Some issues and requests regarding A229Pro

donburi

donburi

Member
Joined
Apr 1, 2021
Messages
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Location
Honshu
Country
Japan
Dash Cam
Comtec ZDR035(Front & Rear) Viofo A229 Pro(Front Only)
(I am using machine translation, sorry if the question was rude)

Issues:

The color changes are too drastic. It suddenly turns yellow-green, then orange. The actual color is significantly different, and it’s clear that the A129Pro looks better when compared.

The exposure adjustment is not working well, and the image can suddenly become a bit too bright after appearing dark.

The sound quality is too poor. I think this is due to the bitrate being only 64Kbps and the sampling rate being only 16KHz. (A129Pro is 96Kbps, 32KHz)


Requests:

I would like you to add the H265 codec. Despite being equipped with 4K and even HDR, I think it’s a waste that only the H265 codec is missing, and personally, I’m a little dissatisfied with the H264 video, and there have actually been situations where the letters on the license plate of an oncoming car were distorted and unreadable. I hope that the H265 codec will be added in a future firmware update.
(All of the following are based on the assumption that they will be implemented on one channel)

I think the A229Pro uses a better chipset than the A129Pro, but the A129Pro was able to achieve a bitrate of 60Mbps with the H264 codec. I think that the A229Pro, which uses a chipset with higher processing capabilities, should be able to achieve a higher bitrate than the A129Pro (for example, 70Mbps or more). If there is room to increase the bitrate, I would like you to do so.

This is a bit different, but in the A119 mini series, A139, and A229Plus, they are achieving 60FPS at 2.5K with a slightly insufficient bitrate. I think that with the same bitrate as when running at 4K30FPS (or slightly lower), it should be possible to run at 4K60FPS without increasing the load too much on the A229Pro as well. Is it really impossible in terms of performance? (I understand that there is a possibility that the image may be disturbed due to insufficient bitrate)

I would like you to add a 2.5K60FPS mode.

If a 2.5K60FPS mode is added, I would like you to make HDR available.

To give an example of my request:
4K 30FPS H264:70Mbps H265:60Mbps(or more)
4K 30FPS HDR H264:70Mbps H265:60Mbps(or more)
4K 60FPS H264:70Mbps H265:60Mbps(or less)
2.5K 60FPS H264:70Mbps H265:60Mbps(or less)
2.5K 60FPS HDR H264:70Mbps H265:60Mbps(or less)

Regarding the issues, I’m struggling to understand why Viofo released it in such an unfinished state. As for my requests, I understand that it’s not as simple as it sounds, but if it’s possible, I would really like you to implement it, which is why I created this thread.

I hope at least my issues reach Viofo.lol
 
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We have noticed that color change issue and are working on this now.

Actually, this chipset is not powerful enough, it can not handle the 4K 60fps. Normally Sony 4K sensor doesn't support 2K resolution native, the 2K 60fps is a downscaled version of 4K.

We disabled the H.265 codec for some reason.

A 4K 60fps with a high bitrate option may be in the future dashcam.
 
viofo said:
We have noticed that color change issue and are working on this now.

Actually, this chipset is not powerful enough, it can not handle the 4K 60fps. Normally Sony 4K sensor doesn't support 2K resolution native, the 2K 60fps is a downscaled version of 4K.

We disabled the H.265 codec for some reason.

A 4K 60fps with a high bitrate option may be in the future dashcam.
Click to expand...
Thank you for your reply.

I am relieved to hear that you are working on fixing the problem.
Keep up the good work and keep making good products!
 
viofo said:
We disabled the H.265 codec
Click to expand...
Please, please, please keep H.264 until 2033. lol
viofo said:
A 4K 60fps with a high bitrate option may be in the future dashcam.
Click to expand...
Yes, please.
100 Mbps.
Single channel.
Same FOV as Original A119 Mini (120°-130°).
1TB SD Card Capacity.
Wedge Design with LCD Screen.
180°-250° Lens Adjustable to show interior of vehicle.
That would be my dream camera. lol
 
donburi said:
The sound quality is too poor. I think this is due to the bitrate being only 64Kbps and the sampling rate being only 16KHz. (A129Pro is 96Kbps, 32KHz)
Click to expand...
Can you upload an audio comparison test, (A229 Pro vs. A129 Pro)?
You can just speak with your voice into the camera microphones from the driver seat.
 
Panzer Platform said:
Can you upload an audio comparison test, (A229 Pro vs. A129 Pro)?
You can just speak with your voice into the camera microphones from the driver seat.
Click to expand...
Sorry, I can't upload my voice to the internet because I don't want to, but if it is a running sound, I would like to do a comparison tomorrow. (I don't have anything to compare at the moment).
 
donburi said:
The sound quality is too poor. I think this is due to the bitrate being only 64Kbps and the sampling rate being only 16KHz. (A129Pro is 96Kbps, 32KHz)
Click to expand...
It would be good to have 32KHz again like the A129 Pro, the A229 has a very good microphone, but half the audio resolution is being thrown away!

donburi said:
I would like you to add the H265 codec. Despite being equipped with 4K and even HDR, I think it’s a waste that only the H265 codec is missing, and personally, I’m a little dissatisfied with the H264 video, and there have actually been situations where the letters on the license plate of an oncoming car were distorted and unreadable. I hope that the H265 codec will be added in a future firmware update.
Click to expand...
The H265 codec does not improve the image quality compared to H264. Issues with reading license plates are due to other causes.

donburi said:
If a 2.5K60FPS mode is added, I would like you to make HDR available.
Click to expand...
Can Starvis 2 image sensors provide HDR at 60FPS?
It appears that only the 1080 sensor has a fast enough data transfer...
 
