Vortex's Viofo A329 Review

[Vortex Radar]

So I've been testing the new Viofo A329 for a bit now and as I'm getting familiar with it, I'm pretty impressed so far. Here's my initial review of the dashcam, followed by some of my thoughts about this new dashcam.

Update: Here's v2 of the video that I'm releasing publicly.

In short, this is essentially an upgraded A229 Pro with a very similar form factor. Both the A229 Pro and A329 have a 4K Starvis 2 IMX678 up front and a 2K Starvis 2 IMX675 in the rear. They'll both be sold side-by-side. Here's a summary of my thoughts so far:

60fps: The A329 adds support for 60fps which can make your videos and help with slow mo, but doesn't make a big difference when it comes to freezing motion. Initially I thought I saw more of a benefit, but looking through a bunch more clips, HDR seems to be a bigger deal when it comes to detail capture, but not so much the 60 fps option. The rear cam always records at 30 fps.

Bitrate: While earlier test firmwares allowed us to run at nearly 100 Mb/s, due to reliability issues, 65 Mb/s is now the balance Viofo is going for. This is true for 1CH, 2CH, 4K60, and 4K30HDR options. There's no bitrate increase or decrease when switching modes or adding/removing a second cam.

1CH / 2CH / 3CH: Unlike the A229 Pro which could do 1, 2, or 3 channels, the A329 only offers 1 or 2 channels. For this reason, the A229 Pro is more versatile given you have the option for an interior cabin cam, front telephoto cam, or exterior rear waterproof cam. This is probably the main advantage I've found for the A229 Pro, the option to add different add-on cams.

SSD: The USB C port from the A229 Pro is now an SSD port, allowing you to plug in an external hard drive up to 4TB. You can record to either the MicroSD or SSD, but not both simultaneously. I can see this being useful for recording super long drives or for keeping the recorded video/audio footage more secure and stored in a hidden location. It works with Windows computers, but unfortunately doesn't work with Macs. It's also picky about USB cables and not all USB C cables allow the dashcam to see the SSD.

Rear cam design: The rear cam's physical design has been updated to add support for Viofo's clip on CPL.

Front / Rear cam cable: The front/rear cable is now no longer USB C. Instead it's the same coax cable used in the original A229 Duo. It's a thinner cable which makes installation easier. I recently ran the wiring for the A229 Pro in both of our vehicles and since the front/rear cable is different with the A329, unfortunately I can't do a plug-and-play swap in either of my cars. Bummer! Oh well.

Cooling: Viofo's improved the cooling here and so the A329 runs cooler than the A229 Pro. I found the temperature variances to be greater after 1 hour of recording compared to 8 hours of recording, but either way I think the updated A329 will be a better option for people driving in hot climates.

WiFi: They've added WiFi 6 which allows file transfer speeds of up to 30 MB/s. In my testing, the A229 Pro can transfer files at just under 10 MB/s while the A329 does so at over 28 MB/s, nearly a 3x jump in transfer speed.

Misc: There's also a bunch of small changes. For example, the CPL alignment line is now on the bottom of the lens, making it easier to align the CPL when you're sitting in the car. There's an option to change the color of the text stamped onto the video footage which is especially helpful for people who drive white cars. There's also a MicroHDMI port added that allows you to connect the dashcam to an external display both while driving or later on during video playback.

Overall Thoughts: This is a welcome upgrade over the A229 Pro. It's still early and I wouldn't be surprised to see more firmware updates in the pipeline, but based on what I've seen so far, I can see this becoming my new default recommendation over the A229 Pro for anyone looking for "the best dashcam." The A229 Pro will be the preferred option if you need an interior cabin camera or you wanna add on Viofo's optional telephoto up front.

For more discussion, here's some additional thoughts on whether or not I think it's worth upgrading to the A329.

 

[speedingcheetah]

Really like the external SSD option. A must i would think now 4K and high bitrate and high fps files.

The purple or weird flashing at night in HDR, that was a bug they had in the A119 Mini 2 for a bit, but resolved in in firmware update.

