As summer approaches, I eagerly look forward to the chance to take a nice scenic road trip, especially when it offers the opportunity for amazing photography. Since I lease my vehicles, I prefer to use an older one that I own or one that a friend owns so that mileage is not an issue.
I have been in situations before when I was enjoying a road trip, and right in the middle of the excitement, the car decided to break down and to “throw a wrench” in my plans. While some breakdowns cannot be avoided, there are others that can be if we are aware of the problem ahead of time or get a discernible warning.
The PLX Devices Kiwi 3 offers a convenient and relatively inexpensive way of knowing about some of the meaningful car issues in advance. It is a Bluetooth OBD2 OBDII Diagnostic Scan Tool for Android, Apple, and Windows Mobile. It promises to provide us with real-time data, performance meters, fuel efficiency info, catalytic converter temperature, coolant temperature and lots more information, all via this small and compact device, and an app for our smart devices. It claims to be “compatible with all cars and consumer trucks built and sold in the United States after January 1, 1996”, and to “support the 3rd party apps Torque, Harry’s Lap Timer, DashCommand, OBD Car Doctor, OBD Auto Doctor, Carista, and Shift OBD (Download on iTunes and Google Play).”
If you would like to purchase the PLX Devices Kiwi 3 Bluetooth OBD2 OBDII Diagnostic Scan Tool, you can pick one up on Amazon for $99.95.
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That’s a little spendy for a Bluetooth OBDII dongle. Can you go into more detail on what makes it better than cheaper offerings like the OBDLink MX ,etc.
Hi Ray,
This is just a news story that serves to bring attention to a product that is available for purchase. Since it is not a review, it is not an item that I have tested. I do not have any additional information on it, but maybe the manufacturer’s website can provide more details. Here is the link:
https://www.plxdevices.com/Kiwi-3-OBD-Car-to-Smartphone-Connection-p/897346002832.htm
I notice that many people think every article on The Gadgeteer is a review, when in actuality it is maybe 50:50 news:review. Real reviews have “review” in the title. Maybe you could have “news story” or something like that in the title for non-reviews.
Yes, the issue of what is news and what is a review comes up semi-frequently. I’m toying with the idea of putting labels at the end of the titles like [News], [Review], [Article], [Deal], etc. I just think that will look ugly. Especially in google search results.
So this is a paid “news” advertisement where the writer has no knowledge of what the product is or actually does. Thanks. Btw, I own one and like mine.
Hi Chris, No this was NOT a paid advertisement. It was either a product that Julian found while surfing around for news ideas or it was a news idea that I sent to him from an email I received from a PR rep. We post news in between our reviews. Consider them as interesting filler posts. Any paid posts that we publish (they are rare), have a disclaimer at the beginning of the post to let people know.
Kiwi 3 by PLX is a great and easy to use item. I’ve had mine for over a year! I highly recommend it!
Sensors can go at anytime, but there is nothing like preventive maintenance. Before you take a road trip you have to first consider the needs of the vehicle along with your needs. You don’t start any road trip on “will I get there street”. You as the driver/ owner/leaser, want to know that you will end up on ” destination road”. So always take care of the vehicle so it will take care of you.