I think my GT300w doesn't work

Belial88

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I have this weird issue where it doesn't keep recordings. I thought it was just the SD card. I check next day, seems to be working fine. Then I find it isn't recording sometime later. Get a new SD card. Next day, seems to be working fine. Then I realize it's not keeping recordings.

I have no way to tell when it stops saving the recordings, but this is quite frightening. I had an incident where the dash camera would've saved a lot of headache... only to find it's not recording.

* Gskill Micro SD HC 32GB Class 10
* Sandisk Ultra Plus 32gb UHS-1 Class 10
* Sandisk 8GB pulled from my old smartphone

I don't think it's the SD cards, I think it's the dash cam. Which sucks, this was a perfect dash cam in every other way... it just doesn't record.

Anyone else have this issue? I need a replacement now
 
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is it still on the standard firmware it came with?

has it always done this or a recent problem?

cards are blank when you take them out?
 
How's the battery and your power supply?
I agree this is worth checking, i know two gt680 owner with faulty 12v power adapter with strange symptoms.
Easy test with usb power bank if you have one, if not, then get one.
 
Same firmware it came with. Is there updated firmware and how to update?

I'm really not sure how long this problem occurred, it could have always occurred. I had that gskill SD card, I pulled some recordings a few months later I think, then one day i test and notice its not saving recordings. I got a new as card (a Toshiba one actually, forgot about that one).

Next few days, seems fine. Then one day there was an accident and I went to check my dash cam, no recordings. I dont know if it went months like that or what, then got a new card.

Now, I'm thinking maybe its not the SD cards, maybe its the dash cam.

I have it hooked up to car 12v, when car is off and I power on the dash can, it appears to drain out of battery super fast... Like I just turned it on with car off, it was 3/4, then in 5 min it dies out of battery!
 
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Faulty maybe, they're built to a price and don't last, battery might be on the way out, they start getting flaky when that happens
 
So what do I do? I need a dash cam... I don't even know what to get now or where from.
 
So what do I do? I need a dash cam... I don't even know what to get now or where from.

Firstly, make sure the problem is in fact a dying battery. Charge the camera with your computer or an external USB power supply. Then unplug the camera and turn it on. If you promptly get a low battery warning on the screen or the camera shuts down after 20 seconds or less, you will know the battery is at the end of its useful life.

If the problem with your GT300W is indeed a dying battery and if you are at all handy with a soldering iron and simple wiring, you can replace it. It doesn't have to be the exact same one that came with it as long as it can fit into the shell of the GT300W. In fact, you could upgrade to a 3.7V battery with higher capacity (mAh), as long as it will fit in the case. For example, you could use a 520 mAh replacement battery designed for the Mobius. It would be a pretty tight fit at 30mm x 30mm x 5mm but it can work. You can also buy something that matches what the GT300W originally came with in size and capacity which is a 200 mAh battery that measures 32mm x 20mm x 4.5 mm. Here is an example of this from eBay. Do some searching and you can find many similar replacement batteries on the market.

Even if you decide to just go out and buy a new camera to replace the GT300, you may find that replacing the battery provides you with a spare camera that you can use as a back-up or as a rear view dash cam. Why let a nice camera like the GT300W go to waste just because it needs a battery?

The case of the GT300W consists of a front and back shell that snap fit together and so it is relatively easy to open the case using a spudger, a filed down corner of a credit credit card or a guitar pick. Below is a tear-down video that shows how to pop the case open. Somewhere here on DCT is a better disassembly video originally posted by @niko but I can't seem to find it. Perhaps someone else knows where it is. There are also some GT300W disassembly photos here at DCT.


And here's a photo from the above mentioned DCT GT300W page showing the open camera and the battery.

LS300W  Disassembled 1.jpg
 
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You know when I used the sandisk 32gb, the buttons were unresponsive and didn't work until I used a different sim card.

I'll replace the battery with the Möbius one you linked, thanks. I'll update
 
You know when I used the sandisk 32gb, the buttons were unresponsive and didn't work until I used a different sim card.

I'll replace the battery with the Möbius one you linked, thanks. I'll update

Keep in mind that it will indeed be a tight fit. There should be plenty of room for the 30mm x 30mm dimension of the Mobius battery but the 5mm thickness will mean a tight squeeze when you go to snap the case back together. Also, make sure that you don't short the wires when soldering or you could brick the camera. Using a soldering iron directly on the circuit board can be challenging. If you want an easier, less risky way to install the battery, leave the wires from the old battery soldered to the board, clip them close to the old battery and solder the new battery wires to the old wires. I like to use a bit of heat shrink tubing when I solder two wires together in situations like this.
 
Battery fit fine, it was the same size as the one already in there. I spliced and soldered together the wires. New battery works fine, the cam stays charged and stays on when unplugged, doesn't drain off and die in seconds.

However the problem still exists.

First, the sandisk 32gb ultra plus acts the same as before - the menus don't work and the buttons are unresponsive.

When I use the gskill 32gb, recordings that existed before often at gone later, and often there are no recordings. I don't get it, last week it seemed to be working fine.

Gonna throw in my sandisk 8gb I pulled from my droid 4. I think maybe it worked and I swapped it with the gskill 32gb for more storage and then that one didn't work, can't recall for sure, maybe the gskill 32 never worked post-fix.

I'll update later on how this 8gb performs...
 
I assume you are using the camera to format the cards after you insert them the first time. Just is case you are not, that is the first thing you should do.
 
Yea I format the cards from the camera a lot. I also keep motion detection disabled.

Also, when I format cards, I can't hold the menu button and go back to recording mode. I have to turn it off. Then, it records on next power up.

Doesn't work. Can seems to only keep most recent recording (so usually some 1-5 minute clip).

Sucks. What do I get as a replacement? This can not capturing stuff has actually really screwed me over already.
 
I believe my dash can works now. The battery was an issue. I think I bought a faulty SD card when issues first arose because I thought it was the SD card, when it was the battery. Then tried another SD card that doesn't jive with the gt300w so.. An aggravating coincidence.
 
ughghghg not working again. It's unresponsive to buttons, doesn't record, all I can do is power it off with the current SD card.

Can someone tell me what goddamn SD card works with the GT300w? If it doesn't work, then I'll break this thing into a million pieces and buy another dash cam. **** this is bull****.
 
Okay so what's a good replacement? Under $100, the gt300w of today if you will.

Oh and the battery, its doing the same thing again.
 
Okay so what's a good replacement? Under $100, the gt300w of today if you will.

Oh and the battery, its doing the same thing again.

I'm sorry to hear that your GT300W failed. Mine has failed too now. It was in certain ways the best performing dash cam I've owned (after modifying it with a better lens). After giving me great service and performance for almost two years it started acting up and eventually it wouldn't boot up anymore and it wasn't the battery.

The fact is that the GT300W is a little long in the tooth at this point and there are newer better models to consider but I think this isn't really the place to ask. The place to ask is in the "What Should I Buy? forum". Perhaps title your thread, What should I buy to replace my dead GT300W and see what gets suggested.

I replaced my GT300W with an SG9665GC which I've had for almost a month now and am still evaluating it but so far I have mixed feelings about it. Either way, it was way more than your under $100 budget. The best option under $100 by far is the Mobius IMHO, but no screen of course.
 
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