Looking for a very good 2CH dashcam not too pricey, no Viofo...

[JelleW]

Hi everybody,

It feels a bit like mission impossible after studying many dashcams but let's give it a try here.

My Viofo A119V2 (in the beginning I thought it was a V3, but the website information was not accurate I guess) is approaching end of life. USB connection gets buggy and night time footage has become grainy as hell.
Also, I feel a bit more secure with a rear dashcam as well. So now I am looking for a new 2CH dashcam that is not too pricey.
Since I like to watch my footage to relax and sometimes upload a video of a nice drive, I am looking for a very good product on the front.

This is what I am looking for:
* Front camera minimum 2K/1440p 30fps. Rear camera 1080p is OK, but quality/readability at night should not be very bad.
* Discrete front dashcam. Not too big as I want it to fit behind my mirror. A screen can distract me, so without a screen is good.
* CPL filter option
* GPS
* More contrast, color and sharpness than video from the 'average' Viofo dashcams, but not oversaturated
* Not too much distortion or fish eye effect
* A bit sustainable if possible
* No hardwire kit required
* Playback on Nokia Streaming Box 8000 possible, so files should be H.264, H.265 or HEVC

My budget is € 100 - 200 max. I live in the Netherlands so I would'nt buy something from USA because of high shipping costs.
Because there is a lot of Black Friday sale going on now, suggestions of dashcams € 200 - 300 are welcome too as they might be on sale.

I came across a few interesting dashcams, but I found some cons that made me think they are no match.
E.g. Vantrue E2 (too much distortion, frame drop),
Redtiger F9 (no samples found, CPL filter available not sure)
Azdome M300S (25fps, pixelated image)
And some other Chinese dashcams that seem to oversaturate or exaggerate colors of the video uncontrollably.

Who can give me a good advice?

 

[kamkar]

Welcome to the forum JelleW

If you have developed a dislike for Viofo, the other ones you have been looking at will probably not be to your taste.

I did test the Vantrye E2 and had a OK experience with it.

I am currently testing the N5 from Vantrue. but this camera also have some " issues" which i am not entirely have been resolved.

worst of those focus on the rear camera i think.
While i do not like dropped or duplicate frames, i dont see those as deal-breaker, it should be fixable in firmware.

Scenic drive videos, IMO something else then dashcams or action cameras are needed for that, first of all to not have A pillars and dash in footage, many that make those use actual camcorders with some optical zoom, like the user American roads on youtube.

 

[DrekiTech]

I liked the 70mai A500S Pro Plus+ a lot when I tested it, but it's far from the most discrete.

 

[JelleW]

Thank you kamkar.
I don't have a general dislike for Viofo (perhaps the A139 Pro is a good option, though pricey) as they make good products, but I am just looking for a bit more video quality.
I agree that for making scenic drive videos, dashcams aren't the best but I must watch my budget and I don't make such videos very regularly.
So buying a GoPro or a camcorder is not really an option I prefer.
Practically, I don't like to mount extra devices in my car. It's not a very big one. And using my smartphone for video recording is also not really an option as I use it for navigation already.

I watched some Vantrue E1 footage but it differs not really much from the E2 footage. The N5 footage you uploaded appeals more to me, but the N5 is way too expensive for me.

 

[kamkar]

The N5 is also " huge " with 2 cameras in each housing front & rear, it is probably the best camera for the Uber / ride share drivers out there.
I am glad Vantrue sent me the N5 to beat on, my first time trying the new starvis 2 sensors.
The N5 have a few issues too, but generally it have been a breeze to test, and it is also the primary system in my car at the moment.
But in general i can easy make do with a regular front & rear system, hell if someone make a killer single front system i would get that for sure if it was killer, but i have been here +10 years now and i have still to see anyone make that one kick ass dashcam.

 

[Agie]

Thank you kamkar.
I don't have a general dislike for Viofo (perhaps the A139 Pro is a good option, though pricey) as they make good products, but I am just looking for a bit more video quality.
I agree that for making scenic drive videos, dashcams aren't the best but I must watch my budget and I don't make such videos very regularly.
So buying a GoPro or a camcorder is not really an option I prefer.
Practically, I don't like to mount extra devices in my car. It's not a very big one. And using my smartphone for video recording is also not really an option as I use it for navigation already.

I watched some Vantrue E1 footage but it differs not really much from the E2 footage. The N5 footage you uploaded appeals more to me, but the N5 is way too expensive for me.

As Kamkar said, it's not discrete for the N5. I have the Nexus 4 Pro and it's much in the same boat, with rear focus issues as well on that unit. The interior cabin footage is ok and rear camera footage too isn't the best either due to the GalaxyCore sensors used (as opposed to Sony Starvis in Viofo models)

I know you've had issues with Viofo, but honestly they're the kings of discrete wedge dashcams and you're unlikely to find anything better than them. Vantrue S1 Pro was just released as well, but once again the rear camera has reared its ugly head with focus issues.

