Troubleshooting & FAQ
Identifying the device
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Which variant do I have? | Device info → Hardware version: ego_v2 is EGO1, audio_ego_v3 is EGO1GS. Quickest physical tell: EGO1GS has a speaker and says "device ready" at power-up. See EGO1/EGO1GS. |
| Not sure whether the device is on | Check the status LED on the back. Solid means powered and idle; blinking means it's recording. |
| Is it recording right now? | The LED blinks about once a second while a session is running. On EGO1GS you can also turn on the tick-tock reminder. |
Connecting
| Symptom | What to do |
|---|---|
| Phone won't connect to the device hotspot | Confirm the device is powered. In system Wi-Fi, manually select the GILABS-… network. Ignore the "no internet" warning and stay connected, then tap Add device in Visio Companion again. |
| App says "Device in use" | Another phone is connected — only one phone can control a device at a time. Disconnect the other phone, then pull down to refresh. |
| Device won't join my Wi-Fi | Check the SSID and passphrase for typos, capitals included. If the credentials are wrong the device gives up and returns to its own hotspot — rejoin that and try again. |
| I don't have the app | You don't need it. Join the device's hotspot and open http://192.168.4.1 — the device serves its own setup page with preview, recording control, and Wi-Fi setup. See Connect, preview & capture. |
Recording and preview
| Symptom | What to do |
|---|---|
| Card inserted but it won't record / app shows no free space | Most likely a slow, fake, or incompatible card. Use a genuine card rated at least A1 / V30, verify its real capacity (H2testw or F3), and format as exFAT or FAT32. See SD cards. |
| Preview flickers or stutters | This is the live decode struggling to keep up — not a device fault. The recording on the SD card is unaffected; it doesn't drop frames. |
| Straight edges lean or wobble during fast head turns | That's rolling-shutter skew — normal for EGO1 and a property of the sensor, not a fault. If your work needs clean geometry during fast motion, that's what EGO1GS is for. |
| Raised the bitrate or resolution and nothing changed | Both take effect after a reboot. Power-cycle the device. |
| Raised the bitrate and now it won't record | A genuine A1 / V30 card handles every bitrate preset comfortably, so suspect a counterfeit or worn card rather than a merely slow one. Verify it, or return to the 8 Mbps default — see SD cards. |
| A very long recording is slow to play / uses lots of memory | Keep individual recordings shorter, or split capture into multiple sessions. |
Audio (EGO1GS)
| Symptom | What to do |
|---|---|
| No audio in my recordings | Record audio is a toggle — check Device settings → Audio. It applies immediately, with no reboot. |
| The device keeps talking to me | Those are status notices. The recording reminder tick-tock is separate and can be turned off under Device settings → Recording reminder. |
| Notices are in the wrong language | Clips follow the app's language setting — change it under Settings → Language. English and Chinese are available. |
| My viewer shows no audio track | Confirm the recording came from an EGO1GS (EGO1 has no microphones) and that your viewer supports the audio channel. Foxglove Studio has an Audio panel. |
Cloud upload
| Symptom | What to do |
|---|---|
| Nothing uploads | Upload needs a network with internet access. On the device's own hotspot there is none, so uploads pause. Put the device on your Wi-Fi. |
| Connection test is greyed out | You're on the setup hotspot — no internet, so the test can't run. Save anyway; the credentials apply once the device is on Wi-Fi. |
| Everything shows Failed | Almost always credentials or permissions. Re-enter the secret key in full and save — correcting the destination automatically retries failed items. |
| More detail | See Cloud upload → Troubleshooting. |
Reviewing and power
| Symptom | What to do |
|---|---|
| Viewer opens the file but shows no video | Make sure you opened the .mcap file itself, and that your MCAP viewer supports H.265 (in Foxglove Studio, use a recent version). |
| How do I power down safely? | Stop the recording, wait for it to finish saving, then disconnect USB power. Never cut power mid-recording — you can lose the part being written. |
| A recording shows as "Repairing" | It was torn by a power cut mid-write. The device repairs it in place and then uploads it. Stopping recordings before removing power avoids this. |
Still stuck? Contact your GI Labs representative with your device name (the GILABS-… code, also shown in
the app) and a description of what you saw.