Speaking of the A119 Mini2, it has bene a while since i been on this form, but last i was here, the A119 Mini 2 was the king of HDR. It seemed to be the most refined for HDR and overall image compared to the higher end models.
Wonder how this new 4K flagship cam compares, once they optimize and mature the firmware for it.

I really would like to give a 4K flagship a try, at some point, to see how it compares to the top cost effective 2K model, imo, but, the cost of it is out of my budget....

 

[Dadi_T]

The purple or weird flashing at night in HDR,

But here, the issue was in 4k 60 fps and no HDR of course.

 

[speedingcheetah]

But here, the issue was in 4k 60 fps and no HDR of course.

Ah. yes. I actually do not recall if the flashing also happened in non HDR mode. But, the point being, they fixed it in firmware on previous models. So, i would expect the same for this model, just may take them a bit of time.

 

[Nigel]

60fps: The A329 adds support for 60fps which I find to sometimes be helpful in the daytime for both smoother video and to force faster shutter speeds and reduce motion blur.

I think the reduced motion blur in your example was due to HDR being Off in the 60fps clip but On in the 30fps clip, not an advantage of 60fps itself. The current HDR does cause a bit of additional motion blur in those lighting conditions.

 

[Panzer Platform]

I think the reduced motion blur in your example was due to HDR being Off in the 60fps clip but On in the 30fps clip, not an advantage of 60fps itself. The current HDR does cause a bit of additional motion blur in those lighting conditions.

You haven’t given us a review since May 11, 2022 (2 years 5 months).
Since you're not doing anything, would you be willing to dethrone from armchair quarterback to review the A329? lol

Thread 'Viofo A229 - Dual channel 2K+2K dashcam with Wi-Fi'

May 11, 2022

Following on from the Viofo A119 Mini, the Viofo A229 is now arriving with the testers and reviewers.

While the Viofo A119 Mini is smaller than the normal Viofo wedge cameras, the Viofo A229 goes in the other direction. Here they are side by side, and a Micro SD card for scale:

Being large has some advantages, it allows a...

• Nigel
• Replies: 204
• Forum: A229 / A229 Duo

• 

 

[TonyM]

Thanks for the thorough review

When recording 1fps timelapse in SNV mode, does the rear camera have the same exposure increase as the front camera?

 

[Panzer Platform]

Absolutely wonderful overview.
That's so cool you got a TOPDON TC004 thermal imaging camera. lol

 

[Panzer Platform]

last i was here, the A119 Mini 2 was the king of HDR. It seemed to be the most refined for HDR and overall image compared to the higher end models.
Wonder how this new 4K flagship cam compares

Long time no see.
With any luck I'll have an A329 tracking number in 13 days.
Night Time HDR performance is the first thing I will test, and compare with;
A229 Pro
A119 Mini 2
A139 Pro
Real world driving test footage, (no flashlight in garage nonsense).
OK, maybe a little. lol

 

[Mtz]

Rear cam design: The rear cam's physical design has been updated to add support for Viofo's clip on CPL.

Even I insisted so much, they didn't mase also the rear camera removable by adding some tiny mount like on WM1, T130,etc . Adding such mount would increase also the area for the adhesive tape. You will see during time that if the rear cable is forcing in some way into the rear camera, it will move a little and you will loose the prefect alignment. This is because the adhesive area part is too small in my opinion and in hot summer it will go soft and let camera to move a little. Also I gave long feedback about this too small adhesive area.

Regarding the SSD cables, I don't understand what SSD cable you have but I have one which is 1.8 meters sent by Viofo. Is not angled at both ends and also I insisted very much the cable to be angled at both ends. Now I hope to be angled like in promotional pictures.

When you will find some free time (I know it is almost impossible) maybe you will make a video for the people to understand the power of the HDR and another video about the 60FPS reality. You are the first where I saw that it hat some minor advantage in some special environment and the slow motion part is not interesting at all for a dashcam evidence. Looking better at 60fps, but not useful. Who want to make such slow motion video can use video cameras which record at least 240FPS maybe they will be happy.

