Having spent more time bent over the back of this bike fiddling with the unit than I’ve spent watching videos of where I’ve been, has anyone got a positive comment about it?
Let us continue our discussion and research about a possible temperatur issue in the "K2 is heating up badly" thread. This way everything is collected in one thread.
Under-seat on your bike (and mine) may not get all that hot. Despite the lack of ventilation, it's at least out of the sun, and it isn't directly over the engine.
It sounds like you're testing your spare K2 by hooking it up indoors. If so, I'm not surprised you're unable to duplicate the random shutdowns.
Yes and no. The (spare) K2 I use for all my tests (e.g testing firmware modifications) is on my desk and connected to a regulated power supply. Otherwise most of my tests would not be possible.
My normal K2 is mounted on my bike right under the rear seat. The power module is mounted at the same place, but on the opposite site (see picture below).
With this setup, I did hours of riding, even at up to 35°C. Don't know the temperatur under the seat, but I guess it was higher then that, because my Tiger 1200 produces a lot of heat, which radiates right under the seats. Maybe I will put a thermometer beside the K2 next time. But all of this is why I am not convinced that there is a general temperature issue.
The differences between my two K2 are:
The mounted K2 is from 2018, the spare K2 is from 2019
The power module of the mounted one is the first one with the power drain issue. The power module of the spare K2 seems to be the updated one (but without led).
The mounted K2 runs V0.57, the spare K2 runs V0.70
The mounted K2 has the GPS connected, the spare K2 has not.
The spare K2 has its top cover removed because of the UART cables I soldern to the connection points.
The only difference conditions-wise is that in the earlier ride, the DVR was in the sun the whole time. Direct sunlight is often not very nice to electronics.
Well...direct sunlight is hard for me to test. Let's see if I can put the whole thing on the balcony. But I can first try to put it into box and raise the ambient temperatur with e.g. a hairdryer to...let's say 40°C.
@Frostie I am still in the process of confirming,but I suspect the K2 has a significant, undocumented heat management problem.
Innovv may well be unaware, and their installation instructions do not take it into account.
As my K2 has continued to shut down for no reason through the spring and early summer, my vendor has replaced the DVR for the second time. I got new cameras last week.
This had no effect on the shutdowns, unfortunately.
Since I've tried everything else, I changed my setup completely. DVR is now Velcro'd to top case plate, rather than inside fairing. Power cube is under seat. Front and rear cameras are swapped, since one cable is longer than the other.
Rode yesterday in early afternoon heat and sun, and K2 shut down after about half an hour. Which lately is par for the course.
We went on another ride around sunset. No shutdown this time; K2 stayed on for 100% of a 20+ mile ride, both ways.
The only difference conditions-wise is that in the earlier ride, the DVR was in the sun the whole time. Direct sunlight is often not very nice to electronics.
In my previous installation, the DVR was inside the fairing. It was shaded from the sun, but somewhat close to the radiator, although I put it as far away as I could to prevent heat problems. May still have been not enough.
I have made a light plastic sun shade for the DVR in its new location. Need some more rides in full sunlight to confirm any effect.
If that doesn't work, I suppose I'll give in and try installing the DVR under the seat, if I can make enough room. This is the least convenient location possible, as I can't see the status LEDs or access the SD card without taking the seat off.
It sounds like you're testing your spare K2 by hooking it up indoors. If so, I'm not surprised you're unable to duplicate the random shutdowns. In real-world use, the DVR can be subject to a lot more heat. Powering the K2 off USB instead of the "cube" is likewise going to alter results.
I got mine K2 on December 2018 and at the beginning I had some issues.
Power module drained the battery ( it was the old module)Solved it myself by using a timed relay.
Unit did not start reliably on every motor start. Was solved by re-flashing the firmware
Video quality was not satisfying due to compression artifacts. Solved it myself by modifying the firmware to increase the bitrate.
USB did not work (was solved by Innov in V0.57 and now in V0.70)
Since then, my K2 runs without any issues. Of course there are still some points to critizice.
Wifi is quite useless for video transfer due to its devastating speed
Audio quality is not good because of gain settings
GPS is not 100% reliable
Speed in video shows last speed when GPS is lost. According to the last video I did 150 km/h within city limits *yikes*
Cameras need better damping to avoid jello effects.
Video settings (brightness, contrast, sharpness, etc.) not adjustable
No WDR. So direct sunlight is a problem.
I know that there are some people here who have serious problems with their K2. Often the K2 simply shuts down for no reason. I tried to reproduce this on the my spare K2, which Rock provided me last year, but I was not able to. I let it run for serveral nights (interesting to see what my cat does at night), and it, too, runs rock solid. So I wonder if Innovv changed something at the K2, beside the power module.
I'm a bit frustrated with the poor audio quality, but otherwise my K2 has worked just fine. Unfortunate you've had a bad experience. Innovv was very proactive in providing replacement items that were considered defective or obsolete. But I agree the video is not readily accessible. I purchased mine for the day when a cager turns left in front of me or I get rear-ended as video evidence of the encounter. For that, I think the K2 performs well.
Yep spot on as fare as im concerned, i think a lot of people purchase it as a action camera its intended as a dash cam unit you only axcess it if needed.
@freespaceimpedance
Let us continue our discussion and research about a possible temperatur issue in the "K2 is heating up badly" thread. This way everything is collected in one thread.
