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

EGS said:
Lol, I can understand that.
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Considering I don't have high hopes either for this camera still working with our modifications.... But what the heck, I'd love to prove myself wrong.
 
HonestReview said:
Considering I don't have high hopes either for this camera still working with our modifications.... But what the heck, I'd love to prove myself wrong.
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I enjoy taking challenges similar to this from time to time, even though they don't frequently lead to success.
 
EGS said:
I enjoy taking challenges similar to this from time to time, even though they don't frequently lead to success.
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I enjoy beta testing things. So I consider this a challenge. First time I've ripped apart a dashcam for any real reason. So learning as we go. Cookie cutter .8mm copper plate much easier to deal with than your made from scratch Mr. Over Achiever!

I will probably leave the 20x20mm and not even snip unless it won't fit. It'll give a larger surface area for cooling.

By the way, how would you hook up a mini fan? There are no ports to power the thing.
 
EGS said:
Is using a clean finger to apply the thermal paste ok? I don't have an applicator. I also have a tube I bought a couple of years ago. Don't know how good or bad in quality is but since I already have it
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The paste that you have (Silicone Heat Sink Compound, Type Z9) has a low conductivity - 0.70 W/mK (Specifications Sheet), but the main thing now to achieve is to remove the heat from the processor as much as possible, so if you look at the recommendations for the best thermal grease, Arctic Cooling MX-4 can be recommended (which has a thermal conductivity of 8.5 W/mK). Although, probably at this stage of the tests you can use what is, for sure it will be better than what was.
About how to apply thermal paste to the processor correctly - many sources offer the option of applying a drop of paste to the center of the processor about the size of a pea and then just press the heatsink onto the processor.
 
Leonauto said:
About how to apply thermal paste to the processor correctly - many sources offer the option of applying a drop of paste to the center of the processor about the size of a pea and then just press the heatsink onto the processor.
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That is a good way to avoid bubbles, and great for components with a central heat source, but you can't tell if you get full coverage, and in this case we do want full coverage. I prefer to dab a little all over both surfaces, dabbing it on rather than wiping or brushing ensures full coverage of a very thin and even layer. To avoid bubbles put the heat sink/spreader on at an angle, one side first, then close it up slowly giving the air time to escape and the paste time to flow.
 
Leonauto said:
The paste that you have (Silicone Heat Sink Compound, Type Z9) has a low conductivity - 0.70 W/mK (Specifications Sheet), but the main thing now to achieve is to remove the heat from the processor as much as possible, so if you look at the recommendations for the best thermal grease, Arctic Cooling MX-4 can be recommended (which has a thermal conductivity of 8.5 W/mK). Although, probably at this stage of the tests you can use what is, for sure it will be better than what was.
About how to apply thermal paste to the processor correctly - many sources offer the option of applying a drop of paste to the center of the processor about the size of a pea and then just press the heatsink onto the processor.
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I will try to get some of the Arctic Cooling MX-4 then.
 
The MX-4 is good, but as Leonauto says at this stage anything will do OK. And if you wish, applying a 'dot' at the center works too, but I like knowing that everything is covered since you can't see what is happening. I have seen incomplete coverage many times, maybe just sloppy workmanship or maybe they used too little paste. Nothing to say you can't both smear paste everywhere and add a dot in the center too 😉

@Leonauto
With this being a Novatek, do you think someone can 'hack' into the firmware to discover and adjust the over heat cutoff value? Or if one cam can be automatically turned off when entering parking mode to get less heat? I know Zenfox can do these things with the SDK but I doubt that he will try. It is good to have you and your knowledge here 👍

Phil
 
Either Monday or Tuesday my order will arrive. I ordered 8 grams of MX-4 thermal paste and 20 pieces of 20x20mm copper heatsink plate that is .8mm thick. So we shall see what happens once my order arrives.

@EGS please report how your test goes. As others pointed out, you may benefit from a more conductive thermal paste with a better heat transfer. It seems what you used is almost equivalent to the crap Zenfox originally applied.
 
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I have a question, maybe @jokiin knows it better. Is the thermal sensor integrated in to the SOC, or pcb, or both. If there are both, which one would be responsible to trigger the cutoff fist?
 
HonestReview said:
It seems what you used is almost equivalent to the crap Zenfox originally applied
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I knew there where great chances the paste I have on hand is not one of the best. That is the reason I asked the question for those who have more experience in to that since I very seldom get to use it. But I already can tell that the performance of the stuff Zenfox originally had in place is considerably inferior than this paste I'm using. In a bit later I will explain why or what changes I have noticed at a glance...
And yes, I have already made my mind obtaining what @Leonauto had suggested.
 
