Gap below the SD card reader?

[Godvader]

Hi all, new a119v3 user. I am on a 2500km roadtrip, after about 1200km I took the sd card out to copy over clips I saved. Next day as I tried putting the sd card back in, this happened. I am not sure if I had the SD card backwards that caused this somehow but pretty bummed I won’t get to record the rest of the roadtrip.

I am very happy with my purchase. Hell, first day of the trip it recorded someone almost backing into us which would have saved us a lot of headache.

My question is would I void the warranty if I open the casing with my tech repair kit? Sadly the repair kit is at home so the rest of the trip will feel less “safe”. Already missed out on recording some beautiful roads here in south France

Please let me know if you can suggest a way of solving this while I am away from my repair kit.

TLDR: Basically the SD Card slipped under the sd card reader and I cant get it out anymore. No more recording until I get home and open the casing.

 

[LateralNW]

Hi all, new a119v3 user. I am on a 2500km roadtrip, after about 1200km I took the sd card out to copy over clips I saved. Next day as I tried putting the sd card back in, this happened. I am not sure if I had the SD card backwards that caused this somehow but pretty bummed I won’t get to record the rest of the roadtrip.

I am very happy with my purchase. Hell, first day of the trip it recorded someone almost backing into us which would have saved us a lot of headache.

My question is would I void the warranty if I open the casing with my tech repair kit? Sadly the repair kit is at home so the rest of the trip will feel less “safe”. Already missed out on recording some beautiful roads here in south France

Please let me know if you can suggest a way of solving this while I am away from my repair kit.

TLDR: Basically the SD Card slipped under the sd card reader and I cant get it out anymore. No more recording until I get home and open the casing.

Personally I'd be pulling it apart.
You are on holidays and I'm sure your spending more than the Dash cam is worth.
I wouldn't be surprised if @viofo would still support your product if it fails.
I've heard of a few having your problem where the memory card slipped past the opening.
I haven't had that problem.

4 screws and a bit of fiddling and you may be able to shake the memory card out.

A size x1 Philip head screw driver. I'd expect you could source one of those in many places or borrow one.

 

[gse]

Please let me know if you can suggest a way of solving this while I am away from my repair kit.

Once I also installed past the card reader slot, inserted the needle, took out the card.

 

[Moon]

Same thing has just happened to me in my relatively new A119v3
I tried removing the 2 screws but the rear plastic plate doesn't come off to get access. Didn't want to force the rear panel just in case it broke it
The card is a PNY 256GB.

Lucky I purchased a newy while the A119 Pro was still alive. At least I have a front backup Dashcam to go with the rear.

With my Pro and A119S ... the SD card only inserted all the way in if it was inserted correctly ... and then clicked into place. This didn't have any click and just allowed the card to keep going in.
It then asked me to insert the SD card which I already had ... so I pushed it in further ... no spring ... so couldn't then get it out.

I have contacted Viofo and submitted a ticket ... Any idea how Viofo handles this problem? Sounds like I'm not the only one

 

[Godvader]

Same thing has just happened to me in my relatively new A119v3
I tried removing the 2 screws but the rear plastic plate doesn't come off to get access. Didn't want to force the rear panel just in case it broke it
The card is a PNY 256GB.

Lucky I purchased a newy while the A119 Pro was still alive. At least I have a front backup Dashcam to go with the rear.

With my Pro and A119S ... the SD card only inserted all the way in if it was inserted correctly ... and then clicked into place. This didn't have any click and just allowed the card to keep going in.
It then asked me to insert the SD card which I already had ... so I pushed it in further ... no spring ... so couldn't then get it out.

I have contacted Viofo and submitted a ticket ... Any idea how Viofo handles this problem? Sounds like I'm not the only one

I bought a screwdriver kit for watches (I think) and it was very easy to disassemble the case with that. Reassembly was a bit harder but I think I did it all under half an hour.

There are videos on Youtube showing how to disassemble the casing. Be careful that your screwdriver is the right size. The hole looks like it fits larger screwdrives but they dont touch the screw. I can look up the size of the one I used if you’d like.

 

[Moon]

Cheers Godvader

Bought the screwdriver set, opened it up and retrieved the SD card. When opening up a number of bits fell out that controlled the swivel of the lens. Couldn't figure out how to put it back together ... bit of a jigsaw puzzle, so put it back together without them and it seems to function ok ... so no probs there.

Had a look on Youtube but didn't see any on disassebling the casing. 4 screws so pretty straight forward there.

