Android OBDII software

[Wally J]

I've been using an old HF $15 wired OBDII tester for a decade or more, but
when I scanned a friend's car for her today, her neighbor came over to
see what the commotion was, and then he came back to give me a Christmas gift.

It's a blue plastic OBD adapter with "ELM 327 mini Interace" on the sticker.
He said he kept one in each vehicle, so he just pulled it out of his bimmer.

All it says otherwise is "Supports all OBDII protocols" but it doesn't have
any brand or model identifier. He said it works (as he said some don't work).

He said I could get software for it on the net, so I ran an AppFinder search
for free ad free Android apps rated over 4.0 with no in-app purchases, etc.

There were 18 results for free, adfree & inapppurchasefree, but when I raised
the sort slider to exclude those with less than a 4.0 rating, only 2 showed up.
*ULTRA OBD OBD2 CAR SCANNER ELM* by XAS Applications
free,adfree,gsf?,rated 4.4 stars in 320 reviews with 10K+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.applications.xas.obdultra>

*OBD Diag & Scan* by clickshopping.fr
free,adfree,gsf?,rated 4.2 stars in 382 reviews with 50K+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.clickshopping.obddiagscan>

When I lowered the filtering criteria below 4.0, one more showed up.

*Smart Control OBD2 Scanner ELM* by SmartApps4Me
free,adfree,gsf?,rated 3.9 stars in 2.94K reviews with 100K+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=it.smartapps4me.smartcontrol>

Further lowering the filtering below 3.7 brought up another app.
*ELM OBD Terminal* by CHINH LUONG QUOC
free,adfree,gsf?,inappfree,rated 3.6 stars in 25 reviews with 5K+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.chinhlqtb.elm327.obd2.terminal>

Lowering filters to 3.5 brings up yet another set of free OBDII ELM apps.
*alOBD Scanner* by Alexandre Beloussov
free,adfree,gsf?,inappfree,rated 3.5 stars in 130 reviews with 50K+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.obd2>

Which seems to have a command-line terminal CLI utility.
*alOBD Terminal* by Alexandre Beloussov
free,adfree,gsf?,inappfree,rated 3.1 stars in 72 reviews with 10K+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.obd2.research>

Lowering filters to 3.4 brings up more free OBDII ELM apps.
*CCY OBD MOBILE - for ELM327 an* by CCY - DIAGNOSTIC INTERFACES
free,adfree,gsf?,inappfree,rated no stars with 5K+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=pl.ccy.ccyobdmobile>

And then there are the apps which have too few reviews to be rated.
*X-ELM* by v-checker
free,adfree,gsf?,inappfree,rated no stars with 100+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.vchecker.x_elm>

*Dashboard Racing 695* by Laurent CASSIER
free,adfree,gsf?,inappfree,rated 5.0 stars in 77 reviews with 10K+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.konart.obd.dashboardRacing>

*Infocar Connect - Diagnostics* by Infocar Connect AB
free,adfree,gsf?,inappfree,rated no stars with 10K+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=se.infocar.icardtc>

*Escaner coche ELM OBD Autoxuga* by Autoxuga Movil, SL
free,adfree,gsf?,inappfree,rated no stars with 500+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.autoxuga.obd>

*Escaner coche ELM OBD2 tecnico* by Autoxuga Movil, SL
free,adfree,gsf?,inappfree,rated no stars with 1+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.autoxuga.diagnosisobd>

Given all that above... (all of which I've now installed on my Galaxy)...

Do any of you out there use these inexpensive bluetooth scanners on your car?
Do you have recommendations as to what software and which features you prefer?

Is the use as simple as just setting up bluetooth on my phone and plugging
this OBDII into the car's OBD port under the driver's cockpit dash board.

Do you leave them in all the time (the guy who gave it to me says he does).

I'll test it out tomorrow - but I figured I'd ask now that I've run the
search for the free OBDII software that has no ads or in-app purchases.

