Vueroid S1 Dash Camera Review

[jsmith]

We invested an enormous amount of time discussing about the tuning concept and tuning the image quality.
I and a tuning engineer even made a business trip to the U.S. specifically to capture and tune footage using local vehicles — changing car models along the way — just to ensure the video quality met our expectations.
I believe the sunlight in Korea is different from that in the U.S. (Trust me 😉 )

It would be too harsh to say that we sacrificed everything for license plate visibility, because of course we also aimed to make the surrounding environment look beautiful.
However, it’s true that our top priority was optimizing license plate readability.
The reason is simple — we’ve seen too many cases where people rank two products solely based on license plate visibility.
And often, those judgments are made from just one or two still captures.

I personally think it’s quite irresponsible to judge a product’s overall quality based only on a couple of snapshots.
Yet from the viewer’s perspective, it’s difficult not to believe the result that appears clearer in those comparisons.
Because of this, many manufacturers inevitably focus their tuning direction toward maximizing license plate readability — even if it means sacrificing other strengths or features of the product.
Although results can vary greatly depending on lighting conditions and environment, people usually only compare captured images and decide the winner based on which one shows the plate more clearly.

When a camera receives more light, each pixel captures more light energy, resulting in more image data per pixel.
More data means better dynamic range and richer expression — in short, a more beautiful image.
However, to improve license plate readability, tuning must take the opposite approach — minimizing blur as much as possible.
We spent a great deal of effort finding the fine balance and achieving optimal performance between those two opposing goals.

Your choice was neither right nor wrong. If consumers demand a feature, you accommodate their request, or you risk not meeting your sales goals . Here, you chose to make plate readability a priority. It's a trade off, but one you researched heavily.

At some point down the road, affordable hardware will permit 24 hours worth of both plate readability and crisp scenery, without having to sacrifice one for the other.

Some people repeatedly suggest simply increasing the bitrate, but bitrate only becomes meaningful after sufficient light is captured.
I doubt whether the camera can actually gather enough light to fully utilize that high bitrate.
If there isn’t enough image data to transmit in the first place, a higher bitrate only raises costs without improving quality.

I'm always one to ask, but have you tried increasing the bitrate in lab testing, to see whether or not this theory is accurate?

 

[qusejr2]

Your choice was neither right nor wrong. If consumers demand a feature, you accommodate their request, or you risk not meeting your sales goals . Here, you chose to make plate readability a priority. It's a trade off, but one you researched heavily.

At some point down the road, affordable hardware will permit 24 hours worth of both plate readability and crisp scenery, without having to sacrifice one for the other.



I'm always one to ask, but have you tried increasing the bitrate in lab testing, to see whether or not this theory is accurate?

sure .. we did.
The higher the bitrate, the better the license plate readability. However, this isn't always proportional. Bitrate is determined by considering SD card lifespan, heat generation, and storage efficiency. I don't believe there's a right answer, and I'm constantly considering it.

 

[jsmith]

sure .. we did.
The higher the bitrate, the better the license plate readability. However, this isn't always proportional. Bitrate is determined by considering SD card lifespan, heat generation, and storage efficiency. I don't believe there's a right answer, and I'm constantly considering it

@qusejr2

I would consider MicroSD lifespan to be of small consequence. If upping the bitrate yields enough improvement to warrant inclusion, the solution is to add a selectable bitrate Menu, with a popup prompt that increasing bitrate could shorten the life of your SD card.

My suggestion....

 

[GPak]

Another solution:
Remote SD card installation via the USB-C port considerably reduces heating of both the dashcam itself and the SD card in particular.
(this has been tested and confirmed)
Furthermore, the hidden SD card provides additional security for recorded evidence.
I personally really like this feature.
Also suggestion.....

 

[qusejr2]

@qusejr2

I would consider MicroSD lifespan to be of small consequence. If upping the bitrate yields enough improvement to warrant inclusion, the solution is to add a selectable bitrate Menu, with a popup prompt that increasing bitrate could shorten the life of your SD card.

My suggestion....

we had considered exaclty same your suggestion. I mean, we had tested more high bitrate and checked the improvement. The result is the bitrate configuration of S1.

