SGZC12RC vs Lukas QVIA T790?

[tsouzee]

Hello. I reached out to Pier28 and was recommended the above two cameras. They both look pretty good and I like the style of the cameras (similar to Blackvue). I'm just wondering if anyone has had any first hand experience with the above? What is important to me is surveillance while i'm parked, while out for dinner or at a work meeting for a few hours during the day (my car is parked in a one car garage overnight and do not need the camera recording). Sometimes the car stays in the garage for 3-4 days at a time, so it would be pointless to leave the camera recording during those times.

A couple of questions:

- Is there a full OFF switch on the above models so that it won't drain the battery while parked in the garage for extended time periods?
- I noticed the advertising pictures of the SGZC12RC show some sort of control unit that comes with the camera. Doers this need to stay wired in the car or can I leave it home? Not sure where I would put that in the car, especially if I will be using some sort of battery drain device in addition to the camera.

Thanks all for your feedback.

 

[kamkar]

Well the camera unit of the SGZC12RC is much smaller than any Blackvue or the T790

The SGZC12RC is a camera on wire type so you will still need the main unit to be in the car, but when you have installed it and set it up you can stash it fairly good.
Buy you will need to keep it within reach as you might want to get hold of the memory card to get footage off it, and allso with most cameras its a good idea to format the memory card in the camera once in a while ( i do it about every month )

There is 2 "minusses" with the SG camera.

1. the microfone is in the main unit so if sound is important to you you cant hide it too good, or you can do a remote mod on it to extend the microfone outside of the main unit.
This offcourse demand you have a little DIT skills with a soldering iron and is willing to take the unit apart.

2. the ZC12RC dont have GPS, thats not a bad thing cuz if needed speed can be determined off video footage.

The qvia camera is pretty new so hard to tell, my first real dashcam was a Lukas LK-7500 and it worked allright and is still on duty in my little sisters car.

Lukas/ maybe Qvia too tend to use "low" bitrates, and on the Lk7500 the footage seem a little "sharp" compared to others, but its still a allright camera and i am happy its in my sisters car.

lets hope some qvia users chime in with actual user feedback, or maybe links to some raw footage to compare the 2 ( cant go by youtube videos )

 

[jokiin]

I think the SGZC12RC has the edge when it just comes to video quality however given your intended usage I think the T790 is the better choice for your situation

 

[tsouzee]

Thank you both for your responses. The SGZC12RC looks great and has great reviews, but the fact that that it has to have another unit with it kind of annoys me. This is because I'm assuming I will also need something like a Power Magic Pro as well, so it would be to clustered. My new car does not have as many compartments as my current one so it may be an issue. I will research more on the T790. I actually found a Youtube clip showing the quality of the T790 and it seems a bit pixelated. The SG videos I have seen seem to be the best.

Just a question. Doesn't the SG9665GC have a parking mode? Many folks on the forums love that model dash cam as well.

 

[jokiin]

Thank you both for your responses. The SGZC12RC looks great and has great reviews, but the fact that that it has to have another unit with it kind of annoys me. This is because I'm assuming I will also need something like a Power Magic Pro as well, so it would be to clustered. My new car does not have as many compartments as my current one so it may be an issue. I will research more on the T790.

Just a question. Doesn't the SG9665GC have a parking mode? Many folks on the forums love that model dash cam as well.

no parking mode on the SG9665GC

 

[PKNY]

I have the T790 for a about a week. So far, I really like the video quality. It is a big improvement comparing to my old Lukas 7200, and there is no pixelation when set to the highest (11Mbps) bit rate. I also like the "set and forget" parking mode, build-in battery drain prevention, and a on/off switch on the right side. Like OP, I like to turn it off when I park in my garage.

The only thing I dislike T790 is the buggy Android App. Some setting have wrong numbers, and some setting would not save.

 

[jokiin]

The only thing I dislike T790 is the buggy Android App. Some setting have wrong numbers, and some setting would not save.

the iOS app is flaky also

 

[tsouzee]

I have the T790 for a about a week. So far, I really like the video quality. It is a big improvement comparing to my old Lukas 7200, and there is no pixelation when set to the highest (11Mbps) bit rate. I also like the "set and forget" parking mode, build-in battery drain prevention, and a on/off switch on the right side. Like OP, I like to turn it off when I park in my garage.

The only thing I dislike T790 is the buggy Android App. Some setting have wrong numbers, and some setting would not save.

Thanks for the info. Hopefully the app can be updated to fix those issues. It sounds like you are happy overall. That camera seems to pack a lot of options. I will be ordering mine soon. I should be picking up my car in August and will order it then.