Redtiger I'd stay away from because they have had fake 4k dashcams before , where it's actually a 2k sensor but interpolated so they stretch it to make it appear 4k.

 

[speedingcheetah]

My Viofo A119 V1 still works as it did from day one. Got it back in late 2015.
The 2x A119 Mini2's i have now, are a very nice upgrade.
They have the best video quailty, imo, than other cams. Especially its HDR at night. I have watched MANY reviews and compare footage here and other places. Viofo can't be beat.


What ever cam you look at, be sure it has Sony Starvis 2 sensor.
And be warry of "4K" dash cams, many are fake 4K. Find out the raw sensor model used and look it up to make sure it is true 4K, and not fake.

 

[kklucky]

This is a potential spam since I asked the same question elsewhere too: how do 2x A119 Mini2's compare with a A229 Plus 2CH. One pays about USD40 extra for the Mini2's (with CPL). Is it really worth it or more of a logistics hassle to install, power, and manage two separate cams?

 

[kamkar]

A few like the redundancy or running 2 single channel systems, in the case of the mini 2 that give you HDR front & rear, you do not get that with any 2 channel system.
Personally i have gone to 2-3-4 single cameras enough in the old days, so i prefer 2 channel

 

[Nigel]

A few like the redundancy or running 2 single channel systems, in the case of the mini 2 that give you HDR front & rear, you do not get that with any 2 channel system.

The new Viofo A229 Plus and A229 Pro have HDR on all channels, 1, 2, and 3 channel versions.

 

[kamkar]

Well i am not privy to such advanced devices.
I have barely left the starvis ages.

 

[Nigel]

Well i am not privy to such advanced devices.
I have barely left the starvis ages.

Viofo do seem to be far ahead of the competition at the moment, the very expensive and top of the range 2 channel Thinkware U3000 doesn't even have HDR on the front, yet with a fairly cheap and basic 2 channel A229 Plus, you get HDR on all 3 channels!

 

[kklucky]

Yes, A229 Plus 2CH seems to be the top VFM proposition right now

 

[JelleW]

My Viofo A119 V1 still works as it did from day one. Got it back in late 2015.
The 2x A119 Mini2's i have now, are a very nice upgrade.
They have the best video quailty, imo, than other cams. Especially its HDR at night. I have watched MANY reviews and compare footage here and other places. Viofo can't be beat.


What ever cam you look at, be sure it has Sony Starvis 2 sensor.
And be warry of "4K" dash cams, many are fake 4K. Find out the raw sensor model used and look it up to make sure it is true 4K, and not fake.

Thanks, I watched some footage of the A119 Mini 2 before, and after watching some more videos I decided to buy this one.
It was only € 99.95 at Black Friday sale at Viofo Benelux.
For me, it feels like the 'best bang for your buck' dashcam there is.
I tested it with CPL filter and HDR on in the afternoon with backlight first. I think I will keep the CPL/HDR setup. The image quality was still pretty good. In cloudy conditions, at dusk and in the dark, the HDR works well.
Overall, the colors are more vivid (as I wanted) yet not disturbing. The only thing that bothered a bit was the background color turning from blueish to purple sometimes at dusk, but I guess that is normal for this kind of device.
Here is some footage from last week.

Installing it was a bit of a challenge, as it is cold and wet here. The trim removal tool was the best for removing the old sticky pad of the A119V2. I didn't use the static sticker as I wanted to attach the GPS mount firmly to the windscreen and I was not sure the camera view would be affected by the sticker.
One day after attaching, the mount fell off so I pushed it back again, hoping it will last until drier conditions (so I can replace it by a stronger 3M pad). Also, I found out the charger cable Viofo included was shorter (3.5 metres) from the one that came with the A119V2 (4 metres). Luckily, the shorter cable was more than long enough for the A119 Mini 2 on the front. I moved the A119V2 to the back with the longer cable, so I have two 1-channel dashcams now. Very happy with them.

 

[speedingcheetah]

Thanks, I watched some footage of the A119 Mini 2 before, and after watching some more videos I decided to buy this one.
It was only € 99.95 at Black Friday sale at Viofo Benelux.
For me, it feels like the 'best bang for your buck' dashcam there is.
I tested it with CPL filter and HDR on in the afternoon with backlight first. I think I will keep the CPL/HDR setup. The image quality was still pretty good. In cloudy conditions, at dusk and in the dark, the HDR works well.
Overall, the colors are more vivid (as I wanted) yet not disturbing. The only thing that bothered a bit was the background color turning from blueish to purple sometimes at dusk, but I guess that is normal for this kind of device.
Here is some footage from last week.

