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MG iSmart lower your expectations

LittlePluggers

Established Member
Joined
Dec 1, 2021
Messages
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Location
Colchester
Driving
MG ZS EV
Apologies in advance this is a bit of a jovial whine about the MG iSmart app on Android.
I'm hoping it will low expectations sufficiently so that when you do use it you will be delighted that all of these issues are fixed.
I don't know if the Apple version is any better but I'm not hopeful.

Questions & Answers

Can you get battery status - Yes if you don't mind waiting 60 seconds or longer if it fails and you need to try again.

Can you lock/unlock the car - Yes

Can you turn on/off the AC, AC blowing and Front window defrost - Yes and the rear lights come on when it's dark
Screenshot_20220107-224812.png


Is Mobile number verification completely broken - Yes

Does the iSmart app force you to register/login using an in-built iSmart keyboard with a layout nothing like the inbuilt system keyboard - Yes
Screenshot_20220107-221552.png


Does this clunky iSmart keyboard support copy & paste - No

Can you use a password manager to profile the username & password - No

Does the iSmart app allow you to login on more than one device? - No

Screenshot_20220107-215642.png


Does the < icon work for back navigation? Yes sometimes and No at other times it depends which screen you are looking at

Is the app fast and responsive? - No

Does the "Travel" screen work - No - You get a map of Belliardstraat and a spinning progress bar

Screenshot_20220107-222944.png


Does the MG Touch point screen work? - No you get a map of Berlin and a spinning progress bar
Screenshot_20220107-222957.png


Charge Management - Do you have to wait up to 60 seconds for data? Yes. Is it consistently 60 seconds and does it suspiciously feel hardcoded somewhere? - Yes
Screenshot_20220107-221928.png



Is the overall is the user experience worse and less reliable than Facebook ? Hmm, its so close but Yes the MG iSmart app is worse than Facebook.

Things can only get better?

Have a good weekend
 
No copy and paste for password manager is disappointing; do you need to login each time or can you "remain logged in" and so only have to enter username and password once?
 
No copy and paste for password manager is disappointing; do you need to login each time or can you "remain logged in" and so only have to enter username and password once?
It does keep you logged in thankfully.
After login most of the other screens use the inbuilt system keyboard which is so strange.
 
What am I missing with the keyboard?? Looks to be a standard qwerty layout which is quick to type on.
 
It's not responsive and doesn't have the feedback that the "normal" one does. No copy paste which is not so much the keyboard's fault as the edit boxes on the login screen. It's odd that it has been added. My only guess is that some idiot has decided that they should write their own stuff to be more "secure" at login when they have likely made it less secure and an annoyance.
 
Much better on iPhone. I’ve used it for a number of weeks now and aside from the log in process (which you only have to do once), I’ve found it quite good.

The app was especially handy when I needed to nip to the shops and the keys were in my sleeping baby’s bedroom. Straight onto the app, unlocked, started and drove the car to the shops and back without the need for the keys
 
Much better on iPhone. I’ve used it for a number of weeks now and aside from the log in process (which you only have to do once), I’ve found it quite good.

The app was especially handy when I needed to nip to the shops and the keys were in my sleeping baby’s bedroom. Straight onto the app, unlocked, started and drove the car to the shops and back without the need for the keys
Ooooh, I didn't realise that was going to be an option... Although a bit risky if you arrive at your destination and you don't have a signal or your phone dies or worse gets lost 😄
 
Apologies in advance this is a bit of a jovial whine about the MG iSmart app on Android.
I'm hoping it will low expectations sufficiently so that when you do use it you will be delighted that all of these issues are fixed.
I don't know if the Apple version is any better but I'm not hopeful.

Questions & Answers

Can you get battery status - Yes if you don't mind waiting 60 seconds or longer if it fails and you need to try again.

Can you lock/unlock the car - Yes

Can you turn on/off the AC, AC blowing and Front window defrost - Yes and the rear lights come on when it's dark
View attachment 6207

Is Mobile number verification completely broken - Yes

Does the iSmart app force you to register/login using an in-built iSmart keyboard with a layout nothing like the inbuilt system keyboard - Yes
View attachment 6206

Does this clunky iSmart keyboard support copy & paste - No

Can you use a password manager to profile the username & password - No

Does the iSmart app allow you to login on more than one device? - No

View attachment 6202

Does the < icon work for back navigation? Yes sometimes and No at other times it depends which screen you are looking at

Is the app fast and responsive? - No

Does the "Travel" screen work - No - You get a map of Belliardstraat and a spinning progress bar

View attachment 6203

Does the MG Touch point screen work? - No you get a map of Berlin and a spinning progress bar
View attachment 6204

Charge Management - Do you have to wait up to 60 seconds for data? Yes. Is it consistently 60 seconds and does it suspiciously feel hardcoded somewhere? - Yes
View attachment 6205


Is the overall is the user experience worse and less reliable than Facebook ? Hmm, its so close but Yes the MG iSmart app is worse than Facebook.

