App Idea for MG ZS EV 2020

[Michisha]

Hi everyone,

Recently, I bought a 2020 MG ZS EV and found out there isn't a battery percentage display, leaving us only with the bars. As I understand it, the MG ZS has an NMC battery, and it's recommended to charge it to around 80% to maximize battery life.

To make this easier, I plan to build an app that notifies the user when to unplug the charger. This notification would be based on the average charging speed and the last known battery reading.

I have two options in mind for the app:

1. OBD-Based (Accurate): Create an app that reads data using any generic, cheap, low-power Bluetooth OBD2 scanner. This scanner would start with the car and provide an accurate battery percentage reading to the app.
2. Bar-Based (Approximate): Create an app that doesn't require an external device. The user would simply tell the app the current number of bars displayed, and the app would estimate the approximate battery percentage based on that.

In both cases, when you plug your vehicle in to charge, you would need to tell the app the charging speed (e.g., from your home charger or a public station). The app would then calculate and approximately notify you when the battery reaches 80% (or any other level you choose).

What do you think of this idea? Would option 1 (OBD) or option 2 (Bar-based) be more useful?