 

[qusejr2]

Another solution:
Remote SD card installation via the USB-C port considerably reduces heating of both the dashcam itself and the SD card in particular.
(this has been tested and confirmed)
Furthermore, the hidden SD card provides additional security for recorded evidence.
I personally really like this feature.
Also suggestion.....

thank for your suggetsion . I'm scared because there seem to be a lot of things to consider, such as reliability, installation location, etc. (e.g., vibration, shock, etc.)

 

[GPak]

thank for your suggetsion . I'm scared because there seem to be a lot of things to consider, such as reliability, installation location, etc. (e.g., vibration, shock, etc.)

You'll never know unless you try.
Based on the information on this forum, all reliability issues are related to the remote SSD drive, compatibility, and also an attempt to operate it in a "sort of hybrid" mode with an SD card installed in the dash cam.
There's no need for such complications.
The simplest implementation is an internal SD card slot and a USB-C port for an external SD card slot/reader connected via a ±2m cable.
Only one SD card should be installed either internally or externally.
The user can install the remote SD card anywhere, for example, under the dashboard or in the foot well, as long as the cable allows.

Almost a year ago, we installed the SD card in the passenger-side foot well, and it has worked flawlessly ever since.

Just FYI, the bench tested temperature difference between internal and external mounted SD card was about 20°C !!

 

[TonyM]

Almost a year ago, we installed the SD card in the passenger-side foot well, and it has worked flawlessly ever since.

You are careful with your DIY projects, so they have a good chance of being reliable.

Unfortunately the average customer may not be so careful. Having the microSD card on the end of a long wire increases the risk of data loss, if the customer is choosing their own cable and card adapter, and installing it wherever they like.

If a manufacturer offers their own remote card reader device then the risk of substandard components is eliminated, but you're still relying on the customer to install it in a safe place.

 

[lufa6977]

You'll never know unless you try.
Based on the information on this forum, all reliability issues are related to the remote SSD drive, compatibility, and also an attempt to operate it in a "sort of hybrid" mode with an SD card installed in the dash cam.
There's no need for such complications.
The simplest implementation is an internal SD card slot and a USB-C port for an external SD card slot/reader connected via a ±2m cable.
Only one SD card should be installed either internally or externally.
The user can install the remote SD card anywhere, for example, under the dashboard or in the foot well, as long as the cable allows.

Almost a year ago, we installed the SD card in the passenger-side foot well, and it has worked flawlessly ever since.

Just FYI, the bench tested temperature difference between internal and external mounted SD card was about 20°C !!

Did VIOFO resolve all the angst generated by their implementation of an external SSD?

Long before it was a fad on DashCamTalk for members to try to extend their SD card from the body, I had already done so with the A129 Pro and the A229 Pro in an attempt to improve the cooling of the cam and the card. It was problematic due to the reliability of adapter cards. Most of the heat comes from the control chip and the card reader; the card produces a smaller portion of detected heat. There is also the issue of where you extend that SD card, and how long the cable can be between the SD card and the reader. If any company can offer a reliable SSD feature, it will be Vueroid due to their file system, OS, and voltage levels.

Implementing SSDs should be brain-dead simple, but it seems to be problematic. For various reasons, I suppose. Regardless of the SSD, the effectiveness and reliability of the dashcam are determined more by the dashcam than by any other component. Of course, one needs to use a high-quality cable and keep it under 3 meters, but people were experiencing failures at much shorter distances with VIOFO hardware. Then there is the 'human' factor, which no manufacturer really wants to deal with. SSD implementation is rich with opportunities for customer failure and increased support tickets for manufacturers.

I will go out on a limb here, and I expect SDS and other installers probably have a better idea of the usage, but I expect that SSD usage is like Telephoto lenses and LTE. These are niche features for a minimal subset of dash cam users, and the actual use is relatively low. Most users do not need to save a 600-kilometer journey on a memory device for posterity, nor do they need or want to pay for an LTE connection simply for the rare occasion of uploading a 3-minute video to the Cloud, only to download it to their home computer or cellphone. Of course, the American way is bigger, better, faster, and a 'look at me and what I have' mentality, mostly to our detriment.

I would rather dashcam manufacturers focus their resources on quality hardware and image production, with reliability for 1 Terabyte MicroSDXC cards and the newer MicroSD Express cards.