Things can only get better?

Have a good weekend
You ought to try the MyPeugeot App. I've had it 18 months and it still doesn't work. They made the big mistake of porting over the MyPeugeot App from their ICE range and it shows. Occasionally displays the interface in French. Sometimes logs journeys and sometimes not. Only allows fuel input in £/ltr and economy in mpg, nothing at all to indicate price/K or m/KWh. Can't monitor a charge or set preconditioning the cabin via the app.
Must say the iSmart app looks better than the MyPeugeot App and if it gets sorted has more potential than the pug app too.
So you are not alone in being underwhelmed with this type of tech.
 
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Your Flashing Blades icon brings back fond memories of the cut out Bertie Blade figure I used to carry to games. Painted on hardboard and mounted on a long stick. You wouldn't get it anywhere near the ground nowadays - let alone use it to incense Milwall fans and then run like hell. (If you are too young to remember Bertie it was back in the days of Mick Jones and Sherman).
 
Similar experience here. At home, my phone has a good signal (on EE), but the car seems to have a poor signal. Often takes over a minute to connect - in fact I've increased my phone's display timeout to 2 minutes just to allow for the iSmart app's slow response.

I get erroneous data too. Often the sunroof is shown as open (when it's most definitely closed). Sometimes the internal and/or external temperature data are missing (often both). Sometimes the battery percentage is shown but not the range - sometimes the other way around.

But it was much more responsive when parked at Ikea, Reading today. My phone had a poor signal, but it seemed the car had a good signal. It appears to work much better that way round. Overall, it's usable, but frustratingly slow and error prone.
 
Your Flashing Blades icon brings back fond memories of the cut out Bertie Blade figure I used to carry to games. Painted on hardboard and mounted on a long stick. You wouldn't get it anywhere near the ground nowadays - let alone use it to incense Milwall fans and then run like hell. (If you are too young to remember Bertie it was back in the days of Mick Jones and Sherman).
Aye too young. Mick Jones had already moved to Leeds before I went to my first game in about '70. Team then had the likes of Hodgkinson, Badger, Helmsley, Flynn, Woodward, Currie, Salmons, et al in it
 
Having had Nissan connect for the last 5 years I think this will be a step up. To be honest I have a fair idea of battery staus without the need of an app and I never needed one in the past 50 years to tell me my cars windows are closed and the doors are locked. The only use I would get is pre heating the cabin which is very touch and go on the Leaf app.
 
Similar experience here. At home, my phone has a good signal (on EE), but the car seems to have a poor signal. Often takes over a minute to connect - in fact I've increased my phone's display timeout to 2 minutes just to allow for the iSmart app's slow response.

I get erroneous data too. Often the sunroof is shown as open (when it's most definitely closed). Sometimes the internal and/or external temperature data are missing (often both). Sometimes the battery percentage is shown but not the range - sometimes the other way around.

But it was much more responsive when parked at Ikea, Reading today. My phone had a poor signal, but it seemed the car had a good signal. It appears to work much better that way round. Overall, it's usable, but frustratingly slow and error prone.
I’ve avoided IKEA for years - wonder if Aldi has the same effect? 😁
 
Similar experience here. At home, my phone has a good signal (on EE), but the car seems to have a poor signal. Often takes over a minute to connect - in fact I've increased my phone's display timeout to 2 minutes just to allow for the iSmart app's slow response.

I get erroneous data too. Often the sunroof is shown as open (when it's most definitely closed). Sometimes the internal and/or external temperature data are missing (often both). Sometimes the battery percentage is shown but not the range - sometimes the other way around.

But it was much more responsive when parked at Ikea, Reading today. My phone had a poor signal, but it seemed the car had a good signal. It appears to work much better that way round. Overall, it's usable, but frustratingly slow and error prone.
Car uses O2 from what I hear :)
 
Having had Nissan connect for the last 5 years I think this will be a step up.
It will be for me; Nissan Connect finally stopped in Australia late last year. Even when it was working, it required constant pulling of a particular fuse for 60 seconds.

And even then, I still found it useful, and wish it was still supported.

I have a fair idea of battery status without the need of an app
I don't. I charge my 2012 Leaf and 2021 MG mostly from solar, and I don't know how full the Leaf was earlier this morning, other than it was charging with two LEDs flashing (of three). It's even more important to know the battery SOC now that the Leaf's replacement battery has suddenly lost range (still showing 11 health bars out of 12, driving more like a ~7-8 bar car).
 
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