Thinkware U3000 Pro kills Viofo SD cards since January Update

[jsmith]

The SDCard.org 'SD Memory Card Formatter' will not format an SD card that the OS can not see.

If the inserted SD card is not seen and mounted by the OS, I have never seen the SDCard formatter be able to find and format that card. Conversely, if the OS detects the SD card, even if it is corrupted, the SDCard formatter will attempt to format it. The difference between the SDCard formatter and the OS formatter is that the SDCard formatter follows its own specifications for allocating space, alignment, etc on that card. OS formatters often fall short of the specification.

This is a given. However, @SafeDriveSolutions said he didn't have physical access to the cards? So not sure if a format was attempted (software error) or cards are totally bricked (not recognized by the computer)?

Unless I am misunderstanding what he said above about all being sent back to Viofo......Was any testing done prior to sending the back????

Also, he hasn't tested other brands..... The Viofo Cards could be a bad batch. We don't know if other brands are failing....

 

[SafeDriveSolutions]

You said that you lacked physical access to the Viofo MicroSD cards to check if they were software "Bricked" (Format can fix) or Hardware "Bricked" (Bad Nand / Controller) where a format wouldn't resolve. It's very unlikely a firmware bug could physically brick a card. It could cause corruption in the way data is written to the Nand or how the Controller processes the data, but it wouldn't permanently damage it.

So we are a full service company. Which means a customer calls we take care of them. We had in possession all the SD cards prior to shipping back to Viofo

 

[jsmith]

So we are a full service company. Which means a customer calls we take care of them. We had in possession all the SD cards prior to shipping back to Viofo

Understood....with that information:

Would the cards NOT recognize in a computer after the firmware update to .03 and becoming "Bricked"? Did you try several computers?

I'm still leaning Viofo had a bad batch of cards versus an overall firmware physically bricking cards. You'd really have to try other brands to make this determination. And also other batches of Viofo Cards from different manufacturer / order dates.

 

[SafeDriveSolutions]

Understood....with that information:

Would the cards NOT recognize in a computer after the firmware update to .03 and becoming "Bricked"? Did you try several computers?

I'm still leaning Viofo had a bad batch of cards versus an overall firmware physically bricking cards. You'd really have to try other brands to make this determination. And also other batches of Viofo Cards from different manufacturer / order dates.

I only try to comment on challenges where.

1. We did the installation
2. We seen it first hand
3. We did some testing internally
4. We supplied the product

I try to do that because if a customer installs the product themselves I have no control over if the install was done correctly. Whether they used a 3rd party sd card, whether it was mounted correctly amongst many other factors.

Some of the people know that on the forum but I guess I need to be more specific so everyone knows that.

To answer your question as well

Viofo SD cards are from multiple different batches. Some installed in November (Different batch), SOme installed January and February (Different batch)
Keep in mind 2 of the 10 defective were from Viofo dash cameras. The majority were from Thinkware U3000 Pro after the update.

Either way the good news is Viofo has received our shipment today so hopefully we will hear results soon of their findings.

 

[newdriver9]

Would the cards NOT recognize in a computer after the firmware update to .03 and becoming "Bricked"? Did you try several computers?

Not sure why @SafeDriveSolutions still hasn't answered this question directly when the "bricked" cards were in your possession.

You said:

So you think we do not know how to format an sd card?

So I feel like formatting the SD and/or testing it in a computer should have been one of the first steps you tried.

Failing to mention until now that "2 of the 10 defective were from Viofo dash cameras" is also an oversight since your initial post and subsequent replies made it seem like this bricking issue was specific to the U3000 Pro only after their .03 firmware but now we know this is not the case

 

[SafeDriveSolutions]

Not sure why @SafeDriveSolutions still hasn't answered this question directly when the "bricked" cards were in your possession.

You said:

So I feel like formatting the SD and/or testing it in a computer should have been one of the first steps you tried.

