F550-F750 Flaws, suggestions and fixes

jokiin said:
something else will fail long before the SD slot wears out, not something I'd worry about
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Perhaps, but as an end user it was a concern of mine. Now I have a dead F550 that won't update and I'm left wondering if perhaps that was part of the issue. I'm on the fence as to whether Thinkware will be my next model but whatever it is it will have the Wifi function so I don't have to be concerned about removing the card all the time.
 
I have not read all the suggestions so if these are repeats, please forgive me.

  1. I have had issues with the rear camera working properly on my F550. I followed some suggestions from support which did help, but I do not always get recordings from the rear camera.
  2. I would love to be able to have the option to add the map and other data to the screen. I'm able to overlay the rear camera in a PIP and don't mind doing that manually, but if the camera is going to capture the GPS data, why can we not use it other than through the PC viewer?
  3. If there is a failure in the firmware update, it would be nice to have something to connect to a PC and flash the memory. I loved my F550 until it was bricked during a firmware update. Still waiting to see if support can help.
  4. I like the lights on the front of the unit as it shows there is a camera there, but had to turn it off since it was shining back into the lense and being captured in the video.
 
recovery is something they can do but for whatever reason, they don't want to, its probably down to two things, firstly an increase in warranty claims from people who messed about with it and broke it, and secondly, when the warranty runs out, they want you to buy a new one, not fix your old one.

I don't have an issue with the first point, its a valid concern of there's but the second one is an insult given that their "new" camera is actually exactly the same as the old one.

the rear camera problem is either SD card related or it could be a cable issue, I had a couple of issues with my right angle USB bends, that added connector introduced some issues which were resolved wen I removed the adaptor. if its not that then its probably hardware related.

the software support from thinkware is terrible, don't expect any good updated, better off using the dashcam viewer from this website, it least its actively updated and the owner actually responds to requests!

Its a little annoying the after sales support of thinkware is so ****, the product is really good (F750 aka F770) I guess its because we are not their first market so they don't listen.
 
Dee_82 said:
recovery is something they can do but for whatever reason, they don't want to, its probably down to two things, firstly an increase in warranty claims from people who messed about with it and broke it, and secondly, when the warranty runs out, they want you to buy a new one, not fix your old one.

I don't have an issue with the first point, its a valid concern of there's but the second one is an insult given that their "new" camera is actually exactly the same as the old one.

the rear camera problem is either SD card related or it could be a cable issue, I had a couple of issues with my right angle USB bends, that added connector introduced some issues which were resolved wen I removed the adaptor. if its not that then its probably hardware related.

the software support from thinkware is terrible, don't expect any good updated, better off using the dashcam viewer from this website, it least its actively updated and the owner actually responds to requests!

Its a little annoying the after sales support of thinkware is so ****, the product is really good (F750 aka F770) I guess its because we are not their first market so they don't listen.
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I agree. If I play with it and break it I don't expect a replacement, but even with a warranty, some things shouldn't break. The rear camera was an issue right out of the box and the suggestion to add ferrite beads on each end did help but did not correct the problem. I fear that we have come to a point where they don't have any more suggestions and will just ignore me. I love the product and have suggested it to many. I even helped a not so savvi sales guy sell one and a rear camera and wiring kit to a guy at Best Buy a little while back. Fingers cross
 
Just picked up an F750. I would have loved to see the hard wire cables be the same for the F550 (to which I'm replacing) and the F750. I now have to go out and buy another cable. Also it would be nice if the rear camera would work. It would be a little bit of a bonus for those who are wanting to upgrade but maybe save a little at the same time.
 
cacherjoe said:
Just picked up an F750. I would have loved to see the hard wire cables be the same for the F550 (to which I'm replacing) and the F750. I now have to go out and buy another cable. Also it would be nice if the rear camera would work. It would be a little bit of a bonus for those who are wanting to upgrade but maybe save a little at the same time.
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I believe the 770 comes with a hardware cable now, whats up with your rear camera?
 
Nothing, just that it would be nice if the F550 rear camera worked in the F750. I know there is a resolution difference but if I don't have a problem with that then it would save me some money.
 
ah, well its a USB connection, different camera different drivers perhaps
 
Could be. The F550 has a USB for power and the F750 doesn't. The F750 has USB for the for the rear camera and the F550 doesn't. Seems like they did a complete reversal. I don't pretend to know a lot about electronics but it would have been a much easier sell to my wife if I could have kept the wiring kit and rear camera I was using with the F550. Oh well, guess I get to sell the F550 before getting a rear camera for the new one.
 
So I broke down and got an F750 and sold my F550. Some initial thoughts and wants.

  1. I like the iphone app with a few little exceptions. I would love to be able to view the video an still record. This might be good for say the rear camera.
  2. Still on the app, I would love to see the a Windows app so that I could connect with my laptop rather than download to my phone then transfer to my laptop in several steps. I know I can take the card out, but that is as much of a pain.
  3. An increse in the transfer rate from the camera to the phone. Viewing the video often is met with buffering and downloading to the phone is painfully slow.
  4. It would be nice to be able to mark videos. For example I may want to mark several videos during brief stops individually then download all the marked videos when I have time later.
  5. Being able to access the camera on my laptop via wifi would also help with #4.
  6. On a positive note I find the buttons more useful than on the F550. Prehaps I am just using them more, but they seem better.
I'm sure there will be more to come as I use it, and get the rear cam connected this weekend. Overall I am impressed with the camera so far.
 
i wouldn't hold out for PC support, I had a rant at them when I got mine, they would be much better off installing a small web service on the camera then allowing anyone with a HTML5 browser and wifi to access settings directly, inc videos, no more bespoke apps needed for videos etc. a universal solution.

didn't hear anything from it and with the 770 now released with exactly the same limitations it looks like it fell of deaf ears.
 
jokiin said:
offering suggestions to Korean companies generally falls on deaf ears, nothing unusual
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That mentality is just stupid with some very small tweaks which are effectively free if they diverted their bespoke app development teams time to it, they would have a far better product!

Jokiin, are you going to release a product with similar capability to the F7x0?
dual 1080p 30fsp 10-15Mbps cameras, parking mode, all that driver safety crap is pointless although the new speed camera warnings are better?
 
we do have a couple of dual cam products we're working on, pointless driver safety crap is not in the pipeline on any model we have planned, higher bitrate is though as we won't be using Ambarella
 
interesting to know, I need to get a new camera for my partners car so i might just hold off and give her my old 750?
 
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