I purchased this particular ELM327 interface which arrived quickly and the packaging was fine. I plugged it into the car and noticed the diagnostic lights were positioned against the underside of the dash. The device slowly linked up to Torque (Android phone app), and would update very slowly, or freeze up intermittently.
I bought another scanner, only this time it was labeled Soliport ELM 327, and it works flawless.
A few differences I should point out between the two units. I will refer to the problematic scanner as A and the good, working one as B.
[A] has a nub on the back end of the case, where [B] is flat
The cut-out notch/tab for the ODBII interface on [B] is on the same side as the label and diagnostic lights
The product image for [B] showed the cut-out notch/tab being on the same side as the label and diagnostic lights
[B] syncs up quickly and provides almost instant stats (there is about a fraction of a second delay which was to be expected)
The mini-CD that comes with [B], arrived in a mini jewel case, while the mini-CD that came with [A] was in a paper sleeve
When linked via Bluetooth, [A] displayed as CBT, while [B] displayed as OBDII
In conclusion, I am not sure if the first model I purchased was a knockoff or just a different version. Your best bet I think is to search for the "Soliport" version of this device. Also, ensure that your purchase is fully covered under Amazon's return policy, as you stand a chance of receiving the faulty version.
I purchased this product knowing that it might not be the best Bluetooth OBDII interface on the market. I use it to interface with Torque on a Motorola Droid.
The product is housed in hard plastic and seems very well put together. It does not seem prone to breakage and easily survives drops of five feet to solid pavement with minimal cosmetic damage.
As for connectivity I have not experienced any interruption while driving with the phone fixed to the center console (approx. distance from phone to device no more than one meter).
I have not attempted to use the software that came with the device. In fact, I'm fairly sure that I've thrown it away. Torque is well worth the extra few dollars and having logs on hand in the phone that I use day to day is useful.
I've used this product to read codes for several family members although this service is provided for free by many automotive supply outlets. Combined with an iphone or android based phone and good software it provides data readouts which in my opinion makes it well worth the price. It's also nice to know that with the same software one can increase gas mileage by improving driving efficiency.
Overall I rated this product as five stars because it is inexpensive when compared to other devices and serves it's function admirably.
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So far I've used this with my laptop and iPhone on my '04 Chevy Cavalier and '11 Scion xD. Works quickly and easily with my laptop, but getting it to work my my iPhone 4 took some toying with. Simple guide is below: (My iPhone is a 4 running iOS 5.0.1 and jailbroken with redsn0w)
LEAVE THE IPHONES DEFAULT BLUETOOTH OFF DURING THIS ENTIRE PROCESS!!!!!
If you'd like this to work on your iPhone, you'll need to jailbreak it, and use the jailbreak to install an app called roqyBT4, along with its OBDII extension called roqyOBD4. After this, go plug the ELM into your car and move the ignition to the "on" position and open roqyBT4. Choose the configuration tab, check the OBDkey option, and enter 1234 for the device pin code, and turn on automatic pairing. Then back out of the config screen, turn bluetooth on from inside roqybt4, and when your ELM pops up (mine is shown just as a device named "OBDII"), select it. Give roqyBT4 a few seconds to sync with the device, but once its done you will never have to do this portion again! It should show you a screen with a IP address and port on it. Remember these numbers! Once roqyBT4 has connected to the device, go ahead and exit roqyBT4.
Now its time for DashCommand, which you can purchase from the Apple App Store. go ahead and open up dash command and use the little arrow in the bottom right corner to scroll over to the settings page. Inside of settings, I recommend turning fullscreen mode off, because this allows you to see the iPhones status bar, which is important in the later steps to hook up the ELM to the iPhone. Now scroll down to the line that says OBDII data port, and click it. Once in there, select Custom IP, and enter 127.0.0.1 (or your Ip if it was different) for the IP and 35000 (same deal here) for the port. Back out of the data port page to the main DashCommand page, and close the app. Double click your home button, and clear DashCommand out of your task switcher. Now open dash command back up, and you'll notice on your statusbar that your bluetooth will kick on-off-on again, and then the symbol should turn blue after a few seconds of searching and automatically connecting to your ELM. (Remember that automatic pairing you turned on earlier in roqybt4?) Once you see the bluetooth symbol on your statusbar turn blue, go ahead and hit connect inside of the DashCommand app. It may take a few tries (typically it takes me two) but eventually your phone will start reading the information off of the ELM.
Things to check if this is not working-
-check the custom ip and port inside of roqybt4. Everyone I've talked too had those numbers, but it is possible they may change. The numbers inside of roqyBT4 are the ones that you need to give to DashCommand, so if your numbers inside of roqyBT4 are something other than what is mentioned above, then use your numbers from roqyBT4.
-Make sure your ELM has power and data! Most cars require the key to be in the "ON/RUN" position to power the ECU and therefore make the ELM work, not "Accessory/ACC". If this still doesn't work, try starting the car. for example, my Chevy will power the ELM with no key in at all, but the data link is not established until I move the key to the "Run" position.
Bottom line, this is a great product, the only issue I have with it is the Update rate when connected to an iPhone or Droid. It has about a 5-7 second delay when hooked up to those devices. When connected to my laptop however, it has a few millisecond delay.
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I have purchased and used this bluetooth device. I have successfully paired it to my Nokia N95 phone, and used it in the following vehicles... 2001 Audi A6, 2007 Toyota 4Runner, 2008 Toyota Rav4. It allows me to capture and/or see data while driving, and even reset codes while driving. You can plug it in and leave it in place to utilize whenever you feel the need, just take out your phone and start the app. I haven't found any significant battery drainage even after parking for 2 weeks during a trip out of town. The device is well built, solid, and worth the money. The great thing about using with a smart phone is that one can utilize multiple apps to access this data, I currently use Automobile , ODBScope , and RaceChrono . Small enough to carry in your pocket and, of course, you can plug it into a friends car and monitor/reset their engine stats during a trip.
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I read all the reviews about how this might not work being so cheap in price. I decided to take the chance and buy it because Amazon has a great return policy. I have a 2000 Honda Accord. I took it out of the box plugged it in and synced it up with my HTC Evo bluetooth with the torque app. Everything seemed to work ok giving me instant read outs of temp, MPG, timings, etc. I am recommending this to all my friends.
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This Sony CR1220 button battery tested "fully charged" and worked as intended in my old Canon digital camera. I was unable to find a local store that carried this size battery and fortunately Amazon came through at a lower cost than mail ordering from Radio Shack.
