REVIEW: Viofo A139 Pro vs 70mai A810 Comparison

[RaincityDashcam]

Hi all I've been a long time lurker of DashCamTalk since the Xiaomi Yi Dash Cam days and have finally decided to post a review of the next generation of camera sensors. This is my first review and I hope this gives you valuable info on which dash cam to buy for your needs.

70mai was generous enough to send me an A810 dash cam for review. I decided to compare this with the Viofo A139 Pro as both of these have the same exact front sensors (with different lens).

Full disclosure: I received a complimentary A810 dashcam from 70mai for the purpose of testing. However, my comparison review is based solely on my own and honest experiences and observations. 70mai nor Viofo had any control over the direction of this review and I am committed to providing an unbiased review to you.

At the time of this review, the Viofo A139 Pro is running V1.1_0615 and the 70mai A810 is running 1.1.57ww.

First off, I've compiled a comparison chart of the technical specs along with the feature comparison of both cameras.

Both cameras have their pros and cons, but to quickly recap each of their strengths:
Viofo: Better rear camera sensor, 3ch support, slim coaxial cable connection, 5GHz WiFi support, 30fps in dual channel 4K mode
70mai: Newer SoC, has display, wider FoV, 4G Hardwire kit support, ADAS features, OTA updates

	70mai A810	Viofo A139 Pro
Basics
Front Sensor	Sony Starvis 2 IMX678	Sony Starvis 2 IMX678
Front Sensor FoV	150°	140°
Front Sensor Aperture	F1.8 / 4G3P lens	F1.6 / 7G lens
CPL Filter	No, (will be released in the future)	Yes, included
Rear Sensor	SmartSens SC200AI (70mai RC12)	Sony Starvis IMX291
Rear Sensor FoV	130°	170°
Rear Sensor Aperture	F2.0 / 2G2P lens	no info
Rear Sensor Connection	Micro HDMI	Slim Coaxial
HDR	On/Off (DOL)	Timed Auto HDR/On/Off (DOL)
SoC	Novatek NT98529BG	Novatek NT96687
Max channels	2	3
Display	Yes, 3.0" display	No
Resolution	4K Front + 1080P Back	4K Front + Rear 1080P + Interior 1080P
Wi-Fi	2.4GHz only	2.4GHz + 5GHz
Recording Modes
Max Framerate 4K Mode (2160p)	1ch: 30fps - 2ch: all 25fps	1ch or 2ch: all 30fps - 3ch: all 24fps
Max Framerate 2K Mode (1440p)	n/a	1ch or 2ch: Front 60fps + Rear/Interior 30fps 3ch: all 30fps
Max Framerate 1080p HDR Mode	1ch or 2ch: Front 30fps + Rear 25fps	n/a
Max Framerate 1080p non-HDR Mode	1ch or 2ch: Front 60fps + Rear 25fps	n/a
H.265 Recording support	Yes, (default setting)	Yes, (H.264 default setting, H.265 setting hidden)
Front Recording Bitrate	~31.09Mbit/s	~45.94Mbit/s (Maximum Bitrate mode selected)
Rear Recording Bitrate	~8.26Mbit/s	~16.39Mbit/s (Maximum Bitrate mode selected)
Power
Hardwire Kit	Yes, Cutoff voltage @ 11.8V (no selector)	Yes, Cutoff voltage (11.8V, 12V, 12.2V, 12.4V)
4G Hardwire Kit	*Yes, Cutoff voltage (11.8V, 12V, 12.2V)	No
	*(available in EUR/SE Asia, more countries in future)
Secondary Power Source	Yes, Battery (500mAh)	Yes, Supercapacitor
Features
GPS	Yes, built in	Yes, built in
ADAS Features	Yes	No
Rotate/Mirror Front & Rear Picture	Yes, mirror and rotate option for rear ONLY (>=1.1.58ww)	Yes, all available
G-Sensor Emergency Recording	Yes, (Low/Med/High)	Yes, (Low/Med/High)
GPS Coordinates Display	Yes	Yes
Speed Display	Yes	Yes
Selectable Individual GPS and Speed Display	Yes, (OTA update)	Yes
Custom Text & License Plate Display	No	Yes
Time Sync with Phone Time	Yes	Yes
Change Camera Settings while Recording	Yes	No
Fast Footage Review with Timeline Sweeping	Yes	No
GPS Route Log	Yes	Yes
OTA Upgrade	Yes, (through app)	No, (only via SD card)
Parking Features
Buffered Parking Mode	Yes, 2s before event	Yes, 15s before event
Auto Event Detection	Yes, (Low/Med/High)	Yes, (Low/Med/High)
Time-lapse	Yes, (1fps)	Yes, (1fps/2fps/3fps/5fps/10fps)
Low-Bitrate Mode	No	Yes

