Did I make a big mistake?

[GMProps]

Hi everyone! I am new to the forum and so glad that I have found this place.

I have always wanted a dash cam ever since I had a car accident almost 4 years ago. I could have really used it then.

Anyway, I finally got lured into purchasing a Novatek T810 OnCam from Tmart. I received it and have had nothing but problems with it. It is a nice looking camera and the video quality looks very sharp and clean. But it won't record. I started with a SanDisk 32GB Ultra SD Card and would not recognize it. The I read here that the SanDisk Ultra's are not the best choice for dash cams. So I purchased a 32GB Transcend card, but no luck with that either. I formatted the cards with Fat32 on my Mac. No good. Then I re-formatted them on a PC using Fat32 (no Quick Format). Still no luck.

I contacted the tech support at Tmart and described the problem. Their response: send us a sample of a recording. Hmmm.... How do I send a sample if I cannot get it to record.

Did I make a mistake? Should I have used my $60 towards a better dash cam? Help me out please. I know there are a lot of veteran dash cam users here.

Thanks!

 

[CaptureYourAction]

Have you formatted the card inside the camera?

 

[GMProps]

Have you formatted the card inside the camera?

As soon as I select "Format" from the menu on the camera it says "Please Insert SD Card". The SD card is already inserted. I am suspecting I received a defective cam.

 

[CaptureYourAction]

Try to format the card using this GUI Format tool. Format in the camera after using the GUI program.

http://support.viofo.com/support/so...0046583-micro-sd-card-format-tool-for-windows

 

[GMProps]

Thanks for the link. I downloaded the format tool and tried it. Formatted okay on the PC, but still unable to format it on the camera.

 

[DashcamDPR]

it sounds to me like there's probably absolutely nothing wrong with the memory cards and the camera itself is faulty/crap

I have a Samsung Evo class 10, a Sandisk Ultra class 10 and a Kingmax class 6 in my cams, all 32gb and all faultless

 

[CaptureYourAction]

Test the card with the h2testw program. Could be a bad or fake card.

http://www.softpedia.com/get/System/System-Miscellaneous/H2testw.shtml

 

[GMProps]

Test the card with the h2testw program. Could be a bad or fake card.

http://www.softpedia.com/get/System/System-Miscellaneous/H2testw.shtml

Thanks. All the cards test fine.

I went out and purchased a Lexar 16GB SD card thinking that perhaps the 32GB was too big for the cam to handle. But, after a PC format, and then trying to format it in the camera, it was the same message: Please Insert SD Card

 

[DashcamDPR]

How long have you had the cam?

Is Tmart just online or do they have local stores?

 

[GMProps]

How long have you had the cam?

About a week. I should probably learn to stay away from Chinese knock-offs. It does come with a 90-day money back guarantee. I think I will have to do this. Thought I would have a cam for an 8 hour drive I am doing on July 2nd, but I guess I will have to go without.

 

[DashcamDPR]

Not sure what the laws are like there, but it'd be covered under manufacturer warranty here by law, regardless of the retailer returns policy

its probably not a "knock-off", so many dash cams are made in china and you might well just have a dud... even the best manufacturers can have the odd item go wrong, My Mio Mivues are Chinese as far as I know, had no issues

 

[GMProps]

Tech support at Tmart have stopped talking to me, so I must conclude that the cam is a dud. Time to start looking for another affordable one.

Thanks for everyone's help!

 

[SawMaster]

Return it to Tmart as defective for a refund if you can, then get a better cam from a better source. Tmart was once a very good online source but competition seems to have forced them to cut out their customer service, all the way from fulfilling orders to after-sales support I know lots of people who will no longer buy from them because of unresolved problems.

Phil

 

[GMProps]

Return it to Tmart as defective for a refund if you can, then get a better cam from a better source. Tmart was once a very good online source but competition seems to have forced them to cut out their customer service, all the way from fulfilling orders to after-sales support I know lots of people who will no longer buy from them because of unresolved problems.

Phil

Thanks Phil. That is exactly what I am going to do. I have already found myself looking at the various dash cams that are sold in the big chain stores like Best Buy, but I don't recognize the brand names. Not exactly sure what I should be looking for. I am a tech by trade (electronics designer) but I am not sure which cam is the best. I will have to go through the reviews and check out the threads here to find out which cams seem to be favored by dash cam vets. I don't even mind spending a few hundred if I can get a really good unit.