FordConnect WiFi HotSpot

[fishpick]

Question about the 3G / 4G / LTE hotspot Ford offers in the GT500 for those of you that use it...

Assuming you have a plan... Is it "always active" - meaning - if you had a dashcam or something else that wants to talk to the cloud and the car is parked - is the WiFi available for that device to send messages to the cloud?

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[Warpath]

On my 2020 f250 it's only on when the truck has the ACC on. But there is a way in forscan to turn it on all the time.

 

[fishpick]

Thanks @Warpath - but the more I research these "cloud" dashcams - the more they seem like a waste / gimmick... So - the lack of functionality in the access point here pretty much, I think, makes me save money by not getting one
I still may - but the "promise" is more than the "delivered" for sure...

 

[Goose17]

Thanks @Warpath - but the more I research these "cloud" dashcams - the more they seem like a waste / gimmick... So - the lack of functionality in the access point here pretty much, I think, makes me save money by not getting one
I still may - but the "promise" is more than the "delivered" for sure...

I have the Blackvue DR900X-2CH dash cam in my 2020 that has a self-contained cloud based service if you get a SIM card and enable that option. I did not opt for the cloud service. I have my dash cam set to record for 24 hours after getting parked before it powers-down. When I get back in the car and start it, the camera will announce “an impact was detected.” If one was sensed. It’s a nice front/back dash cam and it won’t need you to modify your car’s WiFi hot spot.

 

[Jmeo]

I have the Blackvue DR900X-2CH dash cam in my 2020 that has a self-contained cloud based service if you get a SIM card and enable that option. I did not opt for the cloud service. I have my dash cam set to record for 24 hours after getting parked before it powers-down. When I get back in the car and start it, the camera will announce “an impact was detected.” If one was sensed. It’s a nice front/back dash cam and it won’t need you to modify your car’s WiFi hot spot.

Same one I installed when I got my car. Its one of the best on the market. I also do not use the cloud service.

 

[fishpick]

I have the Blackvue DR900X-2CH dash cam in my 2020 that has a self-contained cloud based service if you get a SIM card and enable that option. I did not opt for the cloud service. I have my dash cam set to record for 24 hours after getting parked before it powers-down. When I get back in the car and start it, the camera will announce “an impact was detected.” If one was sensed. It’s a nice front/back dash cam and it won’t need you to modify your car’s WiFi hot spot.

I have considered the Blackvue, really like the cloud features and really like the size / config - and like how it looks - but TBH - between that and the ThinkWare u1000 - it's image quality is pretty poor / dated (lots of side by side reviews out there soured me to the blackvue). AND - to get the LTE functionality in the DR900X you need to by the LTE "module" which is a short cord big ugly ass antenna that you stick to your window like an Uber driver - so, no...
I always turned on the built in PDR on my C7 whenever I started the car - "just incase" - so never had cloud anything... that was only 720p, but figured going aftermarket not only would you get higher resolution but also "cloud" features... like to monitor the car "live stream" when it's in for service, geofence it to the dealership and get a notice when the dude is out for a joyride, or get a notice when you are out to dinner that someone just hit your car in the parking lot, watch people looking at your car at a crusie night / car show... things like that. Seemed to make the "less appealing" camera mounting be "more palatable".
If I can't get the cloud features then it just kinda makes sense to get a VIOFO A129 Pro 2ch - it's got the best resolution, has parking mode and no cloud anything for like 1/2 the price of the BlackVue. And then, there's the damn Garmin Catalyst... which I know I'm buying anyhow since again, the PDR isn't built in for data points on the track... and it's got a camera...

I dunno... I guess I need the dang car to get built and delivered first TBH...

