VIOFO VS1 | added CPL-400 test video

[Mtz]

I received vs1.
There was no Viofo 32 GB SD card inside.

I think you received a sample and not paid money for the VS1 you received.

I remember on A119 they offered two simple mounts, one was offered to be used with the CPL lens because added some distance between lens and windshield.
For vertical glass the only solution is to add an wedged mount to compensate the angle. I don't see this in the future because it is expected just very few users to have vertical windshields. But this info about real rotation angle and vertical windshields should be included somewhere in the manual or the specifications.

My latest FW was trying to reduce the oversharpened video - but it's not right as of yet.

I have no problem with oversharpened video. If the overall image is looking good and is offering the details I need, I don't care abut that. And right now, in my opinion, the VS1 image is the most clear image from all Viofo models. I don't care about some snapshot from the video if the general image is looking good and the car license readability is good. I don't want cinematic movies created by the dashcam I want details from the video which will help me in the court.

 

[DT MI]

I don't want cinematic movies created by the dashcam I want details from the video which will help me in the court.

^This! It never ceases to amaze me the number of people who lose focus on what the purpose of a dash cam really is.

 

[LateralNW]

I think you received a sample and not paid money for the VS1 you received.

@ogzogz
My test unit came with the 32GB memory card.

 

[Nigel]

I don't want cinematic movies created by the dashcam I want details from the video which will help me in the court.

Some people do legitimately want cinematic movies from their dashcams, but they should be paying GoPro prices for them, not expecting a $100 dashcam to record them! VS1 is clearly an accident camera and should concentrate on that job.

I'm not seeing over sharpened video in most footage that has been posted anyway, daylight footage seems very good on the sharpening...

 

[TonyM]

With the size, mounting flexibility and price this could potentially make for an excellent side camera.

I think the HFOV might be narrower than you would like for a side camera

 

[Mtz]

For a side camera I think the FOV is never enough. But I agree with you, for a side camera you don't need to see details at big distance so a wide FOV is better. A small FOV camera is good for reading car license plates coming from distance, on the side, everything is close.

Some people do legitimately want cinematic movies from their dashcams, but they should be paying GoPro prices for them, not expecting a $100 dashcam to record them! VS1 is clearly an accident camera and should concentrate on that job.

You recorded some nice images with your dashcams but in some special conditions. When you have a clear sky, the dashcam footage become so far away from a movie, the sky is the most ugly part from the video. Then the asphalt, with a lot of artifacts because of speed.

 

[Dashmellow]

For a side camera I think the FOV is never enough. But I agree with you, for a side camera you don't need to see details at big distance so a wide FOV is better. A small FOV camera is good for reading car license plates coming from distance, on the side, everything is close.

As far as I know I was the first DCT member to experiment with side cameras when I started repurposing older dash cams in the rear side windows of my vehicle back in 2014, so I have a fair amount of experience with this.

What I have learned about side camera AOV (angle of view) is that it depends on the AOV of the lenses in all four cameras in your vehicle (assuming you have a 4 channel set-up) as well as the size of your vehicle's cabin and overall length of your vehicle. The goal is that the coverage of all four cameras in the system should overlap from one camera to the next adjacent camera. This older post provides an example of what I am talking about.

The coverage of the VS1 might be fine as a side cam depending on the other factors and this will obviously take some experimentation and testing.

Of course, the other possibility would be to swap the lens in the VS1 for one with a wider AOV for those of us who are willing and able to do this. I do like the VS1 as a potential side camera due to its size, form factor and mounting possibilities.

 

[kamkar]

My feeling is.

As i do not want to increase FOV on front or rear cameras, i would want a really high FOV on the side cameras, CUZ i have seen what a regular lens give, which yes is a full 360 bubble but it is some distance from the car before cameras overlap.
So i would personally be willing to accept damn close to 180 degree side lenses, and i say that CUZ installing such cameras you have to be right up against the glass.
I am also now even more wanting a pair of down the side cameras like on Tesla cars.

Dunno who started, but i was also on the side camera bandwagon back in the day with a Mobius on the Left side of my car, and the Innovv C3 ( 2014 release ) on the Right side.

I have now been without side cameras for well over a year, no longer have withdrawal symptoms due to this, But i am keeping my eyes open for a chance to go back, but for sure not with single cameras.

 

[mentadent]

Looking forward to a firmware update with cloud features.

 

[Dashmellow]

As i do not want to increase FOV on front or rear cameras, i would want a really high FOV on the side cameras, CUZ i have seen what a regular lens give, which yes is a full 360 bubble but it is some distance from the car before cameras overlap.

In the link I posted I provide the horizontal coverage angles for each lens used in the four camera set-up. The front and rear cameras are 112º and 116º respectively and the two side cameras are 131º AOV totaling 490º of overlapping coverage all around my vehicle. You do need wide angle side camera lenses but not necessarily ultra wide lenses, even with relatively narrow AOV front and rear lenses. Again, as I mentioned earlier, this depends on several factors unique to each vehicle. I disagree with you that you are "some distance" before cameras overlap as can be seen in the link. Depending on the lens used you can often have coverage of the pavement within a foot or so of your car. Aiming of the side camera lens is also an important factor as is the height of where the camera is mounted but I've had better results from this because I drive a truck where the height of the cabin windows is somewhat higher than on many cars.