[Roger Mills]

Post by Wally J
I've been using an old HF $15 wired OBDII tester for a decade or more, but
when I scanned a friend's car for her today, her neighbor came over to
see what the commotion was, and then he came back to give me a Christmas gift.
It's a blue plastic OBD adapter with "ELM 327 mini Interace" on the sticker.
He said he kept one in each vehicle, so he just pulled it out of his bimmer.
All it says otherwise is "Supports all OBDII protocols" but it doesn't have
any brand or model identifier. He said it works (as he said some don't work).
He said I could get software for it on the net, so I ran an AppFinder search
for free ad free Android apps rated over 4.0 with no in-app purchases, etc.
There were 18 results for free, adfree & inapppurchasefree, but when I raised
the sort slider to exclude those with less than a 4.0 rating, only 2 showed up.
*ULTRA OBD OBD2 CAR SCANNER ELM* by XAS Applications
free,adfree,gsf?,rated 4.4 stars in 320 reviews with 10K+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.applications.xas.obdultra>
*OBD Diag & Scan* by clickshopping.fr
free,adfree,gsf?,rated 4.2 stars in 382 reviews with 50K+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.clickshopping.obddiagscan>
When I lowered the filtering criteria below 4.0, one more showed up.
*Smart Control OBD2 Scanner ELM* by SmartApps4Me
free,adfree,gsf?,rated 3.9 stars in 2.94K reviews with 100K+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=it.smartapps4me.smartcontrol>
Further lowering the filtering below 3.7 brought up another app.
*ELM OBD Terminal* by CHINH LUONG QUOC
free,adfree,gsf?,inappfree,rated 3.6 stars in 25 reviews with 5K+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.chinhlqtb.elm327.obd2.terminal>
Lowering filters to 3.5 brings up yet another set of free OBDII ELM apps.
*alOBD Scanner* by Alexandre Beloussov
free,adfree,gsf?,inappfree,rated 3.5 stars in 130 reviews with 50K+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.obd2>
Which seems to have a command-line terminal CLI utility.
*alOBD Terminal* by Alexandre Beloussov
free,adfree,gsf?,inappfree,rated 3.1 stars in 72 reviews with 10K+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.obd2.research>
Lowering filters to 3.4 brings up more free OBDII ELM apps.
*CCY OBD MOBILE - for ELM327 an* by CCY - DIAGNOSTIC INTERFACES
free,adfree,gsf?,inappfree,rated no stars with 5K+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=pl.ccy.ccyobdmobile>
And then there are the apps which have too few reviews to be rated.
*X-ELM* by v-checker
free,adfree,gsf?,inappfree,rated no stars with 100+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.vchecker.x_elm>
*Dashboard Racing 695* by Laurent CASSIER
free,adfree,gsf?,inappfree,rated 5.0 stars in 77 reviews with 10K+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.konart.obd.dashboardRacing>
*Infocar Connect - Diagnostics* by Infocar Connect AB
free,adfree,gsf?,inappfree,rated no stars with 10K+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=se.infocar.icardtc>
*Escaner coche ELM OBD Autoxuga* by Autoxuga Movil, SL
free,adfree,gsf?,inappfree,rated no stars with 500+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.autoxuga.obd>
*Escaner coche ELM OBD2 tecnico* by Autoxuga Movil, SL
free,adfree,gsf?,inappfree,rated no stars with 1+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.autoxuga.diagnosisobd>
Given all that above... (all of which I've now installed on my Galaxy)...
Do any of you out there use these inexpensive bluetooth scanners on your car?
Do you have recommendations as to what software and which features you prefer?
Is the use as simple as just setting up bluetooth on my phone and plugging
this OBDII into the car's OBD port under the driver's cockpit dash board.
Do you leave them in all the time (the guy who gave it to me says he does).
I'll test it out tomorrow - but I figured I'd ask now that I've run the
search for the free OBDII software that has no ads or in-app purchases.

I've used Torque for several years - although I don't need to use it
very often. The Lite version is free but may have ads (can't remember) -
but the Pro version only costs peanuts - currently just under 5 US dollars.

[Wally J]

Post by Roger Mills
I've used Torque for several years - although I don't need to use it
very often. The Lite version is free but may have ads (can't remember) -
but the Pro version only costs peanuts - currently just under 5 US dollars.

Thanks. I should have mentioned the gift giver mentioned that app, while
the apps I listed are all ad free (and in-app-purchase free).

However, I've already nixed most of them as apps get one strike and they're
out, where just asking for an account is considered a first strike.

Since we always want everyone to benefit from every action, I went looking
for links, but it seems a lot of OBDII scanners glom off the Torque name.
<https://play.google.com/store/search?q=torque%20obd&c=apps>

Which of those is the "real" torque app?

[Roger Mills]

Post by Wally J

Post by Roger Mills
I've used Torque for several years - although I don't need to use it
very often. The Lite version is free but may have ads (can't remember) -
but the Pro version only costs peanuts - currently just under 5 US dollars.

Thanks. I should have mentioned the gift giver mentioned that app, while
the apps I listed are all ad free (and in-app-purchase free).
However, I've already nixed most of them as apps get one strike and they're
out, where just asking for an account is considered a first strike.
Since we always want everyone to benefit from every action, I went looking
for links, but it seems a lot of OBDII scanners glom off the Torque name.
<https://play.google.com/store/search?q=torque%20obd&c=apps>
Which of those is the "real" torque app?

