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Best OBD car apps for Android: turn your phone into a black box

Best OBD car apps for Android: turn your phone into a black box

Posted: 05 Feb 2013, 04:52, by Daniel P.

Categories: Android Android Apps Apps Picks Picks

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Best OBD car apps for Android: turn your phone into a black box

Even if you are not a car geek, a simple $20-$25 Bluetooth OBD2 adapter off of Amazon or eBay can go a long way spotting car troubles and avoiding the "mechanic's premium" that blows a problem out of proportion to gauge a bit more money for the repair.

It also goes a great length towards clearing accumulated errors that fire up the engine check light and might kick your motor or transmission in security mode at the least suitable time.

Or you could simply want to observe your car's behavior and stats in a little more detail in real time, down to "suspicious fuel trims increase" or "MPG without idling/jams". You can also overlay this info on real time video recording of your trip tagged with GPS data to serve as proof in case of an accident. How do you read the sensor data coming from the OBD port in your vehicle on the cheap, though?

Easy, just get a decent Bluetooth adapter for your OBD port, and load your Android phone with an app that lets you follow your car's vitals in real time, clean errors, record accidents and diagnose problems. We've rounded up a few of the best OBD apps for you below.

Best OBD car apps for Android Fullscreen

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1. rallyguy posted on 05 Feb 2013, 06:19 0 0

Good article. I'm not complaining, but it would of been nice if you included a rough estimate of what the OBD adapter would cost. Now I have to go to a website to see if the price is even something to consider.

2. Daniel.P posted on 05 Feb 2013, 06:24 0 0

Included, thanks :)

3. dsmboost posted on 05 Feb 2013, 11:22 0 0

Nice, I had no idea this existed. I just got myself an obd2 scanner for 20 bucks. =D

4. devonblue4u posted on 05 Feb 2013, 13:49 0 0

19 bucks free shipping on ebay. Been using Torque for 2 years now, great app!

5. robwest posted on 06 Feb 2013, 09:13 0 0

Thanks for the nice article but I think you are missing one of the best OBDII apps. Have you tried OBDAutoDoctor? I think it has the most professional user interface of them all.

8. OBD2MIKE posted on 11 Mar 2013, 10:57 0 0

Great, an OBD2 adapter for $20 is really cheap. If you already have an OBD2 adapter, why not try some other fun OBD2 apps...
I can recommend SoundRacer OBDII Engine Sounds at Google Play. It will make you smile.