Failing to mention until now that "2 of the 10 defective were from Viofo dash cameras" is also an oversight since your initial post and subsequent replies made it seem like this bricking issue was specific to the U3000 Pro only after their .03 firmware but now we know this is not the case

The viofo cards that were in thinkware units could not be read. They were dead. Not sure what else you want from me.

I stated the viofo cards as 2 of 10 sent back to gove you an idea of our defective rate. Seeing we install 100 viofo units to like 5 thinkware and we only has 2 dead sd cards ( which could still be read) the thinkwares are dead.

You are for some reason thinking we are incompetent with your basic questions on if we tested in multiple computers. Like seriously thats basic testing.

The post was to see if others have seen this problem not to question our competency.

 

[newdriver9]

In my defense, @jsmith (and others in this thread) asked you 3 separate times if you did any card testing/formatting with a computer and you never gave a direct "yes we did test" or "no we did not test" response and I'm not sure if it's fair to assume you did or did not. That's not a competency comment. You obviously know how but maybe you did not have time and chose to send them directly to Viofo for analysis. But hard to tell what exactly the case is from the previous responses.

 

[SafeDriveSolutions]

In my defense, @jsmith (and others in this thread) asked you 3 separate times if you did any card testing/formatting with a computer and you never gave a direct "yes we did test" or "no we did not test" response and I'm not sure if it's fair to assume you did or did not. That's not a competency comment. You obviously know how but maybe you did not have time and chose to send them directly to Viofo for analysis. But hard to tell what exactly the case is from the previous responses.

Yes we tested in multiple computers. My business partner tested on his computers and when I recieved the sd cards(Because everything gets sent to me before we ship back to China) i also tested them on my Macbook air and my Macbook Studio.

When an sd card is not being read I take the following steps

1. I use an sd card adaptor insert into main SD card slot on macbook studio. If for some reason it is not read.
2. I grab another micro sd card adaptor and retry again
3. If that does not work I use my USB C adaptor and insert micro sd card directly into the adaptor, plug it into my mac studio or macbook air and try again.

When it will not even appear on the screen or says drive is not accessible (I did not think to document it at the time)

On a Mac computer I will go directly into Disk Utility to see if I can do a format of the sd card. Or if it will even see it.

I have brought way more SD cards to life. But these ones in this particular situation were very weird. I have seen this type of SD card before but usually on an sd card that someone has been using in their dash camera for like 5 years. Not a few months.

NOW TO BETTER UNDERSTAND WHY THIS POST HAPPENED

-Tuesday June 24th shipped package to Viofo with defective units and defective SD cards we do this maybe 2 times a year.
-Saturday June 27th we confirmed that Thinkware U3000 Pro (original manufacturing run installed in November 2025) Customer did update a few days prior and SD card was confirmed to be bricked.
-Saturday morning I made the post on DCT confirming my suspicions that this must somehow be related to the update.

When I originally made the post i assumed that there would be people posting saying something along the lines of
"I noticed in February my Samsung Pro Endurance stopped working"
"I noticed my Sandisk High Endurance stopped working in March after the update"

But surprisingly complete crickets. Which means possibly this is only a Viofo SD card issue with new update in U3000 Pro.

So why the compatibility challenge all of a sudden? Really confuses me because I find the VIofo SD card to test as better quality than the Thinkware.

 

[jsmith]

I don't think you're incompetent, but I also am not a mind reader to know WHAT TESTS were performed. Basic Troubleshooting 101 is to work backwards in order to eliminate the obvious points of failure. Failures are often repeatable, too.

1. You never articulated that you had physical possession of the cards. You simply stated they were mailed back to Viofo.

2. I don't know you in person. I realize others on here have met you before, and you run a dashcam installation business, but my knowledge of your business model is limited. You now state "Full Service", which offers clarity.

