Zenfox T3 Triple channel dash cams free test invitation, limited quantity

[kamkar]

Just uploaded this video from when i was running 2 cameras only, some truckers have it in for me on youtube and i have been branded a trucker hating insane driver.
So to prove them wrong i found this where i drive 34 Km behind a truck,,,,,,,, which i know a lot of people would have issues with no matter how fast or slow the truck is going.

 

[kamkar]

It do sound reasonable.
At one time i was also thinking about if heat was the blame for my issues, but as i have had good and bad sessions with just 1 hour in between i dont think it is it.
But for parking not least in the sun heat is very much a issue i recon.

 

[EGS]

I reviewed some of today's footage and so far no corrupted files and all 3 cameras recorded all time. However, I have noticed the audio is out of sync for about a second. All my settings still remain the same since 2 days ago.
Maybe some uf you guys can see if your footage is exposing a similar issue with the audio being off synchronization.

 

[kamkar]

I have not noticed any audio sync issues, but i will keep my eyes out for them ( in front of computer with memory card in reader )
I assume it is most easy to spot in the cabin camera, though i have tried my best to STFU while driving.

Is it from the get go, or something that get worse the longer a recording session is ?

 

[kuoh]

I just tested parking mode for around 3 hours with the car parked in the garage at around 90F and neither the camera or card felt hot to the touch after. All 3 cameras were recorded, but there was a segment where all the cameras only recorded 11 seconds followed by around 20 to 30 seconds of no recording, then 58 seconds on all 3 cameras followed by normal 1 minute recordings until I disconnected power. I'm also using an old 16GB class 10 card to make sure loop recording works correctly. Haven't had much need to drive the past few days so I haven't accumulated many real world recordings, but hopefully I can log a few hours of driving under the hot sun over the weekend.

If temperature monitoring is available, I would suggest allowing it to be recorded in a future firmware to see if any function failures can be correlated to overheating conditions.

KuoH

Funny thing my camera dont feel that hot, i will have to see if i can remember to borrow my friends temperature gun and do some measurements.
But by the sound of it yours seem to be much hotter than mine, i have only noticed the memory card being rather hot when i eject it, TBH probably hotter than any other memory card i have ejected.
At least the first few times i did i was thinking " OMG that's hot" and i cant recall having had that feeling with other cameras.

 

[TonyM]

my thought is that maybe the T3 is generating too much heat and fail safes to the interior camera, then to the front? I really have no explanation for what's going on. I unplugged the rear camera and will do another test with just front + interior camera in park mode baking in sun tomorrow.

Have you tried recording overnight when it's a lot cooler in the car?

 

[TonyM]

It do sound reasonable.
At one time i was also thinking about if heat was the blame for my issues, but as i have had good and bad sessions with just 1 hour in between i dont think it is it.
But for parking not least in the sun heat is very much a issue i recon.

Any early testing done by @Nigel might not have picked up any heat issues, since it doesn't get that hot in the UK compared to other parts of the world

 

[kamkar]

Norway and Sweden both saw 30 deg C a few days ago, it have also been nice and comfortable in little old Denmark, it is not often i get to wear T shirt and shorts several days in a row, and all day too.

I have looked over some footage looking for a audio sync issue, but i have not been able to spot that.

 

[Nigel]

Any early testing done by @Nigel might not have picked up any heat issues, since it doesn't get that hot in the UK compared to other parts of the world

I did discover that if it crashes then it can get exceptionally hot, and because of that I have been avoiding leaving it get really hot in a parked car, but hopefully that issue has been sorted in the current pre-production units. In general it seems to be OK on heat, can certainly feel hot when sitting in the sun but it has a lot more surface area to keep it cool than the A129 Pro.

 

[Nigel]

Are you using the Viofo Hardwire Kit? What memory card? I've repeated on numerous tests that after several hours, the rear camera drops out, followed by the interior camera later on, only leaving the front camera recording. As indicated in my image above. I repeated this test with both the Sandisk A2 Extreme and Sandisk High Endurance. Didn't make a difference.

Have you tried with the supplied power adaptor? It is possible that your use of the HK3 is causing your rear camera drop outs...
Your battery is not going to go flat in "several hours", so you could check...

 

[HonestReview]

I did discover that if it crashes then it can get exceptionally hot, and because of that I have been avoiding leaving it get really hot in a parked car, but hopefully that issue has been sorted in the current pre-production units. In general it seems to be OK on heat, can certainly feel hot when sitting in the sun but it has a lot more surface area to keep it cool than the A129 Pro.