 

[RaincityDashcam]

Upon testing both cameras, I observed the functionality and usability of the cameras.

Viofo

Many settings exposed in the camera, but unable to modify until recording is stopped Unable to toggle HEVC (h.265) mode via Settings and must be done by holding the button on the camera iOS app required toggling OFF Cellular Data to get a live stream of the camera Live stream can show both channels at the same time, PiP in the left corner for the rear camera Live stream was heavily delayed ~5s to 10s on 5GHz mode. GPS speed updates every ~2-3s Does NOT support OTA update

70mai

Not as many settings exposed in the camera Bitrate, Custom text/License plate, time-lapse settings, low-bitrate mode not configurable iOS app is quite friendly, but some items could use better rearranging Live stream is smooth and delayed by around ~3s max Footage review with Timeline feature is a game changer GPS speed updates every 1s OTA update supported (even allows for loading firmware in advance with WiFi then pushing it to dash cam after)

The footage below is recorded with the following settings:

Viofo A139 Pro Resolution: 4K 30fps + 1080p 30fps Bitrate: Maximum HEVC (H.265 mode) Timed Auto HDR No CPL filter Anti-Flicker Refresh Rate: 60hz Firmware 1.1_0615

70mai A810 Resolution: 4K 25fps + 1080p 25fps Bitrate: n/a HEVC (H.265 mode) HDR On No CPL filter Anti-Flicker Refresh Rate: 60hz Firmware 1.1.57ww

The Setup:


Videos:
I was heavily inspired by the style of @Vortex Radar and his comparison videos and magnification of license plates. I tried my best to synchronize both clips and to capture the best still frame from each camera. Each license plate you see in each frozen frame of the video is under 400% magnification. In some low-light scenarios, you will see the differences between 70mai and Viofo's DOL implementation as both do not use Clear HDR.

You may find the 70mai video footage to be not as smooth as the Viofo as the 70mai A810 records in 25fps vs the Viofo A139 Pro at 30fps.

Sunny Conditions:

Rainy Conditions:

Sunset Conditions:

Night Conditions:

Rear Camera Comparison Compilation:

To finish off, I believe both cameras have their strengths and weaknesses. It is really dependent on the user's needs and budget to make a conscious decision. Some users may require 3ch recording (Uber/Lyft/Rideshare) and some may want the ADAS features or the extra parking mode features. I wish that the 70mai hardwire kit also has the voltage cutoff selector like the Viofo one as the 70mai one cuts off too low in my opinion (11.8V). During my testing, I had placed a 1N5817 Schottky Diode to bump the cutoff voltage to around 12.4V. This is very technical and to the normal user, they would want the convenience of the Viofo hardwire kit.

Additionally, some users may prefer the super-capacitor power medium over the battery setup, but also, some may also want the 4G capability. Furthermore, it is important to note that the 70mai A810 is capable of 25fps when recording in 2ch mode whereas the Viofo is capable of 30fps when in 2ch mode.

Both rear cameras are disappointing as they are both 1080p sensors, but the rear camera in the 70mai in particular seems quite washed out in colour. I suspect this is where the cost savings comes in as it uses a non-Sony Starvis sensor, whereas the Viofo one uses a Sony Starvis IMX291.

Cost comparison:

Viofo A139 Pro 2ch $299.99 USD

70mai A810 2ch $119.99 USD (pre-order price) $179 USD after?

