Timestamp off by one hour

T

tupdegrove

New Member
Joined
Apr 22, 2021
Messages
3
Reaction score
1
Location
PA
Country
United States
New owner of A129 Pro Duo with the latest v22 FW. Timestamp in file name and embedded in video is one hour too early but sometimes (all the time?) eventually fixes itself. For example, left to dropoff daughter at work at 14:50 today but timestamp was 13:50. Got back to house 17 mins later at 15:07 but timestamp was still off one hour (14:07). Turned car off/on at home and now timestamp was correct at 15:07 (possible timestamp fixed itself before on/off; I didn't look that close). Another time, the timestamp was one hour too early again but in the middle of the one-minute video, the timestamp jumped ahead one hour and was then correct. Using HK3 (set to 12.2V) but Parking Mode is turned off for now. Anyone else seeing this problem?
 
Make sure you set the time zone offset correctly (plus or minus UTC) in the menu. The GPS will set the time based on your location.

www.timeanddate.com

Time Zone Map

Current local times around the world, including (DST) changes.
www.timeanddate.com www.timeanddate.com
 
I'm in GMT-5. With DST now, some Google posts say I should be using GMT-4 instead of GMT-5. I'll give it a try.
 
tupdegrove said:
I'm in GMT-5. With DST now, some Google posts say I should be using GMT-4 instead of GMT-5. I'll give it a try.
Click to expand...

Check the clock on your screen after you set the time zone and it will confirm if you've got it set correctly. Adjust accordingly if necessary.
 
Dashmellow said:
Check the clock on your screen after you set the time zone and it will confirm if you've got it set correctly. Adjust accordingly if necessary.
Click to expand...
@tupdegrove One thing worth to mention that you better check it under the sky.

I had to do this almost everytime because it often substract 1 hour as soon as i leave my garage and dashcam gets GPS signal. Despite the time and time-zone is set correctly.
 
Nath said:
@tupdegrove One thing worth to mention that you better check it under the sky.

I had to do this almost everytime because it often substract 1 hour as soon as i leave my garage and dashcam gets GPS signal. Despite the time and time-zone is set correctly.
Click to expand...

I've never thought about that as I don't have a garage but if set to the correct UTC time zone offset to where you live the GPS should get the time correct once it locks onto the satellites. Not sure what the explanation might be for what you are describing.
 
Nath said:
@tupdegrove One thing worth to mention that you better check it under the sky.

I had to do this almost everytime because it often substract 1 hour as soon as i leave my garage and dashcam gets GPS signal. Despite the time and time-zone is set correctly.
Click to expand...
You live at UTC with zero offset, right?
 
UTC+1

Dashmellow said:
I've never thought about that as I don't have a garage but if set to the correct UTC time zone offset to where you live the GPS should get the time correct once it locks onto the satellites. Not sure what the explanation might be for what you are describing.
Click to expand...
I think it has something to do with DST but never tried to deep-dive into the "problematics" (or just a common sense? :unsure: ). I'm not sure how(or whether) Viofo decodes such thing or whether it's just me not wrapping my head around simple concepts. I only wanted to point this out that there is such thing which could play a part as well. :giggle:
 
GPS time is only sent as GMT 0, any offset is managed by the camera, if you're in a region that has DST in summer then you set your timezone forward one hour, eg ours in Sydney is GMT +10, during summer we use GMT +11, if you were in a location that was GMT -5 in winter then during summer you would set it to GMT -4
 
@jokiin Ok, that's what i thought but it surprised me everytime when i set the right combination and after it got GPS signal it subtracted/added 1 hour.

I'm not sure about A129Pro now since i don't used it anymore but i tried A139 a moment ago and i'm realizing now where i could probably been doing one step wrong :D . It is possible that I set the time in advance and then set the offset in which Viofo changes the time again based on that. And because i set a time according to my phone (which already includes DST) then it resulted in this mess and my confusion. :facepalm:
 
Nath said:
UTC+1


I think it has something to do with DST but never tried to deep-dive into the "problematics" (or just a common sense? :unsure: ). I'm not sure how(or whether) Viofo decodes such thing or whether it's just me not wrapping my head around simple concepts. I only wanted to point this out that there is such thing which could play a part as well. :giggle:
Click to expand...

I didn't realize you were dealing with a DST issue when you mentioned the problem appeared to be caused when you leave your garage. That was why I asked if you live at UTC, thinking you should default to zero UTC adjustment much of the year.