When recording 1fps timelapse in SNV mode, does the rear camera have the same exposure increase as the front camera?

Not. (Yet?)

 

[haiou_f]

This is a great upgrade, Viofo is already far ahead of other dashcam brands

 

[Vortex Radar]

Speaking of the A119 Mini2, it has bene a while since i been on this form, but last i was here, the A119 Mini 2 was the king of HDR. It seemed to be the most refined for HDR and overall image compared to the higher end models.
Wonder how this new 4K flagship cam compares, once they optimize and mature the firmware for it.

Yeah that would be interesting. We could always do a comparison now, but I wonder how finalized Viofo's implementation is.

I think the reduced motion blur in your example was due to HDR being Off in the 60fps clip but On in the 30fps clip, not an advantage of 60fps itself. The current HDR does cause a bit of additional motion blur in those lighting conditions.

That's a good point. It is possible. I believe I've seen some small differences like this, even with HDR off, but it'd be worth doublechecking before I release the video publicly.


Honestly I’m still skeptical of the benefits of 60 fps and am definitely second guessing these results.

Thanks for the thorough review

When recording 1fps timelapse in SNV mode, does the rear camera have the same exposure increase as the front camera?

There's an exposure increase for the rear as well, yeah.

Regarding the SSD cables, I don't understand what SSD cable you have but I have one which is 1.8 meters sent by Viofo. Is not angled at both ends and also I insisted very much the cable to be angled at both ends. Now I hope to be angled like in promotional pictures.

hm, so the power cable could actually work well here. It's long and is angled on one end and would be perfect. However, the dashcam can't see the drive when using the long cable instead of the short one. I think I wanna add a quick section in the video about this too before releasing the video publicly.

When you will find some free time (I know it is almost impossible) maybe you will make a video for the people to understand the power of the HDR and another video about the 60FPS reality. You are the first where I saw that it hat some minor advantage in some special environment and the slow motion part is not interesting at all for a dashcam evidence. Looking better at 60fps, but not useful. Who want to make such slow motion video can use video cameras which record at least 240FPS maybe they will be happy.

Not. (Yet?)

It's one of the many ideas that's been on my list forever, lol. I wanted to do it with two identical models and I was gonna use two A119 Mini 2's since I have a pair of them. All just a question of priorities with limited time and lots to do. I’ve got the idea in my head going over frame rate, shutter speeds, and shutter angles, etc. I’d have to make animations and get the footage of course too.

 

[Rob1]

So I've been testing the new Viofo A329 for a bit now and as I'm getting familiar with it, I'm pretty impressed so far. Here's my initial review of the dashcam, followed by some of my thoughts about this new dashcam.

In short, this is essentially an upgraded A229 Pro with a very similar form factor. Both the A229 Pro and A329 have a 4K Starvis 2 IMX678 up front and a 2K Starvis 2 IMX675 in the rear. They'll both be sold side-by-side. Here's a summary of my thoughts so far:

60fps: The A329 adds support for 60fps which I find to sometimes be helpful in the daytime for both smoother video and to force faster shutter speeds and reduce motion blur. At night I find HDR to be more effective at both capturing detail and avoiding some weird color shifts I see with the 60 fps. Luckily they offer an AutoHDR option so we can do 4K60 in the daytime and 4K30HDR at night. The rear cam always records at 30 fps.

Bitrate: While earlier test firmwares allowed us to run at nearly 100 Mb/s, due to reliability issues, 65 Mb/s is now the balance Viofo is going for. This is true for 1CH, 2CH, 4K60, and 4K30HDR options. There's no bitrate increase or decrease when switching modes or adding/removing a second cam.

1CH / 2CH / 3CH: Unlike the A229 Pro which could do 1, 2, or 3 channels, the A329 only offers 1 or 2 channels. For this reason, the A229 Pro is more versatile given you have the option for an interior cabin cam, front telephoto cam, or exterior rear waterproof cam. This is probably the main advantage I've found for the A229 Pro, the option to add different add-on cams.