At current pre-order price, you can buy two 2ch sets of A810's and still have it cheaper than a single A139 Pro 2ch set. At this price, I think even getting two A810 1ch versions at $99.99 (pre-order price) + 2 hardwire kits ($10*2) + 128GB Samsung Pro UHS-3 Endurance SD Cards ($13*2), you would be at $246 for a dual 4K dash cam set up.

I won't declare a winner in this situation because both cameras perform very well in my opinion, and again, it is up to you to decide what features you find important and buy that camera. It is imperative that you buy the camera that already has the features implemented versus buying a camera with a promised feature in a future update.

If there are any errors to my review, please feel free to reply to this thread so that I can correct it!
I do plan on releasing the raw footage (with coordinates blurred out) if there is any interest in it.

I hope you find this review useful!


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EDIT (Aug. 17) - Added Firmware details in the settings table

 

[RaincityDashcam]

-reserved-

 

[kamkar]

I think the A810 will also get smart features, using a external 4G modem, i so looking forward to see how this is implemented and how it compare to already existing smart cameras on the market.

I do think when you bring in the smarts in dashcams you also bring in a challenge for the developer to make a good APP supporting this.

 

[RaincityDashcam]

I think the A810 will also get smart features, using a external 4G modem, i so looking forward to see how this is implemented and how it compare to already existing smart cameras on the market.

I do think when you bring in the smarts in dashcams you also bring in a challenge for the developer to make a good APP supporting this.

Definitely, as many more companies take design cues from Tesla and Rivian for their "Sentry Mode" dash cam features with the ability to monitor over the phone. I am particularly interested in which delivers the best quality with the best rounded features for the least amount of cost. A Thinkware U3000 is just so far off the spectrum in terms of cost and the new Blackvue LTE lineup doesn't offer Starvis 2, which makes it hard to justify the cost for their "LTE" features.

 

[mkh]

Thanks for this review containing a lot of information.
I'm planning to buy a A810 next week.
Among the main functions that this camera has, the parking surveillance functions based on the AI algorithms like the Omni X200. it use the AI Motion Detection to detect "suspicious" nearby persons.

 

[Nigel]

During my testing, I had placed a diode to bump the cutoff voltage to around 12.2V.

Never heard of anyone actually doing that before, although I have suggested it a few times in the past.

Hard to pick a clear winner from the Youtube clips, 70mai has less motion blur at sunset, but then more at night. 70mai is not recording the green on signs for some reason. 70mai does seem to have smooth 25fps, unlike most of the low fps dashcams!

On the original video the Viofo is going to easily win on the bitrate, especially at the rear, 8Mb's is not enough for decent 1080, from your figures, the Viofo has twice the bitrate on the rear, but I can't see that via Youtube.

Strange to see traffic lights still using old incandescent, energy inefficient, high maintenance bulbs, but then there is that blue Mercedes in the sunny clip with typical Mercedes flickery LED lamps, which the 70mai is coping with, while the Viofo picks up the flicker, with the reflections of the tail lights in the hood being on at different times to the direct view! No problems with any of the other lamps.

Nice clips, and well aligned

 

[RaincityDashcam]

Never heard of anyone actually doing that before, although I have suggested it a few times in the past.

Hard to pick a clear winner from the Youtube clips, 70mai has less motion blur at sunset, but then more at night. 70mai is not recording the green on signs for some reason. 70mai does seem to have smooth 25fps, unlike most of the low fps dashcams!

On the original video the Viofo is going to easily win on the bitrate, especially at the rear, 8Mb's is not enough for decent 1080, from your figures, the Viofo has twice the bitrate on the rear, but I can't see that via Youtube.

Strange to see traffic lights still using old incandescent, energy inefficient, high maintenance bulbs, but then there is that blue Mercedes in the sunny clip with typical Mercedes flickery LED lamps, which the 70mai is coping with, while the Viofo picks up the flicker, with the reflections of the tail lights in the hood being on at different times to the direct view! No problems with any of the other lamps.

Nice clips, and well aligned

The diode idea was actually from this thread! https://dashcamtalk.com/forum/threads/hardwire-kit-11-4v-cutoff.43571/ (I updated more specifics in my post. I used a 1N5817 diode with a resulting cutoff voltage of 12.4V (typo on my end earlier! sorry!))