 

[Mtz]

I consider that using 3-4 cameras for a 360 degrees coverage in parking mode is too much for the car battery, but is the best of you expect bad things to happen to your car. I wrote about parking mode because if you will use the setup in driving mode you don't need full coverage because all objects are moving and at some moment all will be recorded by one of the cameras.
But the side image with a small or normal angle lens is not nice to watch in driving mode.

 

[Dashmellow]

I consider that using 3-4 cameras for a 360 degrees coverage in parking mode is too much for the car battery, but is the best of you expect bad things to happen to your car. I

I have 5 cameras in my vehicle so running them in parking mode on the car battery or an auxiliary dash cam battery isn't viable. Instead, I use two 20,000 mAh power banks to run 4 of the cameras for parking coverage. I can operate the cameras all day off the power banks if I want to so I often just leave them plugged in once I arrive at my first destination of the day and the charge the banks at night. I don't mind this routine and I like that I don't have to think about the state of my truck's battery.

I wrote about parking mode because if you will use the setup in driving mode you don't need full coverage because all objects are moving and at some moment all will be recorded by one of the cameras.
But the side image with a small or normal angle lens is not nice to watch in driving mode.

I'm not so sure I agree here. Based on my long time experience with four cameras, often only one camera will capture what actually happened or only one will capture the other car's license plate while another captures what actually happened.

Side camera capture when moving is a mixed bag. Sometimes the footage is useless and sometimes it is excellent depending upon the situation you are driving in.

Either way, I wouldn't ever want to be without my side cameras. You just never know what you might capture!

 

[Agie]

I have 5 cameras in my vehicle so running them in parking mode on the car battery or an auxiliary dash cam battery isn't viable. Instead, I use two 20,000 mAh power banks to run 4 of the cameras for parking coverage. I can operate the cameras all day off the power banks if I want to so I often just leave them plugged in once I arrive at my first destination of the day and the charge the banks at night. I don't mind this routine and I like that I don't have to think about the state of my truck's battery.



I'm not so sure I agree here. Based on my long time experience with four cameras, often only one camera will capture what actually happened or only one will capture the other car's license plate while another captures what actually happened.

Side camera capture when moving is a mixed bag. Sometimes the footage is useless and sometimes it is excellent depending upon the situation you are driving in.

Either way, I wouldn't ever want to be without my side cameras. You just never know what you might capture!

View attachment 71220

Lol he looks like he's struggling with that sunshine coming in HAHA

 

[Dashmellow]

Lol he looks like he's struggling with that sunshine coming in HAHA

And I wonder how he can see over the steering wheel?

 

[ogzogz]

According to my overall review of VS1,

There was vibration in the camera body. I checked by removing the front cover and found that the capacitor was vibrating between the cover and the center. I prevented this vibration by making a small touch on both sides with insulation material.

When I do a driving test with the CPL filter sent by @viofo , it is possible to get a very effective, smooth image. If you choose cpl, a small modification will be required.

My expectations for VS1 in future versions are;
21:9 resolution,
volume adjustment,
Turning LED lights on and off..

I can say that Viofo VS1 is a complete man of duty.

 

[PedroN]

Has anyone used the static windshield stickers and if so how does it perform. Is it strong enough to hold the camera in place when adjusting the angle?. And how does it look such sticker on the windscreen?
I'm very curious about this camera and I'm thinking to buy one for my new car when it arrives. I hope that the CPL filter will become available when I buy the dashcam, I rather have a CPL filter then a SD card

 

[ogzogz]

Has anyone used the static windshield stickers and if so how does it perform. Is it strong enough to hold the camera in place when adjusting the angle?. And how does it look such sticker on the windscreen?
I'm very curious about this camera and I'm thinking to buy one for my new car when it arrives. I hope that the CPL filter will become available when I buy the dashcam, I rather have a CPL filter then a SD card

The use of electrostatic film varies depending on preference.

If you are going to use your vehicle for a long time, there is no need to use a label.
Since the label is transparent, it only creates a frame on the glass. and its appearance may change depending on the location you will use it in your vehicle.

The camera is very light. The electrostatic film carries even other heavy cameras available. Don't worry about this.

Congratulations on your new vehicle. I hope you have pleasant driving.

It looks like there will be developments regarding cpl soon.

 

[Karagandinez]

Has anyone used the static windshield stickers and if so how does it perform. Is it strong enough to hold the camera in place when adjusting the angle?

Static stickers behave normally.
I had an A229 Pro hanging and was not going to fall. And it is much heavier than VS1.
A week ago I moved the A229 Pro to another car and had difficulty tearing the sticker off the glass.
So don't be afraid. For VS1, you can even divide each sticker into 2 times.

 

[PedroN]

Indeed I find the stickers a bit big for such a small dashcam

 

[ogzogz]

Firmware Update

https://viofo.com/download/firmware/VS1/FWVS1.bin

FWVS1.bin(53.11 MB)
Version: V1.0_240307

Change Log for V1.0_240307
*IQ optimized
*Increase the G-sensor sensitivity on the High option
*Fix other bugs