CarCam movie files corrupt/unplayable.

[Daffy D]

Have been having a problem with corrupt/unplayable files from my CarCam.

Every so often I look at the movie files to check the camera is still working OK.

Recently I've been getting quite a lot of files that don't play, which obviously be a problem if that was the one where I had an accident.

On a card full of about 100 movie clips approx 25% were unplayable. This was obviously a worry.

My first thought was that the SD card was bad, possibly with too may overwrites, so changed from a 16Gb card to a 32Gb card to have fewer overwrites.

This did not solve the problem. I was still getting corrupt files. I have two cameras of the same make and model and the problem was the same with both, so unlikely to be a camera fault.

Did some detective work and realized that each of the corrupt files were from the minutes just before I switched off the ignition.

Normally what happens when you switch off the ignition the camera's small internal battery will keep the camera on for a few moments to alow for controlled shutdown and saving of the last file.

Same as when shutting down a computer it takes a little time (or sometime a long time) for the computer to close all the programs safely so you don't loose any data.

This is the reason for my corrupt files. The small Lithium-ion battery's in the cameras had stopped holding a charge so when I switched off the camera just crashed and I was loosing the last file every time.

I was not too concerned about replacing the batteries as, apart from the shut down thing, the cameras worked just fine. But now will be replacing the batteries in the very near future.

I have a couple of LS430W's but I think this problem would apply to any make of camera.

So regularly check your carcam files to make sure the are actually recording.

[A1Str8]

It usually happens to Thai made cameras that were manufactured to automatically destroy the evidence so you can't use it against thais.

[Crossy]

Yup DD, had exactly the same issue, cam battery failed after 12 months and 1 second.

Replace battery, problem solved.

[sotsira]

Where would you be able to buy replacement batteries for these cameras?

How easy are they to replace?

I'm assuming they're all different shape and sizes depending on which model

camera you own.

[Daffy D]

Crossy, on 18 Feb 2015 - 11:31, said:

Yup DD, had exactly the same issue, cam battery failed after 12 months and 1 second.

Replace battery, problem solved.

These batteries failing after about a year seems like a regular thing yet no one seems to mention it and/or provide source for supply

sotsira, on 18 Feb 2015 - 12:28, said:

Where would you be able to buy replacement batteries for these cameras?

How easy are they to replace?

I'm assuming they're all different shape and sizes depending on which model

camera you own.

I have not got round to actually replacing mine yet but "Crossy" seems to have done it so he would know more than me.

I got some information from here:- https://dashcamtalk.com/forum/threads/inside-the-ls430w-incl-battery-capacity-and-a-rattle-fix.3466/.

But yes I think you will have to open up the camera and get the dimensions of the battery then look on E-Bay or hobby shops/sites.

There is sure to be soldering involved.

[Crossy]

I got mine from a Chinese ebay supplier.

Task A is to CAREFULLY dismember your cam to get to the battery, there are a number of very fragile connectors to remove, you will probably need a magnifier to see what you're doing.

My battery had a number which I put in the ebay search which came up trumps. Mine is like this one http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Lithium-3-7v-400-mAh-Li-polymer-rechargeable-Li-ion-Li-Po-303040-for-mp3mp4-mp5-/271581062908?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item3f3b7e26fc

You will likely need a decent small soldering iron, a solder pump and fine solder, along with the skill to use same (unless of course the battery has a plug, mine doesn't).

[seedy]

If this much work is involved to change the battery, I would do all the finicky removal of the battery, solder two wires on the battery terminals, run those wires out of the camera to a quick-release plug, connect a voltage converter set to the correct battery voltage, hardwire with fuse, and never do it again.

[yankee99]

I just ordered a new cam and it has capacitors in place of batteries. Seems heat is a issue with car cam batteries.

[sotsira]

If this much work is involved to change the battery, I would do all the finicky removal of the battery, solder two wires on the battery terminals, run those wires out of the camera to a quick-release plug, connect a voltage converter set to the correct battery voltage, hardwire with fuse, and never do it again.

