Technical Specs
– Max. resolution: 2592×1944 @30fps, recommended: 2560×1440 @60fps
– Price: see below
– Aperture: f/1.6
– 1.5″ screen
– GPS in mount
– HDR Super Night Vision
– Wi-Fi (2.4 and 5 GHz)
– Size: 46mm x 42mm x 75mm
– Novatek 96580 processor
– Sony STARVIS CMOS Sensor 5MP IMX335
– Angle of view: 140° diagonal
– Video format: MP4
– Supports up to 256 GB MicroSD cards
– Time and date stamp on video
– Loop recording, auto on/off, G-Sensor
– Parking modes: Buffered, time-lapse, low bit rate
– Power connector: USB-C
– Lock file button
– Player software for Windows / Mac
– Apps for Android / iOS
– Internal capacitor instead of battery
– Internal microphone and speaker
– Adhesive mount
– Optional CPL filter
– Optional Bluetooth emergency button
– Optional HK4 hard wiring kit for parking mode
Viofo A119 Mini Review
The Viofo A119 Mini was released in mid-2022 and is kind of a smaller version of their hugely successful A119 v3. It’s not exactly an upgrade, because the A119 v3 is still being sold — it’s more like a smaller, modernized version of the v3.
The A119 Mini supports GPS, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi out of the box, and you can purchase an optional CPL filter to improve video quality in direct sunlight. When powered with Viofo’s HK4 hard-wiring kit, it also supports three different parking modes.
UPDATE: There is a newer (and improved) version of this camera, called Viofo A119 Mini 2.
Video Quality
This dash cam records good video during the day, and fair video at night. Check out our video samples below to see how it performs.
Maximum video resolution is 2592×1944 pixels at 30 frames per second (fps), which is a non-standard resolution. We recommend running the Mini at 2560×1440 resolution (1440p), which allows you to record at 60fps.
Parking Modes
The Viofo A119 Mini can run in three different parking modes: Buffered, time-lapse, and low bit rate.
- Buffered parking mode: When motion is detected, 45 seconds of video will be recorded (from 15 seconds before the event to 30 seconds after).
- Time-lapse: Records at 1, 2, 3, 5, or 10fps
- Low bit rate: Records at a bit rate of 4Mb/s
As mentioned above, parking mode needs the camera to be hard-wired to the car’s fuse box. You need VIofo’s HK4 hard-wiring kit for this purpose.
Other Features
An optional Bluetooth emergency button is available that can be placed anywhere in your car. Stick it in a convenient location so you don’t have to reach over to the camera itself when something happens that you’d like to save the video of.
The user manual of this camera is 26 pages long and well written, with plenty of illustrations. You can view or download it here.
A119 Mini vs A119 v3 Comparison
The previous model: A119 v3
The first thing we notice is that the A119 Mini is somewhat (but not a lot) smaller than the A119 v3. While it is about a centimeter less tall and half a centimeter less wide than the v3, it’s actually a bit thicker (just a few millimeters in the “fattest” place).
At 1.5″ diameter, the Mini’s screen is really quite mini. Some users might need glasses to make out the content.
→ Pros:
Unlike the v3, the A119 Mini supports Wi-Fi, so you can easily control and set up your camera with Viofo’s smart phone app.
The Mini also has voice notifications. In contrast, the v3 will just beep to get your attention, and you’ll have to look at its screen to see what’s up. Voice notifications do provide much better clarity about what the camera is doing.
Unlike the A119v3, the Mini has 4 status LEDs below the screen (Power, Recording, Mic, and Wi-Fi), so you can see at a glance whether video and/or sound are being recorded, for example. This is a welcome improvement, and improves usability of the camera.
Lastly, on the A119 Mini, the emergency button is much easier to find: It is set in a row of its own, below all the other buttons. On the v3, the emergency button is surrounded by 4 other buttons, which can make it a bit harder to find when you’re driving and don’t want to take your eyes of the road.
Parking modes are similar between the two cameras.
→ Cons:
The main drawback that the Mini has is the inferior video quality it records compared to its predecessor. This is unfortunate, but also understandable, as the Viofo A119 went through three different versions over several years before reaching its “mature” version with the v3.
Conclusion
The A119 Mini is a major step up in usability, but unfortunately its video quality is currently not up to par. This will hopefully be improved by future iterations or firmware updates. But for the time being, the A119 v3 does record better video than the Mini, both at day and at night.
So unless you really need Wi-Fi or one of the other unique features of the Mini, you can save yourself some money and get the A119 v3 instead. It’s an older dash cam, but it has matured to perfection over the years.
Viofo A119 Mini Video Samples
For full original video quality, make sure to watch on full screen and select maximum video resolution (use the cog icon in lower right corner). You may have to rewind the video after changing the resolution.
Day Time Video Sample
At day, video quality is good. You’ll be able to read most license plates by pausing the video.
Night Time Video Sample
Night video quality is fair. You can clearly see what’s going on around you. However, most license plates of other cars are hard or impossible to read, unless you are really close.
Where To Buy
The latest version of this camera is called A119 Mini 2, we recommend going for that one instead.
The legacy version A119 Mini may still available from:
Links to vendors are affiliate links. If you find this site useful, please consider buying through our links. There's no extra cost for you, and it helps to keep the site ad-free and up to date with top quality reviews.