 

[Goose17]

I have considered the Blackvue, really like the cloud features and really like the size / config - and like how it looks - but TBH - between that and the ThinkWare u1000 - it's image quality is pretty poor / dated (lots of side by side reviews out there soured me to the blackvue). AND - to get the LTE functionality in the DR900X you need to by the LTE "module" which is a short cord big ugly ass antenna that you stick to your window like an Uber driver - so, no...
I always turned on the built in PDR on my C7 whenever I started the car - "just incase" - so never had cloud anything... that was only 720p, but figured going aftermarket not only would you get higher resolution but also "cloud" features... like to monitor the car "live stream" when it's in for service, geofence it to the dealership and get a notice when the dude is out for a joyride, or get a notice when you are out to dinner that someone just hit your car in the parking lot, watch people looking at your car at a crusie night / car show... things like that. Seemed to make the "less appealing" camera mounting be "more palatable".
If I can't get the cloud features then it just kinda makes sense to get a VIOFO A129 Pro 2ch - it's got the best resolution, has parking mode and no cloud anything for like 1/2 the price of the BlackVue. And then, there's the damn Garmin Catalyst... which I know I'm buying anyhow since again, the PDR isn't built in for data points on the track... and it's got a camera...

I dunno... I guess I need the dang car to get built and delivered first TBH...

Skip to 32:15 and you can see the quality of the dash cam video. It is 4K out front and 1080p out back. I dig it. Of course when you edit a video and upload it to YouTube, you lose a little of the resolution.

 

[fishpick]

@Goose17 I'm not saying it's bad - but when compared side by side - same car / same dash / same conditions - it does not hold a candle to the u1000 or the a129 pro (day or night)... is it better than what I had in the C7? sure... but with the option of adding something - specifically for "accountability" - I don't want to invest the $$ in a Blackvue and not be able to read the plate of the car that I need to read... that's all I'm saying.

And your video says "track day" - I run a GoPro and probably that Garmin for HPDE - it's the data elements that really matter to me for HPDE over the hero lap video . The C7 was very good for that aspect - but you really needed to use Pi Toolbox to analize the data and that was a handful... A lot of guys I know have switched from the AIM Pro to the Garmin setup for HPDE - and they LOVE it.

p.s. - solid choice on color and stripe - I opted to not get the CFTP because I have driven on CUP2's and that about makes "car season" here in WNY about 2 weeks long in mid-August (yes I could change wheels and tires - but that's even more money dumped into the pit of vehicular despair)

 

[Goose17]

@Goose17 I'm not saying it's bad - but when compared side by side - same car / same dash / same conditions - it does not hold a candle to the u1000 or the a129 pro (day or night)... is it better than what I had in the C7? sure... but with the option of adding something - specifically for "accountability" - I don't want to invest the $$ in a Blackvue and not be able to read the plate of the car that I need to read... that's all I'm saying.

And your video says "track day" - I run a GoPro and probably that Garmin for HPDE - it's the data elements that really matter to me for HPDE over the hero lap video . The C7 was very good for that aspect - but you really needed to use Pi Toolbox to analize the data and that was a handful... A lot of guys I know have switched from the AIM Pro to the Garmin setup for HPDE - and they LOVE it.

p.s. - solid choice on color and stripe - I opted to not get the CFTP because I have driven on CUP2's and that about makes "car season" here in WNY about 2 weeks long in mid-August (yes I could change wheels and tires - but that's even more money dumped into the pit of vehicular despair)

Skip to 10:24 and you can see when I did a video check of license plates:

 

[NC252]

Question about the 3G / 4G / LTE hotspot Ford offers in the GT500 for those of you that use it...

Assuming you have a plan... Is it "always active" - meaning - if you had a dashcam or something else that wants to talk to the cloud and the car is parked - is the WiFi available for that device to send messages to the cloud?

Maybe weigh the cost of a portable LTE hotspot?

 

[fishpick]

Skip to 10:24 and you can see when I did a video check of license plates:

I appreciate you liking your dashcam - but there a lot of very good reviews out there that do side by side comparisons that very clearly show the Blackvue is not as clear as the u1000 or the a129. It's due to sensor and lens choices. Plain and simple.
Again - not saying it's a bad choice - just saying, based on reputable reviews and otehr forums, there are better choices for clarity.

 

[fishpick]

Maybe weigh the cost of a portable LTE hotspot?

Funny you say that - last night I dug out an old Pixel 3 - updated Android on it - and the WiFi hotspot says on all the way down to the battery being at 10% - then it kills it...

