S1 Pro Max Review

Hack_man

Hack_man

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Vantrue has provided me with their S1 Pro Max for testing. Thank you Vantrue!

The S1 Pro Max has the following "stand out" features relative to current mainstream cameras:

1. Both Front and Rear cameras use SONY STARVIS 2 IMX678 Sensors to provide 4K recordings at 30 FPS - This is fantastic!
2. The Front camera offers Forward Warning Collision, Pedestrian Detection and Lane Departure Warning
3. The Rear camera offers Lane Change Assist Alarm, Rear Collision Warning and is waterproof
4. PlatePix technology improves clarity of license plates

Things I already like:

1. The camera body and lens will be located nice and close to the windshield and be easy to position/rotate. I prefer this compared to camera bodies that intrude further towards the driver on extended brackets, it makes for a cleaner/stealthier install.
2. The front interface panel has no tiny buttons, but uses a pressure sensitive "ring" which is easy to use and very accessible. Cameras with tiny buttons on the bottom or front are harder to use.
3. The form factor is very pleasing, I prefer this simple boxy shape compared with the cylindrical canister style.
4. There are ventilation holes on five sides (top/bottom/left/right/rear) which should really help with heat dissipation
5. TBD

Things I dislike:

1. I'll circle back here and summarize as testing commences

Pictures!

The S1 Pro Max has a very simple front user interface with a finger friendly pressure sensitive control ring (dense squishy foam not hard plastic)
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The front camera lens rotates and is adjustable in all directions.
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All cables exit from one side which makes for a clean install
I'm glad the SD card reader is on the same (right) side since I'm right handed and it's easier to access.
One of these days somebody will figure out how to make an SD card slot easier to insert/eject so that my fat fingers with no fingernails don't keep launching the card from the spring loaded slot 😳
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The GPS module is easy to install and remove. On some cameras there is a super human magnet that only Thor can remove.
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The rear camera has a two way swivel bracket which should make installation easy
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I received mine. Haven't yet installed, but plan to do so soon.

I'm curious to see how the 4K front + Rear does myself. I've got high hopes for the S1 Pro Max!
 
Here is a still shot comparing A229 Plus 2K with S1 Pro Max 4K.
The S1 Pro Max has the overall crisper image as expected. I should not have HDR turned on for the A229 Plus.

A229 Plus 2K
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S1 Pro Max 4K
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I really like those richer colors from the Vantrue processing. I haven’t put my S1 Pro Max in the car yet.

I was doing a little bit of reading about the IMX675 and the IMX678 sensors. As I expected, the primary difference is in the number of pixels on the sensor, though the pixels themselves are the same size across both sensors. Both feature pixels that measure 2um x 2um. I was kind of hoping the 678 used slightly larger pixels rather than just more pixels. Maybe that will be Starvis 3?
 
EricSan said:
I really like those richer colors from the Vantrue processing. I haven’t put my S1 Pro Max in the car yet.

I was doing a little bit of reading about the IMX675 and the IMX678 sensors. As I expected, the primary difference is in the number of pixels on the sensor, though the pixels themselves are the same size across both sensors. Both feature pixels that measure 2um x 2um. I was kind of hoping the 678 used slightly larger pixels rather than just more pixels. Maybe that will be Starvis 3?
Click to expand...

You can definitely tell the 4K (S1 Max pro) vs 2K (A229 Plus) difference. The S1 Max Pro is far more crisp.

I wonder how the night comparison will fair. Lower definition allows more light due to larger pixels. Waiting on your report from night screenshots.
 
Hack_man said:
Here is a still shot comparing A229 Plus 2K with S1 Pro Max 4K.
The S1 Pro Max has the overall crisper image as expected. I should not have HDR turned on for the A229 Plus.
Click to expand...
Your comparisons are interesting to me because I have been considering buying an A229 Plus.
 
jsmith said:
You can definitely tell the 4K (S1 Max pro) vs 2K (A229 Plus) difference. The S1 Max Pro is far more crisp.