Yes we tested in multiple computers. My business partner tested on his computers and when I recieved the sd cards(Because everything gets sent to me before we ship back to China) i also tested them on my Macbook air and my Macbook Studio.

1. OK so now you've answered the first question. These cards were tested in multiple computers and failed to be recognized by the card reader.

When an sd card is not being read I take the following steps

1. I use an sd card adaptor insert into main SD card slot on macbook studio. If for some reason it is not read.
2. I grab another micro sd card adaptor and retry again
3. If that does not work I use my USB C adaptor and insert micro sd card directly into the adaptor, plug it into my mac studio or macbook air and try again.

When it will not even appear on the screen or says drive is not accessible (I did not think to document it at the time)

On a Mac computer I will go directly into Disk Utility to see if I can do a format of the sd card. Or if it will even see it.

I have brought way more SD cards to life. But these ones in this particular situation were very weird. I have seen this type of SD card before but usually on an sd card that someone has been using in their dash camera for like 5 years. Not a few months.

2. So now you've offered PRECISE troubleshooting steps, with a Caveat.

A. You stated the Viofo Cards are from different batches. This eliminates a bad batch, but does not specifically eliminate a manufacturing defect in the NAND / Controller.

B. Without testing other brand cards (Aside from Vueroid), you cannot eliminate the problem being a Viofo Only issue versus a universal one. If you tested a few other manufacturers, and repeated the card failure issue with other brands, then you've identified the issue is in fact a problem with Thinkware Firmware.

C. After confirming "B", you then work backwards to identify the exact firmware where cards worked and the first firmware where cards don't. Thinkware can then analyze their code.

My intentions are always to help troubleshoot. I've contacted MANY MANY companies about issues with their products, identifying bugs, etc. Recently, I re-contacted a company's executive team again (after finding bugs in their firmware a few years ago), and they SERIOUSLY remembered me. That says something about my abilities.

I'm not being rude or making any implications about your testing skills, but I can only help troubleshoot based upon the information I'm given. The steps above would be how I would go about troubleshooting myself.

NOW TO BETTER UNDERSTAND WHY THIS POST HAPPENED

-Tuesday June 24th shipped package to Viofo with defective units and defective SD cards we do this maybe 2 times a year.
-Saturday June 27th we confirmed that Thinkware U3000 Pro (original manufacturing run installed in November 2025) Customer did update a few days prior and SD card was confirmed to be bricked.
-Saturday morning I made the post on DCT confirming my suspicions that this must somehow be related to the update.

When I originally made the post i assumed that there would be people posting saying something along the lines of
"I noticed in February my Samsung Pro Endurance stopped working"
"I noticed my Sandisk High Endurance stopped working in March after the update"

But surprisingly complete crickets. Which means possibly this is only a Viofo SD card issue with new update in U3000 Pro.

So why the compatibility challenge all of a sudden? Really confuses me because I find the VIofo SD card to test as better quality than the Thinkware.

Understand your intentions for posting. It's the reason why I offered further advice to expand upon your methodology, in order to determine whether the problem is relegated to "Viofo Only" or affected other manufacturers.

 

[jsmith]

In my defense, @jsmith (and others in this thread) asked you 3 separate times if you did any card testing/formatting with a computer and you never gave a direct "yes we did test" or "no we did not test" response and I'm not sure if it's fair to assume you did or did not. That's not a competency comment. You obviously know how but maybe you did not have time and chose to send them directly to Viofo for analysis. But hard to tell what exactly the case is from the previous responses.

Exactly. I've helped MANY MANY companies identify bugs with products / services I've used. I can only offer advice within the limitations of the information I'm given. Recently, I contacted the executive team of a company whose products had some firmware bugs a few years ago. I found further issues recently, and they REMEMBERED ME by name. The person I interacted with seriously stated we worked together the last time to identify X bugs if I recall. That says a lot about my abilities to troubleshoot and document problems.

I've also helped Vantrue and other companies on here with issues, too.