The REAL ones (LITE and PRO) are the ones by Ian Hawkins.

[Wally J]

Post by Roger Mills

Post by Wally J
Which of those is the "real" torque app?

The REAL ones (LITE and PRO) are the ones by Ian Hawkins.

Thanks. I found those and list their URL below for others to benefit from
every action we take - where the free has ads & the pro is about 5 bucks.
*Torque Lite (OBD2 & Car)* by Ian Hawkins, Contains ads
free,has ads,req gsf,rated 3.6star in 50.5K reviews w/ 10M+Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.prowl.torquescan>

*Torque Pro (OBD 2 & Car)* by Ian Hawkins, $5 payware
$5,noads,req gsf,rated 4.1star in 76.4K reviews w/ 1M+Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.prowl.torque>

Here's a review on them, although it suggests a $100 ELM27
<https://www.cnet.com/roadshow/reviews/plx-kiwi-bluetooth-review/>
(which is about $90 to $95 too much for such things if you ask me).
*Monitor your car's performance with the Torque app for Android*
<https://www.cnet.com/tech/mobile/monitor-your-cars-performance-with-the-torque-app-for-android/>

In a lot of apps, the "pro" feature is just a way to turn off ads, but in
this app, they seem to be adding features which the article says are...

Pro features
Torque Pro can also display calculated values (such as 0-60 time,
trip distance, or quarter-mile times).

Torque Pro can even calculate estimates for fuel economy,
horsepower, and -- of course -- torque.

Users of the Pro version of Torque can map their vehicle speed
on a Google Map.

Pro users also have the ability to share their gauges via Facebook
or periodically broadcast location data or reported values to
Twitter after logging in to either of these services.

In addition to the built-in functions, Pro users can also install
plug-ins to further extend the functionality of the Torque app.

In summary, all that stuff is nice, but what I'd really want is an audible
alarm when the readiness monitors are all set - as when you hear that
during your bi-annual smog inspection period, you can make an immediate
emergency u-turn and head to the nearest smog station.

If you don't know what I mean, you've never owned an older bimmer. :)

[sms]

On 12/22/2023 3:21 PM, Roger Mills wrote:

<snip>

Post by Roger Mills
The REAL ones (LITE and PRO) are the ones by Ian Hawkins.

Also, unless things have changed, Torque is not available for iOS. The
original issue was the the Bluetooth ELM327 adapters use the Bluetooth
Serial Port Profile (SPP) which Apple forgot to include on iOS
<https://support.apple.com/en-us/102842> so ELM327 adapters to use with
iOS were Wi-Fi and were less common and more expensive. A few newer
ELM327 adapters, like the Carista, are BLE; SPP capability is built into
BLE.

[Wally J]

Post by sms

Post by Roger Mills
The REAL ones (LITE and PRO) are the ones by Ian Hawkins.

Also, unless things have changed, Torque is not available for iOS. The
original issue was the the Bluetooth ELM327 adapters use the Bluetooth
Serial Port Profile (SPP) which Apple forgot to include on iOS
<https://support.apple.com/en-us/102842> so ELM327 adapters to use with
iOS were Wi-Fi and were less common and more expensive. A few newer
ELM327 adapters, like the Carista, are BLE; SPP capability is built into
BLE.

This is good information that venerable Torque OBDII app isn't on iOS, as
many of us have both platforms, Steve Scharf included (who is also a
long-time a.h.r poster).

I've pretty much given up on iOS mainly because there are thousands upon
thousands of useful things it can't do that every other platform does (an
example is the Tor Browser, but there are thousands of things it can't do).

Still, I noticed that the Torque Lite app does Wi-Fi, so if the ELM327
OBDII adapter can do Wi-Fi, maybe the Bluetooth SPP might not matter?

Dunno.

Looking it up briefly, there are caveats galore for these iOS apps but a
lot of the reviews seem to be focused on Wi-Fi and not so much Bluetooth.
*How To Setup ELM327 WiFi OBD II Scanner With iPhone (iOS)*
<https://www.fueleconomysolutions.com.au/page/obd-ii-applications-guide/how-to-setup-elm327-wifi-obd-ii-scanner-with-iphon/>

Even though the iOS platform is crippled by Apple such that it can't do the
thousands upon thousands of useful things, it seems people "do" finally
(after careful purchasing anyway) get iOS to work with ELM327 OBD devices.
*What iPhone/iPad app works best with ELM327 Bluetooth OBD-II reader?*
<https://mechanics.stackexchange.com/questions/346/what-iphone-ipad-app-works-best-with-elm327-bluetooth-obd-ii-reader>

Apparently the reason is Apple uses a highly non-standard hardware
implementation, which (surprise!) you have to purchase from Apple
if you're an OBDII device manufacturer, which not only makes the Apple
product (as always) the most expensive to do even the simplest of things,
but also extremely non standard (I'm shocked. Shocked I say).