What do you mean by the green with the 70mai?

I agree that the Viofo is winning with the rear as well, but also don't know what's going on with their refresh rate for lights.

Thanks for the kind comments!

 

[LEEDW]

Is it different when the bit rate is only 1 channel?
In the case of VIOFO, it seems to be a maximum of 60Mbps for only 1 channel

 

[RaincityDashcam]

Is it different when the bit rate is only 1 channel?
In the case of VIOFO, it seems to be a maximum of 60Mbps for only 1 channel

That is a good question! It seems to be the case for the Viofo A139 Pro as stated by BlackBoxMyCar but I will have to get back to you and test the 70mai A810 to see the results in 1ch mode.

 

[InToSSH]

Thanks for the review. I was planning on buying the A139 Pro, but seeing the results of A810, I think I will wait for it to become available in EU. It sucks that we can't preorder it here for early-bird price.
My main two concerns with the A810 are the only 2.4Ghz wifi and not using Starvis chip for the rear camera.

 

[Nigel]

What do you mean by the green with the 70mai?

If you look at your night video at 10 seconds, you have the plates zoomed in, the plate on the right has a couple of coloured blocks at the bottom. On the A139 one is obviously red and the other is obviously green, on the 70mai you can guess that the red one might be red, but you couldn't guess that the other is green! The police often ask the colour of vehicles when you are describing them, giving them the wrong colour because the wrong colour was recorded isn't good!

Thanks for the review. I was planning on buying the A139 Pro, but seeing the results of A810, I think I will wait for it to become available in EU. It sucks that we can't preorder it here for early-bird price.
My main two concerns with the A810 are the only 2.4Ghz wifi and not using Starvis chip for the rear camera.

There are a couple of Viofo A229 cameras coming soon, with Starvis 2 sensors for all cameras.

 

[InToSSH]

There are a couple of Viofo A229 cameras coming soon, with Starvis 2 sensors for all cameras.

Are you talking about the A229 Pro possibly? I know there are already some Duos. Hopefully they can bring some smart features as well. I like the idea of an IA detection in parking mode on the A810, also the ability to add a 4G modem.
Viofo cameras have superb video quality, but not as much of the smart features. I couldn't even find any info if the A139 Pro saves the previous clip while emergency recording if within first 15secs of current clip.

 

[Nigel]

Are you talking about the A229 Pro possibly? I know there are already some Duos. Hopefully they can bring some smart features as well. I like the idea of an IA detection in parking mode on the A810, also the ability to add a 4G modem.
Viofo cameras have superb video quality, but not as much of the smart features. I couldn't even find any info if the A139 Pro saves the previous clip while emergency recording if within first 15secs of current clip.

Yes, there is a Pro A229 coming, and a cheaper version as well.

I've never been convinced about AI detection, in reality it is AI discarding of video that it thinks is not useful. If it gets it right then you end up with only useful video on your card, if it gets it wrong then you lose useful video which can never be retrieved because it was never recorded. With Viofo's low bitrate parking mode, everything is recorded, so you never lose anything useful. The only problem then is finding the useful bits of the recording, but that is the time to apply the AI detection. If it works then you find the useful video quickly, if it doesn't then you have to search for it manually. Viofo does have a movement detection parking mode so that it only writes video to card when there is movement, which does save card space, with less risk of the AI deleting useful video, but again there is not much power saving involved, so why not record the video anyway, just incase there was something useful that wasn't picked up by the detection algorithm.

If the AI could extend the recording times significantly then it might be useful, but the camera has to be operating and collecting the video from the sensor for the AI to be able to do its detection, you save some power on not writing the video to the card, but you use extra power for the AI algorithms to examine every frame of video, which tends to be rather power hungry.

If power saving is the aim, then radar movement detection is much better, then the camera can go to sleep while nothing is happening, saving lots of power, and you can still use AI if you want to, either before or after writing the video to memory card. Currently Thinkware is best for radar sensors with their U3000, although they don't seem to have perfected it yet.

I couldn't even find any info if the A139 Pro saves the previous clip while emergency recording if within first 15secs of current clip.