SSD: The USB C port from the A229 Pro is now an SSD port, allowing you to plug in an external hard drive up to 4TB. You can record to either the MicroSD or SSD, but not both simultaneously. I can see this being useful for recording super long drives or for keeping the recorded video/audio footage more secure and stored in a hidden location. It works with Windows computers, but unfortunately doesn't work with Macs. It's also picky about USB cables and not all USB C cables allow the dashcam to see the SSD.

Rear cam design: The rear cam's physical design has been updated to add support for Viofo's clip on CPL.

Front / Rear cam cable: The front/rear cable is now no longer USB C. Instead it's the same coax cable used in the original A229 Duo. It's a thinner cable which makes installation easier. I recently ran the wiring for the A229 Pro in both of our vehicles and since the front/rear cable is different with the A329, unfortunately I can't do a plug-and-play swap in either of my cars. Bummer! Oh well.

Cooling: Viofo's improved the cooling here and so the A329 runs cooler than the A229 Pro. I found the temperature variances to be greater after 1 hour of recording compared to 8 hours of recording, but either way I think the updated A329 will be a better option for people driving in hot climates.

WiFi: They've added WiFi 6 which allows file transfer speeds of up to 30 MB/s. In my testing, the A229 Pro can transfer files at just under 10 MB/s while the A329 does so at over 28 MB/s, nearly a 3x jump in transfer speed.

Misc: There's also a bunch of small changes. For example, the CPL alignment line is now on the bottom of the lens, making it easier to align the CPL when you're sitting in the car. There's an option to change the color of the text stamped onto the video footage which is especially helpful for people who drive white cars. There's also a MicroHDMI port added that allows you to connect the dashcam to an external display both while driving or later on during video playback.

Overall Thoughts: This is a welcome upgrade over the A229 Pro. It's still early and I wouldn't be surprised to see more firmware updates in the pipeline, but based on what I've seen so far, I can see this becoming my new default recommendation over the A229 Pro for anyone looking for "the best dashcam." The A229 Pro will be the preferred option if you need an interior cabin camera or you wanna add on Viofo's optional telephoto up front.

Pity there is no 3rd channel. Are impacts buffered?

 

[rcg530]

I experienced similar color flashes with the A329 was configured for 4K 60 FPS at night. I was driving 30 minutes after sunset and the A329 front camera would capture the sky just above the horizon with some blue color flashes. VIOFO had me install a debug firmware and capture some footage with that installed to capture exposure info for them to diagnose the issue. I have not received a firmware update for the A329 since that test.

 

[GPak]

@Vortex Radar -Thanks for the review and sample videos.

I believe what I see, and I see that 4K/60fps daytime video is much better quality than 4K/30fps, with or without HDR.
And for the night, there is an auto HDR.

Lower operating temperature is a significant improvement for increased reliability.

I do not see much of a need for SSD with current implementation.
On the plus side, it helps reducing the heat and protects the evidence that is hidden remotely.
On the minus side, the much higher power consumption is a big drawback, making it almost unusable for parking. (I use LBR parking and I think it's the best)
Not sure about larger capacity, isn’t 512GB or even 256GB enough for 2ch dash cam to keep the evidence for a few days before loop overwriting?

Overall, I like the A390 for the 4K/60fps and for the fact that it produces less heat.

 

[Vortex Radar]

So I'm looking back through more 60 vs 30 fps drives without HDR. Results definitely vary. Sometimes the 60 fps does have less motion blur.



That doesn't necessarily translate into doing a better job at freezing details though, especially if the other car is moving.



Additionally, sometimes the 30 fps video looks a little better. Perhaps because it's only trying to stuff half the amount of frames/data into similar bitrates of video? (The A329's 66 Mb/s is only about 10% larger than the A229 Pro 2CH's 60 Mb/s.)



