jonttt
Monaco
- Joined
- 20 Aug 2012
- Messages
- 10,586
Extracted from my 987 journal as I thought it would make a good stand alone user / feature guide in this section....
Bluetooth Battery Meter Review.....
So in these Virus Lockdown days the Boxster has been used a few days per week for a short commute into work but then has been stood for days without use.....although the commute runs are great with light traffic the car is just not getting the sort of run out it would normally....so I've started to wonder on the state of the battery.......I could maneauver cars around the driveway and put it on trickle charge but it would be nice to just "know" if the battery is OK or when it really needs charging......I checked out what options CTEK had to go with the charger (which already has the plug into battery connector with a status light but I find that unreliable)....sure enough they have a bluetooth device that can be left permanently on the battery with a phone app connecting to it......but its >£50 and ideally I would like x2 (ie one for the 993 and 987). The absolute ideal would be to be able to connect to either and know which car I was seeing.......so I thought it worthwhile googling alternative options ........a popular google find was a unit which seemed identical on pics but was badged up as different names with prices around £30-£40......then I stumbled on an ebay seller who seemed to be selling the same unit for £19 delivered and had sold >300 of them.....
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/12V-Car-...e=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649
So the sensible head said "worth a shout for £19" ...order one and see what its like......so I ordered x2 :grin:
Delivered in less than 3 days.......fitted and up and running with the app in less than 30 min on two cars with both identified by name.......it is simply a very impressive gadget and app for £19 delivered....whats not to like....
Install is very simple via C connectors simply placed inbetween the negative and positive terminals on the battery.....the app is installed from a link on the device and auto connects via bluetooth....then simply use the app settings to replace the device code with whatever you want to call the car.......
Comes in a simple plastic package....
just the device and pretty good instructions mainly about the app as the actual install is so simple...
A good quality metal C connector means it can be bent without fear of snapping to make a neat install as needed....
Online features and guides seem none existant hence me writing this guide for this device.....here is the manual in full for reference as to how it works and features in use...
and a very simple install....just loosen the terminal bolts enough to slide the C clip in and tighten back up.....the gap between the battery and frunk seal was perfect to simply hold the main unit in place without needing to secure it further......ps I also have the CTEK connector installed on this battery.....
It connected quickly, I renamed the device connected to in the app settings and the first reading did indeed show a lower than ideal voltage given only infrequent short trips in the past few weeks ie not having chance to charge back up through use...
Cranking Voltage was however fine on starting the car which was what I experienced in practice ie no indication on starting that the battery was down to c50% charge.
So I connected the CTEK up to recharge the battery...
and as expected all was fine just a few hours on charge later...
So what was it like to use.......well simple and pretty fun...it just worked without any messing around......my car was parked on the drive close to the house and from my lounge my phone connected to it so I could take readings remotely without leaving the house......I'll be able to do that at any time to keep tabs on the battery whenever I like......the unit is obviously ON 100% of the time so not sure what power drain will be like but it uses the latest bluetooth standards so I expect it has a sleep mode to reduce power drain simply waiting for something to connect to it.....
There is more which I've not had chance to check out yet....
The settings can be configured to auto take a reading every set time limit ...the unit itself keeps records for 31 days so as long as you connect your phone to it at least once every 31 days you keep a full history of the battery, when the car was stated and stopped (trips).... these are all downloaded historically to the phone on connection .....
..you can set alerts so if the battery charge drops below x% you get a warning on your phone the next time it connects....eg as you get in the car
Some pretty neat features in such a cheap device....
Time will tell just how useful it is in practice but lockdown is a time if ever I will need it even if just for piece of mind......I'm not sure if I will leave the app to run in the background on my phone as present ...advantage is auto notifications but not sure what battery drain on my phone will be like...
So in summary what appears to be a useful and slick bit of kit if you have a car which is not ran every day nor left on trickle charge when not in use for extended periods :thumb:
Bluetooth Battery Meter Review.....
So in these Virus Lockdown days the Boxster has been used a few days per week for a short commute into work but then has been stood for days without use.....although the commute runs are great with light traffic the car is just not getting the sort of run out it would normally....so I've started to wonder on the state of the battery.......I could maneauver cars around the driveway and put it on trickle charge but it would be nice to just "know" if the battery is OK or when it really needs charging......I checked out what options CTEK had to go with the charger (which already has the plug into battery connector with a status light but I find that unreliable)....sure enough they have a bluetooth device that can be left permanently on the battery with a phone app connecting to it......but its >£50 and ideally I would like x2 (ie one for the 993 and 987). The absolute ideal would be to be able to connect to either and know which car I was seeing.......so I thought it worthwhile googling alternative options ........a popular google find was a unit which seemed identical on pics but was badged up as different names with prices around £30-£40......then I stumbled on an ebay seller who seemed to be selling the same unit for £19 delivered and had sold >300 of them.....
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/12V-Car-...e=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649
So the sensible head said "worth a shout for £19" ...order one and see what its like......so I ordered x2 :grin:
Delivered in less than 3 days.......fitted and up and running with the app in less than 30 min on two cars with both identified by name.......it is simply a very impressive gadget and app for £19 delivered....whats not to like....
Install is very simple via C connectors simply placed inbetween the negative and positive terminals on the battery.....the app is installed from a link on the device and auto connects via bluetooth....then simply use the app settings to replace the device code with whatever you want to call the car.......
Comes in a simple plastic package....
just the device and pretty good instructions mainly about the app as the actual install is so simple...
A good quality metal C connector means it can be bent without fear of snapping to make a neat install as needed....
Online features and guides seem none existant hence me writing this guide for this device.....here is the manual in full for reference as to how it works and features in use...
and a very simple install....just loosen the terminal bolts enough to slide the C clip in and tighten back up.....the gap between the battery and frunk seal was perfect to simply hold the main unit in place without needing to secure it further......ps I also have the CTEK connector installed on this battery.....
It connected quickly, I renamed the device connected to in the app settings and the first reading did indeed show a lower than ideal voltage given only infrequent short trips in the past few weeks ie not having chance to charge back up through use...
Cranking Voltage was however fine on starting the car which was what I experienced in practice ie no indication on starting that the battery was down to c50% charge.
So I connected the CTEK up to recharge the battery...
and as expected all was fine just a few hours on charge later...
So what was it like to use.......well simple and pretty fun...it just worked without any messing around......my car was parked on the drive close to the house and from my lounge my phone connected to it so I could take readings remotely without leaving the house......I'll be able to do that at any time to keep tabs on the battery whenever I like......the unit is obviously ON 100% of the time so not sure what power drain will be like but it uses the latest bluetooth standards so I expect it has a sleep mode to reduce power drain simply waiting for something to connect to it.....
There is more which I've not had chance to check out yet....
The settings can be configured to auto take a reading every set time limit ...the unit itself keeps records for 31 days so as long as you connect your phone to it at least once every 31 days you keep a full history of the battery, when the car was stated and stopped (trips).... these are all downloaded historically to the phone on connection .....
..you can set alerts so if the battery charge drops below x% you get a warning on your phone the next time it connects....eg as you get in the car
Some pretty neat features in such a cheap device....
Time will tell just how useful it is in practice but lockdown is a time if ever I will need it even if just for piece of mind......I'm not sure if I will leave the app to run in the background on my phone as present ...advantage is auto notifications but not sure what battery drain on my phone will be like...
So in summary what appears to be a useful and slick bit of kit if you have a car which is not ran every day nor left on trickle charge when not in use for extended periods :thumb:
