Software reviews: Apps to use in - And on - Your car

Some of the apps that can be used effectively in cars are discussed. One of the best apps is Torque (OBD2 & Car), available for Android in Lite and Pro forms. Lite is an older version and is mainly useful to verify that the phone and adapter work together, while Torque Pro is considerably more capable. The app gives users a very customizable dashboard upon which he can place dials or graphs for any sensor data that the OBD2 adapter can pull from the engine control unit (ECU). Torque Pro can upload sensor plus GPS data to a webserver . Torque Pro can show and reset all the fault and trouble codes stored in the ECU. These are the things that result in that frighteningly uninformative warning light on the dash, and normally require a visit to a suitably-equipped garage where a mechanic plugs in a special handheld computer. BlaBlaCar enables spare seats and look up rides, then discuss the details via instant messaging, the BlaBlaCar app includes an online payments scheme that takes away all the hitcher's embarrassment at wondering how much petrol money to offer the driver. Faxi (short for 'Friends as a taxi') is an app has quite a few corporate hosts who can provide incentives, such as dedicated or cheap parking spaces, and use the system to verify that car-pooling really did take place. The app is also a journey planner, offering healthier alternatives such as cycling and walking routes, but its main role is to link users to the other members of their pool. Fuelio can sync user data to cloud storage, and it hooks into Google Maps to show the nearest petrol stations and their fuel prices. It also offers both time and mileage-based reminders for the likes of servicing, and allows to track costs such as parking, maintenance and insurance. These can be combined with mileage costs to get total monthly running costs.