Even though I myself have people in my family (mostly the non-technical
girls whom Apple markets the most to anyway), I've given up since time and
again iOS can't do what every other platform easily does. (Sigh).

[Alan]

Post by Wally J

Post by sms

Post by Roger Mills
The REAL ones (LITE and PRO) are the ones by Ian Hawkins.

Also, unless things have changed, Torque is not available for iOS. The
original issue was the the Bluetooth ELM327 adapters use the Bluetooth
Serial Port Profile (SPP) which Apple forgot to include on iOS
<https://support.apple.com/en-us/102842> so ELM327 adapters to use with
iOS were Wi-Fi and were less common and more expensive. A few newer
ELM327 adapters, like the Carista, are BLE; SPP capability is built into
BLE.

This is good information that venerable Torque OBDII app isn't on iOS, as
many of us have both platforms, Steve Scharf included (who is also a
long-time a.h.r poster).

And this is "good information" because... ...why?

There are LOTS of Bluetooth OBD adapters that work with iOS OBD apps.

I know this...

...because I have one:

<https://www.obdlink.com/products/obdlink-cx/>

And I use it with their own software:

<https://www.obdlink.com/obd-apps/obdlink-app/>

But in case you think that's magic because it's their own app, I also
use this:

<https://bimmercode.app>

(Hmmmmmmm... ...now WHY could I possibly need "BIMMERCODE"...

...if I don't have a BMW? 😎)

And from it's pages on compatibility:

<https://bimmercode.app/adapters/?series=e>

Note all the Bluetooth OBD adapters.

😉

Post by Wally J
I've pretty much given up on iOS mainly because there are thousands upon
thousands of useful things it can't do that every other platform does (an
example is the Tor Browser, but there are thousands of things it can't do).

This certainly isn't one of them.

Post by Wally J
Still, I noticed that the Torque Lite app does Wi-Fi, so if the ELM327
OBDII adapter can do Wi-Fi, maybe the Bluetooth SPP might not matter?

The OBDLinkCX I use doesn't HAVE WiFi.

Post by Wally J
Dunno.
Looking it up briefly, there are caveats galore for these iOS apps but a
lot of the reviews seem to be focused on Wi-Fi and not so much Bluetooth.
*How To Setup ELM327 WiFi OBD II Scanner With iPhone (iOS)*
<https://www.fueleconomysolutions.com.au/page/obd-ii-applications-guide/how-to-setup-elm327-wifi-obd-ii-scanner-with-iphon/>

You never look beyond the source that reinforces your preconceived notion...

...do you?

Post by Wally J
Even though the iOS platform is crippled by Apple such that it can't do the
thousands upon thousands of useful things, it seems people "do" finally
(after careful purchasing anyway) get iOS to work with ELM327 OBD devices.
*What iPhone/iPad app works best with ELM327 Bluetooth OBD-II reader?*
<https://mechanics.stackexchange.com/questions/346/what-iphone-ipad-app-works-best-with-elm327-bluetooth-obd-ii-reader>

They don't "get" them to work.

They just buy the adapter and the appropriate app...

...and it works.

Post by Wally J
Apparently the reason is Apple uses a highly non-standard hardware
implementation, which (surprise!) you have to purchase from Apple
if you're an OBDII device manufacturer, which not only makes the Apple
product (as always) the most expensive to do even the simplest of things,
but also extremely non standard (I'm shocked. Shocked I say).

Supposition unsupported by any facts.

Post by Wally J
Even though I myself have people in my family (mostly the non-technical
girls whom Apple markets the most to anyway), I've given up since time and
again iOS can't do what every other platform easily does. (Sigh).

And yet, iOS CAN easily do this...

...so perhaps you're the one with the problem.

