How It Works, Prime Security Options & Price (2023)

Bouncie GPS Car Tracker

What Bouncie Supplies

– Location Providers

– Accident Notifications

– Car Well being Studies

– Actual-Time Driving Insights

Professionals

No contract

Straightforward to arrange

Dwell updates each 15 seconds

Cons

Restricted to 3G service

Monitoring can’t be turned off except unplugged

Affiliate Disclosure: Bouncie despatched us this unit freed from cost. We weren’t compensated by the corporate for this product overview, though we had been allowed to maintain it. As an Amazon Affiliate, Automoblog earns from qualifying purchases, together with the unit featured right here.

Bouncie is a GPS car monitoring gadget designed that can assist you keep secure and conscious. The gadget plugs into the OBD2 (on-board diagnostics) port in your car and offers real-time updates and driving information. You possibly can see your automobile’s location and journey particulars like pace, driving habits, and accident notifications.

For folks, it might offer you peace of thoughts when your teenager drives house late at night time; for enterprise house owners, Bouncie can present useful perception with regards to managing your fleet. On this overview, we’ll share our firsthand expertise and clarify the options in additional element.

Transient Historical past of Bouncie

Bouncie was launched in 2017 by Tail Gentle LLC, a tech firm in Plano, Texas. Because the launch, a number of new and vital options have been added.

• 2019: The corporate expanded its service space to Mexico and Canada, sped up notifications, and allowed customers to view journeys in progress.

• 2020: Accident detection and notifications had been added.

• 2023: After the deliberate phase-out of 3G mobile networks, older units will cease working and would require a alternative with a 4G unit, anticipated to final at the least 4 years. The month-to-month information subscription doesn’t change with a 4G gadget.

What Does Bouncie Price?

As of this writing, there’s a one-time fee of $77 for the gadget and an $8 monthly subscription. There are additionally reductions obtainable should you resolve to get a number of units.

Set up & Setup

The setup course of took us round quarter-hour from opening the field till we began driving. You possibly can entry every part from Bouncie.com, however we suggest getting the Bouncie app from the App Retailer or Google Play. If you create an account, it would ask you to enter details about your car, like your make and mannequin, VIN, and present mileage. 

All the pieces is simple, and there’s a “Chat With Bouncie” button you’ll be able to click on to hook up with a assist chat. Through the setup, you’ll have to plug the gadget into the OBD2 port. Sometimes the OBD2 is close to the driver-side door panel, beneath the steering wheel, however verify your proprietor’s guide should you need assistance.

After it’s put in, you’ll have to drive round for at the least 10 minutes for the gadget to attach and calibrate. After the primary drive, you’ll start getting dwell information and stats about your journeys.

Bouncie has many options and settings you’ll be able to regulate. Some, like accident notifications, will must be activated earlier than they begin working. The primary drive received’t be recorded, however you’ll get all the primary stats after the primary 10-minute drive with out adjusting any settings.

Bouncie gives helpful insights whether or not you’re a dad or mum involved concerning the security of your children, a enterprise proprietor monitoring bills, or perhaps a common driver who needs to maintain observe of issues for enjoyable. Some options shall be roughly useful relying on what you’re utilizing it for. Here’s a record of every characteristic, with a quick description of how they work.

Options for Mother and father

As a dad or mum, letting your children drive may cause a substantial amount of stress and much more grey hair! Here’s what Bouncie gives:

Dwell Location

The unit detects your teen’s location throughout a drive and makes use of accelerometers to trace pace constantly. Throughout a drive, you may get up-to-date information each 15 seconds. The gadget will present you an overlay on Google maps of the automobile’s location, when the journey began, and how briskly your children are shifting.

You can too arrange a geo-zone. When your automobile enters or leaves a geo-zone, you’ll get a notification. That is useful whenever you don’t need your children leaving a selected space or to know once they get to their vacation spot.

The one downside we discovered with that is it’s restricted to a circle, fairly than a straight line from level A to B, however you can also make it as massive or small as vital. You possibly can put a geo-circle round your neighborhood if you’d like your children to remain shut by, or round a particular home or deal with if it is advisable to know when your children arrive.

Accident Detection

We didn’t check how properly this works for apparent causes! Nevertheless, the gadget can detect an influence or a sudden lower in pace and ship a notification. You’re going to get a notification and have the choice to name 911. You possibly can add a setting that sends a textual content message if an accident is detected.

Roadside Help

Bouncie can ship assist your means, and the fee is included in your subscription. In case your teenage driver runs out of fuel, wants a leap begin, or has a flat tire, you’ll be able to benefit from a community of roadside help suppliers. That is obtainable to make use of 3 times in any 12-month interval and generally is a massive assist whenever you want it.

Unsafe Driving Notifications

These notifications allow you to monitor how your children are driving. Within the settings, you’ll be able to regulate the sensitivity of issues like laborious braking and fast acceleration, whereas additionally setting pace notifications.

Throughout our check drives, we adjusted the sensitivity settings from low to excessive. With excessive sensitivity, we acquired notifications for laborious braking and fast acceleration of over eight mph per second. Low sensitivity notified us of incidents over 14 mph per second. Throughout regular driving situations, we didn’t get any notifications.

