Carly or Bimmercode - which is better...

*-jester-* · Mar 5, 2020

A friend of mine on here asked a good question on

https://www.babybmw.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=78&t=126570

, so I thought it warrants its own write up ...

Octavius said:
What's better. Carly or Bimmercode ?

Good question! And not all that straightforward.

https://www.mycarly.com/
charge a yearly subscription of £59.04 for BMW (or £74.04 for "all car brands") and then you have to buy their own ODB2 adapter at £84.80 (inc p&p) Carly doesn't support universal adapters.

BimmerCode for BMW and MINI - Coding your BMW, MINI or Toyota Supra made simple.

bimmercode.app

costs £30.99 one-off payment and has more coding capabilities than Carly. But to compare all the comparable features of Carly, you would also need...
https://www.bimmerlink.app/
costs £30.99 one-off payment and will do your diagnostics, battery registration, sensor monitoring, DPF etc, etc.

Both BimmerCode & BimmerLink apps are compatible with a wider range of universal ODB2 adapters starting from around £30 which will also be compatible with other apps such as: Torque, Speedbot, DeepODB, Dashcommand, etc, etc.

In summary; BimmerCode gets my vote personally because it offers a lot more coding options per in-car module/CPU
However, to access all of those coding options you need to use "expert mode" which requires a certain degree of knowledge to understand what all the abbreviations refer to (some are in German) this is the same coding 'language' that the BMW technicians use and can be used yourself with a laptop, obd lead and software such as ESYS & INPA.
Fortunately, there are a lot of friendly people on this forum who are willing to provide coding help, you can also Google coding 'cheat sheets' which will help to translate coding jargon.

Don't be put off by all of the above because for all of the everyday run-of-the-mill coding options (bulb monitoring, turning off start/stop, lighting, door locks, hidden features, etc) can all be done in the GUI (graphic user interface) with just a couple of clicks, no special knowledge or translations required. And this applies to both Carly & BimmerCode the same.

*Carly subscription price increase June 2020 - all prices correct as of June 2020

I welcome everyone with experience of either, or both, or even alternative Apps to share their thoughts and suggestions.

EDIT: -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Also I'd be interested in which ODB2 Adapter you are using and your review of them. I am using the

https://amzn.to/2s2YuRT

(the black one) and it takes

https://youtu.be/PXSyUm7MKZs

to the car, but functions flawlessly.

Thanks

Octavius · Mar 5, 2020

I have the full Carly app free for life and the original adaptor.
Does what I want it to do and never had a problem. Ok it's semi basic but it covers most of what users need and it's updated frequently with new features.
I've never used any of the other coding apps so really can't comment any further.

*-jester-* · Mar 5, 2020

Octavius said:
I have the full Carly app free for life and the original adaptor.

You're one of the lucky ones to get the full license before they started the annual subscriptions. I very nearly got it myself until I discovered that. Shame because it looks more user friendly than BimmerCode, and everything is covered within the single App.
I have actually downloaded it but couldn't get it to work with either of my 2 'universal' adapters and couldn't justify buying a 3rd tsk!

Octavius · Mar 5, 2020

You're more than welcome to try my Carly dongle. It's for Android so the Bluetooth version.

lloyd92 · Mar 6, 2020

BimmerCode as you can use a wired option if using on iPhone

*-jester-* · Mar 6, 2020

Octavius said:
You're more than welcome to try my Carly dongle. It's for Android so the Bluetooth version.

I may just take you up on that offer sometime, thanks 👍

lloyd92 said:
BimmerCode as you can use a wired option if using on iPhone

Hmm, interesting. Have you compared the speed of your cable against a bluetooth adapter?

nastypoker · Mar 6, 2020

Not sure how Carly can compete with those prices. Not sure what you gain for the extra £££

lloyd92 · Mar 6, 2020

lloyd92 said:
BimmerCode as you can use a wired option if using on iPhone

Hmm, interesting. Have you compared the speed of your cable against a bluetooth adapter?

Yes originally I was using the v gate WiFi adapter. doing it through enet cable plugged into the iphone is easily 3x faster

*-jester-* · Mar 7, 2020

RickN55 said:
Noticed this battery option is new on Bimmercode within the last few weeks.