The whole process of troubleshooting is working backwards, isolating the problem, and repeating the failure. Afterwards, you need to identify how and when that failure occurs. Nothing I asked @SafeDriveSolutions was meant to downplay his abilities or level of competency. I was simply trying to ascertain what troubleshooting steps had and had not yet been undertaken.

We do know now, that ONLY Viofo cards have been tested, which limits the argument to this being a Universal Issue with the Thinkware u3000 firmware. Until the failure is repeated in other brand MicroSD cards, we cannot say for certain whether the failure is in fact a Viofo Problem or Thinkware Problem.

 

[SafeDriveSolutions]

It’s a Thinkware problem. Our controllables will prove it.

Maybe its not clear enough on the forum. But I have talked to other people on the phone and they understand it very clearly.

I think possibly some of your questions I answered on the phone to other members and that is why I never answered it here.

Either way this is 100% a Thinkware problem.

The problem is that if I even prove it they are such a slow moving company it will be 6 months before it gets fixed.

For now our solution is to use Vueroid SD cards as it solves the problem for us.

 

[SafeDriveSolutions]

I also realized that I posted other non thinkware cards on original post and I should have stated Viofo sd cards.

I have gone back and corrected that.

 

[jsmith]

It’s a Thinkware problem. Our controllables will prove it.

Maybe its not clear enough on the forum. But I have talked to other people on the phone and they understand it very clearly.

I think possibly some of your questions I answered on the phone to other members and that is why I never answered it here.

Either way this is 100% a Thinkware problem.

The problem is that if I even prove it they are such a slow moving company it will be 6 months before it gets fixed.

For now our solution is to use Vueroid SD cards as it solves the problem for us.

1. I now understand the issue, but I would still argue that to eliminate Viofo MicroSD cards as the culprit, you must test other brands. If other brands fail, then Thinkware Firmware is the problem.

2. Assuming the issue is Thinkware Firmware, what makes you think they wouldn't fix the problem? I've never tested or had any interaction with Thinkware, but most companies seem motivated to resolve issues.

I always google the Executive Emails and escalate my problem to the top when I get nowhere.... Trust me, it works!

Write up a description of the problem, include steps on how to replicate the issue, when the problem was first noticed (firmware) and what firmware version worked without the problem. Tell Thinkware executives how to replicate the issue.

Title the Email: U3000 Pro Cameras Breaking MicroSD Cards after Version (insert version)

The publicly documented email for Andy Song, Chief Executive Officer at THINKWARE North America, is andy.song@mondosystem.com

Billy Alexandre is the National Sales and Account Manager for THINKWARE DASH CAM. You can contact him via his LinkedIn Profile or by using his business email b.alexandre@thinkware.com

Give it a shot....

 

[TonyM]

@SafeDriveSolutions I understand that a number of your customers encountered a similar problem within a short space of time, all of whom had upgraded their U3000 Pro firmware after the January update. I respect that you found a solution for your customers by providing replacement microSD cards from a different supplier.

You performed a number of tests on the cards, then sent them back to Viofo for assessment. You also shared your experience here so that a) other U3000 Pro owners might benefit from the warning, and b) you might get some feedback from the wider DCT community about what may be happening.

I do not think it is your responsibility to go out of your way performing dozens of tests on a variety of cards and firmware versions - this is time-consuming and potentially expensive if you are left with a box full of broken cards.

 

[SafeDriveSolutions]

1. I now understand the issue, but I would still argue that to eliminate Viofo MicroSD cards as the culprit, you must test other brands. If other brands fail, then Thinkware Firmware is the problem.

2. Assuming the issue is Thinkware Firmware, what makes you think they wouldn't fix the problem? I've never tested or had any interaction with Thinkware, but most companies seem motivated to resolve issues.

I always google the Executive Emails and escalate my problem to the top when I get nowhere.... Trust me, it works!

