Viofo A119 Mini 2 Review: Great Entry Level Dashcam

Рет қаралды 33,121

Күн бұрын

Time for an in depth review of the Viofo A119 Mini 2 dashcam with Starvis 2.
Purchase the Viofo A119 Mini 2: geni.us/ViofoA119Mini2
Discount codes:
Viofo ($12 off): VortexRadar
Amazon (5% off): VortexRadar
BlackboxMyCar (5% off): Automatic when using the link above
Recommended Accessories:
Memory card (256GB): geni.us/h2ovVP [Amazon]
Memory card (512GB): geni.us/bEVN1 [Amazon]
Polarizer: geni.us/ViofoPolarizer [Amazon]
Hardwire cable for parking recording: geni.us/ViofoHK4
Dedicated parking mode battery: geni.us/PowerCell8
iOS App: apps.apple.com/us/app/viofo/i...
Android App: play.google.com/store/apps/de...
Other dashcams mentioned:
A119 Mini: geni.us/ViofoA119Mini
A139 Pro: geni.us/ViofoA139Pro1CH
WM1: geni.us/ViofoWM1
0:00 Intro
1:35 Hands-on Overview
5:00 Starvis 2 Sensor
5:34 Resolution & Frame Rates
6:56 HDR
8:47 Daytime Video Quality
10:27 Overheating
11:43 Nighttime Video Quality
15:22 Audio Quality
17:10 Voice Commands
21:53 Parking Recording
23:52 WiFi & App
26:48 WM1
28:36 Discount Codes
29:21 Conclusion
Subscribe to Vortex Radar: www.youtube.com/@VortexRadar/...
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Recommended Equipment:
Radar Detector: geni.us/Redline360c
Laser Jammer: bit.ly/AntiLaserPriority
Dashcam: geni.us/ViofoA139Pro2CH
Dashcam battery pack: geni.us/Powercell8-A139
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Full disclosure: The purchase links in my videos are typically affiliate links and I may make a percentage when you buy. Whether I get paid or not (on some things I don’t), it’s important to me to ensure that I stay objective and unbiased and give you my honest opinion so you can make an educated decision as to what’s best for you. You deserve that and I wouldn’t have it any other way. :)
© 2023 Vortex Radar, LLC. All rights reserved.
#Dashcam #Dashcamera #Viofo #A119Mini2 #Starvis2

Пікірлер: 132

@axk1 8 ай бұрын

This is the best dash cam review I've seen on KZfaq! The side by side recordings is a great way to compare the cams.

@sometimesfirstsometimeslas4908 8 ай бұрын

I have watched pretty much all the UT dashcams reviewers. You are the most comprehensive and well-thought out in what points are important. Thanks!

@MrAshman3000 4 ай бұрын

So glad I found this channel. Simply the best review of this dashcam. Literally covering everything. Thank you

@Michael-RI 6 ай бұрын

Outstanding review! Can only get so much from reading other review sources which do not include video comparisons as done here. The detailed explanation of features really helps as well. Think I will be ordering one of these very soon.

@AJ99 2 күн бұрын

Excellent review. Unusually complete and intelligently presented.

@BikerJim74 7 ай бұрын

This review convinced me to buy this dashcam. Great job. I still have my a119 from 2017, getting old

@formetoknow540 9 ай бұрын

Ive had the A139pro for a couple of months and its actually great dash cam pleased with it.

@MrPontiac005 10 ай бұрын

Nice video👍 I purchased this a week ago and enjoying it.

@RWTLMJRW 7 ай бұрын

Just purchased this product because of your video, very helpful

@ttphome4124 2 ай бұрын

Very good reaction at the bend for the deer. I'm sold on the Viofo.

@justthisguyyouknow666 3 ай бұрын

Excellent overview, thanks!