😜

[Wally J]

And I ended up with IOS when ONLY IOS supported my requirements -8
years ago - and the IOS implementation of both my hearing aids and my
(non-apple) smart watch is still head and shoulders ahead of the"Droid
version (which my brother uses)

Many years ago, when my company in the Silicon Valley used on the Mac
whatever the app was that PowerPoint replaced, I set up SunOS (later
Solaris) and Windows (probably Windows 95 at the time) with the Mac (I
don't remember which one but I have two black canvas Apple "travel bags"
(which are as large as a vertical suitcase tower) - and that interoperable
Windows:Linux:Mac "integration" was my "IT" introduction to the strange
things that Apple does - which no other consumer OS would think of doing.

I had to use Apple's Columbia AppleTalk protocol (aka "cap") to interface
with Windows Samba (I think it would be more properly called CIFs or SMB)
with the Linux implementation of Samba (which was a joy to set up by way of
comparison). And it worked. At least it worked as well as it could work.
(This is well before "the web" existed - of course.)

*The problem was _always_ the Apple users.*

First off, they created (unbeknownst to themselves) a "resource fork" and a
"data fork" for their Microsoft Office documents, but secondly they never
could get the handle on the fact that a file could be accessed by different
users and therefore a bit of data management (often called DM) had to be
exercised.

Of course, there were the UNIX CR/LF issues to deal with also. :)

I have always (I've been in the IT world for 30+ years) been an Apple
Sceptic - but other than the google search engine I've had little or
no use for any Google product - particularly Android and Chrome.

While I own plenty of iOS devices, as do many in my family (usually the
least technical for reasons I won't go into at the moment but which the
Apple advertising caters to and the marketing analysis agrees with), my
first introduction to the hell that is Apple was when I bought iPods.

I still have them - where they were a world easier to use in the hand than
the Panasonic mp3 players ever were - where a single thumb controlled
everything, which is just great. Steve Jobs at his finest in the iPod.

However...

I took that iPod home from Costco, and lo and behold the damn thing doesn't
work unless you create a walled-garden account on it - which - of course -
required walled-garden bloatware - which - let's be clear - is pure
garbage.

Luckily, once you've initialized an iPod using Windows iTunes bloatware,
<https://duckduckgo.com/?hps=1&q=itunes+bloatware>
you don't need the iTunes bloatware ever again (or so you would think).

Now it's time to put all your songs onto that iPod. How do you do it?
Well, you install Sharepod, that's how.

It works perfectly. And still does, by the way, becasue you literally put
the SharePod executable ON THE iPod and it works off of the iPod itself!

How great it that!
a. You plug in the iPod to Windows (without iTunes bloatware involved)
b. You see all your songs in a spreadsheet-like drag-n-drop GUI
c. You slide songs on or off the iPod on or off the PC
What could be easier, right?

Now install iTunes.
Watch what happens.

<Loading Image...> iTunes removes functionality

[Alan]

Post by Wally J

And I ended up with IOS when ONLY IOS supported my requirements -8
years ago - and the IOS implementation of both my hearing aids and my
(non-apple) smart watch is still head and shoulders ahead of the"Droid
version (which my brother uses)

Many years ago, when my company in the Silicon Valley used on the Mac
whatever the app was that PowerPoint replaced, I set up SunOS (later
Solaris) and Windows (probably Windows 95 at the time) with the Mac (I
don't remember which one but I have two black canvas Apple "travel bags"
(which are as large as a vertical suitcase tower) - and that interoperable
Windows:Linux:Mac "integration" was my "IT" introduction to the strange
things that Apple does - which no other consumer OS would think of doing.
I had to use Apple's Columbia AppleTalk protocol (aka "cap") to interface

Columbia AppleTalk Protocol was not Apple's. Apple did not own it.

It was a created by Columbia University to implement the AppleTalk
protocol (which WAS Apple's) for Unix systems.

Post by Wally J
with Windows Samba (I think it would be more properly called CIFs or SMB)
with the Linux implementation of Samba (which was a joy to set up by way of
comparison). And it worked. At least it worked as well as it could work.
(This is well before "the web" existed - of course.)

"Samba" was never part of Windows. Samba was an implementation of
Windows Server Message Block protocol for Linux.

So you claiming that the "Linux implementation of Samba" was a thing
separate from Samba just makes you look ignorant.

Post by Wally J
*The problem was _always_ the Apple users.*
First off, they created (unbeknownst to themselves) a "resource fork" and a
"data fork" for their Microsoft Office documents, but secondly they never
could get the handle on the fact that a file could be accessed by different
users and therefore a bit of data management (often called DM) had to be
exercised.

Except that the resource fork was complete unneeded in documents and was
basically only useful for software components.

And Apple had filesharing starting in 1992, and Apple certainly
understood that files could be accessed by multiple users.

