Best Car Battery Monitor (with Bluetooth) UK
A fun one today, we’re reviewing and rating the Best Car Battery Monitor UK.
Chances are you’re here because you know from experience the treacherous nature of car batteries!
They’ll be working fine and then suddenly they die on you, or they refuse to start your car engine. Then, the question is: is it just low voltage, and it needs a charge? Or is the battery in poor health and needs to be put out to pasture (ie. scrapped).
How can you keep an eye on the battery’s voltage and capacity (health), and make sure you’re not stranded somewhere, unable to move. A quality 12V bluetooth battery monitor will give you an easy way to keep track of the battery condition.
Then you’ll know when it needs charged (here are the top 12V battery chargers for the job), and when it needs replaced. And you can take action before it lets you down.
Beware, though not all 12V battery meters are created equally. Some will only measure voltage, not capacity. We’ll discuss why that’s important, so you can make the best decision on what you need.
Important update May 2023: The AB Analyzer has been discontinued.
Update March 2024: The BM2 now has an upgraded model, the BM6 – check out a BM6 review.
Best Car Battery Monitor List
Now let’s check out the specifications and ratings for the top 12V battery monitors from our testing.
How did we select these two monitors as the best on the UK market?
We tested them for:
- Testing accuracy
- Functionality (features and modes offered)
- Ease to set up App
- Ease of installation of the unit on the battery
- Usefulness with identifying battery issues
Both of these Bluetooth car batter monitors passed our tests for the build quality of the unit, how well it connects to the battery, how easily the Bluetooth connection is made, and whether the App can be used effectively enough to meet the average person’s needs.
Here were our findings, and then read on for full reviews of both 12V battery meters.
| RANKING |   |  |
| CAR BATTERY MONITOR MODEL | AB Analyzer | BM2 |
| VOLTAGE OF BATTERIES IT CAN BE USED WITH | 12V | 12V |
| WEIGHT | 5.5 x 5.5 x 2.1cm | 15.5 x 12.2 x 2.5 cm |
| DIMENSIONS | 55g | 80g |
| FUNCTIONALITY | 4/5 | 3/5 |
| ACCURACY | 4.5/5 | 3.5/5 |
| OVERALL RATING |  |  |
Bluetooth Car Battery Monitor Reviews
Now we’ve checked out the basic info, here are the full reviews of these battery condition meters.
Here are our pros & cons from testing each device, and our overall verdict.
AB Analyzer Battery Monitor (12V)
Pros and who needs this monitor:
Has a battery health (capacity) test
This is the only monitor on the market we’ve seen on the market that has battery health (capacity) test as well as voltage test. Normally, only a professional car battery tester has this. And the fact its very accurate as well, is highly impressive. If you don’t know what a battery capacity test is, it’s the health of the battery (if it’s low the battery may die permanently soon). Whereas the voltage test is simply the current amount of charge in the battery (so you’ll know if charge is low that it should be charged soon).
The capacity and voltage tests are highly accurate
We tested the AB Analyzer’s battery test results compared to an industrial battery analyzer (worth thousands of pounds) and it was very close to the results from that tester.
Journey function worked really well
It’s a function that logs your journeys start/end times and the route on Google Maps. It was quite cool to be able to see exactly where we’ve been, and how long the journey was. It’s not something most people will need, but some people (like us) will think it’s cool, and maybe other people will like being able to keep track of their journeys in detail.
App quality is far better than the BM2
The AB Analyzer’s App interface is much nicer and easier to use. It’s easy to select the test type you want, and with clear instructions. To be clear, the BM2 App is not bad, and is also simple to use, just not as nice a place to be.
Cons and why this battery monitor with App is not for you:
It’s expensive
Quite a lot more than the BM2 meter, in fact. For that you do get a lot more, by far the most important being the battery capacity (health) test. It just depends if that’s what you need and if you’re willing to pay more for it.