Me too, it's been in the last few updates to be honest.
However, as it says, you you still need BimmerLINK to register a new battery but at least it is easier to code in a 'bigger' battery now.

vxr275 · Nov 23, 2024

Hi I’m about to buy BimmerCode to register a new battery to my mini clubman, do I also need to buy bimmerlink?

*-jester-* · Mar 7, 2020

RickN55 said:
Am I right in saying Bimmerlink is ios only?

Yup, iOS version 11.0 (or greater) only.
I'm using an old iPhone 6 for BimmerLink and it does the job.

RickN55 said:
Bimmercode is a great bit of kit to have in the glovebox for stuff like this.

It is. But incidentally, BimmerCODE for the iOS is slightly better to use than the Android version, I wish somebody told me that before I bought it for my Samsung! - it just seems slicker on iOS and when you're doing a backup you have multiple backups (back to day one) to choose from - on the Android you can only "restore" back to the previous coding.

Bimmercode for iOS is on version 3.4

https://thumbnails-photos.amazon.co...uk/v1/thumbnail/48GyJh_GTDKQP3CDRFPjuw?viewBox=1032,1836&ownerId=A14Q7372VCG84J

Bimmercode for Android is on version 2.17

https://thumbnails-photos.amazon.co....uk/v1/thumbnail/XXdpGzhwRt2zZz0wITPN2w?viewBox=894,1836&ownerId=A14Q7372VCG84J

So I presume that they develop their Apps for iOS first, iron out the bugs then rewrite it for the Android platform. Dunno tho, just speculting.

*-jester-* · Mar 7, 2020

RickN55 said:
Wasn't aware of that thought they were both the same. I'm a Samsung fanboy though can't be doing with iPhones personally lol.

I prefer Samsung phones personally too! The iPhone's keyboard - constantly switching keyboards for numbers and again for symbols, it drives me batty! They're overrated IMHO but I put up with it ONLY for BimmerLink usage

Octavius · Mar 7, 2020

So is Carly catching up with Bimmercode or vise versa ?

*-jester-* · Mar 7, 2020

Octavius said:
So is Carly catching up with Bimmercode or vise versa ?

Vise versa, I think... according to the Google Play Store

Carly was first released 21st Oct 2012
Bimmercode released 21st Aug 2017

Those release dates are for the Android versions, I can't seem to find the same info on the Apple App Store!!

petez · Mar 19, 2020

lloyd92 said:
Yes originally I was using the v gate WiFi adapter. doing it through enet cable plugged into the iphone is easily 3x faster

Any suggestions on a specific Cable and OBD interface for IoS - seems a lot out there and mixed reviews ?

I saw this -

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Enet-Ethernet-interface-cable-Coding/dp/B01F8J2E3S

- any thoughts ?

Thanks

lloyd92 · Mar 19, 2020

petez said:
lloyd92 said:

Yes originally I was using the v gate WiFi adapter. doing it through enet cable plugged into the iphone is easily 3x faster

Click to expand...

Any suggestions on a specific Cable and OBD interface for IoS - seems a lot out there and mixed reviews ?

I saw this -
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Enet-Ethernet-interface-cable-Coding/dp/B01F8J2E3S
- any thoughts ?

Thanks

Yes you need one of those and one of these

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ethernet-A...=ethernet+to+lightning+adapter&qid=1584634336&sprefix=etherenet+to+light&sr=8-3

May be able to get them cheaper on eBay, then just go into BimmerCode setting and set it to 'enet cable'

MrDude · Mar 26, 2020

RickN55 said:
Noticed this battery option is new on Bimmercode within the last few weeks.

Sent from my SM-G960F using Tapatalk

I have the BimmerCode, and i dont see this option, needed to disable start / stop

can you tell me why?

Enviado do meu iPhone usando o Tapatalk

N-W · Mar 27, 2020

Are these the same apps that 'coders' use?

Only reason I ask is I've been quoted £180 for Apple CarPlay activation and coding with system updates. As much as I want Apple CarPlay I'm finding it really difficult to justify at the moment.

*-jester-* · Mar 27, 2020

MrDude said:
I have the BimmerCode, and i dont see this option, needed to disable start / stop

can you tell me why?

Hi, if you go into expert mode is the option there?

