Hey it’s Andrew with Car Cam Central
I’m reviewing Viofo’s new $110 A119V3 dash cam
and comparing it against the older A119V2
our top pick since 2017
After much research and testing the new A119V3
is now my top budget pick
for its amazing video quality and improved parking mode
The older A119V2 is still a great value pick today
if you need to save money
To show how we arrived at these two picks
I’ll cover similar cameras like the 4K dash cams
from Aukey, Rexing and ROVE
and why they weren’t chosen
even though they are all good cameras
Let's get into it
[Intro Music]
Viofo has released 6 different hardware versions
of the A119-series cameras
All of them share the same wedge shaped body
which attracts little attention when installed
due to its matte black color and unusual shape
In 2016 we praised the original A119
for its unique combination of performance,
features and reliability at $100
After a lot of research to find a replacement
I’m shocked it’s still great today
Here’s why
The A119 records at a higher 1440P resolution
which is a noticeable jump in clarity over the lower
resolution 1080P dash cams I’ve seen
It uses capacitors not lithium ion batteries
for better reliability especially in hot weather
It has good error notifications which makes it easy
to notice if your camera has problems recording
There’s worldwide availability with good customer
support in the United States and Canada
Finally it has useful parked recording modes
to capture vandalism or hit and run accidents
Many competing cameras come close
but lack one or more features we think are important
In May 2017 Viofo updated the A119’s body
and accessories
adding V2 to the name
Most importantly they replaced the GPS mount
which caused random shutdowns as the pins
would not connect with the body correctly
You can pause here to read the rest of the changes
As of 2019 only the V2 revision is being sold
so the names A119 and A119V2
refer to the same camera
The V3 was launched in May 2019 with a
new lens, image sensor and processor
It’s the first big upgrade to the A119’s video hardware
This results in significantly clearer videos at night
You can see far more
in the darker parts off to the side
Daylight quality is about the same but the V3 has
better white balance meaning colors are truer to life
It also has a bigger 1600P resolution
but it’s not useful
Details later
The V3 also has a new set of features
You can enable the H265 video codec
which reduces file sizes by 20%
without reducing quality
but many devices can’t play it
Parked recording is also way better on the V3
It has lower energy usage
added recording modes
and significantly more reliable versus the older model
Looking at the original camera its swivelling lens
is quite useful in centering the view for corner installs
You should only do this if you have windshield
obstruction laws that prevent you from putting
the camera in the middle
On the V3 it has a fixed lens with a larger F1.6
aperture which lets in more light
for better nighttime videos
The V3 is packaged in a much nicer and sturdier box
over the V2
It offers more protection and a premium feel
Inside, the accessories haven’t changed much
except the newer model uses a generic adhesive
You might have also seen Viofo’s A119S
and discontinued A119 Pro
The only difference from the original
are the image sensors
They aren’t worth buying
unless they are on serious discount
less than $70USD
as they don’t match the V2 or V3 in video quality
So you might be thinking
that I'm a little too excited about the A119
must be a paid review
It’s not and here’s the disclosure
In late 2016 I got the original A119 for free
Starting 2017, I bought all other cameras at full retail
value to reduce bias
including the 5 other Viofo cameras I own
I like the A119 because after testing and researching
many cameras, it still stands out
Back to the review
let's look at the video quality
and talk about why it should matter to you
In this split screen comparison
the V2 is on top and on the bottom is the ROAV A1
one of our cheap picks with a lower 1080P resolution
Comparing videos
it’s clear to me there’s a significant difference
in clarity and sharpness
The A119 picks up license plates
and faces from further away
These details are vital if you get into a
hit and run accident or experience vandalism
You’ll have a better chance to capture the evidence
you need for police to prosecute
or for insurance to get your money back
In general
there’s a noticeable drop in quality
with all 1080P cameras we tested
even with the newest Sony Starvis image sensors
like the Viofo A119S
At night there’s another
jump in quality over cheaper cameras
You can see there’s a big decrease
in the overall sharpness and clarity
License plates are hard to read
Let’s look at the new A119V3
and see how it performs
At night there's a jump in quality over the older model
Dynamic range has been increased
This means you can see the less lit areas on the side
and the differences are quite apparent
when exposure is increased
This helps capture people and animals on the side
of the road in case they do something dumb
To avoid setting false expectations
all dash cams made so far
will record blurry license plates
when there’s a difference in speed at night
Still the V3 has the best night video footage
I’ve seen in a dash cam so far
Looking at daylight footage
I didn’t notice a big change in quality
versus the older A119
That’s not surprising as its much harder to improve on
You won’t see a noticeable difference until
you get a true 4K camera like the Blackvue DR900S
and that’s not without tradeoffs
with worse night quality
The V3’s new 1600P recording option
increases the height but not width
This isn’t useful for most drivers
You’ll capture more of the sky and dashboard
not the road
When comparing footage
I accounted for the reduced 140 degree field of view
of the V3 over the wider 160 degrees
of the older A119
That means on the V3 license plates are larger at the same distance
but you also see less of the road
I think both angles are fine
So keep in mind this video was made in August 2019
our recommendations can change
Be sure to see the description
below this video for updates
from changing prices as well as new products
