Possible overheating?

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Dens

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Hi everyone.
Installed (used the guide for switched power) in a Skoda octavia 2011 1.6tdi 2 weeks ago and came with v3 software.
Its in the compartment on the right side near the drivers knee (U.K). I used a new SanDisk 32gb uh1 certified card and all seemed fine.. for a while..
At first I noticed it would sometimes ignore parking mode and g-sensor settings.
Randomly get stuck in a loop saying "recording started" and on another occasion "recording stopped" the only way to stop it was to pull the battery.
I left the compartment door open so I could see the screen saver and it voiced "recording stopped" with the red dot still showing. I've had to pull the battery several times but not had to do that with the compartment left open.
The screen is quite warm but the battery seems a little hot to me, not sure why as it shouldn't really be under much load fully charged and hard wired.
I don't think its a good idea to sandwich the processor with an lcd screen and a fat battery when it's supposed to be concealed.

Could someone please explain why it has a motion sensor on-off setting AND park mode?
 
Hi Dens
I had the same issue as you described.
> Randomly get stuck in a loop saying "recording started" and on another occasion "recording stopped" the only way to stop it was to pull the battery.

I own also Scoda Octavia, and hides the DVR in the compartment.

I think it does have overheating issue. Right now I'm thinking how to cool down this compartment.....

Best regards
 
Hardwired Unswitched powering of a dashcam that has a battery instead of a super capacitor is generally not recommended.
(will over heat and or balloon up over time, especially if you're in a hotter climate)
I'd try a non-SanDisk card as well.
 
Pier28 said:
Hardwired Unswitched powering of a dashcam that has a battery instead of a super capacitor is generally not recommended.
(will over heat and or balloon up over time, especially if you're in a hotter climate)
I'd try a non-SanDisk card as well.
Click to expand...
Thanks. Do you recommend a good card for this?
I paid £30 so i expected good enough performance. I don't mind how much it is, as long as it works..
The supply is switched using the rear wiper socket and as temps go, this is the U.K I'm talking about :(
I suspect we may need to find a cooling option for this though.. Wish it didn't have a screen to be honest, it doesn't really need it and would solve the problem.
 
Ok the good news is a samsung evo card seems to have cured most of the problems. The odd time if i close the compartment so there's no air, eventually it will start and stop but as soon as it gets a little air its fine again...
 
Heat is my primary concern too. I am in Texas, specifically the Austin area. Last year I tried a BlackVue DR550GW which constantly had white outs during the summer. I ordered a K1S earlier today so we'll see how it works out. Currently peaking around 100f during the day so it should be a good test. Hopefully I don't have to take advantage of Amazon's return system again.
 
I have installed the K1S on my Can Am Spyder in constant power mode (I use a battery charger when parked in Garage) I removed the battery and the DVR works just fine. When disconnecting all power for several hours none of the user settings where lost. Temperature increased in the space by 15*F and that most likely is due to screensaver mode. Now if there was a way to put the screen to sleep would be a great battery saver.
Need to update my above statement regarding the display. With the screensaver in the off setting the display is OFF after 1 minute (set time) and there is minimal heat generated by the DVR so I can leave the unit on all day.
 
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I'm not sure about running without a battery. On one hand it would solve the battery reliability issue on the other hand you may loose power when you need it. Still up in the air keeping this one. I tried constant power for the first few weeks and it did periodically lock up. Interestingly it locked up at 5:10 am the first time when it was down to about 80f so I don't think it's heat related.

This unit is so close to being perfect. I haven't seen any issues with a camera recording weird colors and fading to a pure white screen like the Blackvue did for me. Running in constant power I found useless because a 64Gb SD card fills in a few hours so anything more than a short time parked and you loose what's in the beginning. I switched to just running the unit while driving which seems to have prevented any other lockups.

I have noticed the GPS ready audio indicator going off a few random times, I wish there were a way to see signal strength so I could tell if I have the antenna mounted in a good place or something else is causing the issue.

I took a few pics of the battery after about 1 week of use and it's bulging a decent amount.

sP1030010.jpg

sP1030012.jpg
 
That is a problem, however I have removed the Battery and have constant power. I turn the DVR off after getting back home.
 
Grumpy said:
That is a problem, however I have removed the Battery and have constant power. I turn the DVR off after getting back home.
Click to expand...

If you have an accident, & the force of the impact cuts the external power supply, the clip being recorded at the moment of impact won't be recorded to memory card. So you'll have no video evidence of your innocence. Not a setup to recommend to others.
 
Not disputing that russ331, but what is more likely to happen, battery catch Spyder on fire or loose power for that last 30 seconds at time of accident. Considering the fact that I have two batteries, the main in front and an auxiliary in the back for my LED's and add-on's.
<rant>I could also get hit on the head by a Meteor, isn't it about time that people take responsibility for their own actions and decisions rather than trying to blame everyone else for their own stupidity. </rant>
 
Grumpy said:
... what is more likely to happen, battery catch Spyder on fire or loose power for that last 30 seconds at time of accident.
Click to expand...

You're much more likely to lose the critical clip in an accident through the external power supply being cut, if the camera lacks an internal battery or capacitor. From my point of view, that makes the dashcam not fit for purpose.

LiPo fires are rare. Batteries may swell & cause physical damage to the camera. The real problem with batteries is that they inevitably fail after the camera Warranty has expired, & usually require prise tools & soldering expertise to replace them. As intended by their manufacturers, it's easier to throw the camera away & buy a replacement.

I believe the Spyder is a 3 wheeled motorcycle for those afraid of a proper 2 wheeler ... just kidding ... I know they have phenomenal performance. Lacking the glass-covered greenhouse of a car, a dashcam housed in a Spyder is never going to be subjected to the high temperatures that it would in a car. On a 31°C day the interior of my car reached 70°C after 1 hour.

I would reinstall the battery in the K1S. It's the only practical way to ensure you don't lose a vital clip.
 
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All valid points and the only improvement would be a capacitor. I am not all that happy with the video of the K1S however I do like all he features so I guess it's a trade-off. I have been using and will continue to use the Garmin Virb Elite this camera has excellent video and sound but battery is only good for two hours. Anyway, I have been riding motorcycles on and off since my 16th birthday now unfortunately since developed Arthritis in my left hip, leg and knee my RT-Limited Spyder is the ideal substitute.
 
Well I think this one is going back too. The battery is no match for Texas and has swollen to the point that it does not make contact with the unit unless I take the cover off and press down on it. This is for a unit delivered on July 28th so just over a month of usage.
 
I had a feeling the big battery they went with would end up being a weak point long term. (especially in high heat climates)
Hopefully you have a 1 year warranty and not 90 days like some of the products.
 
Amazon says it's beyond the return window but the sellers site says it has a 1 year warranty so I should at least get a new battery, not that I have much faith in the battery at this point. Hopefully I will get a chance to call around tomorrow and see what the options are. Worst case I may adapt some caps to it.

An interesting side note for anyone running without a battery, the last two files (cam 1 and cam 2) seem to be corrupt after suddenly loosing power, ie. shutting the vehicle off. MPC and VLC won't play them. They may still be usable with more effort but it's something to keep in mind if you get in an accident without a battery or with a bulging battery and suddenly loose power. It would really suck to get in an accident and not be able to see the moment of impact showing who is at fault.
 
it's a GoPro battery so at least you can find them in the market if needed and don't have to rely on the seller only to supply like a lot of generic products
 
I'm thinking about switching from my Mobius to the K1S.

I live in California, so the temperature gets pretty high here. Last week it was +100F. Would I experience bad overheating issues? For example, would the cameras degrade from the heat and eventually ruin them since being continuously exposed to heat? As for the DVR, would it experience future failures from heat? If the only thing bad that happens to it is the battery swelling, I'm okay with that.
 
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