Post by Wally J
Of course, there were the UNIX CR/LF issues to deal with also. :)

I have always (I've been in the IT world for 30+ years) been an Apple
Sceptic - but other than the google search engine I've had little or
no use for any Google product - particularly Android and Chrome.

While I own plenty of iOS devices, as do many in my family (usually the
least technical for reasons I won't go into at the moment but which the
Apple advertising caters to and the marketing analysis agrees with), my
first introduction to the hell that is Apple was when I bought iPods.
I still have them - where they were a world easier to use in the hand than
the Panasonic mp3 players ever were - where a single thumb controlled
everything, which is just great. Steve Jobs at his finest in the iPod.
However...
I took that iPod home from Costco, and lo and behold the damn thing doesn't
work unless you create a walled-garden account on it - which - of course -
required walled-garden bloatware - which - let's be clear - is pure
garbage.

Sorry, but when iPods existed, you definitely didn't need an AppleID.

Post by Wally J
Luckily, once you've initialized an iPod using Windows iTunes bloatware,
<https://duckduckgo.com/?hps=1&q=itunes+bloatware>
you don't need the iTunes bloatware ever again (or so you would think).

What made iTunes "bloatware"?

Post by Wally J
Now it's time to put all your songs onto that iPod. How do you do it?
Well, you install Sharepod, that's how.

Or just use iTunes...

Post by Wally J
It works perfectly. And still does, by the way, becasue you literally put
the SharePod executable ON THE iPod and it works off of the iPod itself!

Let's see how that process worked.

Post by Wally J
How great it that!
a. You plug in the iPod to Windows (without iTunes bloatware involved)
b. You see all your songs in a spreadsheet-like drag-n-drop GUI
c. You slide songs on or off the iPod on or off the PC
What could be easier, right?
Now install iTunes.
Watch what happens.
<https://i.postimg.cc/fRtZFGSt/sharepod01.jpg> iTunes removes functionality

Sorry, but your pic doesn't support your claim.

Repeating an assertion as support doesn't do anything.

[Roger Mills]

Post by Wally J

Post by sms

Post by Roger Mills
The REAL ones (LITE and PRO) are the ones by Ian Hawkins.

Also, unless things have changed, Torque is not available for iOS. The
original issue was the the Bluetooth ELM327 adapters use the Bluetooth
Serial Port Profile (SPP) which Apple forgot to include on iOS
<https://support.apple.com/en-us/102842> so ELM327 adapters to use with
iOS were Wi-Fi and were less common and more expensive. A few newer
ELM327 adapters, like the Carista, are BLE; SPP capability is built into
BLE.

This is good information that venerable Torque OBDII app isn't on iOS, as
many of us have both platforms, Steve Scharf included (who is also a
long-time a.h.r poster).

Since you were asking about *Android* OBDII software, the issue of
whether or not it works on Apple devices is completely irrelevant

[Wally J]

Post by Roger Mills
Since you were asking about *Android* OBDII software, the issue of
whether or not it works on Apple devices is completely irrelevant

True. It was Steve (as I recall) who brought up iOS devices, not me.
I knew that all iOS devices are crippled by Apple from the start.

However I did duly respond to what Steve brought up, so I apologize.
If you want to get something done, Android is always the way to go.

I've nixed a few of the Android apps in the original list already, mostly
for requiring a login account (what for?) but also for language issues.

An OBDII app is worthless (to me anyway) if it doesn't support (almost) all
ELM327 devices and bluetooth protocols as there's no need for having to
deal with proprietary anything and whatever bluetooth that Android supports
is what EVERY OBDII app should support (it's fine if the OBDII device
additionally has Wi-Fi but if a setup requires Wi-Fi devices, it's garbage, IMHO).

Some even "seem" to require their own ELM327 OBD brand, which is crazy.

The OBDII setup should just work with just about everything out there.
Anything else is crippled from the start.

Moving forward, so that everyone always benefits from every action, I ran a
few tests - which require me to be near the car & away from the PC, so
they're not finished yet - but here is the preliminary test result...

