nikandriko

I've been watching Pearl since it first hit the market 2-3 years ago.
The $500 price tag was something I felt was too high even for a weekend Porsche enthusiast.

The idea that this was a well designed product resonated with me, after all Porsche and Apple-oriented design DNA make some sense together.
Some months ago I even noticed a full page ad on Panorama but still I resisted.

Checking again in 2018, I started finding prices on eBay for half the price, i.e. ~$200-250.
I researched a bit and found that the company went under mid summer 2017 and that the tech was acquired by American Road.
Even with the fear of doubtful support from the acquirer, I decided to pull the trigger and see what the good design of Pearl resulted into.
It would be kind of reading a book about the story of the startup and maybe the camera would be useful.

So, I've been using it now for a couple of days and here are my comments:

• Install process was not easy, it took me a couple of hours to get it working
  • The OBD card needs to be pushed all the way into the port till you hear a loud noise, that was not easy from the beginning
  • The rearvision license frame with the cameras was not charged. I located the USB cable and charged it for 10-20' initially. That was not enough. It required 4-5 hours to get fully charged. Without it being fully charged the update from the app to the RearVision fails.
  • Connecting to the Wifi is a bit challenging at first. It requires a password to be generated through re-plugging the OBD and that does not always succeed. Takes a few attempts to get it working.
• With the camera installed, when you need to open the app, it takes 20-30 seconds to get a view from the camera
  • There are no distance sensors, just the image analysis which can be tricky. It notifies you when you get close but it's unclear how close you are. You really need to figure out which part of the 997 is the outer one and watch that on the camera
  • On every camera open, it takes out roughly 5% out of the battery
  • At night, the picture gets distorted a bit by the rear license plate lights. If you turn off the lights, you get a far clearer picture which helps you understand how far you are. Same thing happens when you approach a wall and you start getting reflections from the break lights.
  • The phone mount is really good quality, really happy with that ... justifies some part of the $250 value (they market it also separately for $40 on Amazon)

Overall, it's a fun gadget but in practice it's not your everyday backup camera.

Mr.Bourne

the_buch

An alternative here: https://fensens.com at a fraction of the cost if you're just doing the rear. Works quite well with app on iPhone mounted in car, doesn't occupy your OBD2 port, and fires up immediately when you launch the app.

max540i

I've been using my Pearl w/ an iPhone 6+ on my 997.2 for over a year now, wrt the review:

> it takes 20-30 seconds to get a view from the camera

I get the image immediately, only real nuisance is that, for iOS, i have to bind to the pearl wifi to override my home wifi (only an issue if already bound to wifi network).

> On every camera open, it takes out roughly 5% of the battery

I don't experience this.

> At night, the picture gets distorted ...

Agreed, also the bumperettes on the 997.2 obscure the edges on the wide angle view.

> The phone mount is really good quality ...

I've been through a bunch of phone mounts, the Pearl one has all the drawbacks any vent-mounted magnet device, there are better solutions.

Even though I use it everyday to back out of a tricky driveway, I'd hesitate to recommend it. My primary concern is that, after bankruptcy, the software will fail on an iOS update and the device will be rendered worthless. Also, the warranty could be an issue.

Saaboteur

Sounds like you have some practical experience with the Fensens? I saw it months ago but haven't made a move / forgot about it.

Needs Bluetooth link, but what if my iPhone is Bluetooth'd to the car stereo for handsfree calls? Suppose I could Bluetooth it to an old iPhone I use in the car as an iPod for music (I'm slightly old school and prefer wired iPod to my car for music instead of streaming).

Thanks also for nikandriko and max540i for their comments on the Pearl device. It does still sound like the best option is the traditional aftermarket stereo path, with wired camera. I have a similar set up in my winter car (Saab wagon) but it took quite a bit of time to wire it up, and of course had to drill into the hatch for the camera wires.

nikandriko

That's weird, when the app opens up, it shows an optimization loading bar which takes 10-20 seconds to connect to RearVision.

I agree with this statement, that's a major concern at the moment.
Looking also at American Road's website, they seem not to have great experience with high-end consumer things, they're mostly B2B on low-mid quality products.
One great idea would be for them to open source it.
The single fact that the Pearl OBD takes up your one and only OBD port without making full use of the driving data is insane.
There could be a tone of devices associated with this one OBD processing unit and the insights coming out of it could be extremely valuable.

cuttinsod

I've been using Pearl on my cayenne for 2+ years....except for the occasional 3-4 sec refresh (rare) it has actually worked very well....the video is great, and have the view adjustable, it works great for hooking up a trailer... it overrides my home wifi without issue, andhave had no issues connecting to my android phone....would highly recommend it...

urbanscribe

I have problems with fensens Bluetooth connection. About a third of the time they handshake. Rest of time Red no connection.

Have rediscovered and reset multiple times.

max540i

> That's weird, when the app opens up, it shows an optimization loading bar which takes 10-20 seconds to connect to RearVision.
Hmmmm, I don't see that, maybe bluetooth vs. wifi (device supports both) or android vs. iOS?

> it overrides my home wifi without issue
I recall reading that the override is automatic w/ android and manual w/ iOS. With iOS if you don't override the wifi connection it will set up an (inferior) bluetooth connection.

Ben Z

The main advantage to the Pearl as I see is the solar power, thus no need to hardwire it. But it won't work for me because it's illegal here to put a license frame that covers any of the writing on the plate That said, I have more need for it with my Corvette because the view out the back is abysmal. I've owned the 997 for 9 years and never felt the need for a backup camera, thankfully.

nikandriko