VIOFO A139 Pro

The VIOFO A139 Pro, released in December 2022, is an upgrade to the original A139. The A139 Pro can be purchased as a 1-channel, 2-channel or 3-channel dash cam. This camera comes in the same familiar form factor as the original A139 and does not come with a screen. The major change between the original and the Pro is the video processing hardware.

The A139 Pro uses a Novatek processor and Sony CMOS sensors. It is the first dash cam to use the Sony STARVIS 2 IMX678 CMOS sensor. This sensor is used for the front camera while the rear camera and interior cameras each use the 2MP Sony STARVIS IMX291 CMOS.

Sony STARVIS 2

Sony claims that the STARVIS 2 has better low-light performance and dynamic range than the original STARVIS line of CMOS sensors.

While the Sony marketing material looks impressive, in this first iteration of STARVIS 2 in a dash cam, video quality is marginally better depending on driving situation.

Sony also claims that STARVIS 2 uses a technology called Clear HDR instead of Digital Overlap HDR found in the original STARVIS. Digital Overlap HDR captures two images in succession (bright and dark regions) than combines these 2 images. This could lead to some motion blur with the videos from the original STARVIS sensors.

Clear HDR captures two images simultaneously (bright and dark regions) than combines these 2 images. In theory this should eliminate the motion blur issue that arises from Digital Overlap HDR. In practice, users have had mixed results with HDR in the A139 Pro. Some users are getting clear license plate captures with no motion blur but others are still getting some motion blur.

Video Quality

The A139 Pro is VIOFO’s flagship camera and video quality is quite good. The front camera offers 4K (3840 x 2160p) recording at 30fps with a bit rate of 60Mpbs. Quality is excellent during the day and good at night. However don’t expect revolutionary video quality improvements over other VIOFO cameras. At launch, video quality was on par or slightly better than the more affordable dash cams in the VIOFO lineup. As this is a new CMOS sensor and camera, we are expecting video quality improvements as firmware updates are made.

The 2MP rear camera allows for 1920 x 1080p recording at 30fps with a bit rate of 16Mbps. This provides good video quality during the day and average video quality at night.

The interior camera comes with 6 infrared LEDs which does a good job of illuminating the cabin at night. Cabin video quality is good (color in the day, monochrome at night) and the 170° lens captures the entire cabin.

Note that the maximum bit rate of the front camera is reduced when adding the rear or interior camera.

Features

The A139 Pro has an identical wedge shaped form factor as the original A139 and does not come with a screen. You will need to use your Smartphone and free Android or iOS apps to use the camera.

While VIOFO has one of the better dash cam apps for Android (ratings are better than average) there are complaints of connectivity issues for some owners. Unfortunately, the VIOFO iOS app is rated lower. App quality may not be a deal breaker when a dash cam has a screen, however it is critical for a screen-less camera. Something to consider when purchasing.

The A139 Pro has a g-sensor and GPS built into the mount. With no screen, error notifications are audio based. Audio based error notifications are preferred since there is less chance of you missing an error.

The A139 Pro comes with an adhesive mount but cannot swivel to record interactions at the driver or passenger windows. The build quality is very good as well.

Parking Mode

Like other VIOFO cameras, the A139 Pro supports 3 parking modes:

1. Auto event detection or buffered parking mode
2. Time-lapse parking mode
3. Low bitrate parking mode

To enable these parking modes, you will need to hardwire the dash cam to your car (the Viofo 3-wire hardwire kit has a low voltage cutoff and is recommended)

Support

VIOFO is responsive to questions and have adequate support. They also provide regular firmware updates and take into consideration user feedback. VIOFO also provides a 18 month warranty (12 months plus an additional 6 months if you register online) which is better than most dash cams.

Known Problems

While the A139 Pro is new, its predecessor, the A139 has generally been quite reliable. To date there have been very few problems reported with this camera. Our A139 Pro forum is a good place to check for any user reported problems as well.

Sample Videos

You can see some reviews with additional videos on our forum from DashCamTalk members Nigel, rcg530 and Panzer Platform.

Should I Purchase?

The VIOFO A139 Pro is the first dash cam to use the new Sony STARVIS 2 CMOS sensor. This is a true 4K camera and the front camera video quality is impressive. That being said this is not a revolutionary improvement in video quality but more of an evolutionary improvement. Capturing license plates is slightly better with the A139 Pro when compared to previous dash cams but only marginally so.

That being said the camera is a bit pricey and the lack of a screen is a drawback for some. Overall if video quality is your number 1 priority, the VIOFO A139 Pro should be on your short list. To see what other owners are saying, visit our VIOFO A139 Pro Forum.

Firmware

WARNING!  MAKING CHANGES TO YOUR FIRMWARE ARE PERFORMED AT YOUR OWN RISK.  WE ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY DAMAGE TO YOUR DASH CAM AS A RESULT OF THESE INSTRUCTIONS.

Firmware Update Instructions

1. Download the firmware and unzip it. You will find a file named: FWA139P.bin
2. Format the card
3. Copy the bin file to the the card
4. Power the camera with card inserted.

Latest Firmware

The latest firmware can be downloaded from the VIOFO website or below:

• FWA139PV1.0_1217.zip

Specifications

Published: Feb 24, 2023