Under-seat on your bike (and mine) may not get all that hot. Despite the lack of ventilation, it's at least out of the sun, and it isn't directly over the engine.
US$50 is a little much to spend on a curiosity project, but I could get one of these: https://www.amazon.com/SensorPush-Wireless-Thermometer-Hygrometer-Android/dp/B01AEQ9X9I
and find out actual under-seat temperature (as well as other places).
Anyway, we'll see whether my sun shield does any good.
@freespaceimpedance
It sounds like you're testing your spare K2 by hooking it up indoors. If so, I'm not surprised you're unable to duplicate the random shutdowns.Yes and no. The (spare) K2 I use for all my tests (e.g testing firmware modifications) is on my desk and connected to a regulated power supply. Otherwise most of my tests would not be possible.
My normal K2 is mounted on my bike right under the rear seat. The power module is mounted at the same place, but on the opposite site (see picture below).
With this setup, I did hours of riding, even at up to 35°C. Don't know the temperatur under the seat, but I guess it was higher then that, because my Tiger 1200 produces a lot of heat, which radiates right under the seats. Maybe I will put a thermometer beside the K2 next time. But all of this is why I am not convinced that there is a general temperature issue.
The differences between my two K2 are:
The mounted K2 is from 2018, the spare K2 is from 2019
The power module of the mounted one is the first one with the power drain issue. The power module of the spare K2 seems to be the updated one (but without led).
The mounted K2 runs V0.57, the spare K2 runs V0.70
The mounted K2 has the GPS connected, the spare K2 has not.
The spare K2 has its top cover removed because of the UART cables I soldern to the connection points.
The only difference conditions-wise is that in the earlier ride, the DVR was in the sun the whole time. Direct sunlight is often not very nice to electronics.Well...direct sunlight is hard for me to test. Let's see if I can put the whole thing on the balcony. But I can first try to put it into box and raise the ambient temperatur with e.g. a hairdryer to...let's say 40°C.
@Frostie I am still in the process of confirming,but I suspect the K2 has a significant, undocumented heat management problem.
Innovv may well be unaware, and their installation instructions do not take it into account.
As my K2 has continued to shut down for no reason through the spring and early summer, my vendor has replaced the DVR for the second time. I got new cameras last week.
This had no effect on the shutdowns, unfortunately.
Since I've tried everything else, I changed my setup completely. DVR is now Velcro'd to top case plate, rather than inside fairing. Power cube is under seat. Front and rear cameras are swapped, since one cable is longer than the other.
Rode yesterday in early afternoon heat and sun, and K2 shut down after about half an hour. Which lately is par for the course.
We went on another ride around sunset. No shutdown this time; K2 stayed on for 100% of a 20+ mile ride, both ways.
The only difference conditions-wise is that in the earlier ride, the DVR was in the sun the whole time. Direct sunlight is often not very nice to electronics.
In my previous installation, the DVR was inside the fairing. It was shaded from the sun, but somewhat close to the radiator, although I put it as far away as I could to prevent heat problems. May still have been not enough.
I have made a light plastic sun shade for the DVR in its new location. Need some more rides in full sunlight to confirm any effect.
If that doesn't work, I suppose I'll give in and try installing the DVR under the seat, if I can make enough room. This is the least convenient location possible, as I can't see the status LEDs or access the SD card without taking the seat off.
It sounds like you're testing your spare K2 by hooking it up indoors. If so, I'm not surprised you're unable to duplicate the random shutdowns. In real-world use, the DVR can be subject to a lot more heat. Powering the K2 off USB instead of the "cube" is likewise going to alter results.
I got mine K2 on December 2018 and at the beginning I had some issues.
Power module drained the battery ( it was the old module) Solved it myself by using a timed relay.
Unit did not start reliably on every motor start. Was solved by re-flashing the firmware
Video quality was not satisfying due to compression artifacts. Solved it myself by modifying the firmware to increase the bitrate.
USB did not work (was solved by Innov in V0.57 and now in V0.70)
Since then, my K2 runs without any issues. Of course there are still some points to critizice.
Wifi is quite useless for video transfer due to its devastating speed
Audio quality is not good because of gain settings
GPS is not 100% reliable
Speed in video shows last speed when GPS is lost. According to the last video I did 150 km/h within city limits *yikes*
Cameras need better damping to avoid jello effects.
Video settings (brightness, contrast, sharpness, etc.) not adjustable
No WDR. So direct sunlight is a problem.
I know that there are some people here who have serious problems with their K2. Often the K2 simply shuts down for no reason. I tried to reproduce this on the my spare K2, which Rock provided me last year, but I was not able to. I let it run for serveral nights (interesting to see what my cat does at night), and it, too, runs rock solid. So I wonder if Innovv changed something at the K2, beside the power module.
I'm a bit frustrated with the poor audio quality, but otherwise my K2 has worked just fine. Unfortunate you've had a bad experience. Innovv was very proactive in providing replacement items that were considered defective or obsolete. But I agree the video is not readily accessible. I purchased mine for the day when a cager turns left in front of me or I get rear-ended as video evidence of the encounter. For that, I think the K2 performs well.
Yep spot on as fare as im concerned, i think a lot of people purchase it as a action camera its intended as a dash cam unit you only axcess it if needed.