No voltage history
One advantage of the BM2 is that it gives you a voltage history of the battery when you connect it. For example, if you didn’t use it for 3 days, then when you connect it will show the voltages for the last 3 days. The AB Analyzer doesn’t have this facility.
BM2 Monitor (Quicklynks)
Pros and who needs this model.
Voltage readings are accurate
We found the BM2 battery monitor’s readings to be accurate, compared to a much more expensive battery tester.
Charging and starting system tests are useful
If you want to see how well your alternator is working, this type of testing can help you, as well as seeing how good your starter is performing.
Works well for low cost
If all you need is a device that’ll let you check the battery’s current voltage (charge), this will do the job for you absolutely fine. Unlike some lower-priced voltmeters, the unit itself is hardy enough, and will last.
Cons and why this 12V meter is not for you:
No battery (capacity) test
This is certainly the biggest difference to the two 12V battery condition monitors on this page, and the biggest drawback to the BM2. You’ll get a good idea of the your car battery’s charge, but without a battery capacity test you’ll have no idea how healthy the battery actually is – whether it can last long-term or whether it may fail soon.
Logging of trips was inconsistent
In our testing, the BM2 unit would sometimes show the trip record details, but other times it simply wouldn’t appear.
Where to get it?
Here’s a full BM2 battery monitor review.
It’s at lowest cost, on Amazon right here.
Now that you’ve read the reviews of the best car battery monitor on the UK market, let’s analyse 12V monitors further.
Here are a few things it could be helpful to know.
What are the trip/journey functions of these monitors?
Both of these battery condition monitors have a function that logs the journeys you make in your car.
They log the start and end time of your journey, as well as the battery voltages and you can view that on the App.
The difference is that the AB Analyzer also logs your journey route on Google Maps, and shows clearly your distance and duration of travel.
It looks like this:
Battery Health (Capacity) Test
We mentioned that the AB Analyzer has a battery capacity test (the BM2 doesn’t), and that’s it’s a very important piece of information for you to know about the battery.
Car battery capacity (ie. health) is measured in CCA (Cold Cranking Amps). It means the ability of the battery to start the vehicle in cold temperatures.
Basically, if CCA is low, it means your 12V battery is in poor health, and may not be able to start your engine much longer.
The AB Analyzer’s capacity test, then, can show you the health of your battery.
Battery Voltage Test
Both of these car battery monitors have voltage tests. It’s a measure of how much charge the battery has, it doesn’t tell you the health of the battery.
A battery may be in poor health but it can still be charged fully, to 100%. It’s just that the charge may not last long, and the battery may no longer be able to deliver enough power to start the engine.
In this case, a voltage test would show 100%, so charge is good. But a battery capacity (health) test may show, for example, 45%. That would mean the battery may fail soon and should be replaced (some battery reconditioning methods may be able to help though, such as a battery desulfator).
Best Bluetooth Car Battery Monitor UK Summary
Whoo!
Hope you enjoyed reading about the best car battery monitors UK.
We talked about the two monitors of sufficient quality to make our list, the AB Analyzer and the BM2.
Both will do a good job for you, as long as you get the one that meets your needs. We talked about what they’re both capable of. The AB Analyzer has health (capacity) testing, which can be crucial to know to make sure you’re not caught out by a failing battery. It has excellent functionality, such as the Journey function as well (though that may be considered jut a gimmick by some). It’s pricey, though.
The BM2 is a lot cheaper, and will monitor your battery voltages over time. That’s valuable since you can see how voltage is going up or down. That way you’ll know when you need to get more charge in the battery. You’ll need to use a battery charger, or go on longer journeys to make sure the car battery gets a full charge. You won’t know the health of the battery with this option, though.
How to decide which one? The AB Analyzer’s health test is certainly valuable, you’ll just need to decide if it’s worth the extra money for you. If not, the BM2 is the one for you.
Here’s where to check out each one:
Important update May 2023: The AB Analyzer has been discontinued.
The BM2 (Quicklynks) is here.
Check out this BM6 12V battery monitor review or the BM6 on Amazon.