As well as a summary of our other picks and resources
Alright, back to the V3, through a special action
you can activate the H.265 video codec
which shrinks the file size by 20%
without reducing quality
The downside is that it requires much more processing power
older devices can’t play it
As well you can have problems with insurance or police agencies
if they require the original file and can’t run it
I’d recommend most people
stick with the original H.264 codec
Looking at recording time
you may wish to get a larger 64GB card
due to the higher bitrate
the default medium setting is good enough
Also
as all memory cards slowly wear down
when saving videos
you want to buy an endurance card
which lasts longer than the standard consumer card
Samsung’s Pro Endurance is the best right now
but as a budget option Sandisk’s new Ultra A1
or Samsung’s EVO Plus are OK
but not great
We have a full review explaining more
There's also the optional $10 circular polarizer to consider
It filters incoming light and reduces glare
from sunlight reflecting off your dashboard
or streetlight at night
If you have the money it's worth getting
The optional $10 GPS mount doesn’t tell you where to go
but instead logs your speed and position
which can be visualized in a player like dash cam viewer
If you put in a timezone
it'll sync your time and date with the atomic clock
You can also quickly detach the camera
without removing any cables
Overall though
the GPS mount isn’t worth the money for most people
Let's talk about parked recording which is used to
capture vandalism
and hit and runs while your vehicle is parked
On the V3 you can choose from three recording modes
time lapse, low-bitrate and motion detection
These can automatically activate
when your vehicle has turned off
All of them reduce file size and energy usage
On the older A119 it’s more complicated
and I would avoid buying that model
if you need parked recording
To get it to work
the A119 must be constantly powered
One way is by connecting the camera
to your car’s battery through the fusebox
using a hardwiring kit
Viofo’s $15 HK3 kit works well
and protects your battery with a voltage cutoff switch
I’d keep it no lower than 12.2V to avoid damaging your battery
I would strongly avoid the original 2-wire kit
as the 11.8V cutoff will damage your battery over time
The HK3’s installation process goes beyond
what we can cover in this video
You’ll need familiarity with your vehicle’s electrical systems
or professional help will be required
We have more information in our written review
as well as a full article on parking mode
Moving on
let's talk about the daily experience using the camera
The original and v3 are both easy to use
and they share the same user interface
What I love is the customization
The A119 is one of the few cameras
giving you total control over the camera
For example what GPS info is shown
boot delay and what sound it makes
Both A119 models from ignition to recording start in 12 seconds
which is fast enough for most people
It also loop records and auto starts
when power is received
If there are problems starting
the A119 does a good job informing you
with a persistent audio alert
and a warning message letting you know the problem
I wish the message would stay permanently displayed
but pressing the record button brings it back
Most cameras do a poor job like Aukey’s DR02D
which has a quickly disappearing message
with no audio alerts making it hard to tell there’s a problem
While it seems I’ve been only praising Viofo
there are places the A119 falls behind
For one
there’s no WIFI which is used to transfer files
and change settings through your smartphone
Two
as a tradeoff for a stealthier appearance
it lacks 360° rotation
unless you buy the optional $10 suction mount
That’s useful if you need to record police encounters,
road rage incidents or passengers
You can also bring it on vacation
A bigger issue is Viofo’s customer service
They have one office in China
so they rely on their retailers like OCD Tronic
for Canada and the United States
OCD is great
and they’re the sole distributor for the new V3
on Amazon so you won’t have 5+ companies confusing the market
Viofo used to be bad at communicating with customers
In 2017
when GPS mounts started failing
they didn’t tell enough customers there was a fix
which made people bad
Most of the A119’s negative reviews
are from issues with the original mount
Ever since the V2 has been fantastically reliable
and I’m hoping the V3 will be as good
In 2019 Viofo’s customer service has gotten faster
and more responsive
They’ve updated their service page too
One viewer told me they did a warranty replacement
without needing a camera shipped back
Keep in mind that’s not guaranteed but it’s great for
customers in parts of Asia and Europe
without a good dealer network
So lets talk about competitors
After doing a lot of research
I found three popular cameras from Aukey, ROVE and Rexing
with similar hardware as the A119
While they say they record in 4K resolution
that's a half truth
The sensors have half the pixels needed
as they use sensors from the A119V2 or Pro
which record in 1440P
Instead software boosts the size,
like stretching a low quality video on your monitor
but unlike CSI,
details don’t magically improve
Still, the video quality is about the same as the A119
just not better
There’s some good reasons to get these
like their longer warranty and brand value
But to me the A119 is the better value
and hopefully I’ve given you the tools
to make a better decision on what to buy
If you are choosing Viofo
go with the V3 as it has better video quality
The V2 is still great today
if you need to save money OR for a corner installation (Whoops forgot a word)
In the description we’ll link out to resources like our article
where we’ll have competitor breakdowns
and our thoughts on setting up the camera
We’ll also link trusted retailers, other reviews and more
Our summary video of the best cheap
and budget cameras will be our next review
and then we’ll get to non review topics
Be sure to hit that bell button to be notified
Our facebook is where we post updates
and behind the scenes info
Thanks for watching and see you soon
Safe driving