@pktech1969 4 ай бұрын

WOW! Great review!! I was about to purchase a Rexing 4K camera but since watching your video I'm going with this camera instead. Very detailed and I appreciate you going over ALL of the features. Thanks

@VortexRadar 4 ай бұрын

Congrats! Yeah in general I much prefer Viofo's dashcams over Rexing's.

@wescat2 6 ай бұрын

Thanks for the great review. Wanted something smaller so picked one up last night along with CPL and hard wire kit.

@VortexRadar 6 ай бұрын

Congrats!

@wescat2 6 ай бұрын

@@VortexRadarThanks! The A119V3 has been great in our other car. The wireless capability and being able to change settings in the app will be a welcome upgrade.

@smsunder 10 ай бұрын

Another excellent and informative video where I bought the Viofo A119 Mini 6 months ago from watching a couple of your videos. Now, the V2 comes out :(. Guess I'll need to upgrade quickly.

@JeaneGenie 10 ай бұрын

Hold back for V3 😉

@Skynet-1 10 ай бұрын

I have their A129 Duo. Big fan of their dashcams, they just keep working with no issues. I would consider upgrading to their 4K duo if I could use my existing wiring. 👍👍👍

@ViofoDashcamOfficial 10 ай бұрын

Yes, you can use the existing hardwire kit for the A129Pro Duo(4K), even the rear camera can be used either. You can just buy an A129Pro main front camera and car charger (if you need one).

@williamsumrall333 9 ай бұрын

Impressed with A119 mini2. Just ordered 2nd one for other car.

@protonme 10 ай бұрын

Great review!

@HughesyTech 9 ай бұрын

Thank you for this detailed comparison, subscribed 😊. With the overheating issues, this is what I keep saying over on the DashcamTalk forums but some folks keep claiming why do we need newer chipsets from Novatek? Well it's because of these overheating issues, why would we need ventilation cutouts or less cutouts if we had chips that weren't running on the now 15 year old Cortex A9 architecture. Ridiculous, but even if they moved it to something a few years newer then the dashcams would run cooler and more efficiently, and at higher bitrates (especially when running in two or three channel configurations)

@pdimmakis 2 ай бұрын

Very complete video. 🙌

@danc9440 10 ай бұрын

Solid video. Thanks so much!

@RetroCarGuy530 10 ай бұрын

Great job!

@Tsitris46 9 ай бұрын

I have it but I put a PL filter and it is so crisp!

@jon5784 4 ай бұрын

This is the official dash cam review channel. Search the channel for your model. If it's not listed here, it's not worth buying anyway.

@asterixky 8 ай бұрын

It's interesting to see that the software can be tweaked so much to improve an end result, that the hardware is not as important anymore.

@winstonn33 9 ай бұрын

when starting, I see that it has a delay of approx. 15 seconds until it starts to actually record. the moment of stopping does not appear in the video: does it sound when stopping?

@mjb4ever 8 ай бұрын

With HDR on, and since it drops to 30fps, does the higher resolution options (1600P, 1944P) results in a better video quality compared to 1440P30fps?

@JacanaProductions 7 ай бұрын

How does park mode work if by default your camera is not powered when you leave the car?

@gadick 10 ай бұрын

Hey vortex, can you test the A119 mini 2 1440P vs A139 Pro 1440P mode, just to see if there any quality diference between sensors

@rsingh.1 7 ай бұрын

Great review, i love this mini 2 but just don't get why it is only single channel. Not a big fan of the 139. How do people use the mini 2 for front at back? what power source do they use? Can you make a vid about that?

@maxmannoo7 10 ай бұрын

Great review. Still waiting on your Thinkware U3000 in-depth review.

@VortexRadar 10 ай бұрын

Still collecting data on that, awaiting updates on a potential update, seeing if my test unit is gonna be replaced, etc.

@maxmannoo7 10 ай бұрын

@@VortexRadar As always, you do a cracking job. Well done.

