Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

My setup is a 2002 BMW 325xi (e46). I need to reset the airbag system after replacing a window regulator, but I was also interested in coding capabilities, other diagnostics, and live data. The Good: This app can access more systems in the car than a standard ELM327/OBDII reader. It appears to be high-quality hardware. The Bad: The manufacturer deliberately obfuscates the cost of everything needed. Depending on your model, you may also need additional adapters for this device to even work. For the year of my model, an additional "extension adapter" is required, though this is not easy to determine. Further, there is no indication from the manufacturer about what this adapter does. It is well-known that a 20-pin adapter is required for the e46 because the K-line is not exposed in the OBD connector prior to 2002, but I have no idea what the "extension adapter" does except add $15 to the overall cost. The Carly app is the only one that is compatible with the advanced features of this adapter and its cost is another is $60... PER YEAR! They recently (March 2018) changed the pricing model from a one-time $60 cost to annual. They force you to download the "free" app and then unlock it with an in-app purchase to learn that you need to pay another $60 and then again in a year. The module compatibility apparently varies depending on the year/model of the car, though this is not explained anywhere. You are forced to pay between $60-$75 for the hardware in order to learn what is supported. This should be explained up front. I get that the developer of the software wants to create an ongoing revenue stream, but an annual pricing structure for a tool like this is inappropriate, and it is not to be found anywhere in their documentation. When I buy a hammer, I expect to be able to use that hammer whenever I need to pound in a nail, and not have it expire in 365 days. I am not sure who they think their target market is, but I simply cannot afford to renew this app every year. Further, it supports only three modules in my car and therefore has less value when compared to other BMW models. Carly should look at their competition, including professional devices that sell for a similar price, offer more module support, (ABS bleed for example), and never stop working arbitrarily. The performance of the hardware is no better than a standard OBDII adapter for live logging. If you are looking for better performance, you won't find it here. A more appropriate revenue model would be to charge a one-time in-app fee for each BMW generation/model, according to the modules supported. If they make significant changes to the app, then charge for an upgrade. The annual fee is a complete rip off and if it had been possible to determine all of this information prior to making a purchase, I would have got the iCarsoft tool instead. Unfortunately, Carly obfuscates this information and forces you to invest in the hardware before you know what you are getting. Should you decide that the annual $60 is a poor value, you are stuck with the hardware investment. I would never recommend this tool to anyone and I am quite disappointed with it. If I could return the hardware and refund the $60 for the app, I would gladly do so.