Looking to upgrade to A118C

[Anthony Pham]

Does anyone have experience with the A118C sold by gear best?

Trying to see if it's the real deal.

I'm using a G1W-H right now and over time, I realize how big it is, and now I'm looking to get the A118C for it's size. The brand is VIOFO.

Hope you guys can help me soon with some opinions, as I'm hoping to jump ships soon!

If I receive a fake or don't receive it at all, I'm protected under Paypal's Buyer Protection, so I'm not worried about that I guess (but I'd rather have it right the first time).

Thanks!

edit: I am choosing the A118C because of the discrete factor, but if I spend about $10 more, I could get the Mini 0805, what are your guys opinion?

 

[jokiin]

not endorsing the seller but the Viofo version is real

 

[Anthony Pham]

not endorsing the seller but the Viofo version is real

Thanks, any opinions on the A118C vs the Mini 0805?

 

[CDNinHH]

You might want to consider waiting for the A119, big improvement over the 118 so far and they are also talking about a A119S with a sony sensor.

You will be disappointed with the night quality of the A118C. If night quality is really important to you then the SG version would be a better choice.

 

[old4570]

A118c , For around $50 , its a lot of cam for the money ...
Got mine from GB , and so far its been a very minority cam ( No issues )
Yes , the A119 is very promising ..
And no the A118c is not the best night time cam ..
Mini series has too many issues ( Playing a lottery ) , and its hit or miss as to whether you get a good one . ( On my second Mini at the moment )
Check out youtube , and if you can live with the night time video quality , the A118c will hopefully serve you well ...

 

[HSG]

Can't comment on the Mini 0805 (looks nice and sleek though) but i can share my experience with the A118c. Purchased one branded as SpyTech, but same HW, that died within 2 weeks of installation. Got a replacement and again died, this time within a month. Within that month i got a lot of card read errors so i had to reformat often (lost all saved video every time) which i think might have been due to the camera instantly shutting off when it stops getting power from the car, as the capacitor is not meant to be able to power the camera for any duration without a power source. If you do go with the A118C, turn it off manually before cutting power to it so it shuts down without corrupting the SD card.

I next went for the non-capacitance A118 model (AUTO-VOX branded) and it has been working great for over a year now. Have even installed the same model in a few friend's cars and they've all performed well. Problems aside, the A118 records great quality video and the built-in mic is quite decent. It's a lot of bang for the price IMHO.

Just curious, why would you choose the capacitor model over the battery model?

 

[old4570]

Heat , + batteries can kind of die on you ...
The battery in my Dome G90c suddenly died on me without any warning

 

[CDNinHH]

Just curious, why would you choose the capacitor model over the battery model?

There have been instances of batteries swelling and catching fire.

 

[HSG]

There have been instances of batteries swelling and catching fire.

I've heard of that too, but only extremely hot temperature situations (car sitting in direct sunlight + dashcam running). If that's your use case , then definitely capacitors make sense.

 

[CDNinHH]

I think you might qualify for that situation in California...

 

[DT MI]

...my experience with the A118c. Purchased one branded as SpyTech, but same HW, that died within 2 weeks of installation. Got a replacement and again died, this time within a month. Within that month i got a lot of card read errors so i had to reformat often (lost all saved video every time) which i think might have been due to the camera instantly shutting off when it stops getting power from the car, as the capacitor is not meant to be able to power the camera for any duration without a power source. If you do go with the A118C, turn it off manually before cutting power to it so it shuts down without corrupting the SD card.....

As a point of comparison I have 2 A118-C cameras from SpyTec and both have been faultless. You are correct that the capacitor is not meant to power the camera for any length of time - it's sole purpose is to provide power long enough to save the last file before shutting down. Shutting down manually should not be necessary and has not been for mine. Your problem could be related to the sd card versus the camera(s).

There are reports that there are A118-C cameras being manufactured at a second facility. If true it's possible that quality standards are different and the A118 cameras are now going the way of the G1W series and it will be a crap shoot as to what you get from any given seller.