Skip to main content

The CarMD Mobile handheld is a portable doctor for your car

CarMD
CarMD
Most engine code readers are exceptional at solving exactly half of your problems. By and large, the products on the market today can read diagnostic trouble codes well, but can’t translate the information into a tangible issue that can be identified and repaired. To generate a detailed report, most devices must be plugged into a computer.

CarMD’s first mobile product looks to bundle all those functions in one. The company has years of experience producing its Vehicle Health System diagnostic tool as well as providing answers online, but this is its first offering that can scan, diagnose, and analyze mechanical issues on its own.

“For years, CarMD has been the go-to source to help consumers diagnose their car’s check engine light problems and make sure they don’t overpay for car repairs,” said Ieon Chen, CEO of CarMD. “Today’s busy consumers want everything readily available on their mobile devices, so it’s a natural next step for CarMD to introduce a mobile version of our product.”

CarMD
CarMD
CarMD

CarMD Mobile works by combining an onboard diagnostic plug (for vehicles 1996 and newer) with a companion smartphone app. Essentially, the plug reads your check engine light and transfers the information to your phone via Bluetooth, where the CarMD app displays the mechanical fault and estimates repair costs. According to the brand, the technology is “user friendly even for those individuals who are not car savvy.”

CarMD Mobile’s feature don’t stop there though. Vehicle history, VIN scanning, emissions test readiness, and enhanced health reports are all available through the app, as is the company’s Predictive Diagnostics program. As the name would suggest, Predictive Diagnostics helps forecast what problems could pop up down the road, giving the owner valuable information to go toward repair budgets or vehicle sale information.

CarMD Mobile will go on sale in mid-November for a suggested retail price of $139.95.

Editors' Recommendations

Andrew Hard
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Andrew first started writing in middle school and hasn't put the pen down since. Whether it's technology, music, sports, or…
Volkswagen is launching its own self-driving car testing program in the U.S.
Volkswagen self-driving ID. Buzz in Austin

Volkswagen is taking autonomous driving a little more seriously. While the likes of Tesla and Waymo have largely led the development of next-gen driving tech, the legacy automakers are certainly starting to invest more heavily. To that end, Volkswagen has announced its first autonomous driving program in the U.S.

As part of the program, Volkswagen has outfitted 10 all-electric ID. Buzz vans with autonomous driving tech, in partnership with autonomous car tech company MobileEye. Over the next few years, Volkswagen says it'll grow this fleet of autonomous cars to cover at least four additional cities, with the current fleet operating in Austin, Texas. By 2026, Volkswagen hopes to commercially launch autonomous cars in Austin.

Read more
Your next car could have TiVo built-in
Powered by TiVo platform interface.

TiVo, the company that defined modern TV watching in the era before on-demand streaming services, has announced a partnership with BMW that will see the automaker add TiVo's video media platform to its vehicles. The addition of the Powered by TiVo platform will happen as an over-the-air update later in 2023 to BMW's 5-Series vehicles and then slowly roll out to some of its other models.

The TiVo platform will include linear and on-demand streaming services with news, movies, and access to media libraries. The announcement comes just days after Google used its annual I/O event to debut its plans to add YouTube video streaming to Android Auto and Android Automotive car platforms. BMW also supports Android Auto in many of its vehicles but the company didn't immediately describe how Android Auto and Powered by TiVo would coexist in the same interface.

Read more
Can electric car batteries be recycled?
electric car charging

The big promise of electric cars is that they’ll radically cut down on carbon emissions, helping fight climate change. And at first glance, they do so — after all, you don’t have to fill the tank with fossil fuels every few days, and there are no emissions from the car itself.

But the truth is a little murkier. Electric cars may not produce emissions themselves, but they have much bigger batteries requiring exotic metals, potentially creating a whole different environmental issue when those batteries near the end of their life span.

Read more