Nigel said:
It would be good to have 32KHz again like the A129 Pro, the A229 has a very good microphone, but half the audio resolution is being thrown away!

The H265 codec does not improve the image quality compared to H264. Issues with reading license plates are due to other causes.

Can Starvis 2 image sensors provide HDR at 60FPS?
It appears that only the 1080 sensor has a fast enough data transfer...
Click to expand...
I agree about the sound quality.

I have a feeling that H264 tends to make the image look like a mosaic when driving on mountain passes, but I feel that this is reduced with H265.
As for reading license plates, Japanese license plates are a bit more complex, so the bit rate tends to affect the image a bit, making it a bit more difficult to read. Certainly, not only that, but shutter speed and other factors also have an effect, but I expect that in situations where a lot of bit rate is used (e.g., forests), the license plate will probably not be readable.

I asked the question about 2.5K 60FPS HDR with half a mind to give up, lol.
It takes a lot of technology to achieve HDR at 60FPS.
 
Panzer Platform said:
Can you upload an audio comparison test, (A229 Pro vs. A129 Pro)?
You can just speak with your voice into the camera microphones from the driver seat.
Click to expand...

A229 pro and a229 plus have not been sent to me yet.
However, the sound recording of the a129 pro is quite low.
This is the result when you look at the a139, a119 mini2 and a229 sample videos and compare them.
 
donburi said:
I have a feeling that H264 tends to make the image look like a mosaic when driving on mountain passes, but I feel that this is reduced with H265.
Click to expand...
It is not much different, just that H265 can have larger blocks!

If you don't like watching the blocks, you can convert the H264/H265 to AV1 or VP9 codecs and the blocks will magically disappear. It would be nice to have an AV1 codec on the dashcam, but that is not available yet.

donburi said:
so the bit rate tends to affect the image a bit,
Click to expand...
Yes, bitrate can affect license plates with H264 and H265. But H265 doesn't save much bitrate when driving, so there is little advantage. H265 does work well when parked, but you don't get any advantage because dashcams are fixed bitrate, they will not decrease the bitrate when parked, unless you use Viofo's Low Bitrate Parking Mode.
 
I found another issue. During the time when it gets dark, when you use the wiper, the exposure is released, it becomes bright for a moment, and then returns to the original exposure.(This phenomenon occurred even when I wasn’t using the wiper)


Personally, I felt that the images during the day and evening were on the darker side, and I felt that the images at night were just the right brightness if it was a road without lighting such as street lights. (It feels a bit dark if there is lighting)

I also found that if the conditions are good, you can read the license plate of an oncoming car at night, even if it’s a Japanese license plate.
Incidentally, the headlights of the car are dark.

 
I conducted a comparison of the sound quality of the Viofo A119V3, A229Pro, COMTEC ZDR035, and Apple iPhone13mini. I forgot to compare it with the A129Pro. I apologize.

Overall:


Comparison:

The volume is all in its original state (volume 100%)

There is a subtle sound of rain because it was raining a little, but please don’t mind it lol
 
When i visited Japan in 1991, and got a evening off, long enough to get into town and get something to eat and a few beers and Sake ( warm ) , well the 2 Japanese girls in the photo shop where i got 2 rolls of film developed, they had a lot of giggles over this tall English speaking guy.
Never the less when i returned some hours later my films was developed and the pictures printed. :)
Japan so strange in many ways,,,, good ways most of them, i sure wish i was able to visit again and for longer time than a big tanker ship are in port.

I did give a Domo Arigato as i left, and a slight bow even if i was just 25 years old in 1991, there are a few things me and Japanese have in comon, most in regard to good manners and honor.
 
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donburi said:
I conducted a comparison of the sound quality of the Viofo A119V3, A229Pro, COMTEC ZDR035, and Apple iPhone13mini. I forgot to compare it with the A129Pro. I apologize.

Overall:


Comparison:

The volume is all in its original state (volume 100%)

There is a subtle sound of rain because it was raining a little, but please don’t mind it lol
Click to expand...
That's one of the things that has me curious. We have seen advancements in GPS, wifi and the usual image sensors - but we haven't seen much in terms of audio quality when it comes to dash cams.

Seems to be the same mono microphones when every other tech device out there has stereo mics. One could argue well you don't need anything more than a mono mic, but I'd argue otherwise as we all know better mics could provide better sound to the context of a captured accident / incident.
 
Agie said:
That's one of the things that has me curious. We have seen advancements in GPS, wifi and the usual image sensors - but we haven't seen much in terms of audio quality when it comes to dash cams.

Seems to be the same mono microphones when every other tech device out there has stereo mics. One could argue well you don't need anything more than a mono mic, but I'd argue otherwise as we all know better mics could provide better sound to the context of a captured accident / incident.
Click to expand...
I agree with you.

The audio for the driving videos I upload on YouTube is from my dashcam, as I don’t feel like setting up special equipment to record sound.

Until now, I’ve been using the video and audio from the A129Pro, but since I’ve switched to the A229Pro, it looks like next time I film something, I’ll have to put the A129Pro in the passenger seat and use its audio only, while using the A229Pro for video lol.
 
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