Primarily based on our checks, we’d say that oldsters shouldn’t be involved about one or two notifications per week, however various could also be a security concern, particularly for brand new drivers. The gadget provides you particulars of every incident and the place it occurred as soon as the journey is accomplished. You can too set a curfew and get a notification if the automobile is being pushed after your set hours.

Ought to I Inform My Youngsters We’re Utilizing Bouncie?

When you’re not sure of methods to speak to your kids about why you’re going to make use of Bouncie, they wrote this helpful article on the subject. When you don’t inform your children concerning the gadget, it’s unlikely that they’ll discover it. Nevertheless, it’s finest to speak the advantages and inform them you’re utilizing it for his or her security, not since you don’t belief them.

Options for Companies

Bouncie might be utilized by companies which have supply drivers, rideshare drivers, or staff who steadily journey for work. For a number of {dollars} monthly, enterprise house owners and fleet operators can accumulate helpful information to trace productiveness and bills.

Historic Stats

Bouncie tracks and collects information that may be exported right into a spreadsheet for later overview. You possibly can view the full driving time, miles pushed, and idle time for any car for any date vary.

Know Your Common Journey

The gadget information what number of journeys you’re taking, the typical size of these journeys, and the way a lot gas is required for each. You possibly can observe the precise value per journey and observe every car and driver’s productiveness.

Options for Private Use

Even should you’re not utilizing Bouncie for a enterprise or to watch younger drivers, it has another useful advantages.

Max Driving Distance

You possibly can set a mileage alert for as much as 500 miles with the gadget. That is wonderful in case you are at present leasing your car. For instance, in case your lease is restricted to 12,000 miles per 12 months, you’ll be able to set an alert for 230 miles – the weekly restrict for 12,000 per 12 months. The alert will help you keep away from hitting the mileage restrict earlier than your lease is up.

Care Plan

The Care Plan helps you create reminders for normal upkeep and maintenance. You possibly can set a reminder at sure mileage intervals or a particular date to obtain notifications accordingly. This helps whenever you need a reminder about altering your oil, changing your windshield wipers, or different issues like renewing your registration. Bouncie may even monitor your battery and warn you if a verify engine mild comes on.

Connect with Good Gadgets

You possibly can join the gadget to Amazon Alexa, Google Dwelling, and IFTTT (If This, Then That). We requested Alexa, “Ask Bouncie if I want fuel.” Alexa answered, “The Honda has 70 % fuel left.” We additionally requested the place our automobile was, and Alexa gave us the deal with the place we parked. You possibly can arrange IFTTT to show in your sensible lights whenever you get house.

How Bouncie Compares

There are a number of different widespread choices for GPS units. We in contrast Bouncie side-by-side with the most well-liked opponents.

How We Examined Bouncie

Our first drive after putting in the gadget in our 2013 Honda Accord was round 12 minutes. After that, we refreshed the app, and it was prepared to start out monitoring. We drove 200 miles over 24 journeys with no points or sign loss. We examined Bouncie in San Diego, so we can’t say how it will work in a rural space the place cell service may be restricted.

If the gadget loses its sign whereas driving, it would nonetheless observe the full miles, however the dwell updates could also be delayed. Bouncie additionally overlays your driving pace, so a short lived lack of sign might trigger some lacking pace information.

Once we used the dwell monitoring, we had been at house, and another person was driving round in our 2013 Honda Accord. Nevertheless, the gadget up to date each 15 seconds as anticipated. We noticed the present pace, location, and the place the journey began.

General, we had been impressed with the benefit of every part and the simplicity of the information. You don’t must be a tech guru to start out utilizing the gadget or the app, and all the driving stats are simple to overview and perceive.

Buyer Service

Fortunately, throughout the setup course of and through our drive, we didn’t want any assist. It does give us peace of thoughts that there’s assist obtainable, together with a dwell chat throughout enterprise hours, and a Help Center with fast solutions and how-to’s obtainable within the app and on the web site.

Is Bouncie Proper for You?

We will see the advantages of the gadget, whether or not you’re a dad or mum, enterprise proprietor, or take pleasure in having your entire stuff linked. As soon as put in, you’ll be able to set it and neglect it, whereas monitoring the driving info that’s most vital to you.

Bouncie has a stable rating on TrustPilot with a whole bunch of fine buyer critiques, and, primarily based on our analysis and testing, we give it our stamp of approval. General, the gadget is a cost-efficient and easy-to-use instrument to maintain your loved ones secure or improve the effectivity of your online business.

Continuously Requested Questions

Technical Specs

Bodily

• Peak: 1.875 in. (4.76 cm)
• Width: 1.75 in. (4.44 cm)
• Depth: 1.0 in. (2.5 cm)
• Weight: 1.13 oz (32.1 g)

GPS

• Receiver: 56-channel GPS receiver and GLONASS Monitoring: -162 dBm
• Antenna: Inner built-in
• Accuracy: Place 2.5 m CEP

Accelerometer

• 3-Axis: X, Y, Z output
• Auto-Normalization: Self-Calibrating, Auto-Normalization to the path of movement.

Wi-fi

• Mobile: 3G Penta-band 800, 850, 900,1900, 2100
• Antenna: Inner built-in

Certifications

• Service: FCC and PTCRB Licensed
• CE: CE Licensed
• E-Mark: e-Mark E-13
• Environmental: RoHS Compliant