Firmware Upgrade Frustration

[Beeeerock]

Wow... decent video quality, good form factor and apparently, decent build quality. But the software/firmware?? 'Frustrating' is the kindest word I can use.

I've had the front camera installed for a couple of months. Rear one is going to take some effort to install as cleanly as I want, so it's been on my to-do list. Original firmware had no issues with the rear camera being absent.

Wifi connectivity issues lead me to try a firmware upgrade. Version 2.004 was the newest, so why not? The answer to that would be 'because it's almost useless'. I couldn't get it to record more than a single 1 minute file at a time and it would boot successfully maybe 50% of the time. Misses the point of using a dashcam if it's only operational half the time... and if you can't get more than a minute of video...

So I downgraded to 1.011. Install gave me the audible message that it was upgrading, then that it was rebooting. But that was it. I manually rebooted again, still nothing. Can't connect or see the unit on wifi, even though the blue wifi indicator is lit. Looking at the card using the viewer, I see in the logs:

[08:53:33]#####[check_version:1705]firmware_version:1.011, FIRMWARE_VERSION:1.011, region: 0

[08:53:33][check_version:1737] config.ini is 1.060...

[08:53:33][main:2745]WiFi Device : EUS

[08:53:34][main:2794] ## Rear Sensor Not Insert.

[08:53:37][BB_COMM_VI_StartTypical:1689] ## Rear Sensor Not Insert.

[08:53:39]caught SIGSEGV -> Reboot

[08:53:40]caught SIGSEGV -> Reboot

[08:53:40]caught SIGSEGV -> Reboot

[08:53:40]caught SIGSEGV -> Reboot

[08:53:40]caught SIGSEGV -> Reboot

[08:53:40]caught SIGSEGV -> Reboot

[08:53:40]caught SIGSEGV -> Reboot

And on and on....

That suggests to me that their is an issue with not having the rear camera present. But I see nothing in the settings that would allow me to configure it as absent.

Or there is something else wrong. Bottom line, I have no recording capability and I've burned more hours on this than I'm happy to admit.

Does someone have an easy fix for this?? Or is there a version that I can consider at least *somewhat* reliable???

 

[Beeeerock]

In case anyone finds my solution helpful...

I decided to try going back to 2.004. This time I did the SD card work from a PC instead of a Mac. Formatted the card to FAT32. Copied the Blackvue folder from the zip file to the card.

This time I opened the viewer app that's included on the card from the PC directly. I made the SSID and password changes from the PC and toggled the cloud services off. Once my basic edits were confirmed, I put the card back in the camera and let it do the upgrade. Magically, the camera appears to be working again and the C app is connecting.

Why it worked this time I don't know. But I have to wonder if using the Mac was part of it. And I also wonder if updating the SSID and password from the C app was an issue. All in all, the system feels a little fragile... and I'm not sure I'm game to try the 2.005 that seems to have appeared today!

 

[zxsix]

2.005 has video quality improvements and the camera can now connect to 3 different access points to get it on the cloud.
Seems stable so far. No good reason not to upgrade as it's easy to switch back if there ends up being a bug discovered that you can't live with.

 

[Beeeerock]

2.005 has video quality improvements and the camera can now connect to 3 different access points to get it on the cloud.
Seems stable so far. No good reason not to upgrade as it's easy to switch back if there ends up being a bug discovered that you can't live with.

After the fun I had with 2.004 and then 1.011, I think I'll need some time to build up my courage again... I was starting to think I'd bricked it - LOL

Correct me if I'm wrong, but if I don't have the unit wired to be hot all the time, I'd never get benefit of the cloud anyway, unless I had an access point in my car or wanted to sit near an AP with the ignition on... right? If that's the case, then I guess the upgrade would just be for the additional video settings.

Any indication if the GPS is more reliable? I don't see it locking on very often and my videos rarely show my speed. I have to wonder if it's the glass around my mirror, or if there's something in the area causing interference (Tesla has a camera and rain sensor right close).

 

[zxsix]

Yes, would need power for cloud. That could be via a power magic pro, which would feed off your car battery until the voltage dropped enough and it would shut off to save your batter then. ( https://dashcamtalk.com/forum/forums/power-magic-pro.122/)
Or you can get additional battery power such as this to get longer runtime, usually will cover overnight, then recharge during the daily commute: (https://dashcamtalk.com/forum/threads/cellink-b-review.19366/)
I have both home and work wi-fi access points now programmed in.
A hotspot in the car would give additional functionality other places, but those two spots cover the vast majority of time.

 

[Ralph2]

So.. with the new version when you connect at home, using your home WiFi what options do you have via your PC? Can you download video to your computer? Watch individual clips on your PC?

 

[zxsix]

So.. with the new version when you connect at home, using your home WiFi what options do you have via your PC? Can you download video to your computer? Watch individual clips on your PC?

No changes to the windows viewer app. Still need to use Blackvue C app on smartphone.

 

[Beeeerock]

Yes, would need power for cloud. That could be via a power magic pro, which would feed off your car battery until the voltage dropped enough and it would shut off to save your batter then. ( https://dashcamtalk.com/forum/forums/power-magic-pro.122/)
Or you can get additional battery power such as this to get longer runtime, usually will cover overnight, then recharge during the daily commute: (https://dashcamtalk.com/forum/threads/cellink-b-review.19366/)
I have both home and work wi-fi access points now programmed in.
A hotspot in the car would give additional functionality other places, but those two spots cover the vast majority of time.

Thanks zxsix. Here's one last question for you... what do you do with the cloud videos? I always assumed I'd just pull video from the camera if something noteworthy happened while driving (or while parked if the camera was running). Do you really find the cloud function is a practical feature and worth configuring?

 

[zxsix]

Thanks zxsix. Here's one last question for you... what do you do with the cloud videos? I always assumed I'd just pull video from the camera if something noteworthy happened while driving (or while parked if the camera was running). Do you really find the cloud function is a practical feature and worth configuring?

Nothing unless something happens. I show my car at car show events. I have one of the celllink batteries that keeps the camera operational while the car is parked. I get a notification to my smartphone if the camera senses shock (someone leans farther in the window than they should), then I could review video in real time if something got damaged or stolen.
If there is something noteworthy, then click icon to save that video clip to the smartphone's memory.

That's a use case.
Another would be if the car was stolen, you'd be able to see location on the map and view the camera live to see where it's at.
I've also monitored what's going on when the car is in possession of a valet or service shop.
So far no one has hot rodded in the car so the video wasn't noteworthy.
If a valet was out driving it when it should be parked, then I'd get a real-time alert.