Mini 0803 - Heat Issue?

[theT]

Hi all,

I've read a lot the last weeks in this nice forum and finally ordered a Mini 0803 from FoxOffer. Well, it arrived yesterday. So far so good.

Anyhow, I haven't had time to install it in my car yet, but I played around a little. Beside from a some minor firmware issues (like the annoying beeping upon turning it on/off, flashing status led, ...) which could be fixed easily, I've noticed that my 0803 gets pretty hot when its operating at room temperature. For testing I just plugged it into a USB power supply and let it recording for 2 hours (monitor was off after 1 minute). Indoor, room temperature about 24 degrees Celsius.

After a 2 hour straight run I could hardly touch it for several seconds, it was metaphorically speaking like a hot potato.

I wonder what will happen if I install the 0803 in my car and the sun is shinning for a while ...

theT

 

[chris-s]

I've done this test in same temperature conditions, for testing my 64 GB card yesterday.
I've noticed that the case is hotter in 1296p than in 1080p.
Espescially at the lens end.
Yes, it is very hot in 1296p but I can hold it with my fingers without injury.

Is yours really so hot that you can't hold it ?

 

[chris-s]

I've no problem using my 0803 with 35°C outside, and air conditioned inside the car in 1296p

 

[theT]

Thanks for the quick reply. Well, holding the 0803 like a potato in your hand (hand closed), it's pretty hot for my feeling. I can't hold it longer than some seconds like this. You're right, the hottest spot is at the lens end.

I've done the test using 1296p - I'll give it another try using 1080p.

 

[chris-s]

I'll try to make another test and mesure the temperature with a baby IR thermometer.

 

[ChiefWiggum]

My 0803 does get warm [when connected to a hardwire kit] & seemed ok.

The only time it got worryingly hot was when it was powered by the cigarette lighter adaptor shipped with it.
Both the power adaptor & the camera were very hot.
I put it down to maybe the cigarette lighter power adaptor having some issue.

 

[chris-s]

My 0803 does get warm [when connected to a hardwire kit] & seemed ok.

The only time it got worryingly hot was when it was powered by the cigarette lighter adaptor shipped with it.
Both the power adaptor & the camera were very hot.
I put it down to maybe the cigarette lighter power adaptor having some issue.

I think that power supply has nothing to do with 0803 case temperature.
Are you sure ?
Was it at same resolution ?
1296p is hotter

 

[theT]

I'm using an official Apple iPad power supply which can deliver up to 10 watts and the micro USB cable, which came with the 0803. I think the power supply isn't the problem.

The 0803 is now running with 1080p and WDR OFF for about 30 minutes - it's just slightly warm, not hot anymore. A huge difference!

My first run was with WDR ON and 1296p resolution. So obviously it's either the higher resolution or the WDR mode. I bet it's the WDR mode ... I will let it cool down and try again.

 

[chris-s]

I have always WDR ON, and it is not so hot in 1080p

First results mesured at the hottest point :
A118 @1080p : 46°C
0803 @1080p : 42°C at lens end
0803 @1296p : 45°C at lens end, but 52°C mesured on HDMI port !

 

[theT]

Thanks chris-s for the measured temperature values, these are hard facts

I'll try to grab an infrared thermometer somewhere to compare it against mine.

 

[Tommy]

@theT "I'm using an official Apple iPad power supply which can deliver up to 10 watts and the micro USB cable"

Ever charged your iPhone with your iPad charger ? Notice it gets a LOT hotter than when you charge it with your regular (smaller) iPhone charger ?

Not sure about exact figures (never actually looked on the chargers) but the iPhone one is rated at about 500mA, and the iPad one has about 2-3 Amps.

Same principle here. If you will use the standard charger that the 0803 comes with, you will most likely not have it that hot. That's because the battery doesn't draw "a fixed amount of current", it draws whatever it is offered.

 

[chris-s]

Edited post #9 (temperatures)

 

[theT]

@Tommy:

Thanks for your input, however, I partially disagree with your answer.

During normal operation (without charging!) a device should draw the same amount of power, regardless of which power supply is used. It is important that your power supply can provide at least the drawn energy which is consumed. Electronically speaking, it is not a problem if your power supply can provide more energy (amperes) than your device needs. Why should it get hotter? This makes no sense. Does your PC also get hotter if you use a stronger power supply, e.g. 700W instead of a 420W power supply. Well, definitively not. The same applies to the Mini 0803, you could use a USB power supply which can provide 100 amps at 5V. The Mini 0803 would work as well and wouldn't explode/burn down.

When it comes to charging, things change a lot. Charging an iPhone using an iPad charger makes a big difference, the iPhone gets hotter, however, it's charged much faster. The reason is that the charging circuit tries to draw as much power it can get to charge the battery. Using an iPhone charger it can only provide 500mA. A part of it is used for running the iPhone, the rest is used for charging the battery. Using an iPad charger instead a lot of more energy is pumped into the battery within the same time. The battery gets of course hotter and the charging circuit within the iPhone also emits more heat. Typically a smartphone battery has about 3.7 V. So you need a voltage regulator inside the phone to reduce the given 5V (from USB) to 3.7V. As it isn't 100% efficient, a lot of energy is emitted as heat. If this voltage regulator has - lets say - 90% efficiency, 10% is emitted as heat only.

I haven't measured the power consumption of the 0803 yet, but I guess during normal operation (recording) without charging (battery full) it draws about 400mA to 1A from the power supply.

To sum up: If the Mini 0803 is fully charged and plugged into a usb charger/power supply, no matter if it can offer 1A or 100A, it consumes the same amount of energy which is emitted as heat.

 

[theT]

I've found an IR thermometer and did some measures. Ambient temperature was 26°C.

0803 @ 1296p, WDR ON: 43°C beside lens (dotted area next to lens), 56°C on HDMI port
0803 @ 1296p, WDR OFF: 43°C beside lens (dotted area next to lens), 53°C on HDMI port
0803 @ 1080p, WDR OFF: 39°C beside lens (dotted area next to lens), 50°C on HDMI port

I'll try the other settings and update this post.

 

[chris-s]

Same results as mine, so your 0803 as no issue

 

[theT]

Yes chris-s, you're right. Temperatures seem to be 'normal' for this 0803 model.

Anyhow, I didn't expect that it gets that hot, especially as cars usually heat up as well if they're parked for hours in direct sunlight ...

 

[borland]

Running that hot, how long will the built-in battery last? Only a few reported battery problems with the 0801, but it runs cooler.

 

[BlackBoxed.ca]

Customers who have bought from us do report that the dash cam are slightly warmer compared to others, but there haven't been any actual problems caused by it.

Kelvin

 

[borland]

The camera has only been available a few months and you've been selling them for less than that. Are you prepared to replace them if the batteries fail in a few more months?

 

[BlackBoxed.ca]

We have been selling the Mini 0803 since the day it has been available. As we do state on our site, we stand behind all of our products and will replace them if needed.

Kelvin