Is the WM1 being discontinued?

[budster]

I noticed that one of the big dashcam retailers (blackboxmycar) doesn't carry the WM1 anymore even though they wrote up a big review for it before (https://www.blackboxmycar.com/pages/viofo-wm1-1ch-2k-dash-cam-in-depth-review). And Viofo doesn't sell the WM1 on their amazon store anymore (it's only sold by a 3rd party seller). Viofo still does sell it on their own site for now (https://www.viofo.com/products/viof...i-gps-dashcam-with-sony-starvis-imx335-sensor).

Also, it seems Viofo hasn't released an updated firmware for the WM1 in over a year.

This all makes me think that the WM1 may be in the process of being discontinued. Maybe it's not selling well and Viofo doesn't want to invest anymore into it. Or has anyone heard of a WM2 in the works?

I was considering getting a WM1, but not sure now. In addition to the seemingly lack of investment by Viofo, a couple things I really dislike about the WM1 after looking more into it.

- Why is there a prominent white outward facing Viofo logo that makes the dashcam stand out? I thought Viofo was good at making discrete stealthy cameras that didn't draw unwanted attention. But this WM1 is an outlier with the white logo. They could have at least made the logo inward facing.

- Why did they provide an integrated 12V power adapter with cable instead of a 12V power adapter with separate cable like their other models? Now if their 12V power adapter is used, nothing else that's USB powered can plug into the 12V outlet (unlike if a 12V power adapter with multiple USB ports was provided).

 

[Karagandinez]

Also, it seems Viofo hasn't released an updated firmware for the WM1 in over a year.

The firmware is released to eliminate problems in the operation of the model.
What do you dislike about the operation of WM1?
There has been no firmware update for A119 V3 for 2 years, but it has not become worse because of this.

 

[budster]

The firmware is released to eliminate problems in the operation of the model.
What do you dislike about the operation of WM1?
There has been no firmware update for A119 V3 for 2 years, but it has not become worse because of this.

Well, I don't have a WM1 yet so hard to say what's not good about it that could be addressed thru firmware. My opinion is just based on public reviews and documentation. One thing I noticed so far is that the WM1 doesn't have the option to record in .ts format like the A119 V3 does. This would be a nice workaround option to avoid corrupted files in case the super capacitors ever fail. I think Viofo could add this thru a firmware update.

A119 V3 came out more than 5 years ago so it's pretty mature and I don't really expect anymore firmware updates for it. In the first several years, I recall there were a lot. If the WM1 is mature after 1 year and doesn't really have any bugs or improvements that could be made thru firmware, that's great to know that it's a stable product now.

 

[Karagandinez]

Well, I don't have a WM1 yet so hard to say what's not good about it that could be addressed thru firmware. My opinion is just based on public reviews and documentation. One thing I noticed so far is that the WM1 doesn't have the option to record in .ts format like the A119 V3 does. This would be a nice workaround option to avoid corrupted files in case the super capacitors ever fail. I think Viofo could add this thru a firmware update.

A119 V3 came out more than 5 years ago so it's pretty mature and I don't really expect anymore firmware updates for it. In the first several years, I recall there were a lot. If the WM1 is mature after 1 year and doesn't really have any bugs or improvements that could be made thru firmware, that's great to know that it's a stable product now.

The A119 V3 firmware was worked on by enthusiastic modders together with Viofo for a long time. The work was finished after the best result was achieved.
No one will work on the WM1 firmware because there are no complaints and the model works fine.
Another example is the A119 Mini. The firmware for this model has not been updated for 4.5 years, which does not prevent it from working without problems both in the heat and in the cold.

 

[Nigel]

Why did they provide an integrated 12V power adapter with cable instead of a 12V power adapter with separate cable like their other models?

Probably down to cost, two items cost twice as much, at least that sort of item tends to. It was designed as a cheaper dashcam.

It is now a bit outdated, it's image sensor id only Starvis 1, so the recommended choice is now the Viofo VS1 which has Starvis 2 and DOL-HDR, that is an excellent dashcam for the price, completely up to date technology, and more advanced than any of the competitors at that price.

For the firmware, the VM1 is sort of a cut down A119 V3, it would be surprising if it needed many firmware updates, they were all done on the A119 V3, before the VM1 was produced.

I doubt that Viofo will actually discontinue it, as long as they have stock, and they will continue to support it after. If people continue to buy it then they will produce more, but as I said, it is a little outdated now for a Viofo camera, as is the A119 V3, but people keep buying that one, so they keep producing it.