Code:

Front Electronic Module (Expert Mode)
3023 TcMaster2
TCM_MSA_DEFAULT_OFF

If so, click on "TCM_MSA_DEFAULT_OFF" and set to "aktiv"

Octavius · Mar 28, 2020

Had my car in for its first service last weekend, lucky timing, and left the coding changes I had made untouched. Nothing was mentioned so happy days 🙃

*-jester-* · Mar 28, 2020

Octavius said:
Had my car in for its first service last weekend, lucky timing, and left the coding changes I had made untouched. Nothing was mentioned so happy days 🙃

Great stuff👍 because I've heard stories of the dealers/service centers flashing or updating the car's ECUs.

Incidentally, (as you're the Carly expert) does Carly allow you to save back-ups of the coding you've done for the occasions when the dealer 'flashes' or would you have to re-code all your mods?

....it's easy to do on the IOS version of Bimmercode because it displays a list of all your coding operations (in the back-up function) in date order - not as easy in the Android version of Bimmercode unfortunately but there is a way to export back-ups using File Manager.

Octavius · Mar 28, 2020

It asks you to back up prior to any coding and if you've coded the same module more than once and backed up each time it gives you the choice of which back up to apply.
I had my OEM tow bar electrics coded to the car by Johag as Carly doesn't give this option. It would be interesting to see if this coding has been saved in a back up.

MrDude · Mar 28, 2020

*-jester-* said:
MrDude said:

I have the BimmerCode, and i dont see this option, needed to disable start / stop

can you tell me why?

Click to expand...

Hi, if you go into expert mode is the option there?

Code:

Front Electronic Module (Expert Mode) 3023 TcMaster2 TCM_MSA_DEFAULT_OFF

If so, click on "TCM_MSA_DEFAULT_OFF" and set to "aktiv"

even in Expert mode the code 3023 doesn't appear to me .. being a series 1 of 2008 it should appear don't you think?

Enviado do meu iPhone usando o Tapatalk

MrDude · Mar 28, 2020

RickN55 said:
MrDude said:

RickN55 said:

Noticed this battery option is new on Bimmercode within the last few weeks.

Sent from my SM-G960F using Tapatalk

Click to expand...

I have the BimmerCode, and i dont see this option, needed to disable start / stop

can you tell me why?

Enviado do meu iPhone usando o Tapatalk

Click to expand...

You don't have the battery option or stop start option?

Have you updated the app recently? There has been a couple of updates in the last month.

Sent from my SM-T580 using Tapatalk

yes, it is updated. there is no option to enable or disable

Enviado do meu iPhone usando o Tapatalk

Octavius · Mar 29, 2020

^^^^ Do the coding options vary per series of car ??

*-jester-* · Mar 29, 2020

MrDude said:
*-jester-* said:

MrDude said:

I have the BimmerCode, and i dont see this option, needed to disable start / stop

can you tell me why?

Click to expand...

Hi, if you go into expert mode is the option there?

Code:

Front Electronic Module (Expert Mode) 3023 TcMaster2 TCM_MSA_DEFAULT_OFF

If so, click on "TCM_MSA_DEFAULT_OFF" and set to "aktiv"

Click to expand...

even in Expert mode the code 3023 doesn't appear to me .. being a series 1 of 2008 it should appear don't you think?

A-ha, my apologies, I assumed that you had an F##-generation Series 1... on the E81/E82/E87/E88 Series 1 (from 2008-2013) you only have the option to "memorise the last start/stop function" (not disable it) and, rather confusingly, the setting is in the "Air Conditioning" IHXXPL2 or "Air Conditioning" IHKX_E89 Modules.
Note: if the car was manufactured before 2008 it is not supported by Bimmercode.

Octavius said:
^^^^ Do the coding options vary per series of car ??

Yes indeed they do.

MrDude · Mar 29, 2020

Ah, ok! Thanks a lot

I'll see if i can do it in another program

Enviado do meu iPhone usando o Tapatalk

BimmerCode for BMW and MINI - Coding your BMW, MINI or Toyota Supra made simple.

Carly or Bimmercode - which is better...

BimmerCode for BMW and MINI - Coding your BMW, MINI or Toyota Supra made simple.

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