@151engine 9 ай бұрын

What software do you use for reviewing video and zooming in on licence plates? Thanks

@ytdood 4 ай бұрын

As a long time user of Nextbase, I love the fact that their PC video player includes the GPS location overlay (like having google maps run in parallel to the video) so that I can pinpoint certain scenes to their actual location. Does Viofo have a similar thing?

@MR-so5lf 4 ай бұрын

Is there an option to add a rear camera for this model?

@cowboy3072 10 ай бұрын

Thanks for the great review. I am considering the mini2 for my first dash cam. My wife and I travel mostly during the day. We would only need a front facing camera. Would you consider the mini2 to be your #1 or #2 recommendation at this price point?

@VortexRadar 10 ай бұрын

At this point yeah

@OmahaWayne 2 ай бұрын

Great review, thanks Just purchased on Amazon using your link but the discount code is not valid. Not a huge deal but thought you would want to know :)

@ThePurpleRoomContrarian 4 ай бұрын

Can I use the HK3 on this with a mini usb to usbc adapter? I have an old viofo that is already hardwired

@patmansadventures.3312 3 ай бұрын

Mine keeps falling off of my windshield.How do you get it to stay on?

@toddk1479 5 ай бұрын

My WiFi keeps dropping. I have a VIOFO card. Love everything but the WiFi connection drops. Is this a defective cam?

@user-lk1vh2zk7f 4 ай бұрын

@VortexRadar so whats the diff between this and the VS1 at this point? Did Viofo make the rest of their entry level range redundant with this release? No criticism there though, feels like they took the features that 80% of buyers want/need and put that into one package.

@davidamills 10 ай бұрын

Wonderful video! May I ask your honest opinion about the quality of the app that is used with the mini 2? I've read a lot of negatives comments about the app. Did it work okay for you?

@VortexRadar 10 ай бұрын

It’s okay for the most part, but not great. On iOS you may have to disable cellular connectivity for the app so it doesn’t break. On Android it used to have issues with image playback previews, but I haven’t checked to see if the latest app bug fixes have corrected this.

@gordon861 9 ай бұрын

I just tried out the App on an Android OnePlus Nord and had no problems with it. When you download the videos they seem to go to your photos directory fine so should be easy to find to pull onto your computer. Personally I am running Resilio Sync on my phone and home PC which automatically copies the phots from the phone without needing to plug it in, these videos also come across in the same sync.

@MP-pj2ve Ай бұрын

Thank you for the super great review and all the info! Is there a rear camera you could suggest that would go well with this mini 2? This review is 8 months old. So, if you know of something new/better is coming out and think I should wait please let me know. This would be a first for me so I appreciate any advice. Thanks again!

@VortexRadar Ай бұрын

If you want a rear cam, you can step up to the front/rear version, the A229 Plus: geni.us/ViofoA229Plus2CH

@greendayrocks559 10 ай бұрын

This might be a dumb question but if you turned down the resolution on the 4k camera would it give the night time quality of the 2k?

@VortexRadar 10 ай бұрын

Unfortunately not. It has more to do with the design of the sensor and its pixels, not just the output capture resolution.

@Tuluceanu 10 ай бұрын

I know there is a problem with overheating! How do I tell the difference between the ones that were originally made and the improved ones? how do I know that the store that sells my camera has the new, improved version in stock?

@swaggerjacker1482 6 ай бұрын

I would order straight from Viofo website to make sure you would probably get the latest version. I ordered a 119v3 on December 29, 2023 and it only took 7 days to get it from China

@grandthefttaco2 10 ай бұрын

Any chance of doing a video quality & feature comparison with the viofo a139 pro vs the new 70mai a810?

@VortexRadar 10 ай бұрын

There’s a number of those done already. I’ve got a bunch of other dashcams higher up on the list.

@functionaldoc5054 10 ай бұрын

So do you think they will bring out a 2 channel version of Viofo A119 Mini 2 with Sony Starvis senor in the rear? Nice review as always .