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Samsung Galaxy S4
- Announced: 14 Mar 2013
- OS: Android 4.2.2
- Hardware: Quad core, 1900 MHz, Krait 300, 2048 MB RAM
- Display: 5.0 inches, 1080 x 1920 pixels, Capacitive Touchscreen
- Camera 13 megapixels, 1920x1080 (1080p HD) video
- Technology: GSM (850 900 1800 1900)
- Data: LTE Cat3 Downlink 100 Mbit/s LTE Cat3/4 Uplink 50 Mbit/s HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s HSUPA 5.76 Mbit/s UMTS EDGE GPRS
Apple iPhone 5
- Announced: 12 Sep 2012
- OS: iOS
- Hardware: Dual core, 1300 MHz, Apple Swift, 1016 MB RAM
- Display: 4.0 inches, 640 x 1136 pixels, Capacitive Touchscreen
- Camera 8 megapixels, 1920x1080 (1080p HD) video
- Technology: GSM (850 900 1800 1900), CDMA (800 1700/2100 1900)
- Data: LTE Cat3 Downlink 100 Mbit/s HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s UMTS EDGE GPRS EV-DO Rev.A EV-DO Rev.B
Samsung GALAXY Note II
- Announced: 29 Aug 2012
- OS: Android 4.1.2 4.1.1
- Hardware: Quad core, 1600 MHz, ARM Cortex-A9, 2048 MB RAM
- Display: 5.5 inches, 720 x 1280 pixels, Capacitive Touchscreen
- Camera 8 megapixels, 1920x1080 (1080p HD) video
- Battery: 35 hours of Talk Time, 980 hours of Stand-by
- Technology: GSM (850 900 1800 1900)
- Data: LTE Cat3 Downlink 100 Mbit/s LTE Cat3/4 Uplink 50 Mbit/s HSDPA+ (4G) 21.1 Mbit/s HSUPA 5.76 Mbit/s UMTS EDGE GPRS
HTC One
- Announced: 19 Feb 2013
- OS: Android 4.1.2
- Hardware: Quad core, 1700 MHz, Krait 300, 2048 MB RAM
- Display: 4.7 inches, 1080 x 1920 pixels, Capacitive Touchscreen
- Camera 4 megapixels, 1920x1080 (1080p HD) video
- Technology: GSM (850 900 1800 1900), CDMA (800 1900)
- Data: LTE HSPA (unspecified) UMTS EDGE GPRS
Sony Xperia Z
- Announced: 07 Jan 2013
- OS: Android 4.1.2
- Hardware: Quad core, 1500 MHz, Krait, 2048 MB RAM
- Display: 5.0 inches, 1080 x 1920 pixels, Capacitive Touchscreen
- Camera 13.1 megapixels, 1920x1080 (1080p HD) video
- Battery: 11 hours of Talk Time, 550 hours of Stand-by
- Technology: GSM (850 900 1800 1900)
- Data: LTE Cat3 Downlink 100 Mbit/s LTE Cat3/4 Uplink 50 Mbit/s HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s HSUPA 5.76 Mbit/s UMTS EDGE GPRS
Google Nexus 4
- Announced: 29 Oct 2012
- OS: Android 4.2.2 4.2.1 4.2
- Hardware: Quad core, 1500 MHz, Krait, 2048 MB RAM
- Display: 4.7 inches, 768 x 1280 pixels, Capacitive Touchscreen
- Camera 8 megapixels, 1920x1080 (1080p HD) video
- Battery: 15.3 hours of Talk Time, 390 hours of Stand-by
- Technology: GSM (850 900 1800 1900)
- Data: HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s HSUPA 5.76 Mbit/s UMTS EDGE GPRS
LG Optimus G
- Announced: 28 Aug 2012
- OS: Android 4.1.2 4.0.4
- Hardware: Quad core, 1500 MHz, Krait, 2048 MB RAM
- Display: 4.7 inches, 768 x 1280 pixels, Capacitive Touchscreen
- Camera 13 megapixels, 1920x1080 (1080p HD) video
- Battery: 15 hours of Talk Time, 335 hours of Stand-by
- Technology: GSM (850 900 1800 1900)
- Data: LTE HSPA (unspecified) UMTS EDGE GPRS
Nokia Lumia 920
- Announced: 05 Sep 2012
- OS: Windows Phone 8
- Hardware: Dual core, 1500 MHz, Krait, 1024 MB RAM
- Display: 4.5 inches, 768 x 1280 pixels, Capacitive Touchscreen
- Camera 8.7 megapixels, 1920x1080 (1080p HD) video
- Battery: 17 hours of Talk Time, 400 hours of Stand-by
- Technology: GSM (850 900 1800 1900)
- Data: LTE Cat3 Downlink 100 Mbit/s LTE Cat3/4 Uplink 50 Mbit/s HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s HSUPA 5.76 Mbit/s UMTS EDGE GPRS

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Best OBD car apps for Android: turn your phone into a black box

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6 Comments Follow Following

1. rallyguy posted on 05 Feb 2013, 06:19 0 0

2. Daniel.P posted on 05 Feb 2013, 06:24 0 0

3. dsmboost posted on 05 Feb 2013, 11:22 0 0

4. devonblue4u posted on 05 Feb 2013, 13:49 0 0

5. robwest posted on 06 Feb 2013, 09:13 0 0

8. OBD2MIKE posted on 11 Mar 2013, 10:57 0 0

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