I wonder how the night comparison will fair. Lower definition allows more light due to larger pixels. Waiting on your report from night screenshots.
Click to expand...
The pixels are the same size, see Eric's post above.
 
There were a couple very interesting and unexpected voice outputs from the S1 Pro Max today:

1. Front Camera Calibration Completed (after initial installation and driving for a few minutes)
2. Car in front too close (I was just pulling into a gas station slot while the driver before me was leaving)

So the forward warning collision is working!
Very cool!

Tomorrow I'll get some night video with PlatePix and HDR turned on
 
Interesting to hear how the ADAS works.

I just received my test unit today but probably won't get to installing and using until the weekend. Curious how fast I will get annoyed with the ADAS compared to the Subaru Eyesight system.
 
runtohell121 said:
Interesting to hear how the ADAS works.

I just received my test unit today but probably won't get to installing and using until the weekend. Curious how fast I will get annoyed with the ADAS compared to the Subaru Eyesight system.
Click to expand...
My wife says it reminds her of my backseat driving.
Now if the S1 Pro Max could substitute MY voice, that would be hilarious.
Joking aside, it does seem to be working well.
 
How big is the storage file size per minute of the front camera and rear camera?
 
haiou_f said:
I don't think there's much difference between the two pictures
Click to expand...
The yellow building on the left looks a bit over exposed on the top (Viofo) video. It's washed out and has less detail. I'm wondering if it's because I had HDR turned on during the daytime.
In general I think the lower (Vantrue) image has slightly more crisp detail. The sky also looks more saturated on the Vantrue (brighter, deeper blue).

I've noticed in general, Viofo images of the sky tend to be more washed out, sometimes the entire sky looks white when Vantrue is deep blue.
 
dacddong said:
How big is the storage file size per minute of the front camera and rear camera?
Click to expand...
Front camera files is 558 MB w/ 4K setting
I have not installed rear camera but can do a quick test
RAV 4 is a PITA to install rear camera with hatch.


Julian23 said:
Seems like no CPL on either unit?
Is this on purpose or did you not get one?
Click to expand...
Hack_man said:
Correct, neither unit has a CPL filter. CPL filters did not come with either camera.
Click to expand...

I'll see about getting a CPL filter fort the S1 Pro Max, especially since there was an official request on this forum 🙂
and I've been meaning to get one for the A229 Plus as well. They are such a pain to install on the VIOFO cams but Vantrue is an easy installation.
 
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More daytime footage, this time HDR is OFF on A229 Plus
I definitely need to get CPL filters I see lots of glare on the left side of images
Colors and Resolution look better on S1 Pro Max but for a 2K camera the A229 Plus is not bad




A229 Plus
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S1 Pro Max
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With the S1 Pro Max, darker areas seem a bit too dark. The black truck lost detail and also under the trees.
I may turn PlatePix on soon but Vantrue was working on an update.

A229 Plus
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S1 Pro Max
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I have a couple of questions if you don't mind. Do you see the S1 Pro Max as an upgrade to the N4 Pro? (The in-cabin view isn't that important to me, as I seldom have passengers and no one I don't know.) Does Vantrue keep their power and rear camera cables compatible between models? Thanks
 
Night time footage of S1 Pro Max and A229 Plus:

S1 Pro Max shows much greater detail where my headlights were directly shining, such as the motorcycle (first and second images) and the license plate and front of an oncoming car (third and fourth images)
Areas not lit well by my headlights are very dark and in some cases cannot be seen at all (yellow building on left) with the S1 Pro Max
I also noticed that the PlatePix timer is operating independently of the HDR timer, it can be set to its own timer value, which is not what I saw with the N4S. I'm using F/W S1PM_VT-EEE181 2025-06-11 11:23:37


A229 Plus HDR ON
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S1 Pro Max PlatePix ON
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A229 Plus HDR ON
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S1 Pro Max PlatePix ON
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