@VortexRadar 10 ай бұрын

A229 Pro is coming… :)

@billkzhou 10 ай бұрын

The A229 Plus and A229 Pro rear cam both support 2K resolution with STAVIS 2 sensor.

@dustojnikhummer 10 ай бұрын

I have a tiny issue with my Mini 2. It sometimes freezes. I think it is because of the heat, but I have had it for two weeks and twice I came home only to realize it just didn't record the last half an hour. Bummer.

@ViofoDashcamOfficial 9 ай бұрын

Does it happen in driving mode or parking mode? If it happens while you drive, have you heard beeps or voice notifications? Shall we know what card you use?

@monkeyboy19761 Ай бұрын

So when are we getting the option of a 360 camera with a separate box for the hardware so you can hide the box away from the hottest part of the car?

@VortexRadar Ай бұрын

Usually we stuff like that for motorcycles. amzn.to/4dCFwHK Blackvue makes something for cars you can check out. amzn.to/3JV7q47

@Chimel31 10 ай бұрын

With all these USB, Bluetooth and wifi capabilities, can this dashcam (or others) record directly on a SSD hosted in the car, or indirectly (copy each video segment)? I'd rather use the car SSD where my music and videos for the trip are stored, it would also save on the SD card. Ideally, when I reach home or when the car wifi is not used, I'd like to transfer automatically all these video segments to my home NAS but it's a different story, more linked to car and home automation than dashcam reviews.

@VortexRadar 10 ай бұрын

Nope. The closest thing to what you’re asking for is the Blackvue DR770X Box. kzfaq.info/get/bejne/btt4i9mK25rMoJs.html

@HAIRYMAN-13 2 ай бұрын

Firstly great video as you have pretty much sold me on this but could you please tell me if possible I don't want to hardwire this but my Skoda has a USB C port next to the rear vision mirror.. now if I got a USB A to USB C adapter could I use that port to power this device ?

@VortexRadar 2 ай бұрын

That will likely only work for driving recording. I’m assuming it turns off when your car is parked. If so then yes it should work for driving recording at least.

@dennislan1707 8 ай бұрын

GGreat video! I bought the A119 Mini 2 a couple of months ago and I'm considering getting another one for my other car. I'm really happy with their quality considering the price. However, I've encountered one issue - the dash cam randomly locks the video, and this happens whether the car is driving on a smooth road or parked stationary. I reached out to support, and they recommended turning down the G-sensor. So, I turned off the G-sensor, but the problem still persists. My next step is to turn off the voice command and see if that resolves the issue. Otherwise I might consider Garmin Mini 2.

@VortexRadar 8 ай бұрын

Yeah personally I disable that feature too. Lots of dashcams will trigger on potholes and speed bumps, for example.

@sean636 5 ай бұрын

Are you using sandisk high endurance card? Company says that causes issues

@gordon861 9 ай бұрын

Assuming you have multiple A119 cameras, could the bluetooth button operate the save clip function on both cameras? Have you tried it?

@VortexRadar 9 ай бұрын

Ooh that’d be nice. It only pairs with one camera though. I’ve switched cams multiple times like that and it always to the one I’ve most recently paired it to.

@gordon861 9 ай бұрын

@@VortexRadar I have just bought a couple of these for use in a new car that arrives in a month (they had a large discount on the US site with free UK shipping). I only fired up one camera to bench test it and I never had to do anything on the camera to get it to pair, just push the button for three seconds. I didn't see any options in the camera settings to get it to not accept a button input. I wonder what will happen if you power up two cameras at once and then press the button, how will it know which to pair with? Not sure if the button actually pairs or if the camera just listens for a signal from a button it has learnt. In theory no reason why you couldn't just have the button generate a 'new code' after a three second press and send that along with a 'learn this code' command, and then it wouldn't need to do a full handshake, just enough to know the button code. This needs more testing, later, 3am need sleep. Edit - Never mind, just fired up both cameras to try it out and it will only work with the one it has linked to. Not sure if that is an upgrade they could do in a firmware update, it would be a good one to suggest if you have a contact. So it looks like I will just run the button on the front camera, and use it to bookmark times using the front if anything happens behind me. But with the App on the phone it should be pretty easy to pull off the footage once you are stopped.

