VIOFO A139 Pro - Testing / Review Info

viofo said:
Normally we don't want to set limitations for the bitrate, but sometimes we have to. Like on A129 Pro, it can support up to 4K 60Mbps + FHD 16Mbps.

It seems VIOFO 4K dashcam video bitrate is already the highest compared to others.

According to our after-sales report, most of the recording issues are caused by the memory card, if using a very high bitrate for 2 or 3 channels recording, it will cause more recording issues.
Some people don't understand why they need a better memory card, and why they need to use the recommended memory card.
You can find many negative reviews under Amazon dashcam reviews.
Click to expand...
I'm okay with limitations being set for bitrate and I agree that Viofo has one of the highest bitrate among the major dashcams.
I'm just wondering why there is a big discrepancy in the 2CH figures at the different resolutions.

If the camera is capable of 3840x2100 = 4K 44.86Mbps front + FHD 16.06Mbps rear
Then surely it should be just as capable (if not more capable) of running the same bitrate (44.86Mbps) for the front camera at a lower resolution (3840x1600) than the current = 28.06Mbps front + FHD 16.00Mbps rear that it is assigned to?

Based on the bitrate data posted by @rcg530 , 3CH 1600P is superior to 3CH 3840x2100.
Based on the bitrate data posted by @rcg530 , 2CH 1600P is inferior to 2CH 3840x2100.

I understand about memory card problems, but this is not a memory card issue.
The same reviewer @rcg530 tested the same camera, with the same firmware, with the same memory card. The only difference was the resolution.
It does not seem like this is a "heat" issue either as the higher resolution (3840x2100) is pushing a much higher bitrate (44.86Mbps) than the lower resolution (3840x2100) setting at 28.08Mbps bitrate.
 
Last edited:
kamkar said:
Yes.
I have been thinking if it would be a good idea to have a recommended meory card list very prominent on the box or in the manual, it is after all something that can fast ruin the experience, or at worst make the system useless.
Click to expand...
A recommended memory card can quickly become a non-recommended memory card.
 
Indeed.
But i think if people are just allowed to use what they like, many would probably go for the absolute cheapest option.
This is also why my suite of test cards have always been of the cheaper options, and of course as my own finances also put a damper on things, there are quite a few cards i do not have available to test with.

What cards dashcams want to use have often perplexed me, not least when you look at what amount of data the camera spit out VS what a card are nominated to.
So in the old days i have had dashcams that at best spit out 8 MB/s, but do not work with a card with a 30 MB/s write speed, but a 40 MB/s speed card work fine,,,,, so clearly it is not just a matter of the speed of the cards.
 
This is some excellent stuff! I'm loving all the data and info you guys are sharing, including the detailed power consumption testing and charts @rcg530!

I've been testing an A139 Pro for a little while as well and now that I'm done with all my videos from SEMA, time for me to join the party and continue compiling my notes for upcoming videos. :)

Overall this thing is looking really promising, but it seems like @viofo is rushing to be the first to release a Starvis 2 dashcam and so like the rest of you all, I agree that the video optimization still needs work. The dashcam isn't quite ready for primetime, despite the fact that it's now available for sale on their website. To be fair though, so far I've only had a chance to test beta firmware too so far.

I'm really hoping that they get the video quality stuff dialed in soon because based on everything else, it does look like this may very well be one of the best dashcams, if not THE best dashcam, on the market IMHO.
 
If they can get that clear HDR thing working that would be BOSS, the old school DOL HDR are no good for our fast paced action.
The question is if it is present in the sensor can the SOC then do it, or do it require the SOC are also build with something to do it, just like the now 2-3 different ways of doing hardware ray tracing in computer graphic cards.

I am sneaking around the streets at night making notes of where little old ladies live, CUZ i am going to snatch some purses and get one of these products.
 
Vortex Radar said:
I'm really hoping that they get the video quality stuff dialed in soon
Click to expand...
They say that Pre-sale Orders will be shipped on Nov-15. A little bit of time until then. Maybe they already got new firmware for these to be shipped cameras.
The same thing happened with the A229. From the factory was a newer firmware version installed than available on their website for download.
 
kamkar said:
If they can get that clear HDR thing working that would be BOSS, the old school DOL HDR are no good for our fast paced action.
Click to expand...
What's the difference?
 
Julian23 said:
They say that Pre-sale Orders will be shipped on Nov-15. A little bit of time until then. Maybe they already got new firmware for these to be shipped cameras.
The same thing happened with the A229. From the factory was a newer firmware version installed than available on their website for download.
Click to expand...
Yeah to be fair it's certainly possible that they're going to continue tweaking things over the next few days and then install a new public firmware version right before shipping out dashcams. Then they can send that same firmware out to us testers.
 
Julian23 said:
What's the difference?
Click to expand...
I'm not sure if it was the old Sony HDR that was the issue, or if it was the Novatek SoC processing that was the problem, but with the older cameras you got two exposures per frame one short one for the bright parts of the image and one long exposure for the dark parts of the image, and the images from the two exposures were combined to create the frame. The problem was that things moving within the image always had an offset between the two exposures due to a time delay between the exposures, so you got a main image plus a ghost image separated by a bit of space, which makes a mess of any detail.