Ill run the test overnight as suggested and post back what I find. If the camera works when in a cool area, then we have a heat issue. If it still freezes then

1. Hardwiring kit could be to blame. I am mating a HK3 with a T3. So not designed with the T3 in mind

2. Maybe it hates Sandisk Cards? I don't have any others to try. I borrowed the Sandisk A2 Extreme from my Viofo and tried the High Endurance I bought. Both had same issues.

3. Camera has major issues / bugs.

4. I'll disconnect hardwiring kit if it freezes still in cool environment and only use 12V cigarette adapter and see how it performs while driving (parking mode disabled of course).

 

[kamkar]

Hehe better set a alarm so that volvo dont bleed out
I think the camera going into hellfire hot mode when facing problems are not uncommon, i just cant put my finger on where i picked that up.

 

[HonestReview]

Hehe better set a alarm so that volvo dont bleed out

Voltage Cutoff is set to 12.2 or 50%. Though I've been testing parking mode all day. My battery has surely got to be getting low since I haven't driven anywhere.

 

[Nigel]

There's no way to test parking mode with the supplied power adapter.

Yes there is, just park the car and it will go into parking mode. Only issue is that there is no low voltage cutoff, but if you only let it run for 6 hours then there is no issue.

Edit: Need an always on power socket of course.

 

[HonestReview]

Yes there is, just park the car and it will go into parking mode. Only issue is that there is no low voltage cutoff, but if you only let it run for 6 hours then there is no issue.

That won't work without a hard wire??. Camera won't stay on without something supplying power. I doubt the capacitor in the camera holds enough juice to record without a battery pack or car battery feeding it voltage.

FYI: I'm not using a 12V Cigarette fuse tap. I have camera hardwired via the HK3 (Viofo) hardwire kit. So this test isn't possible for me to perform with just the included 12V cigarette adapter plugged into an accessory 12V socket. I don't have a 12V Socket Fuse on hand, nor am I going to risk draining my battery without a cutoff.

Ill pass this test to someone else!

 

[EGS]

Here is my test with the Front Camera + Interior Camera (Rear disconnected). Ignore the timestamps. I haven't properly set the clock. So the times its showing are wrong. Red = Front Camera and Orange = Front + Interior. You can see here at 20:07 or 8:07 P.M on the clock (not set) that the Interior camera froze and the front was the only one left recording.

So the fact that the system still dropped the interior cam recording while your rear camera was disconnected makes me think that the rear camera and its power cable has nothing to do with the issue after all. At least I hope so...

 

[kamkar]

Yes it do 2 wire parking mode, i tested that almost on day 1 as someone wanted to know,,,,,,, it do however seem to take longer than other cameras i have seen before it enter parking mode.

 

[HonestReview]

Yes it do 2 wire parking mode, i tested that almost on day 1 as someone wanted to know,,,,,,, it do however seem to take longer than other cameras i have seen before it enter parking mode.

For two wire parking mode to work, you still either need a battery pack or fuse tap with a 12V socket. Neither of which I own. Can't really shell out any more money as I've already purchased a 256GB High Endurance MicroSD, a 128GB High Endurance MicroSD to test camera in another family member's vehicle (have yet to install due to all problems I've had), and the HK3 hardwire kit. Couple with the fact, while you can set a timer on the T3 to shut off at X time limit, I don't really trust this camera being a beta. I cannot afford to have my car battery be run down if the Camera doesn't shut off properly. The Volvo is my daily driver and I need that car =) working.

Someone else will have to do the 12V Socket Fusetap test to check if the Camera freezes up like I have described in earlier posts.

 

[Nigel]

Yes it do 2 wire parking mode, i tested that almost on day 1 as someone wanted to know,,,,,,, it do however seem to take longer than other cameras i have seen before it enter parking mode.

Note that it drops out of low bitrate parking mode for a while if it sees some movement, might be what delayed it in your test.

 

[kuoh]

I'm using the official Zenfox power adapter plugged into a portable DC power pack. The memory card this time around is a Lexar 16GB class 10 which is at least 5 years old if not much older. I'm not getting any individual camera drop outs, but it does seem to consistently encounter the 11 second segment followed by a short missing period, possibly from a reboot, then a 58 second segment once in each of the 3 hour runs I've tested so far and there have been no corrupted files. I've noticed it takes around 20 seconds from power on to recording start and that missing period after the 11 second segments are suspiciously similar in length. I'll probably stick a 128GB card back in and let it run overnight to see if there's any pattern based on time.

KuoH

Are you using the Viofo Hardwire Kit? What memory card? I've repeated on numerous tests that after several hours, the rear camera drops out, followed by the interior camera later on, only leaving the front camera recording. As indicated in my image above. I repeated this test with both the Sandisk A2 Extreme and Sandisk High Endurance. Didn't make a difference.