FYI
SawMaster said:
The MX-4 is good, but as Leonauto says at this stage anything will do OK. And if you wish, applying a 'dot' at the center works too, but I like knowing that everything is covered since you can't see what is happening. I have seen incomplete coverage many times, maybe just sloppy workmanship or maybe they used too little paste. Nothing to say you can't both smear paste everywhere and add a dot in the center too 😉

@Leonauto
With this being a Novatek, do you think someone can 'hack' into the firmware to discover and adjust the over heat cutoff value? Or if one cam can be automatically turned off when entering parking mode to get less heat? I know Zenfox can do these things with the SDK but I doubt that he will try. It is good to have you and your knowledge here 👍

Phil
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I'm no expert on the subject of thermal paste, but here's an article I read: https://www.ekwb.com/blog/thermal-compound-guide/

It recommends against lathering a surface with paste. As the plate is actually far more conductive than the paste itself. You merely want to create a good bond between the copper plate and the SOC/CPU and not inhibit heat transfer.
 
EGS said:
I knew there where great chances the paste I have on hand is not one of the best. That is the reason I asked the question for those who have more experience in to that since I very seldom get to use it. But I already can tell that the performance of the stuff Zenfox originally had in place is considerably inferior than this paste I'm using. In a bit later I will explain why or what changes I have noticed at a glance...
And yes, I have already made my mind obtaining what @Leonauto had suggested.
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Honestly, there's no wrong answers right now. People attempting different solutions will yield data, good or bad. Main thing here is to figure out if there's a way to keep the T3 from overheating within the current specs. Which may or MAY NOT be possible, depending on how low Zenfox set the thermal max (TJ Maxx) for camera cutoffs in the firmware itself.
 
EGS said:
I have a question, maybe @jokiin knows it better. Is the thermal sensor integrated in to the SOC, or pcb, or both. If there are both, which one would be responsible to trigger the cutoff fist?
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I'll have to look up the data sheet for the processor and see what it lists, don't know offhand
 
Leonauto said:
The paste that you have (Silicone Heat Sink Compound, Type Z9) has a low conductivity - 0.70 W/mK (Specifications Sheet), but the main thing now to achieve is to remove the heat from the processor as much as possible, so if you look at the recommendations for the best thermal grease, Arctic Cooling MX-4 can be recommended (which has a thermal conductivity of 8.5 W/mK).
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Copper = 401

EGS said:
But I already can tell that the performance of the stuff Zenfox originally had in place is considerably inferior than this paste I'm using.
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The real problem with the Zenfox pink stuff is the thickness, with copper conducting maybe 400x faster, the more copper and less paste you have the better, get the paste thin enough and it doesn't make much difference which type you use, but it is important to keep it thin.
 
Nigel said:
Copper = 401

The real problem with the Zenfox pink stuff is the thickness, with copper conducting maybe 400x faster, the more copper and less paste you have the better, get the paste thin enough and it doesn't make much difference which type you use, but it is important to keep it thin.
Click to expand...

The real problem with the pink stuff is it has a very low conductivity. Somewhere around 2 W/mK. Meaning it's very inefficient at drawing the heat away from the processor and to the heatsink. Compared to Artic MX-4 which has 8.5 W/mk or Artic Silver 5's 8.9 Wmk.

I selected Artic MX-4 because it appears non metalic thermal pastes have a longer shelf life and don't degrade over time.

FYI: Whomever is advising Zenfox steered him in the wrong direction. All that effort to build a camera and he got screwed on the execution. A very poor pink thermal paste (SOC to Heatshield) followed by some hard glue thermal pad holding the heatsink to the EMI shield.
 
I think earlier when we talked about it zenfox said the thermal readout are not in the SOC, but it probably have a input ( pins ) on the SOC where you can connect a thermal probe.
 
Nigel said:
Copper = 401


The real problem with the Zenfox pink stuff is the thickness, with copper conducting maybe 400x faster, the more copper and less paste you have the better, get the paste thin enough and it doesn't make much difference which type you use, but it is important to keep it thin.
Click to expand...
I got a very thin coat of that compound and did some light testing last night I have noticed a faster heat transfer to the heat sink than before but it is not ready yet for a real life testing. I have ordered some of the arctic paste so I can replace it and hope for the best after that.
 
EGS said:
I got a very thin coat of that compound and did some light testing last night I have noticed a faster heat transfer to the heat sink than before but it is not ready yet for a real life testing. I have ordered some of the arctic paste so I can replace it and hope for the best after that.
Click to expand...

You order MX-4 or Artic Silver 5? I've got MX-4 on order.
 
HonestReview said:
The real problem with the pink stuff is it has a very low conductivity. Somewhere around 2 W/mK. Meaning it's very inefficient at drawing the heat away from the processor and to the heatsink. Compared to Artic MX-4 which has 8.5 W/mk or Artic Silver 5's 8.9 Wmk.

I selected Artic MX-4 because it appears non metalic thermal pastes have a longer shelf life and don't degrade over time.

FYI: Whomever is advising Zenfox steered him in the wrong direction. All that effort to build a camera and he got screwed on the execution. A very poor pink thermal paste (SOC to Heatshield) followed by some hard glue thermal pad holding the heatsink to the EMI shield.
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Not only the pink chew gum was a problem, the white Oreo center stuff from the sandwich was/is bad too, in the manner they had assembled along with the nylon tape and air pockets in between. No wonder the pcb board was getting hotter that the heat sink and after 20 minutes later the heat sink will catch up and both maintaining the same temperature.
Now the heat sink seems to absorb the heat much faster.
 
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