I've never noticed mine lose anything on pressing the button, and sometimes it does save 2 video files for one event. Not sure what it's rules are though.
If there is ever a real emergency then I'm not going to rely on pressing a lock button though, I will keep the card with all the video on it safe, and install my spare card.

 

[kamkar]

AI algorithms like the Omni X200

I have a Omni i test and for sure it do not do senseless motion detect, someone have to stand " still" in front of the camera before it engage.
Which is smart for preventing mass motion detect files being created, but on the other hand what suspisious chracter stop and marvel at its target before proceeding to do something.

 

[InToSSH]

The only problem then is finding the useful bits of the recording, but that is the time to apply the AI detection. If it works then you find the useful video quickly, if it doesn't then you have to search for it manually.

Very interesting take on this. Thank you. I agree, I didn't know the AI works this way, for me it is not so much about saving energy, a little bit about saving space, but a lot about quickly finding the incident. I think if it would just do some markers, or if it used low bitrate by default and then when the AI is triggered it would temporarily switch to high bitrate, it would be the best of both worlds.

Currently Thinkware is best for radar sensors with their U3000

I considered U3000 too, but I have read that their CPU doesn't support HDR and watching some comparisons, the night videos are much worse even with their Super Night vision compared to the A139 Pro. Also someone said the rear radar is not working yet. And then there is the price.

I've never noticed mine lose anything on pressing the button, and sometimes it does save 2 video files for one event. Not sure what it's rules are though.
If there is ever a real emergency then I'm not going to rely on pressing a lock button though, I will keep the card with all the video on it safe, and install my spare card.

Awesome, thank you. My old Mivue J85 (apart from issues where it sometimes doesn't turn on), when I press the button it only saves last 5 sec before pressing it, which is just not enough. And sure, for real accident you don't want to rely on the button press, I use it mostly when I see someone doing something they shouldn't, not involving me (like reckless driving) and I want to save it just in case, then once in a while I want to download these videos to my library.

 

[kamkar]

when I press the button it only saves last 5 sec before pressing it

That is still the case in some brands, but many use saving whole video segments now, some even save 2 segments depending on where you are in the current segment when you press the button or have a event that make the G-sensor trigger.

If you just save the current file, well if the event are right at the start or right at the end, you will not have much footage in the event file from before / after, not that it matter a whole lot, CUZ what else you might need will still be there in among the regular footage.
and you should run a large enough memory card that make sure it dont loop over and delete something you want to save.

I use 256GB cards, so if i have a little event where i can still drive on, well i would have to drive for another 10 - 12 hours or more ( i actually do not know how many hours i can store ) before that event or footage near it will be deleted among the regular footage files.
And i never drive that long, i barely drive 45 minutes

With my driving, i have footage on the 256GB memory card going +2 weeks back

 

[InToSSH]

some even save 2 segments depending on where you are in the current segment

Exactly, that what I was hoping for. I found that this should be available in A139 (non-Pro) here: https://viofouk.co.uk/news/six-new-functions-added-in-a139-dash-cam-v1-6-firmware/
They have a nice infographic on how it works. Nigel here pretty much confirms that it works the same with the Pro.

 

[kamkar]

I do prefer the 2 segments saved, some might think that is a lot of footage to save as it is also happening on each camera in the system, but it is not bad i feel, though i have just tested it on dual 1080p cameras.

One also have to remember today the folder for locked files, it is often a dynamic assigned part of the memory card, and once it fill up footage in there will also be recycled. so still important to not generate too many events.
Personally i prefer low bitrate for parking guard, and that kind of footage are just in the regular file folder.

I use the event button to save little things in traffic, and its just fine if i just go to get my footage there once a month.

 

[InToSSH]

I totally agree, I would much rather have too much footage, then miss the beginning/end.
I heard that Viofo dedicates 30% of storage to locked files and then, as you said, they get overwritten.
So yea, to me it seems like the low bitrate for parking (especially their g-sensor being kinda wonky) seems like the best idea.
So now I am on the fence if I will pull the trigger on the A139 Pro or wait for the A229 Pro, my old camera still works, but most of the time when something happens I realize it didn't turn on and wasn't recording at all, which sucks.