 

[AndyChips]

I've been trying out the T790 for a couple of weeks now and I'm not impressed, although others might have better luck than me. These are my findings:

• It almost obliterates the FM radio in my Smart car. I have it hard-wired into the fuse box and just in case anyone asks: the radio aerial is external, I've tried re-routing the wires and I've used ferrite beads in an attempt to quell the interference. All to no avail.
• Using the cigar adapter minimises the interference slightly.
• The iOS app is really buggy. There are two apps available and I was advised by the dealer to try each (I don't have a Droid device to try).
• Lukas app: Live view almost works but any previous recordings do not appear in any category or list and are thus unplayable.
• QVIA app: Live view is broken and although all recordings are visible, they do not play correctly. They all stutter and break up.
• I tried both apps on the following devices: iPod Touch (4th gen), iPad 2, iPhone 6 and iPhone 6+. They all did the same. How this software was ever released I don't know.
• I have tried multiple WiFi channel numbers and have always been within 0.5 metre of the device.
• I tried the factory-shipped firmware and also the latest. No difference.
• The dealer swapped it out and the problems remained.

On the plus side, this camera ticks all the boxes for me, especially the parking mode with auto-battery drain sense. The video quality is also pretty good, although not as good as some others and certainly not £200 worth.
In short, I desperately wanted to keep it but I just couldn't live with the major faults. It has now gone back for a refund.

 

[tsouzee]

Oh crap. That doesnt sound good. I haven't ordered mine yet but thought it would be perfect. It seems like it would check all the boxes for me too. Regarding playback, do you think there would be issues playing video footage if hooked up to a PC? Or is this not possible?

 

[kamkar]

You can always pop the memory card in a card reader on the PC, thats still the way most dashcam users go about it, its by far the fastest way not least if you are intrested of backing up the whole SD card.

I dont know what speeds you get off the wifi in those cameras, but a class 10 U3 card in a card reader do like 80 - 90 MB/s, and i would prefer that speed if i had to move 32 - 64 Gb or maybe even more data.

Offcourse if you just have to grab a file here and there, then i allso just plug my small cameras ( mobius and Joovuu X cam ) into my computer im mass storage mode, but then i only get like 20 - 25 MB/s transfer speeds, but i can make do with that if its on the computer and its just a single 3 minute file.

I assume Qvia/lukas will get ther cameras and APPs in sync sooner or later, but for a brand new product i would not rely much in the wifi/APP abilities.

I even think gopro had simmilar problems with their new cameras with wifi and stuff.

 

[AndyChips]

tsouzee: Yes, the clips play just fine in a PC. You just pop out the MicroSD card and into your PC with a suitable adapter. I can provide example clips if you want.
Whilst I'm here, I'll qualify my previous points about Wifi performance:

• A properly functioning live view is essential when deciding where to place the camera, as it doesn't have a built-in screen. If it doesn't work properly then you run the risk of sticking the camera in the wrong place, as all you're doing is guessing where it's pointing. Let me tell you, I've just had to remove it from my windscreen and the 3M double-sided sticky pad is a right royal pain to remove. I don't want to have to guess again!
• I can't think of many times I would need to download or play clips straight from the camera over Wifi, but if the manual says it does it then it should.
• Configuring the camera over Wifi is straightforward and mostly reliable, assuming you can get the Wifi connected in the first place. It can be hit and miss, especially if and when the camera decides to publish its SSID, regardless of how many times you press its Wifi button. Thankfully you only normally have to configure it once.

I don't know where you guys are but here in the UK this is a £200 camera ($266.34) so it should be pretty much perfect for that kind of money. Right now I have a £65 Maisi which does everything it says it should just perfectly, however this is a stop-gap camera until someone decides to make a working equivalent of the QVIA T790.
Hope this helps.
A.

 

[george55321]

Hi
I got the Qvia t790 and except for one problem it seems to work great. I have no stuttering while driving, no pixels either and the Video quality looks smooth and good on the Dumb-Phone. Recordings look good too. No problem on that end. Did not try at night yet because their is one problem I have not resolved yet. I have the camera always under power and I try to record 24/7 but after a while the camera switches to parking mode and the WiFi stops too. Don't know yet why. Supposedly you can record continuously but have not found the trick yet. GPS seems to work fine. Now I am still playing with the settings so the WiFi is not stopping while the car is parked. I get the signal ~15 feet and Dumb-Phone connects when I am at the window in my house. Otherwise no complains whatsoever. Since Lukas claims the camera can take 70C 158F I should be good. Haven't above 148F in my car, baking in the sun yet. My short report since I got the camera just 2 days ago.
George

 

[niko]

My new car does not have as many compartments

What is your car make / model / year ?

 

[quazi]

I have mentioned the t790 in another thread but would like to ask users of this camera if the parking mode they mention works with the hardwire kit they supply or off the now optional 12 socket/lighter socket adaptor?