Write up a description of the problem, include steps on how to replicate the issue, when the problem was first noticed (firmware) and what firmware version worked without the problem. Tell Thinkware executives how to replicate the issue.

Title the Email: U3000 Pro Cameras Breaking MicroSD Cards after Version (insert version)

The publicly documented email for Andy Song, Chief Executive Officer at THINKWARE North America, is andy.song@mondosystem.com

Billy Alexandre is the National Sales and Account Manager for THINKWARE DASH CAM. You can contact him via his LinkedIn Profile or by using his business email b.alexandre@thinkware.com

Give it a shot....

Billy has been gone for over a year now. Yes i have Andy email. But a lot of times they are slow at responding. They send my email to Korea and then sooner or later it gets back to me. If its a quick question like hey i need a manual for a new product. Quick reply in 24 hours. Any tech related its forward through the chain and a lot of times it gets lost in the shuffle.

 

[SafeDriveSolutions]

@SafeDriveSolutions I understand that a number of your customers encountered a similar problem within a short space of time, all of whom had upgraded their U3000 Pro firmware after the January update. I respect that you found a solution for your customers by providing replacement microSD cards from a different supplier.

You performed a number of tests on the cards, then sent them back to Viofo for assessment. You also shared your experience here so that a) other U3000 Pro owners might benefit from the warning, and b) you might get some feedback from the wider DCT community about what may be happening.

I do not think it is your responsibility to go out of your way performing dozens of tests on a variety of cards and firmware versions - this is time-consuming and potentially expensive if you are left with a box full of broken cards.

I am already behind on creating YouTube content. i also dont want to spend a whole bunch of money on SD cards. Plus you need to do longevity testing.

 

[jsmith]

@SafeDriveSolutions I understand that a number of your customers encountered a similar problem within a short space of time, all of whom had upgraded their U3000 Pro firmware after the January update. I respect that you found a solution for your customers by providing replacement microSD cards from a different supplier.

You performed a number of tests on the cards, then sent them back to Viofo for assessment. You also shared your experience here so that a) other U3000 Pro owners might benefit from the warning, and b) you might get some feedback from the wider DCT community about what may be happening.

I do not think it is your responsibility to go out of your way performing dozens of tests on a variety of cards and firmware versions - this is time-consuming and potentially expensive if you are left with a box full of broken cards.

@TonyM

Out of context.

1. A Few other major brands is enough to confirm whether other brands suffer issue.

2. Place MicroSD in camera on bench test (or if one is installed in vehicle). Let camera run until card dies. Doesn't require any time or effort at all.

 

[jsmith]

Billy has been gone for over a year now. Yes i have Andy email. But a lot of times they are slow at responding. They send my email to Korea and then sooner or later it gets back to me. If its a quick question like hey i need a manual for a new product. Quick reply in 24 hours. Any tech related its forward through the chain and a lot of times it gets lost in the shuffle.

Troubleshooting takes time. It has nothing to do with Thinkware being "Slow", and everything to do with their engineers tracking down the problem. This isn't an immediate process.

 

[SafeDriveSolutions]

Troubleshooting takes time. It has nothing to do with Thinkware being "Slow", and everything to do with their engineers tracking down the problem. This isn't an immediate process.

You are not fully understanding. Its because they email everyone asking who is going to take care of this. They do not even respond with "Let me look into this and get back to you." That to me would be acceptable.

 

[jsmith]

You are not fully understanding. Its because they email everyone asking who is going to take care of this. They do not even respond with "Let me look into this and get back to you." That to me would be acceptable.

Catch 22. Emailing everyone finds a person willing to pick up the project, although assigning a team to troubleshoot could be more efficient. None the less, the problem does get troubleshooted at some point.

Thinkware obviously needs made aware of the issue. Your argument is their firmware is the culprit. Yes, you could ignore the problem by using Vueroid cards, but what's to say another update doesn't Brick Vueroid Cards, too?