Viofo A119 Mini - Single channel 2K mini dashcam with Wi-Fi

Nigel

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Dash Cam
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The Viofo A119 Mini is the latest dashcam in the Viofo A119 series, not really an upgrade to the A119 V3, but a miniaturized and higher specification version.

The first samples for review and test should be arriving over the next few days.

I have a very early sample, so there may be a few differences to production units. Mine has experienced a bit of use and testing before these images were taken, so excuse a few marks on the case, and if you are looking at these images on a large screen, rather than a phone screen, note that it is a small dashcam - closeup photos can be misleading!

Size can be judged by looking at the USB-C connector and microSD card slot.

The LCD Screen, buttons and menus will be familiar to all Viofo dashcam users, they are an upgrade to the A119 V3, having the appearance and feel of the A139, with additional improvements, there is now absolutely no button rattle:
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One USB-C power connector and one memory card slot on this side:

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Just a reset button on this side:

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The Viofo A119 has always been a popular dashcam for a number of reasons:

  • Reliability – use of Supercapacitors and a single channel makes it one of the most reliable dashcams available, no battery life issues to worry about, and no overheating issues. It is also has one of the lowest power consumptions, which makes it easy to power from various chargers and hardwire kits without the voltage drop issues that often occur with other dashcams, caused by poor cables/connections/chargers, and of course low power means long battery life in parking mode.
  • Image Quality – with 2K (1440P) resolution, the Sony IMX335 STARVIS image sensor, and excellent lens quality, the A119 V3 produces some of the best dashcam image quality available, arguably better than most 4K resolution dashcams due to a significantly higher sensitivity sensor giving less motion blur. The only downside compared to higher priced 4K cameras is slightly lower magnification and a narrower field of view which largely makes up for the lower resolution.
  • Price – It comes at a decent price, not the cheapest, in fact it is possible to get some 4K dashcams and even dual channel dashcams slightly cheaper, but they don’t match the image quality or reliability, and that makes the Viofo A119 V3 good value.
  • Ease of installation – there is only one cable to run, for power, and the wedge shape dashcam design allows it to easily fit behind most rear view mirrors, and be more or less hidden. The settings are easily accessible via the built in buttons and LCD screen, no need to fight with Wi-Fi connections!
 
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The A119 Mini isn’t really an upgrade, it has the same image sensor, it’s still single channel, it produces similar image quality; but it costs a little more and adds a few new features, making it more like a “Pro” version of the A119 V3; and then there is the most obvious difference - it is significantly smaller:

  • Size – As it’s name suggests, it is a “miniature” version of the A119, making it easier to install in small spaces, easier to hide, more discrete. It is a bit bigger than some other “mini” dashcams available at the moment, but if you are looking for a small high quality dashcam, it should definitely be on your list, and unlike other "mini" dashcams, you don’t lose out on any features, it is still 2K, still has the image quality, and still has an LCD screen for settings and live view.
  • Styling - The styling on the V3 has become a little outdated, the Mini takes after the A139 and the A129 before it, as seen in the first image above. In addition, it has some silver highlighting on it's top ventilation grill and nameplate, not very functional, not actually very noticable in real life at actual size rather than closeup photo size, but the silver highlights does make it look a little more refined/sophisticated.
  • Wi-Fi – Really the one big feature missing from the A119 V3, the Mini comes with Wi-Fi and the Viofo App as standard. Quite useful for setup since many people will need reading glasses for the mini LCD! But also very useful when you want to show the police what happened in an incident and get the fines issued to the other party instead of yourself. It has both 2.4 and 5GHz wifi, the latter providing very decent transfer speed, with no buffering on playback.
  • Field of View – The A119 V3 has the narrowest FoV of Viofo’s dashcam range, and while that does often improve readability of plates that are within view, it does mean that some plates never get into view. If your car gets hit in a car park, it is quite likely to get hit on a front wing, and with a FoV that is too narrow, the impact can be missed completely, the A119 V3 is about as narrow as you ever want a dashcam FoV to be. Viofo say that the Mini uses the same lens as the V3, however my A119 Mini has a slightly wider FoV compared to my A119 V3, bringing a little more into view; maybe the V3 lens has been updated since mine was built. The difference is quite small, but surprisingly, even with the wider FoV, the Mini actually has slightly more detail than the V3 in the centre of the image, more pixels per license plate; it gains its extra FoV by having a little more fisheye distortion. Some people don't like fisheye distortion, but if you are recording evidence rather than making movies, then the increased fisheye records more evidence, and most people don't notice the fisheye anyway, it is expected in a wide angle view. It is important to align the lens so that the horizon is exactly half way up the image, then the fisheye doesn't bend the ground surface, only the tops of the buildings, making it far less noticeable. Also correct adjustment of the horizon will give the best image exposure.
  • Voice Notifications – This is a feature that everyone owning an A139 loves, and is often requested for the A129 but not available. The A119 Mini now talks to let you know of problems and status, so when you press the mute button it will tell you if you just turned audio recording on, or off; no longer any need to peer at tiny LEDs hidden by sunlight, or the rather small icons on the tiny screen, while driving! The voice is not nearly as good as the Viofo A139, the Mini obviously comes with a mini speaker, and compared to another new Viofo that will emerge imminently, the Mini sounds a bit like Mini Mouse! But it is understandable, and the voice is very useful, and not annoying as with some other brands, it only speaks when it has useful information.
  • I think the firmware is an evolution of the latest A139 firmware, rather than an upgrade of the A119 V3 firmware, so it includes all the enhancements and bug fixes that come with a major firmware update, although some bits of it do appear to be mixed in from the V3, so I suspect it is going to need a few updates to get everything working correctly.
  • As can be seen on the side image above, the Mini has been upgraded to USB-C for the USB/Power connection, much better than the old mini USB connectors, and the power cable securely clicks into the USB-C socket. Obviously an issue for people upgrading without wanting to replace their power source and cabling, but a definite improvement. Power can go into the side of the camera or into the top of the mount.
  • The GPS mount connector has also been improved, following the A139 style mount connector, and comes with an extra pin:

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    The A119 Mini slides onto the mount sideways, similar to the A129 and A139, feels much more secure than the V3 and I expect it to be more reliable, although if you are removing it overnight every night then it is a little more difficult to attach to the mount than the V3 is, it needs more accurate alignment. For more occasional dismounting, such as to clean the window glass, it is a very nice mount connector. The extra pin is apparently for turning off the GPS receiver during parking mode, which will extend battery life.
  • Interestingly the top now has a proper ventilation grill, for letting out internal heat. This is something I've always thought was missing from the A129 Pro which gets rather hot at the top where there are zero ventilation holes. Maybe it doesn't actually matter since there isn't anything very heat sensitive at the top, and the mini hardly gets warm anyway, but this does look better designed, and a bit more stylish - the grill has a silvered finish, although it is not something you ever see once installed. Maybe it reflects a bit of heat from sunlight falling on the top of the camera?

    y4m7eMPUYabjHmOhJyQyLx2XFLRWmexoqCrnySYCMtWZrrZ9X8iDjWXql5qZAMFJna05SgA48mZl-jbGDV6MT7kztW1mPtERQuvRenltyWoDAARENZpya-sVNaH0g_pn2X7B1sc68J5-n2LB6zmDMOtgT__mGI01rzZhZE1AHMMeoc

  • "New" lens - it has lost the ventilation grills, and all glass surfaces appear to have green anti-reflection coatings, something you don't get even on many DSLRs! Anti-reflection coatings, apart from reducing lens flares and improving contrast also improve light transmission, meaning reduced motion blur at night time. Apparently it is the same as the current A119 V3 lens, although it is a little different to the one in my V3 so they must have been updated at some point:
    y4mJYxGzBu0TShwOZXumBPShc5OzP9a3RoEfDQ1dBthvnjfI5k0pr0kerraDmd9OW9F-9usl9CHlbvXSSNqh1EX-Xdv4FCPh6_-bXsaVkqe83W95R59V25XZmE3vqtCFSW2siUN1o0duQWNfEwLlYPXguGaAhBi8ztEaZ3Q6tZkcKY