I agree with hardwiring a dash cam to a permanent supply via an on/off switch, instead of the ignition controlled supply that most cars have at the cigar lighter outlet.

This way you control when the camera is filming, it also allows you to keep it running when you

switch off the car for fuel at the gas station or when you park somewhere for short periods etc..

This is the way i wired in my camera, using one of these with a fused feed to an on/off switch.

But

It won't solve the problem of not saving the last file, which is why the battery is needed, after

switching the camera off, the battery keeps the camera on for a few seconds to shut down

without losing the last file.

Edited February 19, 2015 by sotsira

[seedy]

My thought was to just keep it on. Must not take too much power. My 12 fridge runs overnight no problem. And that is with a fan on it

[sotsira]

My thought was to just keep it on. Must not take too much power. My 12 fridge runs overnight no problem. And that is with a fan on it

You would probably be ok keeping a camera on overnight, but any longer than that,

and you will get a flat or very slow crank to start your engine.

Anyway, these cameras need to have their own back up supply voltage to allow them to switch

off correctly, either a capacitor or small battery.

[seedy]

You would probably be ok keeping a camera on overnight, but any longer than that,

and you will get a flat or very slow crank to start your engine.

Anyway, these cameras need to have their own back up supply voltage to allow them to switch

off correctly, either a capacitor or small battery.

Thanks for that

[Daffy D]

So got a replacement battery for my DashCam.

Getting the camera open was not too difficult. On mine the bracket at the top of the camera that also houses the GPS antenna had to be removed first.

There are a total of 8 very tiny screws holding the bracket. This was the trickiest part of the whole operation as they were so small any stripping of the screw head would have been disastrous.

Luckily I had a set of watchmakers screwdrivers set and by being very careful was able to get all the screws out without damage.

Under the bracket there was a slot between the two halves of the camera case that by carefully using a flat head screwdriver I was able to crack the case, then it was just a matter of carefully going round till the two haves were separate.

Fortunately there were no wires in the way so getting to the battery was no problem. The tricky part when doing the soldering was to be careful not get any runs that would short out the circuit board. It's a bit tight in there but managed it with just my reading glasses.

Then it was just a matter of snapping everything together again and that was it, job done.

The replacement battery is slightly bigger than the original and fitted just fine. In fact there is quite a lot of room in the camera and am going to get a bigger one for the other camera.

Almost forgot, yes this solved the problem of corrupt files. The new battery allows the camera to remain on a few moments after switching off the ignition and allows shut down properly.

Edited February 26, 2015 by Daffy D

[sotsira]

Daffy,

Can you provide a link to where you got the battery from?

Also

With dimensions of how much bigger a battery can you fit in the camera?

Thanks.

[Daffy D]

sotsira, on 26 Feb 2015 - 11:41, said:

Daffy,

Can you provide a link to where you got the battery from?

Also

With dimensions of how much bigger a battery can you fit in the camera?

Thanks.

Hi

A bit tricky finding a battery.

The original battery number was:- 402030

The one I fitted 200mAh is No:- 652026

The bigger 500mAh I want to fit is No. 403040

These numbers don't actually mean much when trying to Google them

http://www.banggood.com/Wholesale-UDI-U816-U816A-Hubsan-X4-RC-Quadcopter-Spare-Parts-3_7V-240mAh-Li-Po-Battery-p-48851.html

Lots of information here, Scroll through all 3 pages.

https://dashcamtalk.com/forum/threads/inside-the-ls430w-incl-battery-capacity-and-a-rattle-fix.3466/

Sorry can't be more help. The wife spent hours searching through her Facebook contacts and it got too complicated for me to understand

DD

[sotsira]

sotsira, on 26 Feb 2015 - 11:41, said:

Daffy,

Can you provide a link to where you got the battery from?

Also

With dimensions of how much bigger a battery can you fit in the camera?

Thanks.

