Quote:
Originally Posted by Brody602
Thank you for the clarifications, I didn't realise torque wasn't able to run on that version of android without root, are you guys using the usb to obd adapter or wifi obd Adapter?
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On head units that is the case. I'll further clarify so that there isn't any confusion.
Torque can run on 3 types of connections; Bluetooth, WiFi, and USB.
Bluetooth - There is no restriction on the OS, per se. It can run on devices all the way down to Android 2.2 that have bluetooth. The problem with head units, is that the bluetooth itself is limited to just connections with phones or A2DP. You can't connect ancillary devices such as an OBD2 scanner.
WiFi - WiFi is only supported in AdHoc mode, which only available with root. Since I think all Android devices have WiFi capability, including this head unit, this isn't a physical limitation. However, root is required to run the WiFi adapter in AdHoc mode. You will lose the ability to have internet unless you are running the 3G adapter. WiFi OBD2 adapters are also more expensive (40-50$).
USB - USB requires host mode in the OS. This is only supported officially by Android on 3.0 (Honeycomb) and above. Ca-Fi managed to modify it's Android build and include it, which is why they use USB adapters for Torque on their head unit.
What this rooting/firmware solution does, is enable root and install firmware which allows the OS of these knockoffs to run a USB Bluetooth adapter as part of the native system. As I showed in the video, it's an external USB adapter that is plugged into a USB hub that runs off the USB port coming from the rear of the unit. I find this is a superior solution to using something like a nexus 7 because the refresh rate in Torque is much faster. I think the Bluetooth adapters built into tablets are low powered or something.
Hope this clarifies everything!