  • The new sturdy GPS Mount is based on the A129 Mount and has plenty of sticky area to hold the lightweight Mini. Note the extra pin:
    y4mPgPw5uwh1RLBK4EoBNMyl627yI08mNLz9nZ-xpvkhC8nwcpOd0n9GUQAYkOgmEaz0DLUBgQvfRDL9YfkoSH8_MZ8LmwynHcIW2FyxBdXFHCxWphEAIb9LyUmygeqvP9r4yu25lRDW-SrGI4tgGny-lwmjJc1boosRZVdsUCggI0

  • The USB-C power cable connects either to the side of the camera, or the top of the mount. The sticky pad is a genuine 3M sticky pad:
    y4mdJ1QIJnwfwqbRrl_diV1iXqfBJ9yz15G1nBFrir1wp1_860oz37wEOfs_rM2Uzr-hY55jDXLSa5gY4Bfs-3kxUvtjbGaEdToA0w0w3J3DbEglbBJx3rmO-NnTKKhfV44ExKEotJb23P0qqNiefTVny2_t8o2CLukDoi44gawAMQ

Here is the new A119 Mini in the centre of the image, with the old A119 V3 on the left and the newer A129 Plus on the right.

This photograph was supposed to show the difference in size, but it doesn't do a very good job, when you pick it up it appears significantly smaller:
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And compared to the Viofo A229:
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Image Quality

Currently this is still a work in progress, with some big improvements recently and some diagnostics currently on my image, so I'm not currently posting any images or video, these will arrive very soon. Since it is using the same sensor as the A119 V3, and has a very similar lens, there should not be much difference to the V3, but I am expecting it to end up better than the V3 in a few areas due to various improvements. Maximum bitrate is decent for a 2K dashcam, although I don't think that has been fixed yet, so I wont state what it is now. Currently the images seem to have a little more detail recorded, and a little more contrast, but expect it to be a small improvement from the A119 V3, not a major upgrade, the A119 V3 is after all, one of the best.


Audio Quality

Audio recording is very similar to other recent Viofo dashcams, a definite improvement on the V3. There is no connection for an external microphone, so like the V3, audio recording is very dependent on car noise in the mounting location, which depends a lot on the vehicle.


Parking Mode

The A119 Mini has Viofo's Advanced Parking Modes, same as their other models, so I won't go into details here, and there are so many options that I haven't tested them all anyway! Here is Viofo's summary:


I have mine set to the Low Bitrate Mode, with a Viofo HK3-C hardwire kit providing power while parked. Low Bitrate Mode provides continuous recording of both video and audio while parked, so is guaranteed never to miss anything. I have the "Enter Parking Mode Timer" set to 90 seconds, so that it doesn't switch to parking mode if I restart the engine after stalling, or if I turn off the engine while waiting at red lights. I have the "Parking Recording Duration" set to 3 hours, which covers any stays in supermarket car parks, but doesn't bother recording continuously overnight while parked at home. After the 3 hours has expired it will go to sleep, but still monitor the g-sensor for impacts. If the vehicle is hit then it will wake up and start recording, it takes about 10 seconds to wake up fully.

Currently there is no geofencing option for avoiding unnecessary overnight recording while parked safely in your garage, but that is currently being worked on for the A139, so I do expect it to be added to the Mini in a future firmware update.

Battery use while in parking mode is about 2.5 Watts while recording and 0.2 Watts while sleeping (with impact detection), so on a 75Wh powerbank (20,000mAh), it should provide impact protection for around 15 days, maybe a bit more since I was measuring the input to the hardwire kit, and you will not need the hardwire kit with some powerbanks, the hardwire kit does use some power. Important Note: most USB powerbanks would turn themselves off when the dashcam goes into sleep mode since they are designed to charge phone batteries and they would detect that charging was complete due to low power consumption. So you need a dashcam powerbank or use the car battery with a hardwire kit and low voltage cutoff if you want long term parking mode. Most car batteries have a lot more than 75Wh available, although in recent years they have been shrinking, three weeks impact protection parking mode should be feasible in most cars when using a lowish low voltage cutoff.




