companies like thinkware before. And they're never nice to the consumer.
They went and won their trophy with the F800.. and now they are letting us consumers wonder what we might be lucky to get.
There are all kinds of statements online from actual future sellers. From the F800 is going to get the cloud uograde.. to the cloud is going to be strictly for the PRO version.
And not a beep from the company to put us.. the consumer at ease.
At this point it really doesn't matter. But I think they should say something.
So.. I'm going to be returning mine.. paying another 100 bucks to have it unhardwired.. if that is even a word.. and I really don't mind. Not because I have money to waste. But exactly because I have no money to waste.
Just look at how specific blackvue is on their releases.. the only thing missing is the price.
Up to telling you that if you want that message when you are away from your car.. you will need a dedicated internet connection in your car.
And this people are just letting us wonder.
I personally as an adult.. have no time to waste... let the 12 year olds do that.
Just my opinion.

 

[TKSX]

Keep in mind that Thinkware never mentioned anything about Cloud upgrade via firmware update nor the implementation timeline. Is it Thinkware's fault for keeping quiet or is it the consumer's fault for making assumptions on future plans of the F800 without prior confirmation or proof from the company? When I read this post all I can visualize is a 12 year old kid complaining on a forum because apple is keeping silent on a potential feature that might be present in the next generation iphone. Is it apple's fault for staying silent until the release date or is it BGR news for making false assumptions on what might be present in the next generation iphone?

As far as Cloud recording goes, the only company that offers that is Blackvue and it is offered on certain models only. Why you did not pick blackvue in the first place is anybody's guess.

 

[egonvdv]

Cos we want a camera that always works and doesn't overheat

 

[SawMaster]

As Jokin has said many tines, it is best to make decisions based on what a cam does right now, and not on what it might be like in the future I had to learn that lesson the hard way, but you can bet your bottom dollar that I have learned now

Phil

 

[TKSX]

As Jokin has said many tines, it is best to make decisions based on what a cam does right now, and not on what it might be like in the future I had to learn that lesson the hard way, but you can bet your bottom dollar that I have learned now

Also it is best to act alone and don't follow your what your neighbor suggests as your needs might be different.

 

[Module 79L]

Cos we want a camera that always works and doesn't overheat

If they focused on making a good dashcam instead of an iPhone X-ish "thing" that also doubles as a dashcam, maybe both your wishes would come true.

 

[SawMaster]

The sad fact is that even uf you made a superb basic cam it would not be a profitable venture The masses are under-educated on product knowledge with everything, and they buy based on flashy gimmicks and long lists of features which seem nice initially but will never get used. They place a high value on opinions of people who seem to know but who often don't know much either The average person satisfies themselves with the popular mediocre products being marketed to them, often never realizing that they could do much better Since that is what they buy, that is what the manufacturer's make

Those who have more experience and understanding of a product are a much smaller market segment. And knowing what they want they will buy a higher-priced premium product to get that, which gives the manufacturer better profit margins than a basic product would So we are all being played for 'suckers' but that is how the world works and the best we can do is try to sort through the crap to discover the truth then make our choices accordingly

The perfect cam has never been made and never will be.
Phil

 

[Module 79L]

(...) that is how the world works (...)

Because intelligent people like us are the minority, unfortunately.

 

[stealth.pilot]

Personally if I was doing it over again, I would have waited and then got the Blackvue 750S-2ch. The blackvue has 1080p starvis front and rear, and also has 60fps while thinkware only has 30. Then they got their act together on the cloud thing since they’ve been doing it longer.

Thinkware is more like Vaporware right now. They sold us on F800 Air and now started delivering products that are short of that.

 

[magistrfet]

so about blackvue dr750s - here is 5 years left and try to think - whats really new in this model?
Old form-factor, WiFi, better speed gps and WiFi Speed? Its firmware upgrade via fixing old bugs.
there is really nothing revolutionary in this model. It's as old as 5 years ago.
Starvis? IMX291? Its 2017 trend and released via all manufacurers like thinkware, vicovation and chines like viofo and etc
So ADAS? nope, its old. But whats new? 60fps in rear camera? Hmm also not new...

Yeap cloud function is fresh but again - not new, because released 1 year ago and for commercial DVRs this function released many years ago from another korean manufacturers.

Now about thinkware - the main is stability. I dont know another brand who have more low defective rate then thinkware. Because its inavy group for local korean market, not like blackvue - only export.

 

[TKSX]

The Blackvue DR750s is nothing ground breaking compared to its previous models (DR650S, DR650GW) with the exception of 1080p rear recording, 60 fps in front camera, and Sony Starvis CCD. Cloud recording has been available for > 1 year and it is available for DR650S and DR650GW.

 

[Cessna CJ4]

Just look at how specific blackvue is on their releases.. the only thing missing is the price.