The original battery number was:- 402030

The one I fitted 200mAh is No:- 652026

The bigger 500mAh I want to fit is No. 403040

Daffy,

The 403040 you want to fit is considerably larger than the original.

It's 30mm x 40mm opposed to 20mm x 30mm that you fitted,

are you sure it would fit inside the camera?

[Daffy D]

The 403040 you want to fit is considerably larger than the original.

It's 30mm x 40mm opposed to 20mm x 30mm that you fitted,

are you sure it would fit inside the camera?

Erm! No I'm not sure

But reading through all the stuff someone somewhere said it might/should fit, so having seen the space available inside I'm going to give it a try.

Life on the edge

Once I get the battery and fitted or tried to fit it will post results here

I notice they've brought out a newer model the LS46W:- http://www.dod-tec.co/dod-ls460w-vs-dod-ls430w-comparison-test-review

My birthday coming up soon so will drop a few hints and be extra nice to the wife

[questionsreplies]

Thank you so much !

How much costs your dashcam in thailand and where ?

[Daffy D]

questionsreplies, on 05 Mar 2015 - 18:31, said:

Thank you so much !

How much costs your dashcam in thailand and where ?

Have a look here, scroll down the page:- http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/558222-dash-cam/page-3

[Daffy D]

Fitted the bigger 500mAh battery, bit of a squeeze but it went in

Comparison of new battery with original:-

Original battery in camera:-

New bigger battery in camera:-

The tiny screws holding the bracket were easier to remove than on the first camera but for some reason the case was more difficult to crack

Guess depends on the luck of the day.

The solder joints are real tricky, being so small and close together shorting out the battery is a real possibility.

After soldering one connection I placed some sticky tape over it to insulate it from a careless move with the iron while soldering the second one.

[Mrjlh]

Have you thought about notifying the mfg that there might be a battery problem? Who knows maybe there will be a free recall.

[sotsira]

Daffy, where did you buy the 403040 battery from?

[Daffy D]

Mrjlh, on 07 Mar 2015 - 14:06, said:

Have you thought about notifying the mfg that there might be a battery problem? Who knows maybe there will be a free recall.

No, not worth the trouble.

The batteries are almost two years old so doubt they would be under any kind of warranty.

"Crossy" had the same problem with presumably a different camera so I think it's eventually come up with all camera batteries.

[lj cm]

It's easy to figure out, when the battery needs change.

That is, if the CarCam just turns black (when ignition is turned off), instead of giving the normal blip sound and goodbye screen.

[Daffy D]

lj cm, on 07 Mar 2015 - 15:14, said:

It's easy to figure out, when the battery needs change.

That is, if the CarCam just turns black (when ignition is turned off), instead of giving the normal blip sound and goodbye screen.

Quite right.

But as I said in my original post the problem with a dead battery is that when you shut off the ignition and the camera goes off it does not save the last video file.

A camera with a dead battery works just fine as long as the ignition is on, but the point of the battery is to give the camera time to shut down and save the last file, which may well be the important one with the accident on it.

If you can't be bothered to replace a dead battery and want the last video clip to be saved, just remember not to turn off the ignition till that clip has finished and the next one started.

[lj cm]

lj cm, on 07 Mar 2015 - 15:14, said:

It's easy to figure out, when the battery needs change.

That is, if the CarCam just turns black (when ignition is turned off), instead of giving the normal blip sound and goodbye screen.

Quite right.

But as I said in my original post the problem with a dead battery is that when you shut off the ignition and the camera goes off it does not save the last video file.

A camera with a dead battery works just fine as long as the ignition is on, but the point of the battery is to give the camera time to shut down and save the last file, which may well be the important one with the accident on it.

If you can't be bothered to replace a dead battery and want the last video clip to be saved, just remember not to turn off the ignition till that clip has finished and the next one started.

Or press the on/off button on the camera.

[Daffy D]

"Or press the on/off button on the camera"

As long as the ignition is still to allow the camera to shut down properly.

[bberrythailand]

Powerbank :-)