Looking through some more clips where I'm driving slowly and passing stationary cars, I don't really see much of a motion blur reduction at 60 fps. This is more of what I was expecting.

Here's a few more passing some stationary cars at low speed. Really not much of a benefit to 60 fps here either.







It does look like there's more sharpening being applied on the A329 in post and you can see it with the halo'ing around the digits.

If there is a difference with 30 fps vs 60 fps, it's pretty minimal. When you add HDR, that does introduce more motion blur of course which is why AutoHDR is helpful. At night when headlights are shining on plates and it's more of a dynamic range issue, then yeah of course HDR is gonna be better.

I'm gonna keep looking at more examples later, but looking at the additional data points, I do think I'm gonna need to go back and update my video before the final public release.

 

[Nigel]

Additionally, sometimes the 30 fps video looks a little better. Perhaps because it's only trying to stuff half the amount of frames/data into similar bitrates of video? (The A329's 66 Mb/s is only about 10% larger than the A229 Pro 2CH's 60 Mb/s.)

In decent lighting, they should both have the same exposure time, thus the same motion blur.
With HDR on, we seem to get longer exposure times and more motion blur in low daylight conditions, but HDR is a big advantage at night and produces nicer video in sunlight, less chance of over exposed license plates in sunlight. Just not so good for commuting time!
There appears to be a difference in contrast/sharpening between the two cameras, probably not between 30 and 60fps but that is hard to show with only one A329. The contrast/sharpening differences may change with new firmwares, so is not a big issue.
At faster speeds, under trees, I would expect that 60Mb/s would start to run out of bitrate, and at that point not all the detail can be saved. The 60fps will use some of the bitrate for the extra temporal detail at the expense mainly of colour detail followed by a bit of spacial resolution - the detail in the road surface will start to disappear sooner on the 60fps, maybe in some conditions (high speed under trees) the 30fps will be clearly better because the 60fps doesn't use enough bitrate on the plates because it is using it for the extra frames.

I think we can say that it is working well, roughly the same as the A229 Pro, but with the option of smoother 60fps. Maybe the contrast/sharpness/colour balance could do with some more optimisation.

The 60fps is working well, definitely smoother video, great for road trip movies, great for motor racing and editing into slow motion, but not a big advantage for accident recording in most cases, and I suspect it is a disadvantage in some conditions.

 

[Panzer Platform]

Additionally, sometimes the 30 fps video looks a little better. Perhaps because it's only trying to stuff half the amount of frames/data into similar bitrates of video? (The A329's 66 Mb/s is only about 10% larger than the A229 Pro 2CH's 60 Mb/s.)

I thought when a camera goes from 30fps to 60fps the Bitrate needs to double to be effective.
Is that not true?
I have a Sony Action Cam (AS200V), and when I switch from 1080p30 to 1080p60 the size of the files double.

I do think I'm gonna need to go back and update my video before the final public release.

In the video you say the USB Type-C on the A329 is ONLY for SSD.
I thought you could also power the camera from there as well.
How else would you power the camera when removing from the vehicle to connect the micro HDMI to your big screen TV?

 

[Vortex Radar]

I thought when a camera goes from 30fps to 60fps the Bitrate needs to double to be effective.
Is that not true?
I have a Sony Action Cam (AS200V), and when I switch from 1080p30 to 1080p60 the size of the files double.

All things being equal, I believe so, but I think that with compression, you can sometimes get away with less than 2x the file size, though that'll be more true when there's not as much motion around you, aka you're stationary or driving slower and with a clear sky overhead instead of a bunch of trees or something.

In the video you say the USB Type-C on the A329 is ONLY for SSD.
I thought you could also power the camera from there as well.
How else would you power the camera when removing from the vehicle to connect the micro HDMI to your big screen TV?

That's true, you can always power it from there. I was just thinking of it from a "add additional dashcams to this port" kinda thing, but you're right.