There is plenty missing from Blackvue, too. Number one is Customer Service & Support. It basically does not exist and if you do get to engage Blackvue via email with questions they would rather not deal with, they will simply ignore you and not respond. That's insulting - especially after you've spent hundreds on their products and services.

Blackvue's Cloud Service needs a lot of work as well. I will give some credit to Blackvue for improving daytime image quality in the DR750s over the older DR650s. I will also give Blackvue some credit for improving the basic image quality at night in the DR750s over the older DR650s. However, that's pretty much all that has been improved while they claimed to have improved a lot more. Downloading recorded videos from the cam through the cloud server is painful. It is simply too slow. Though the 750s is slightly faster than the 650s at this, both cams are simply too slow over the cloud using a true 4G hotspot with a solid connection. Blackvue also got it wrong with the new "Enhanced Night Vision" as the camera simply does not handle low light processing very well at all without producing a grainy video that makes using that feature nearly pointless. If you turn the Brightness down to take the grain away, then it becomes no better than the older 650s in my opinion.

So, I have learned that the hype is far more ready for prime time than the actual experience with Blackvue. I was hoping to hear better things from Thinkware Customers. Your post is very disappointing to read. I was hoping to hear that Thinkware was on the ball and very responsive to Customers.

It looks like whether you are with Blackvue or Thinkware, you might be stuck in a scenario where you literally have to make a choice to dance with the devil you know - instead of taking a chance on a date with the devil you don't know. Either way, you are going to be with the devil.

If Blackvue would work harder on engineering and creative problem solving, while turning 180-degrees on Customer Care and Technical Support, they would be champion. But, I just get the feeling that they don't give a damn. So, in the case of the Blackvue Devil, it is my hope that someone would step in, buy the company, fire the management and rebuild their internal ops from the ground up (engineering and support). That company would take off almost overnight, if that happened. Just my opinion, of course.

 

[jokiin]

Blackvue also got it wrong with the new "Enhanced Night Vision" as the camera simply does not handle low light processing very well at all without producing a grainy video that makes using that feature nearly pointless. If you turn the Brightness down to take the grain away, then it becomes no better than the older 650s in my opinion.

from the video samples I've seen the enhanced night vision just looks like they wind the brightness up really high in that mode

 

[Cessna CJ4]

Keep in mind that Thinkware never mentioned anything about Cloud upgrade via firmware update nor the implementation timeline. Is it Thinkware's fault for keeping quiet or is it the consumer's fault for making assumptions on future plans of the F800 without prior confirmation or proof from the company?

Maybe it is because dropping stuff like this on the internet gives people the impression that you are going to introduce Cloud Service into the F800:

So, Sony technology is being used in DSLR cameras, why can't the cam produce DSLR-like image quality:

Yet, there are people out there getting night time image quality like this, when I'm supposedly using the exact same Sony sensor and don't get anything even remotely close to this level of image quality:

I think as car cam customers we are all just looking for consistency, stability, quality and support in the market place. By the way, we are paying for this camera equipment. It would be different if companies like Thinkware and Blackvue were giving this stuff away. Then... we should probably just keep out mouths closed and lower our expectations dramatically.

 

[Cessna CJ4]

from the video samples I've seen the enhanced night vision just looks like they wind the brightness up really high in that mode

You know, you have a good point. Blackvue claims that it started using the new Sony sensor/processor in its DR750s for both front and rear cams. Yet, I don't get anything at night like the guy using the Thinkware F800 Pro in the video I just posted. Both the DR750s and F800 are supposed to be using the exact same Sony STARVIS image sensor.

If the Thinkware F800 and Blackvue DR750s are using the same Sony STARVIS image sensor (XMOR) then they should be producing similar video quality. That's clearly not the case and especially in the Rear Camera of the Blackvue DR750s.

If you look at Blackvue's website under the DR750s specifications, it does not state which STARVIS variant is being used. STARVIS is an entire family of CMOS image sensors. In the video I just posted of someone using the F800 Pro, the quality looks closer to the Sony IMX322 sensor, but their website's specifications show that it uses the XMOR-R sensor.

 

[jokiin]

no idea, they don't publish the specific detail of what they use, even if they were the same sensor though doesn't mean they will get the same results as some other brand or model, different lens/processor/firmware all play a part in the end result

 

[TKSX]

Don't read what in2ndo writes. A non rational purchase was made based on imaginative specifications instead of what was printed on paper. If you read it carefully it is like reading something a 12 year old kid would write.

As far as I know, I purchased 3 F800 and I have been happy with all of them. One of them is for my father and he is happy with it as well. He is the picky one out of the 3.

The best thing to do is look at the footage posted online and make your judgement based on facts and not imaginative specifications.