1 requires account (strike 1, you're out)
*ULTRA OBD OBD2 CAR SCANNER ELM* by XAS Applications
free,adfree,gsf?,rated 4.4 stars in 320 reviews with 10K+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.applications.xas.obdultra>

2 French (strike 1, you're out)
*OBD Diag & Scan* by clickshopping.fr
free,adfree,gsf?,rated 4.2 stars in 382 reviews with 50K+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.clickshopping.obddiagscan>

3 *Smart Control OBD2 Scanner ELM* by SmartApps4Me
free,adfree,gsf?,rated 3.9 stars in 2.94K reviews with 100K+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=it.smartapps4me.smartcontrol>

4 wants precise location
*ELM OBD Terminal* by CHINH LUONG QUOC
free,adfree,gsf?,inappfree,rated 3.6 stars in 25 reviews with 5K+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.chinhlqtb.elm327.obd2.terminal>

5 *alOBD Scanner* by Alexandre Beloussov
free,adfree,gsf?,inappfree,rated 3.5 stars in 130 reviews with 50K+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.obd2>

6 *alOBD Terminal* by Alexandre Beloussov
free,adfree,gsf?,inappfree,rated 3.1 stars in 72 reviews with 10K+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.obd2.research>

7 *CCY OBD MOBILE - for ELM327 an* by CCY - DIAGNOSTIC INTERFACES
free,adfree,gsf?,inappfree,rated no stars with 5K+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=pl.ccy.ccyobdmobile>

8 wantsprecise location
*X-ELM* by v-checker
free,adfree,gsf?,inappfree,rated no stars with 100+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.vchecker.x_elm>

9 Crashes
*Dashboard Racing 695* by Laurent CASSIER
free,adfree,gsf?,inappfree,rated 5.0 stars in 77 reviews with 10K+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.konart.obd.dashboardRacing>

10 blue in some language not English
*Escáner coche ELM OBD2 técnico* by Autoxuga Movil, SL
free,adfree,gsf?,inappfree,rated no stars with 1+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.autoxuga.diagnosisobd>

11 red in some language not English and requires login/passwd
*Escáner coche ELM OBD Autoxuga* by Autoxuga Movil, SL
free,adfree,gsf?,inappfree,rated no stars with 500+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.autoxuga.obd>

12 May only work with their device (dunno yet)
*Infocar Connect - Diagnostics* by Infocar Connect AB
free,adfree,gsf?,inappfree,rated no stars with 10K+ Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=se.infocar.icardtc>

13. Worked fine in the one test that I used it for but it has ads.
*Torque Lite (OBD2 & Car)* by Ian Hawkins, Contains ads
free,has ads,req gsf,rated 3.6star in 50.5K reviews w/ 10M+Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.prowl.torquescan>

As always, if you have information that helps everyone, please add value.

[Alan]

Post by Wally J

Post by Roger Mills
Since you were asking about *Android* OBDII software, the issue of
whether or not it works on Apple devices is completely irrelevant

True. It was Steve (as I recall) who brought up iOS devices, not me.
I knew that all iOS devices are crippled by Apple from the start.

Steve hasn't posted in this thread at all that I can see.

Post by Wally J
However I did duly respond to what Steve brought up, so I apologize.
If you want to get something done, Android is always the way to go.

Show the posting id of the post and a quote.

Post by Wally J
I've nixed a few of the Android apps in the original list already, mostly
for requiring a login account (what for?) but also for language issues.
An OBDII app is worthless (to me anyway) if it doesn't support (almost) all
ELM327 devices and bluetooth protocols as there's no need for having to
deal with proprietary anything and whatever bluetooth that Android supports
is what EVERY OBDII app should support (it's fine if the OBDII device
additionally has Wi-Fi but if a setup requires Wi-Fi devices, it's garbage, IMHO).
Some even "seem" to require their own ELM327 OBD brand, which is crazy.
The OBDII setup should just work with just about everything out there.
Anything else is crippled from the start.
Moving forward, so that everyone always benefits from every action, I ran a
few tests - which require me to be near the car & away from the PC, so
they're not finished yet - but here is the preliminary test result...
1 requires account (strike 1, you're out)

Because making an anonymous account ID is SO hard...

<snip>

[Alan]

Post by Roger Mills

Post by Wally J

Post by sms

Post by Roger Mills
The REAL ones (LITE and PRO) are the ones by Ian Hawkins.

Also, unless things have changed, Torque is not available for iOS. The
original issue was the the Bluetooth ELM327 adapters use the Bluetooth
Serial Port Profile (SPP) which Apple forgot to include on iOS
<https://support.apple.com/en-us/102842> so ELM327 adapters to use with
iOS were Wi-Fi and were less common and more expensive. A few newer
ELM327 adapters, like the Carista, are BLE; SPP capability is built into
BLE.

This is good information that venerable Torque OBDII app isn't on iOS, as
many of us  have both platforms, Steve Scharf included (who is also a
long-time a.h.r poster).

Since you were asking about *Android* OBDII software, the issue of
whether or not it works on Apple devices is completely irrelevant

But, but...

...how could Arlen survive if he couldn't make erroneous claims about
what will and what won't work on Apple devices?