When inserting the SD card I took a closer look and inserted it correctly this time and it clicked into place. I must have angled it where there was enough of a gap to slide under the metal casing that the card goes into.

Formatted the card and ready to go

 

[Moon]

Here's VIOFO's support reply when asking whether from the outside or open the casing a little ...

'Please just use the tweezers through the card slot to see if the card can be clamped out, but please not open the slot.'

^ Crikey .. I have 2 pairs of tweezers and no way would they fit through the card slot closed, let alone open to grasp an SD card. The tweezers would need to be wafer thin and doubt that would work
I gather I have voided warranty by opening the Dash cam to retrieve the card. It would be obvious that a screwdriver has been used on the screws

VIOFO would, or should be aware that if you open the casing ... 4 parts will fall out, like they did for me ... and it gets complicated from there.
I was thinking that it would have to go to an authorized repairer to put it back together. As mentioned above. it wasn't crucial parts, and lens could swivel adequately without them
There is a chance Car vibration could cause the lens casing to drop ... only that's an easy fix.

 

[Kremmen]

I've just looked at my 2 V3's and the SDCard slot has no gaps to get it wrong.

What am I missing ?

 

[Moon]

Your Spectacles ... old chap

 

[Kremmen]

I just can't see any gap wide enough to put the card in wrong.

During taking these images I extracted and reinserted the cards a few times and they go in without any issues.

 

[Skylar132]

Having a similar issue with my a119v2, when i go to reinsert the sd card its like theres an area between the sd card slot and plastic housing and care needs to be taken to put the card back in, a bit annoying but not enough to make a big fuss to viofo about

 

[Dashmellow]

Over the years I've seen and experienced this problem a couple of times. Never seen it with a Viofo product before however. Anyway, it's a manufacturing flaw where the metal insert receptacle for the microSD card isn't soldered to the circuit board accurately or the circuit board was not aligned properly when it got installed in the housing.

It is possible to fix this yourself fairly easily. Open the case and have a look at the circuit board. You might find that you simply need to tighten the screws that hold the circuit board in place in the housing to bring it into better alignment with the slot in the housing. On the other hand you might need to loosen the screws and place a shim under the circuit board to raise it up a bit to bring it into better alignment with the slot in the housing. A small piece of hard foam like dash cams are often packaged in for shipping makes a good shim that can safely support the board without having to dismantle the entire camera.

 

[IAmATeaf]

My A119 v3 also has no gap, here in the UK my dash cam is mounted to the left of the rear view mirror so I alway take out and retrieve the Sd card blind from the drivers seat.

 

[CaptureYourAction]

When opening up a number of bits fell out that controlled the swivel of the lens. Couldn't figure out how to put it back together ... bit of a jigsaw puzzle, so put it back together without them and it seems to function ok ... so no probs there.

If your referring to the clear plastic lens adjustment mechanism (see pic below), then your gonna want to put it back in, otherwise your lens won't stay in place for long.

 

[Dashmellow]

Couldn't figure out how to put it back together ... bit of a jigsaw puzzle, so put it back together without them and it seems to function ok ... so no probs there.

@CaptureYourAction is quite right, you definitely want to put the camera back together properly or you will encounter problems getting your lens module to stay in place when you go to adjust it.

Here is a video that will show you how to reinstall the ratchet mechanism. The video is not a V3, it's a A119S but the procedure and the parts are essentially the same.

You can forward to 5:35 on the video to see how to do this but it wouldn't be a bad idea to watch the whole thing.

 

[Moon]

Thanks for that Dashmallow, Capture Your Action, Godvader

Watched video and ratchet mechanism is back in place.
I will insert the SD with more care now that I am aware of the trap ... so don't expect it to be a problem in future.
A small rubber bush also fell out (may be a spacer?) but didn't appear in the Video as a part of the ratchet mechanism.

cheers for the help all ... much appreciated

 

[CaptureYourAction]

A small rubber bush also fell out (may be a spacer?) but didn't appear in the Video as a part of the ratchet mechanism.

Can you post a picture of it?

 

[Moon]

4mm x 1.5mm
sorry about PQ

 

[CaptureYourAction]

4mm x 1.5mm
sorry about PQ View attachment 61662

Can't say I've seen that piece before, but maybe it's something new? Hard to judge it's size by the pic, but maybe it is supposed to fit over mic? See pic below.

 

[Dashmellow]

Can't say I've seen that piece before, but maybe it's something new? Hard to judge it's size by the pic, but maybe it is supposed to fit over mic? See pic below.

View attachment 61664

I believe that's what it is. It's designed to prevent the metal microphone housing from rattling against whatever it may be touching.