Specifications (as Published by Viofo):

Model NameA119 Mini
SensorSony STARVIS CMOS Sensor 5MP IMX335
ChipsetNovatek 96580
LensF/NO 1.6 FOV=140°
LCD1.5" High Resolution TFT
Video Resolutions2560x1600P 30fps

2560x1440P 60fps / 30fps

2560x1080P 60fps / 30fps
2304x1296P 30fps

1920x1080P 60fps / 30fps
Loop RecordingOff / 1 min / 2 min / 3 min / 5 min / 10 min
Parking ModeSupported(Auto Event Detection / Time-lapse / Low Bitrate Recording)
Time-Lapse RecordingOff / 100 ms / 200 ms / 1 Second / 2 Seconds / 5 Seconds / 10 Seconds / 30 Seconds / 3 Minutes / 5 Minutes / 10 Minutes
Video CodecH.264 / H.265
Video FormatMP4
Image FormatJPEG
Frequency50 / 60 Hz
G-sensorOff / Low / Middle / High Sensitivity
WiFiBuilt-in 2.4GHz & 5GHz
GPSBuilt-in bracket
MicrophoneBuilt-in
SpeakerBuilt-in
LED IndicatorsPower, Recording, Wi-Fi, GPS
Micro SD CardUp to 256GB
Input PowerDC5.0V/1A

Notes:
  1. The FoV of dashcams is measured in various different ways, and so can't be reliably used to compare cameras, not even cameras within the Viofo range! For example some cameras have larger sensors than others even though they use the same lens, and so although the FoV of the lens is the same, the FoV of the recorded image is different. The FoV of the A119 Mini is almost the narrowest of the Viofo cameras, and about as narrow as you would want to have on a dashcam. That does result in good detail for things that are within the FoV, but will miss some events off the side of the image compared to say the A129 Pro which has a much wider FoV, at least for the recorded image. The A129 Pro has the largest sensor, so picks up more FoV than the specification suggests, while the 4K resolution more than makes up for the loss of detail.
  2. The Input power specification of 1A seems a little low. From my measurements, for the first second after powerup it appears to take well over 1A, so wants a decent quality power source, although it may work fine with a 1A current limit. After the super capacitor has charged it will use less than 0.5A (2.5W) so there will be no overheating issues or much voltage drop in long cables.
 
More to follow...
 
It was necessary to create a separate topic. :unsure:
 
It was necessary to create a separate topic. :unsure:
Yes, otherwise the post with all the details will be lost in a long thread of speculation and ideas about a V4!

@DashCamMan can move this thread into a new forum for the A119 Mini, and the A119 V4 thread can stay in the A119 V3 forum for when an A119 V3 update actually arrives... The A119 Mini is not an A119 V3 update, it is a new model line.
 
The A119M CPL is the same as A119 and A129 CPL.

Viofo A119 Mini videos with firmware beta v 1.0:

Day video with original sample uploaded.
Night video with original sample uploaded.
Viofo A119 Mini vs Viofo A119 V3 day comparison; with original samples uploaded.
Viofo A119 Mini vs Viofo A119 V3 night comparison; with original samples uploaded.

On YouTube video description you will find the download links for original untouched videos. If you want to compare details, car license numbers, etc. You can download the videos and compare them.
 

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  • Viofo A119 Mini vs Viofo A119 V3 night 1 comparison no CPL.jpg
    Viofo A119 Mini vs Viofo A119 V3 night 1 comparison no CPL.jpg
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The A119M CPL is the same as A119 and A129 CPL
Yes, seems a little odd when the other new cameras, A139, T130, etc. have moved to a circular CPL.
 
Great report! Thanks for the detailed info. I’m curious to see where the price lands with the A119 Mini.
 
I look forward to downloadable footage.

If the sensor and lens is V3 then I'd have to think hard about rewiring to USB-C as my current V3 with a Nextbase 2 wire HWK is working perfectly.

I'm reluctant to go 3 wire as my hybrid car has a very small 12v battery, only used to keep the vital electronics alive when powered down. Not needed to power up as the high voltage battery pack does that.
 
Thanks for the write-up, very much appreciated.
 
If the sensor and lens is V3 then I'd have to think hard about rewiring to USB-C as my current V3 with a Nextbase 2 wire HWK is working perfectly.

I'm reluctant to go 3 wire as my hybrid car has a very small 12v battery, only used to keep the vital electronics alive when powered down. Not needed to power up as the high voltage battery pack does that.
You could go 3 wire with a dashcam powerbank, but that would be significant cost with the currently available ones, so only worth it if you actually have a problem with parking security.

I assume it would work OK using a Mini USB to USB-C adaptor, haven't tried it though, and for most people I would recommend an upgrade to the power supply, especially if you were moving your A119 V3 to the rear window or another car and it could take its power supply with it.
 
I may have missed it having only given Nigel's posts a quick read, but the height of the A119 Mini is 75mm (2 7/8 in.) and it is 45mm (1 13/16 in) wide. It does impress me with it's smallness.

Now to do a refreshing of the cams in the van with some going away, some going in, and all given a round of maintenance.

Phil
 
the A119 Mini is 75mm (2 7/8 in.) and it is 45mm (1 13/16 in) wide. It does impress me with it's smallness.
I didn't get around to measuring it other than the judgment that it is significantly smaller than I expected from the images!
You are better than me with the fractional measurements in American units anyway :cool:
 
The smallest wedge camera i have had is the Guardtrack GT65EX, it is 75 X 50 mm ( not bothered measuring thickness as that to me matter very little in regard to dashcams )
Though i do think it is the same size as the early GC cameras from Street guardian.

Dident have other wedge camera within reach so grabbed the 2 Viofo cameras that was on the computer table.


Small wedge..jpg

But it is so small that when mounted on the dotted area in my car, well as the lens have to peek below that and clear the dots when it is aligned, it is just 50 % of that camera that are "hidden" on the dotted area.
Both of the Viofo cameras in the picture, well most of their bulk would have to be in sight, not least the T130 on the Right.
 
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You could go 3 wire with a dashcam powerbank, but that would be significant cost with the currently available ones, so only worth it if you actually have a problem with parking security.

I assume it would work OK using a Mini USB to USB-C adaptor, haven't tried it though, and for most people I would recommend an upgrade to the power supply, especially if you were moving your A119 V3 to the rear window or another car and it could take its power supply with it.

Thanks

I don't need parking mode so 2 wires is currently OK. I do have a Mini to C adapter in stock and that would be my preference if it worked.

My Nextbase HWK is 2A so should be OK as the spec lists 1A.

I'll wait for reviews and if anyone tries an adapter.
 
Thanks

I don't need parking mode so 2 wires is currently OK. I do have a Mini to C adapter in stock and that would be my preference if it worked.

My Nextbase HWK is 2A so should be OK as the spec lists 1A.

I'll wait for reviews and if anyone tries an adapter.
I believe parking mode works OK with 2 wire mode, it just takes it a while to work out that you have parked instead of reacting immediately you turn the ignition off, and maybe more importantly it will take a while to work out that you are no longer parked. Of course you need a permanent power source, and in your case you would probably want to use a dashcam powerbank, so I don't think that helps you much, just information for others, correcting your implication that 2 wires doesn't do parking mode.
 
All I need is what I've got now ..... ignition on it starts recording, ignition off it stops.
 
If you can K.I.S.S is highly recommended.

I just test parking guard as i feel i must, personally i dont feel much of a need for it, maybe that change tonight if the lotto gods take pity on me, and i can afford a car i would feel more connected to and not just look upon as a means to not walk or take public transport.
Though my dream car,,,,, well people could bang on its metal with hammers or axes all they please, just lay off the 2" thick glass.
 
Got mine in. I'll have some pics tomorrow of it next to my A139.

Did a lot of other work too. I now have 8 cables running up the A-pillar...

Phil
 
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