;-)

[sms]

On 12/22/2023 6:55 AM, Roger Mills wrote:

<snip>

Post by Roger Mills
I've used Torque for several years - although I don't need to use it
very often. The Lite version is free but may have ads (can't remember) -
but the Pro version only costs peanuts - currently just under 5 US dollars.

I've used Torque Pro for many years. Well worth the cost.

I've found that the best ELM327 adapter is the one from Carista. The
lower cost ones from Aliexpress often have connection issues.

Carista also sells vehicle-specific software, for some makes, that goes
beyond the generic OBD-II capabilities and that lets you program a bunch
of features of the vehicle. But I've never purchased that software.

Before I go for a smog check I always check that all the self-tests on
the vehicle are complete. On one of my vehicles that I don't drive a lot
I disconnect the battery when not in use so the self-tests all need to
complete before I go for a smog check.

[Wally J]

Post by sms

Post by Roger Mills
I've used Torque for several years - although I don't need to use it
very often. The Lite version is free but may have ads (can't remember) -
but the Pro version only costs peanuts - currently just under 5 US dollars.

I've used Torque Pro for many years. Well worth the cost.

Understandably, whether or not an app is "well worth the cost" is dependent
on a few things, like your approach to privacy where it's sort of like
saying I installed drilled & slotted rotors and it's well worth the cost -
point being it's in the eye of the beholder... but still - I ran a few
searches and that's the app that comes up most it seems (along with the
freebie Torque Lite, even though the product is relatively poorly rated on
the Google Play Store (3.6 and 4.1) for some reason that I didn't explore).

*Torque Lite (OBD2 & Car)* by Ian Hawkins, Contains ads
free,has ads,req gsf,rated 3.6star in 50.5K reviews w/ 10M+Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.prowl.torquescan>

*Torque Pro (OBD 2 & Car)* by Ian Hawkins, $5 payware
$5,noads,req gsf,rated 4.1star in 76.4K reviews w/ 1M+Downloads
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.prowl.torque>

Post by sms
I've found that the best ELM327 adapter is the one from Carista. The
lower cost ones from Aliexpress often have connection issues.

That name brand ELM327 reader is probably good to have as there's no way of
telling just by looking at the thing whether it works well or not.

Post by sms
Carista also sells vehicle-specific software, for some makes, that goes
beyond the generic OBD-II capabilities and that lets you program a bunch
of features of the vehicle. But I've never purchased that software.

For my bimmer I have INPA, EDIABAS, NCSExpert, NCS Dummies, DIS/GT1,
EasyDIS, & Progman software, which runs off the Windows XP PC. :)

Oddly enough though, I find the plug in OBDII readers easiest to use.

Post by sms
Before I go for a smog check I always check that all the self-tests on
the vehicle are complete. On one of my vehicles that I don't drive a lot
I disconnect the battery when not in use so the self-tests all need to
complete before I go for a smog check.

Steve lives in Cupertino where three types of smog checks are required on
cars older than about 7 or 8 years (as I recall), one of which is an EVAP
test on vehicles older than 1995 where it helps to fill your gas tank (as
they have to fill it with the "blue" gas - which I think is "argon").

The second type is for vehicles older than 2000, which require running on
the dynamometer and the third type is 2000 and newer which just requires an
OBDII test off the cockpit port under the dash.

What Steve is referring to as a "self test", I'm not sure what he means,
but depending on the year, you're allowed a certain small number of
specific readiness monitors (often called "I/M") to be unset so it's always
best to drive the car for the requisite "drive cycle" to set the monitors.

They will instantly fail a vehicle if you've cleared the codes such that
all the readiness monitors are unset - so - as Steve noted, it's important
to check the OBDII before taking it to the shop for the smog testing.

I know the drive cycle for my bimmer inside and out where a LOT of people
do NOT understand the drive cycle - much like they don't understand how an
operating system is updated, as they guess that they're all the same.

They're not.

Every brand has their own very specific drive cycle, where while some can
be done in about 11 miles in toto (i.e., the original LA freeway circuit),
most take about fifty or so miles and two days to complete (as one test is
from a stone-cold start for example, as the secondary air pump has to be
operated).

There are times when I've had problems with the readiness monitors such
that it takes over a hundred miles to finally set them - as the details get
complicated in terms of what other sensors in the vehicle have to be (e.g.,
even the altitude or the coolant temperature can prevent self tests).

I didn't finish testing the dozen free ad free apps yet, but I did install
Torque Lite which hasn't shown ads yet but I'm sure it will soon. Most of
the dozen apps were ditched because they only get one strike & they're out.