INTRODUCTION

   If you happen to own a car or even a bike then you know how annoying it is (not to mention quite inconvenient) having to check the air pressure of your tires regularly especially prior to heading out on a long trip. Granted compared to less than a decade ago the good news is that current generation cars (released after 2013) need to be equipped with basic built-in tire pressure monitors/sensors but since the keyword here is "basic" they leave much to be desired by owners in terms of features (even a friend with a brand new Tesla car seems to agree with me on that). Because of that I’ve always kept track of what's available out there and although there've been several pressure monitor/sensor systems available by third party manufacturers for quite a while now again they are not that different in terms of features. FOBO seems to be the only third party manufacturer to really have a interesting tire pressure monitor/sensor line in the market today and since several of you have asked we decided to take a look at their Tire Plus All Bluetooth Smart Tire Pressure Monitoring System.

   FOBO brand name is an acronym for For Our Better wOrld. FOBO carries a mandate to help enhance mankind’s daily living through innovative and smart products. FOBO products get in tune with Nature, by monitoring key environmental elements that interact with our daily livings or things/loved ones that we care so much about; FOBO is Sensing with Sense™. FOBO products utilize multiple sensor technologies, namely pressure sensors, temperature sensors, motion sensors and proximity sensors to deliver tracking, monitoring and crowd searching functions. The current FOBO portfolio focuses on monitoring important personal belongings/loved ones(FOBO Wireless Tag/Max) and the most important element for the main contact point of a vehicle to the road surface - the tire pressure(FOBO Tire, FOBO Tire Plus and FOBO Bike). With two (2) years of intensive and continuous R&D efforts, FOBO launched its first product, the FOBO Tag in April 2013 followed by the FOBO Tire in October 2014 and subsequently FOBO Bike. FOBO currently has twenty four (24) patent applications for five (5) different inventions relating to their products in various countries. Additionally, they've been granted nine (9) trademark rights and one (1) industrial design rights that are recognized in various countries where these applications were filed. These patents, trademarks and industrial design registrations grant them intellectual property rights, thereby protecting FOBO products. FOBO products are designed and manufactured by Salutica Allied Solutions Malaysia located in Ipoh, Malaysia.

   The FOBO Tire Plus All Bluetooth Smart Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS) is a five piece product and includes the central Bluetooth 4.0 receiver/transmitter and four IP57 certified (dust proof and water proof up to 1m) Bluetooth wireless sensors which plug into the tire air valve and provide real-time data to the car owner at all times. Although the central unit only has 4 status LEDs via which it can inform the owner of potential issues with the air pressure and/or temperature of your tires you can also monitor their status by using the Android (v4.3 and above) and iOS (v7.1 and above) app with compatible smartphones and tablets. Via this app you can monitor up to a total of 20 cars and can also share the status of your sensors with up to 100 extra compatible devices (useful for large companies with many cars in their fleets). Also since you will need to register the system online in order to start using it both the main unit and the sensors can't be reused by someone else if stolen so that's an extra layer of protection (although i doubt the potential thief will know this). So is the Tire Plus All Bluetooth Smart Tire Pressure Monitoring System the ideal tool for people looking for ways to make their car(s) safer?

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

You can see a picture of the android/iOS app at the front of the box right next to a large picture of the main device and the four wireless sensors.

The main product features are listed at the base of the box.

The serial number and barcode are both placed on the left of the package.

Moving at the rear of the box FOBO has placed both the features and specifications of the product.

All bundled components are placed inside a thick piece of foam.

The quick start guide is actually glued onto the interior of the box.

Contained in the box is the receiver/transmitter, 4 wireless sensors, 6 nuts, 2 wrenches, 4 CR2032 batteries (extra ones, all 4 sensors come with pre-installed batteries), key ring and a double side adhesive sticker.

THE TIRE PLUS

The main device is made out of hard plastic and measures roughly 81mm in length, 48mm in width and 22mm in height.

As you can see the device is designed after the overall shape of a car so the four ends represent the four tires and according to their status these LEDs turn red (they also turn red once you start moving the car).

You only really need to use the power on/off button once and it's located on the right side of the unit.

The device uses two AA batteries which are provided by FOBO.

A speaker is placed at the top of the main device since it also warns the owner about the status of the tires with audible alerts.

Since each of the wireless adapters uses a CR2032 battery the hard plastic enclosure is quite bulky (yet each weighs just 10g).

Mounting the wireless sensors only takes about 5 minutes and requires using the bundled wrenches and nuts.

I'm sure FOBO will release smaller wireless sensors in the near future so for now these although bulky will do fine.

It's also easy to attach the main device everywhere in the car but i chose behind the wheel since i don't like using visible space.

FOBO TIRE ANDROID / IOS APP

To install and fully utilize the FOBO Tire Plus you will need to download the android / iOS app as seen above.

Once you install the app and fill in some details about your car (name, factory recommended pressure numbers) it will walk you through the pairing of each sensor (don't start installing them prior to this step).

After that the FOBO Tire app will display the current pressure and temperature of each tire (you can also use the app with extra spare tires if you also have sensors attached to them).

From the options tab you can enable/disable the main unit, share the status of your tires with other compatible devices, remove/install sensors, hide pressure and reference pressure numbers, clear device memory and if you ever rotate tires there's an option for that too.

CONCLUSION

   When I got all parts of the FOBO Tire Plus Pressure Monitoring System out the first thing that stood out was the main unit. The reason I say this is that although the 4 LEDs and the built-in speaker work well to inform you of possible issues with the pressure and temperature of your tires (the device works even if the car is not running) they do make the device seem a bit “old” compared to let’s say a small LCD screen. I did discuss this with the people over at FOBO and it seems this decision was made since the device can connect with your smartphone and its larger screen (so not really a con). Still that doesn’t’ change the fact I’d really like to see something like that from FOBO in the future. Moving to the sensors yes they are somewhat bulky but if the CR2032 batteries inside can keep them going for up to 2 years (as stated in the specs sheet) then I’m really fine with that and since FOBO has tested them with speeds of up to 240km/h (they didn’t try higher) I think it’s safe to say that they can be also fitted in most performance cars out there. As for the application itself it’s very easy to use and provides useful information about the tires to the user as intended.

   Although FOBO sells the Tire Plus directly from their official website it’s actually cheaper to get it from Amazon.com since it currently retails for USD195.58 there (roughly 10% cheaper). Unfortunately I was unable to track the Tire Plus inside the EU so if you’d like one Amazon or FOBO directly are your two safe bets. At the end of the day the FOBO Tire Plus is just a third party tire pressure monitoring system but to my knowledge it’s one of the best (if not the best) in the market today and because of that it gets our Golden Award.

PROS

- Good Build Quality (IP57 Certified Wireless Sensors)
- Battery Life (Up To 2 Years)
- Visible & Audible Alarms
- Android / iOS App (Up To 20 Cars / Tire Status Sharing With Up To 100 Devices)
- Anti-Theft Deterrent (Each System Works Only With 1 Account)
- Easy Installation
- 24/7 Pressure & Temperature Monitoring
- Extra Batteries Bundled
- Available Sensor Covers (Supplied Extra From FOBO)
 

CONS

- Price (For Some)
- EU Availability
- Bulky Sensors