Help me choose: Viofo A129 Pro Duo or A119 V3 (x2)

[MaximusGluteus]

I'm ready to buy a dashcam for my 2018 Chrysler Pacifica minivan and have it narrowed down to 2 choices: the Viofo A129 Pro Duo and the A119 V3 (one front and one rear). I'm a little nervous about running the cable to the back due to the side curtain airbags which is why I think I might prefer two separate cams over a dual system. Is that something I should be concerned about or is the cable really not that difficult to run without interfering with the side curtain airbags?

Also, I like the idea of letting the cameras run constantly while parked rather than relying on a parking mode, but in order to do that would I need something like the Cellink Neo or is there another way of providing constant power without killing the vehicle's battery?

Finally, is the 4k on the A129 Pro necessary, or would the 1080P from the standard A129 be sufficient? Is the night vision on the A129 Pro and A119 V3 as good as (or better than) the standard A129?

I apologize if I'm asking questions that have been answered already. I'm getting ready to move from the Midwest to the East Coast and I don't have a lot of time left to continue searching the forums.

Thanks!

 

[Nigel]

Don't know anything about your vehicle, we don't have Chrysler here, but the rear camera will need a cable of some sort, they don't work without power. If you can access the roofspace, above the roof liner, then you may just be able to pull a cable through from front to back with a stick/fishing rod/bamboo cane.

Viofo sell the 3 wire HK3 hardwire kit which will power the cameras in parking mode from the car battery and has an adjustable low voltage cut off. How long it will run for on a charge depends on how much driving you do and what sort of car battery you have, an AGM battery will probably do as well as a Cellink Neo. Running two cameras will limit how long the battery lasts and although dual cameras are generally better than two single cameras, the 4K of the A129 Pro does use about double an A119. You can always upgrade to a Cellink Neo later if it doesn't work out.

Finally, is the 4k on the A129 Pro necessary, or would the 1080P from the standard A129 be sufficient?

For the small license plates in the USA, 4K is definitely desirable, 2K is adequate, 1080 will struggle to read many plates.

Is the night vision on the A129 Pro and A119 V3 as good as (or better than) the standard A129?

The A129 Duo has the better night vision, but due to the lower resolution it looses compared to the other two even at night, not much difference between the A129 Pro and A119 V3, although the A119 V3 does often win in twilight.

 

[Nigel]

Don't know anything about your vehicle, we don't have Chrysler here,

Maybe I was wrong, I hadn't realised it is headquartered in Amsterdam and London, we do have some of its brands, not the Chrysler brand but maybe some models are shared?

"Fiat Chrysler Automobiles' corporate headquarters is domiciled in Amsterdam, and the financial headquarters are in London, " https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fiat_Chrysler_Automobiles

 

[kamkar]

And like many others their money laundry mat are in Ireland, maybe Switzerland, the double Irish with a Dutch sandwich are a well known setup.

Double Irish With a Dutch Sandwich: Definition and How It's Used

The double Irish with a Dutch sandwich is a tax avoidance technique that involves using Irish and Dutch subsidiaries to shift profits to tax havens.

www.investopedia.com

 

[MaximusGluteus]

Don't know anything about your vehicle, we don't have Chrysler here, but the rear camera will need a cable of some sort, they don't work without power. If you can access the roofspace, above the roof liner, then you may just be able to pull a cable through from front to back with a stick/fishing rod/bamboo cane.

My van has USB ports in the rear. Would those work for powering a stand-alone camera?

 

[Mtz]

You need 1.5A from your USB port to make your camera working well.

enjoy,
Mtz

 

[kamkar]

It is rare build in USB ports have sufficient power to run a dashcam, they have been the root on many a dashcam woes, which have gone on and on for pages, and then its finally known that the user have been using one of those ports.
You can of course try, but if you experience anything that's not right you should try the supplied power supply first before posting, and that will probably solve the issue.

 

[MaximusGluteus]

I just realized I actually have a 12 volt DC plug in the rear. Works that be sufficient to power a stand-alone rear camera?

 

[Mtz]

If you have 12V then is not a problem to power any dashcam from there. So you can buy 2pcs of A119 V3 if also the rear image is important for you.
Vortex Radar made a great review here.

enjoy,
Mtz

 

[kamkar]

Some times the 12 V outlet in the rear are live all the time, so just a thing to be mindful about,,,,, and easy to check if that's the case.

 

[MaximusGluteus]

So I ended up going a different route and ordering the Street Guardian SGGCX2PRO+ with 128GB SD card. I decided since it's my first dash cam I wanted something high quality with excellent support in case I do something wrong or have newbie questions. Plus I liked the fact that I could easily buy the rear cam later as an add on if I choose to go with a dual cam setup. I'm moving from the Midwest to the East Coast this weekend so it'll get a good initial workout during the drive.

 

[wez]

Be careful, two of my friends left with broken window and without dashcams, but your country safer than mine so it could be a use less note...
But next one is more relevant, your 65 amp car battery will discharge up to 14 amp during the working day (on winter more) so you have a risk to have problems with starting the engine...
In any case I would recommend (it's my own opinion) to use separate devices, it's much easier to find the 12V near the rear hood than put the cable hidden and properly for rear cam.