With the A139 Pro, there are still two exposures per frame, but moving things have the two images overlayed on top of each other, there is no time gap between the exposures, so there are no ghost images. There is still a short and a long exposure combined to make a frame, so you do get a bright image with a dark tail, but it is much better than on the older cameras.

I'm not sure that the A139 Pro is currently using Sony's new Clear HDR, where the two exposures are recorded simultaneously, but it doesn't actually matter for dashcam use since the short exposure is always going to be very short. The important thing is that there is no gap between the exposures, so the bright and dark images start in the same place, with the darker part of the image tailing off with the motion, as it must do whatever HDR is used.
 
Vortex Radar said:
Yeah to be fair it's certainly possible that they're going to continue tweaking things over the next few days and then install a new public firmware version right before shipping out dashcams. Then they can send that same firmware out to us testers.
Click to expand...
Hopefully the new firmware will be tested before being sent out in the production units!

Vortex Radar said:
I'm really hoping that they get the video quality stuff dialed in soon because based on everything else, it does look like this may very well be one of the best dashcams, if not THE best dashcam, on the market IMHO.
Click to expand...
There is plenty of scope for improvements and "dialing in" over the next few months, no need to rush, that never gets the best results.

Currently, it seems a little early to make your review, because I'm sure it is going to be improved, although it may already be the best dashcam! Starvis-2 definitely beats everything else.
 
Nigel said:
There is plenty of scope for improvements and "dialing in" over the next few months, no need to rush, that never gets the best results.

Currently, it seems a little early to make your review, because I'm sure it is going to be improved, although it may already be the best dashcam! Starvis-2 definitely beats everything else.
Click to expand...
While I agree that it's a bit early to make a review based on current performance, given that they've already announced and you can already order a dashcam, it makes sense to go ahead and start sharing information about it now.

If they want more time to continue refining things, that's great, but I'm not sure it makes sense to release it into customer's hands too early. As the saying goes, you don't get a second chance at a first impression, you know?

Either way my current thought process is to share some basics about the dashcam, features, design, and general overview stuff. Then I'll do a follow up video with a lot more video samples and comparison tests with other dashcams to see all the realworld improvements with the new Starvis 2 sensor.

(I just gotta figure out how to get the videos to play properly in FinalCut in order to do a video on the dashcam at all...)
 
DOL HDR are made with consecutive frames bundled up, which are bad for fast movement, clear HDR are same time exposure bundled

difference.

starvis2.jpg



 
Last edited:
kamkar said:
If you are not doing ride share i see no reason to run a interior camera, even if it can be useful if one or more claim something in this regard, like phone use.
BUT ! A claim are just a claim, i think you need proof to actually get to pay for something.

And what others might claim in regard to phone use, probably erratic / unsafe driving / sudden lane change, well your front camera alone will prove that you are rock steady in your lane up until the event.
And if they claim you was talking on the phone, well your microphone recording no such talking will take care of that.

In a situation like that, i think it would be a good idea to get the other part to more and more exactly tell about their fraudulent claim, CUZ if you are not a politician or a hard core lying person, quickly whipping up a elaborate lie are hard.
That is why it is advised that if you are to lie, make it simple.
Click to expand...
This.

I only had my A119 v3 in the front, and not running a rear cam, and was rear-ended a few weeks ago. When the guy that rear-ended me got out of his car, the microphones caught him admitting that he looked away and admitting fault.

The HDR enabled with 4K does look nice on this new model though..
 
kamkar said:
Indeed.
But i think if people are just allowed to use what they like, many would probably go for the absolute cheapest option.
This is also why my suite of test cards have always been of the cheaper options, and of course as my own finances also put a damper on things, there are quite a few cards i do not have available to test with.

What cards dashcams want to use have often perplexed me, not least when you look at what amount of data the camera spit out VS what a card are nominated to.
So in the old days i have had dashcams that at best spit out 8 MB/s, but do not work with a card with a 30 MB/s write speed, but a 40 MB/s speed card work fine,,,,, so clearly it is not just a matter of the speed of the cards.
Click to expand...
A possible explanation for this might be that dashcams don't use memory cards the way they are tested. The write speed rating is for writing only, not overwriting. Unlike most digital cameras, dashcams are always erasing old video at the same time they are writing new video. One of the slowest operations in a memory card is erasing data so that new data can be written.
 
My mind have been down this avenue of thought too.
 
rcg530 said:
A139 Pro - Power Consumption Test Results
Click to expand...
1668593449922.png

Out of curiosity, was the interior camera set to IR=On during this test? Just wondering if the interior camera power consumption is always higher than the front camera, or only when the IR lamps are active. The difference seems to average at about 0.2A @ 5V in all modes.
 
I just received my tracking number for the A139 Pro 3-Ch for test & review via email.
So excited, can't wait. lol
Based on previous shipping times from Hong Kong to California it should arrive in my mailbox on, or before December 1.
-Chuck
 
TonyM said:
Out of curiosity, was the interior camera set to IR=On during this test? Just wondering if the interior camera power consumption is always higher than the front camera, or only when the IR lamps are active. The difference seems to average at about 0.2A @ 5V in all modes.
Click to expand...
The IR mode is set to "On" as its default value, so that is how I tested it.
 
Is it using more power than the original A139?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top