SO... I have to wait for my car to measure under the passenger seat - BUT - I think this is the plan:
Mount a BlackboxMyCar BI-750 Dash Cam Battery under the passenger seat. Use one of the USB ports to power the old cell phone and just shove it under there with the access point enabled all the time. Then wire the dash cam from the battery pack so it has like 3-4 days of standby parking mode WITH cloud alerts... with NO DRAIN on the main car battery.

Realistically my data usage will be pretty low - when the car is in the home garage - the android will connect to the home network and it's access point will then flow through my home network (like it did for testing last night). Then when out and about, cellular data will send any notices to the cloud... AND I can use the remote view and geofencing options to monitor the car when it's in the hands of others (which I hope is pretty much never)... but - watching people at a cruise-in night comment on the car will be some fun entertainment

This also gives the Sync system the ability to always have internet access too - so any of the ford marketplace apps, if they are worth a dam, will work all the time as well - and I don't need to pay for the in car ATT LTE service at a silly $30 a month or whatever they want for it. The C7 had the same thing and it was crap.

I think this solves it all assuming there's enough space UNDER the passenger seat to get this battery pack in and mounted along with the old phone and it's data only sim, and mounted safely so it's not a projectile on the track!

Now to just pick a dash cam.

 

[NC252]

Funny you say that - last night I dug out an old Pixel 3 - updated Android on it - and the WiFi hotspot says on all the way down to the battery being at 10% - then it kills it...

SO... I have to wait for my car to measure under the passenger seat - BUT - I think this is the plan:
Mount a BlackboxMyCar BI-750 Dash Cam Battery under the passenger seat. Use one of the USB ports to power the old cell phone and just shove it under there with the access point enabled all the time. Then wire the dash cam from the battery pack so it has like 3-4 days of standby parking mode WITH cloud alerts... with NO DRAIN on the main car battery.

Realistically my data usage will be pretty low - when the car is in the home garage - the android will connect to the home network and it's access point will then flow through my home network (like it did for testing last night). Then when out and about, cellular data will send any notices to the cloud... AND I can use the remote view and geofencing options to monitor the car when it's in the hands of others (which I hope is pretty much never)... but - watching people at a cruise-in night comment on the car will be some fun entertainment

This also gives the Sync system the ability to always have internet access too - so any of the ford marketplace apps, if they are worth a dam, will work all the time as well - and I don't need to pay for the in car ATT LTE service at a silly $30 a month or whatever they want for it. The C7 had the same thing and it was crap.

I think this solves it all assuming there's enough space UNDER the passenger seat to get this battery pack in and mounted along with the old phone and it's data only sim, and mounted safely so it's not a projectile on the track!

Now to just pick a dash cam.

I was thinking about something like the Jetpack MiFi 8800L, since they are typically cheaper to have on a current account than an activated phone. But a phone will just as well do the trick.
Are the USB ports hot when car is not on?
I haven't tested that yet. Also please share what your final install is like since I'm in the market to do the same thing.

@Goose17 you have done an excellent job documenting your install and I plan to follow it with mine.

 

[fishpick]

Are the USB ports hot when car is not on?

Nope - AND - apparently dashcam "drain" when in parking mode is BAD for the cars battery - like it's way more for these 4k cameras than you would think. So that's why they reccomend one of these dedicated "battery packs" for the process. And since I want the phone to stay available as long as possiable to for the WiFi spot - this solution seems "perfect" (not really but the best of the choices) for providing a single wired point from the fuse box to the battery - then the battery does the phone and the dash cam.
Assuming I get my car some day - pretty sure this is what I'm doing.

As for the data plan - Google Fi - the data only sim is $0 a month - it just "adds to" total data in your plan. And the old phone is "free"

If I didn't have that - I'd do a hot spot hardware device for sure - but this is just simpler... and - once I have the car - there's a "rumored" extra USB port on the SYNC module behind the glove box - if that's there - then I might run a USB power splitter off the phone to that - and always have Android Auto in the screen... although I like my Car Play more

Fun stuff - even without the damn car!

 

[fishpick]

@NC252 (or anyone with "comfort" non-recaro seats in their GT500...) - care to take a picture or 2 and some measurements of the space under the passenger seat and clearance under it... should be a GREAT position to climb down into
I'm wondering if the heating and cooling fancyness might be an issue for space under there...

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