@jcai4824 10 ай бұрын

I had three of this dashcam to put on all of my cars. Pretty decent dashcams. One thing though, it seems quite sensitive on the auto video lock (G-sensor) function when putting on a sports car with a more firm ride. Even I put it on the lowest sensitivity, it still gets triggered quite often.

@zodmoosavi8825 10 ай бұрын

same here. here's what Bill from Viofo says " We have confirmed this situation with our engineer. They said A119MINI 2 supports voice control, and the situation "video protected" may be activated via music or any other sound wrongly."

@brenthayes3250 Ай бұрын

can you plug this camera into an r3 plug?

@VortexRadar Ай бұрын

Nope

@TimSmith-db1iu 8 ай бұрын

I will be using this as a rear camera and it will be behind a heavily tinted window. Do you recommend having HDR on or off considering the window tint?

@VortexRadar 8 ай бұрын

HDR helps with dynamic range, not sensitivity, so I’m not sure why HDR would affect things through tint.

@rfcdgaf 23 күн бұрын

With aliexpress coupon, the a119 mini 2 is like $89.99 USD

@sdufg 9 ай бұрын

you suggest high or medium bitrate?

@VortexRadar 9 ай бұрын

Crank it up to high! Cards are cheap. Capture as much detail as you can.

@bluestripes1 3 ай бұрын

best camera for night?

@VortexRadar 3 ай бұрын

This is an excellent option for that IMO.

@rfcdgaf 24 күн бұрын

8:07 typical vancouver driving

@DanielGonzalez-uo5iw 4 ай бұрын

Can I have the screen off while I'm driving on this one?

@VortexRadar 4 ай бұрын

Yep, it’s the screen saver option

@christophermorse3026 10 ай бұрын

Please direct me to a video for best high end dashcam. Thank you (Thank you for this comprehensive video) Also, do any dashcams records directly to a cloud? Thank you!

@eduardoizquierdo309 10 ай бұрын

A good dashcam is this one, the a119mini

@patmansadventures.3312 4 ай бұрын

What video editor do you use for it/i just bought one and it will NOT let me edit video.Gonna return it if I can't edit the video.Useless...

@VortexRadar 4 ай бұрын

I use Final Cut Pro. IIRC, it lets you switch between h.265 and h.264 if needed. Have you tried switching?

@patmansadventures.3312 4 ай бұрын

@@VortexRadar I downloaded that but it is way different than the one I use so it'll be a learning experience.Thank you!

@VortexRadar 4 ай бұрын

Oh yeah any new editor will have a learning curve, for sure. What were you using before? Something like iMovie is simpler and may be an easier way to do basic stuff.

@patmansadventures.3312 4 ай бұрын

@@VortexRadar I was using GoPro studio.So easy and dummy like me can do it.The new one wants me sign in to some account I don’t have to be able to export my videos so that won’t work.Ill try iMovie I guess.

@-neuro 9 ай бұрын

Vortex Radar, reply for permanent subscription please. I just recently got into radar detectors, I bought a whistler zr-11 for $50 and it has a TON of false alerts, I was thinking of returning it and buying a Cobra RAD 350, would this be a better option? Or should I go with a whistler ZR-19+

@VortexRadar 9 ай бұрын

Sorry, neither. I have a new video coming soon about a possible inexpensive(ish) detector, but really the Uniden DFR7 is the most affordable option I’d recommend. geni.us/UnidenDFR7

@-neuro 9 ай бұрын

@@VortexRadar but there has to be a better option. i cant spend $250 for one of these

@VortexRadar 9 ай бұрын

DFR7 is $189. To be perfectly honest, anything cheaper is a waste of money IMO with poor performance and excessive false alerts. It’s ultimately your call and your money though.