Installing it was a bit of a challenge, as it is cold and wet here. The trim removal tool was the best for removing the old sticky pad of the A119V2. I didn't use the static sticker as I wanted to attach the GPS mount firmly to the windscreen and I was not sure the camera view would be affected by the sticker.
One day after attaching, the mount fell off so I pushed it back again, hoping it will last until drier conditions (so I can replace it by a stronger 3M pad). Also, I found out the charger cable Viofo included was shorter (3.5 metres) from the one that came with the A119V2 (4 metres). Luckily, the shorter cable was more than long enough for the A119 Mini 2 on the front. I moved the A119V2 to the back with the longer cable, so I have two 1-channel dashcams now. Very happy with them.

It is recommend by VIOFO and users here for best results that HDR only be used when it is dark out. Hence why there is the HDR Timer feature. Set it ON just after dark, and OFF just after sunrise.
HDR also limits the frame rate to 30fps. If you want to use 60fps, you can not use HDR. I have it set to that day time, is 60fps HDR off, and night, it switches to 30fps and HDR on.
However, it is ultimately user preference. If you are happy with HDR on all the time, then thats fine to.

As far as the image going purple in the dark, update to the latest firmware on the viofo site V1.0_20231116

A119 MINI 2 Support

viofo.com

 

[JelleW]

I am fine with 30fps for now. Turning the HDR on and off is a bit of a hassle for me. As sunset times change through the season, setting a timer would not help very much either. Or does it know the right sunset time for my location all year? That would be great...

Thanks for advising the latest firmware, I updated November 24th but there was only a firmware update from September available then. Now it should be solved.

 

[kklucky]

Yes, A229 Plus 2CH seems to be the top VFM proposition right now

I finally ordered two units of A119 Mini 2 with a CPL each. With 2 Samsung Pro Endurance 256GB cards, the total cost was about USD 300. I could have got A229 Plus 2CH + CPL + 256GB card for USD 225 but decided to go with more redundancy. Not sure if it was a good decision but I hope to have better rear recording quality with CPL and 18+ hours of driving before videos get overwritten.

Need inputs from people who have tried this or similar combination about installation (I am not hardwiring). Does the length of original cable suffice for the rear camera? If not, what is a better option: (a) power both from the main 12V source at dashboard (b) power the rear one with 12V source present in the middle row of my car?

Option B may not look elegant, but option A requires purchasing USB-C extender cable and dealing with the uncertainty that current flow from 12V socket is insufficient to power to independent cameras (or the risk that electrical overheating causes damages).

 

[JelleW]

Need inputs from people who have tried this or similar combination about installation (I am not hardwiring). Does the length of original cable suffice for the rear camera?

As I said above, the original cable (3.5 metres) that came with my Viofo A119 Mini 2 is too short for reaching my rear camera. I have a 2009 Hyundai i20. Good to mention that I sticked and tugged the wire the traditional way, so from the main 12V source to the glove compartment, all the way to the top on the right side and to the rear.

 

[Nguyenk65]

I have the Viofo A129 plus duo. It works fine so far. I have a Kia minivan & the included cable worked fine. The wifi connection is flaky to me but I think because of my Auto Android. I just take the micro SD out & put it in my laptop. I do recommend the CPL filter to get rid of some of the flares.

I have the dashcam viewer on my PC & it enhanced the viewing experience of the videos. Unfortunately it's not free.

 

[speedingcheetah]

I finally ordered two units of A119 Mini 2 with a CPL each. With 2 Samsung Pro Endurance 256GB cards, the total cost was about USD 300. I could have got A229 Plus 2CH + CPL + 256GB card for USD 225 but decided to go with more redundancy. Not sure if it was a good decision but I hope to have better rear recording quality with CPL and 18+ hours of driving before videos get overwritten.

Need inputs from people who have tried this or similar combination about installation (I am not hardwiring). Does the length of original cable suffice for the rear camera? If not, what is a better option: (a) power both from the main 12V source at dashboard (b) power the rear one with 12V source present in the middle row of my car?

Option B may not look elegant, but option A requires purchasing USB-C extender cable and dealing with the uncertainty that current flow from 12V socket is insufficient to power to independent cameras (or the risk that electrical overheating causes damages).

I use a 15ft ACTIVE USB extension cable for my rear cam. I only have 1 cig 12V port in my vehicle which is up front. I already use a 3x splitter to power other things other than the cams.
An active USB extension cable is best for long distance because of voltage drop. Active cables have a capacitor or some sort of chip that allows for steady voltage at long distance run.
You can also use a 12V socket extension cable. Though, the socket end is alot bigger than USB extension, so harder to tuck away some where.