@jokin explained the problem. Depending upon what time of year it is, I occasionally forget whether the time zone offset is 4 or 5 hours for my location for DST and so that is what I meant when I suggested to the OP , "Check the clock - Adjust accordingly if necessary." :)
 
@Dashmellow Well, it's not a DST issue, it's more like a wrong order and slower brain issue. :D

jokiin said:
There is no need to set the time, only the timezone
Click to expand...
Yeah sure, but when one sees the option or the "Time synchronization", it's tempting to click. :LOL: Especially after the settings were wiped due to firmware update or for testing purposes and one sits in a garage without GPS signal.

I'm just wondering, when one sets a current time and then a time-zone, why Viofo applies the offset to the set time? I mean, when one sets e.g. "8:00" and after that the time-zone to "+2", why it results in "10:00"? (until GPS kicks in) User obviously won't set GMT+0 time in the first place. Anyway, i won't spamming this thread anymore. I just wanted to point out that there is something like an internal clock which is possible to set without GPS and if user haven't set it right, the time is adjusted after dashcam gets GPS, which could result in different time.
 
Last edited:
Nath said:
@Dashmellow Well, it's not a DST issue, it's more like a wrong order and slower brain issue. :D
Click to expand...

Hah! Yeah, I know that feeling all too well! :smuggrin:

That's kind of what I meant when I mentioned that I keep forgetting whether it's 4 hours or 5 hours for the time zone offset where I live depending on what time of year it is.
 
Dashmellow said:
That's kind of what I meant when I mentioned that I keep forgetting whether it's 4 hours or 5 hours for the time zone offset where I live depending on what time of year it is.
Click to expand...
Same issue here. Found a mental trick to help remember. I know I'm minus (-) GMT and I know it's either 4 or 5 so I think of it as being in a race - in the spring (forward) I change the zone from -5 to -4 (moving 1 place closer to the lead) and in the fall (back) go the other way. Kind of juvenile but at least I now remember what it should be.
 
There are two bugs in viofo dashcams that they have decided not to fix.

1) The system uses its internal clock when it does not have GPS signal, and uses GPS when it has GPS signal. It DOES NOT SET THE INTERNAL CLOCK FROM THE GPS.
2) The dashcam does not handle daylight savings time at all. The only way to get daylight savings time is to change the time on the device manually, AND change the time zone by 1.

I'd actually prefer that we do away with daylight savings time entirely, but that bug is harder to fix.
 
DAP said:
I'd actually prefer that we do away with daylight savings time entirely
Click to expand...
My preference would be to leave it in place year 'round.
 
DAP said:
There are two bugs in viofo dashcams that they have decided not to fix.

1) The system uses its internal clock when it does not have GPS signal, and uses GPS when it has GPS signal. It DOES NOT SET THE INTERNAL CLOCK FROM THE GPS.
2) The dashcam does not handle daylight savings time at all. The only way to get daylight savings time is to change the time on the device manually, AND change the time zone by 1.

I'd actually prefer that we do away with daylight savings time entirely, but that bug is harder to fix.
Click to expand...

I basically agree with you but I don't think the issues are "bugs" that somebody decided "not to fix". There is a limit to how much processing power and memory dash cam DSPs have to offer. Asking them to change the time zone up or down according to the date as well as also accommodating the many places around the world that don't observe daylight savings is probably a bridge too far. Their primary task is to focus on the major functions that dash cams require. For now, the ritual of changing the settings for all the clocks and watches in our lives is something most of us will just have to deal with twice a year, at least for the foreseeable future. Computers, smartphones and tablets on the other hand have all the processing power and network connectivity they need to handle such tasks easily.

Personally, I'd prefer that we do away with daylight savings time too!
 
Dashmellow said:
I basically agree with you but I don't think the issues are "bugs" that somebody decided "not to fix". There is a limit to how much processing power and memory dash cam DSPs have to offer. Asking them to change the time zone up or down according to the date as well as also accommodating the many places around the world that don't observe daylight savings is probably a bridge too far. Their primary task is to focus on the major functions that dash cams require. For now, the ritual of changing the settings for all the clocks and watches in our lives is something most of us will just have to deal with twice a year, at least for the foreseeable future. Computers, smartphones and tablets on the other hand have all the processing power and network connectivity they need to handle such tasks easily.

Personally, I'd prefer that we do away with daylight savings time too!
Click to expand...
I have a bunch of digital cameras. None of them have automatic daylight savings time switching. What they do have is a boolean switch that you can manually turn on or off that adjust the recorded time for daylight savings time.
Daylight savings time is an abomination created by committee and altered annually at at least one geographic location each year. It takes a chunk of code that must be updated every time some committee alters it to make it work in computers. I don't expect automatic change over in small devices, but I do expect a manual switch to be able to tell the device that daylight savings time is in effect.
As for item 1, it would be trivial to update the internal clock to the GPS time when GPS is first acquired. You have access to an atomic clock, why wouldn't you update the internal clock.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top