@-neuro 9 ай бұрын

@@VortexRadar every one has the same amount of false alerts. they are all gonna pick up automatic doors, blind spot detectors, etc. the only thing is the ones that can disable certain bands like K and X, which cobra can do.

@dronefilmsgermany 8 ай бұрын

Is this better than the Garmin mini 2

@VortexRadar 8 ай бұрын

Yep

@GeeMan46 Ай бұрын

This camera already saved me $500 bucks when I was side swiped. The guy who hit me swore that I crossed his lane, but my video proved otherwise. Got my deductible back within a month!

@VortexRadar Ай бұрын

Yikes! So glad the dashcam helped!!

@Trancemaster9000 9 ай бұрын

Does the Mini 2 have the option to record automatically when the car turns on?

@VortexRadar 9 ай бұрын

Basically every dashcam on the planet does that :)

@protonme 10 ай бұрын

How about a faceoff vs Vantrue

@VortexRadar 10 ай бұрын

Yeah I wanna do a couple Vantrue reviews coming up as well. :)

@rousjmg 9 ай бұрын

@@VortexRadar N4 Pro or N5 please :)

@Tundra_Guy 3 ай бұрын

Just got this camera and all street lights and headlights have serious glare. I'm using HDR auto on night mode only and resolution is the hightest at 1944P#=30. I have also taken CPL off at night and no changes

@JeaneGenie 10 ай бұрын

Supercapacitor or battery ?

@VortexRadar 10 ай бұрын

Supercap

@swecreations 6 ай бұрын

0:13 1440p. That's the correct word for it. 😂

@PanzerPlatform 10 ай бұрын

21:31 Lock The Meatloaf

@VortexRadar 10 ай бұрын

😂

@jamesmanson2152 9 ай бұрын

Mine is extremely frustrating and regret not returning it. Damn thing randomly beeps constantly. Even when I’m stopped. If I try to download a video it will restart the dash cam too.. Randomly a warning sign will pop up too

@ViofoDashcamOfficial 9 ай бұрын

So sorry to hear that you have experienced so many issues with the camera. Shall we know what card you use? Some unrecommended cards will cause recording issues. Do you mean that the camera will restart when you download the video in the app? What version is on your app? Could you please update it to the latest one to test if it will help? About the warning sign, it seems that the camera is locking videos. Please set the sensitivity to Low to avoid many locked videos.

@sean636 5 ай бұрын

Company says to not use Sandisk high endurance cards. It causes this issue

@arisgolseen2693 9 ай бұрын

There is no entry level they're all relatively the same level 😂 No dashcam reigns superior in terms of video quality yet

@6erardo6omez 5 ай бұрын

30 minutes just for a review?

@VortexRadar 5 ай бұрын

Yep! Welcome to my channel where I do in depth reviews, lol.

@barryinn1778 10 ай бұрын

Sorry to say I like your video reviews but you talk to fast and don't pause between sentences , also you put me to sleep sitting here watching.

@VortexRadar 10 ай бұрын

Sounds like my videos are not for you then. Keep searching and I'm sure you'll find someone who's a better fit for you.

@grabkor 10 ай бұрын

On KZfaq You can choose a different video speed (slower or faster; try 0.75x) ;)

@williamsumrall333 9 ай бұрын

LOL! Same here. But I can reduce speed to 75% on my TV and that works well.

@ArianaGandhi1 8 ай бұрын

You just hear slow

@swaggerjacker1482 6 ай бұрын

Funny how everyone else on here hears him just fine

@Brdsh0t 7 ай бұрын

Good lord this is like the old fast talking commercials for micro machines. Rewind rewind rewind. Had to slow it down to be able to follow. Why are we in a crazy rush to just talk details?