Viofo A119 lens wobble - normal or not?

Here's one for you... I spotted an A119 V3, brand new in box, for £30 posted. I've bought it and asked Viofo to hold off sending me the two A119 V2 cameras as I may just need one V2 after the V3 arrives, IS new, and works!!

Viofo originally suggested I buy a V3 when first contacting me on the wobble issue as they were on a Black Friday deal (but were still around £80-90).

Viofo have kindly said that's fine to hold the order of the two V2 cams, just let them know, they haven't shipped them yet.

Q. I seem to recall the V3 has a slightly narrower field of view than the V2. Is that correct?
Q. Would V2 be better than V3 to film internal cabin?
(for why, see: https://dashcamtalk.com/forum/threads/cam-to-film-driver-and-dash-of-car.50109/#post-608330)
...and when that's sorted I can choose which screen to put the two new cams (V2; V3) and the old ones after making sure the original 'wobbly lenses' are DIY fixed (Blutak. V1; V2).

I'm thinking: V3 front screen most used car; new V2 front screen other car; older V2 rear screen most used car; V1 rear screen other car.

Any views on which to use for cabin filming, please let me know. I could still buy a Mobius 1S C2 if absolutely necessary but thought I'd try a 119 first.
 
DavidUK said:
Q. I seem to recall the V3 has a slightly narrower field of view than the V2. Is that correct?
Q. Would V2 be better than V3 to film internal cabin?
Click to expand...
The V3 is the narrowest of Viofo's cameras, which means it can read plates easier, but I wouldn't want it any narrower as a main front camera, you can miss things off the side of the frame.

For internal, you normally want wider angles, although if you are trying to read small digits on the dash and are not interested in the passenger, then maybe not. Also, note that the wider camera will probably have a better focus range, they are not designed for close up views.

I don't remember how wide the V2 was, it is not going to be a huge difference, but it is worth choosing the right one.
 
Thanks Nigel. I'll try the V2.
 
V3 has arrived. it is brand new.

Inserted Samsung Evo Plus 128GB card. I get this screen but pressing the triangle (or any) button doesn't start the format. Just goes back to this screen?

20231201_110752.jpg

What am I doing wrong???

NB. Just noticed... if I put my thumb over the card slot, card inserted, it's burning hot. Too hot to keep my thumb there.
Took the card out, put it in its SD adapter and into my MacBook Pro. Same thing, burning hot - removed!

I bought a second identical Samsung card so put that into the adapter and into my MacBook. Not super hot this time. Formatted it ExFat (I think that's correct?) but "Free space" showing as "0" - see below. Is that right?...

20231201_112822.jpg

Going to hang fire on putting this one into the A119V3 until someone can help me. Please...
 
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No idea off hand, it works for me on my Samsung Evo Plus 128Gb (x2)

Do you have a PC to check what the card is currently formatted as ?

The dashcam can convert to FAT32 but not sure whether the card needs to be NTFS or exFAT first

You can't format a 128Gb to FAT32 from native Windows, you need a tool like SDFormatter

I won't have PC access till tomorrow to check mine
 
In the screen shot above it says "exFAT"

Anyhow... I took the risk and put the 2nd Samsung card into the A119V3.
Cam asked me to format the card. This time it worked. I think it should be FAT32 as you say.
No burning hot card.
Recorded a short video. Played back fine.

Just goes to show even Samsung cards can arrive faulty!

MyMemory replacing the faulty card FOC.
 
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I also noticed the A119 V3 has no left/right movement to the lens...

20231201_105450-2.jpg

...unlike the V1 and V2...

20231124_171309.jpg

So not only does the V3 have a narrower field of view, it also doesn't allow custom left/right adjustment. Progress?
Still... no more lens side to side wobble.

Oh... and the V3 came with a GPS module, which I'd decided 6/7 years ago I didn't want/need for the V1 & V2. As far as I remember this records the car's GPS positioning co-ordinates when the cam senses a shock. Is that correct? I guess it also does that if you press the triangle "lock" button whilst a file is being recorded? Maybe I should read the user manual!!

Ah... just read that the GPS records speed too, which, I recall being discussed years ago, sometimes may not be a good thing!

Is the GPS add-on the same for V1/V2/V3?
 
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DavidUK said:
Thanks. Now the 2nd card has been formatted by the camera and is working, is there any need to re-format via your link?
Click to expand...
If it's working OK, then no need to format again via that program.
 
The GPS is continually writing to the file if the module is connected and GPS is turned on

Very useful if using a program like Dashcam Viewer, you can see where you are in a side map and where that file starts, ends and the track taken

I wouldn't be without GPS
 
DavidUK said:
...Ah... just read that the GPS records speed too, which, I recall being discussed years ago, sometimes may not be a good thing!...
Click to expand...
As @Kremmen mentioned GPS doesn't really calculate speed, just captures geographic coordinates at a moment in time. This information can then be used to calculate speed.

I see no situation where, for me, GPS data can be a bad thing - and would much prefer to have it than not. If vehicle speed is an issue it can be determined from the video whether or not GPS data is available. It takes a bit of work but is very doable.
 
DavidUK said:
Ah... just read that the GPS records speed too, which, I recall being discussed years ago, sometimes may not be a good thing!

Is the GPS add-on the same for V1/V2/V3?
Click to expand...

If you don't wish to use GPS you can simply turn it off in the menu.

If by GPS "add-on" you mean the camera mount that contains the GPS module the answer is no, they are all different and not compatible with one another.
 
I thought it was a direct "as you drive" speed measurement like a digital speedo. This was purely due to the user manual which uses the term "...will no longer be able to measure your speed..." as under...

20231201_165933.jpg

The V2 screen mount is already in place on the windshield. I may as well fit the GPS mount as it seems it may be more advantageous than not but that means unsticking the standard mount... again. Ho hum...
 
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DavidUK said:
I thought it was a direct "as you drive" speed measurement like a digital speedo.
Click to expand...
Effectively it does measure speed, and position. You can turn the display of speed off if you want, and coordinates display off if you want.
Main reason for having GPS is to keep the clock accurate, that can be useful for insurance claims, and potentially useful for legal issues, so I don't recommend turning it off.

Anything you wouldn't want it to record will be recorded in the video image anyway, the police dashcam forensics department can calculate all sorts of things from the video image, so there is no point worrying about an uncalibrated speed display that they won't use anyway!
 
DavidUK said:
So not only does the V3 have a narrower field of view, it also doesn't allow custom left/right adjustment. Progress?
Still... no more lens side to side wobble.
Click to expand...
Doesn't seem to be an issue for almost everyone, and is simpler so more reliable, so yes, I think it was progress.
If you were really fussy, you could add a wedge under the mount, but nobody does.

DavidUK said:
I think it should be FAT32 as you say.
Click to expand...
I think the V3 works fine with either FAT32 or exFAT.
No NTFS support, which someone mentioned above.
 
Digging back into the old memory bank wasn't one of the improvements in the V3 to have more reliable GPS mount to dashcam pins ?

I seem to recall V2 connectors having to be periodically 'DIY bent' and regularly cleaned ?
 
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