If you have a new teenage driver in your home, then you’re probably going to love this new product I’ve been testing from Straight Talk through our partnership in the Straight Talk Testers program! The Safe Driver Car Connection product is part of the Connected Life line of products that Straight Talk has launched, designed to help your family stay in touch and connected to your car and home when away – which is especially great when on vacation or when a family member is on a trip! Both Safe Driver Car Connection (aff) and the Remote Alert System (aff) (the other Connected Life product that helps you stay connected to your home) are available at Walmart stores, Walmart.com, or on the Straight Talk website and require the no contract, 30-day $10 service plan. I’m going to share with you more in-depth information about the Safe Driver Car Connection product, as it was provided to me for review, so read on to find out how it works and how it can help your family stay connected!
Safe Driver Car Connection from Straight Talk {Review}
The Safe Driver Car Connection product is very easy to set up. The device connects to your vehicle’s OBD-II port and the product package and instructions walk you through the activation, registration, and installation process with simple, easy-to-understand directions. The entire setup process took me about 15 minutes from beginning to end and after downloading the Audiovox Car Connection app to my phone, I was able to start tracking information on my vehicle and trips I made. It’s pretty fascinating (even if a little unnerving for anyone that’s paranoid), but overall the information you can get from having the device installed on your car or a loved one’s car is amazing!
For example, I could really see using Safe Driver Car Connection to stay connected with a recently-learned-to-drive teenager in your home. Unfortunately, I don’t have a teenager in my home, so I had to test the device out on myself and learn all about my own driving habits; my husband did not want to play along and refused to have me spying on him (LOL)! (Truthfully, I wouldn’t have gotten much data from his car, since he has a boring driving route to and from work.) Through tracking a few trips in my normal routine of running errands, I was able to see my driving score, any driver warnings (i.e., excessive acceleration or braking), and my vehicle’s health.
I learned that for the most part, I’m a pretty safe driver! I loved being able to have actual proof of this to show my husband, since he sometimes (lovingly) complains I’m not as good a driver as he is. (Any other ladies relate to this endless battle between husband and wife as to who is the better driver?) Save for a couple of instances of excessive acceleration or excessive braking warnings, I had a good driving score and even better, I was glad to see our vehicle’s health was excellent at 100! (To see the details of those driver warnings, you can click on the exclamation point, and see more information for that particular trip.)
Additional Features of Straight Talk Safe Driver Car Connection
Keep Track of Fuel Use
Based on your area’s average fuel price, the Car Connection mobile app will also provide you with information on each trip’s fuel cost, which is really beneficial for long road trips! You can keep track of how much gas you’re spending and estimate how much gas money you’ll need.
Vehicle Location
Another feature is the vehicle location or “locate now” feature. If you’ve ever forgotten where you parked your car in an airport after a trip, or at a theme park, shopping mall, or other large location, this feature will come in handy, as it will locate your car for you on the spot! No more walking around the parking lot or garage looking lost with sad puppy eyes! (Just think of the increased safety in knowing where your car is rather than wandering around aimlessly looking for it.)
Driver Safety Zones
With Safe Driver Car Connection, you can also set up driving zones or boundaries to designate where you wish for the vehicle to travel. If breached, you will be notified that the vehicle traveled outside the zone, so you’ll know if your loved one went outside his/her boundaries. I imagine this would be best for teens that should only be driving within a specific local area and are limited to driving to and from work and school, but the trust factor is nonexistent or you really, really want to keep a close eye. Since I’m not the mom of a teenager, it’s hard for me to say how I feel about this specific feature just yet. Perhaps those of you that are at this stage of parenting can share your thoughts – would you take advantage of setting up zones to ensure your teenager was driving within specified areas?
Restrict Test Usage
Perhaps the most appealing feature for parents of teenagers will be the ability to restrict text and phone usage while driving. This feature requires a separate download of the free ZoomSafer mobile app on the phone you wish to restrict. ZoomSafer is currently only available for Android, Blackberry, and iOS phones, but with it, you can control the use of calls and texting while the car is in use.
More About Straight Talk Remote Alert System
As I mentioned earlier, Straight Talk also has a new device to help you stay connected to your home. The Remote Alert System is a non-monitored device that can send a text message or place a phone call to up to 8 pre-assigned phone numbers when a sensor is triggered. Although it is NOT a home security system, it can help you stay connected to your home when away on a trip or for an extended period of time. Additional accessories are available in addition to the basic kit, such as extra motion sensors, magnetic door/window sensors, and a remote key fob. The Remote Alert System from Straight Talk is available for $129.99 on Walmart.com (aff) or on the Straight Talk website.
How are you helping your teenager learn to drive? Would the Straight Talk Safe Driver Car Connection be a useful tool in helping you monitor your teenager’s driving and/or give you some peace of mind?
All photos © Melanie Edwards/modernmami™
Can you tell me, can/will/does this affect my new car warranty?
Hi Bobby, I really don’t know. I suggest you check with your car’s manufacturer to be sure.
I don’t have a smartphone yet. Can I monitor it from my desktop/laptop/Kindle?
Hi Sherry. The Safe Driver Car Connection device can indeed be monitored and used from a desktop or laptop computer using the online portal.
I think this is a great option for any car !!! less expensive per month and no activation fees, than all other devices out there.. I was searching these options yesterday; you can spend a little more if you have an OnStar equipped car (20+ dollar/mo.) which can give you more benefits… and they offer a tracking and the same remote monitoring for about $ 4.00 more a month……I’m not sure about cutting the driver’s texting.. Straight talk seems to be the best best deal on the market..
can you switch the device between 2 cars.
Michele, I did not try this myself, but I imagine you can. You’ll probably have to do the set up for each individual car.
OBD-II ports have been mandated on vehicles since 1996 but the demo video on the Straight Talk site and vehicle compatibility link make reference to needing to be 2003 or newer. Any idea why? I actually called one of their technicians today who led me to believe it would work on a 1999 Civic, which we just bought for the newest driver in our family. I checked and it does have the port, but I’m a little unsure about buying the device without knowing if it’s really going to be compatible or not. Any help you could provide would be appreciated.
I’m unsure, Jerry. I would definitely speak with Straight Talk to be sure it will be compatible.
it sucks. not working after 2 months, yellow and green light keeps blinking. straight talk customer service says its ok at their end and the tech support from car connect says its straight talk. what a bunch of crap. the bbb will be hearing from me really soon.
Sorry to hear that!