 

[Agie]

So I've been testing the new Viofo A329 for a bit now and as I'm getting familiar with it, I'm pretty impressed so far. Here's my initial review of the dashcam, followed by some of my thoughts about this new dashcam.

There’s more I want to add before releasing the video publicly, plus I’m still doubting my 60 fps findings and wanna do even more testing to be totally sure before releasing the video to everyone.

In short, this is essentially an upgraded A229 Pro with a very similar form factor. Both the A229 Pro and A329 have a 4K Starvis 2 IMX678 up front and a 2K Starvis 2 IMX675 in the rear. They'll both be sold side-by-side. Here's a summary of my thoughts so far:

60fps: The A329 adds support for 60fps which I find to sometimes be helpful in the daytime for both smoother video and to force faster shutter speeds and reduce motion blur, though I still wanna go back and verify that it’s not just HDR that’s adding motion blur in the daytime. At night I find HDR to be more effective at both capturing detail and avoiding some weird color shifts I see with the 60 fps. Luckily they offer an AutoHDR option so we can do 4K60 in the daytime and 4K30HDR at night. The rear cam always records at 30 fps.

Bitrate: While earlier test firmwares allowed us to run at nearly 100 Mb/s, due to reliability issues, 65 Mb/s is now the balance Viofo is going for. This is true for 1CH, 2CH, 4K60, and 4K30HDR options. There's no bitrate increase or decrease when switching modes or adding/removing a second cam.

1CH / 2CH / 3CH: Unlike the A229 Pro which could do 1, 2, or 3 channels, the A329 only offers 1 or 2 channels. For this reason, the A229 Pro is more versatile given you have the option for an interior cabin cam, front telephoto cam, or exterior rear waterproof cam. This is probably the main advantage I've found for the A229 Pro, the option to add different add-on cams.

SSD: The USB C port from the A229 Pro is now an SSD port, allowing you to plug in an external hard drive up to 4TB. You can record to either the MicroSD or SSD, but not both simultaneously. I can see this being useful for recording super long drives or for keeping the recorded video/audio footage more secure and stored in a hidden location. It works with Windows computers, but unfortunately doesn't work with Macs. It's also picky about USB cables and not all USB C cables allow the dashcam to see the SSD.

Rear cam design: The rear cam's physical design has been updated to add support for Viofo's clip on CPL.

Front / Rear cam cable: The front/rear cable is now no longer USB C. Instead it's the same coax cable used in the original A229 Duo. It's a thinner cable which makes installation easier. I recently ran the wiring for the A229 Pro in both of our vehicles and since the front/rear cable is different with the A329, unfortunately I can't do a plug-and-play swap in either of my cars. Bummer! Oh well.

Cooling: Viofo's improved the cooling here and so the A329 runs cooler than the A229 Pro. I found the temperature variances to be greater after 1 hour of recording compared to 8 hours of recording, but either way I think the updated A329 will be a better option for people driving in hot climates.

WiFi: They've added WiFi 6 which allows file transfer speeds of up to 30 MB/s. In my testing, the A229 Pro can transfer files at just under 10 MB/s while the A329 does so at over 28 MB/s, nearly a 3x jump in transfer speed.

Misc: There's also a bunch of small changes. For example, the CPL alignment line is now on the bottom of the lens, making it easier to align the CPL when you're sitting in the car. There's an option to change the color of the text stamped onto the video footage which is especially helpful for people who drive white cars. There's also a MicroHDMI port added that allows you to connect the dashcam to an external display both while driving or later on during video playback.

Overall Thoughts: This is a welcome upgrade over the A229 Pro. It's still early and I wouldn't be surprised to see more firmware updates in the pipeline, but based on what I've seen so far, I can see this becoming my new default recommendation over the A229 Pro for anyone looking for "the best dashcam." The A229 Pro will be the preferred option if you need an interior cabin camera or you wanna add on Viofo's optional telephoto up front.

Nice video, I wonder if it will run even cooler should microSD recording not be in play, maybe another 5 or 10 degrees Celsius? That would be an absolute winner!