Review of MicroVBB Black Box


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Guys, as every car owner in this forum, i love my car. I also love to spend on my car in terms of shampooing, accessories, etc. I have spent thousands on ICE & minor external mods, but nothing for car security & i think that was the biggest mistake i made.

if you read this thread of mine, you will realize that today my car is with me just because i was plain lucky. henceforth i dint want to take chances & i have implemented a lot of security measures in my car, out of which one is MicroVBB Black Box.

Linky- MicroVBB

I chose the Elite model as it has a back up battery which can run for 2-3 hours even if a thief disconnects the main battery, it had remotes & it had the facility for two add-on users.
Linky- http://www.microvbb.net/pdf/vbb_elite.pdf

The fitment was done at bandra & it took 3.5 hours. The staff was very courteous & helpful & answered all my queries (some very strange) patiently. Pricing of the same is as below-
Black Box 'Elite': Rs. 12,600/-
Fitting Charges: Rs. 750/-
Remote locking motor: Rs. 1500

The remote locking motor was fitted because, unlike nippon which came standard with my car, this one's remote only arms/disarms the system but does not lock/unlock the doors. since it was cumbersome to carry two remotes, i installed a motor which will lock the doors & arm the system with one remote itself.

Coming to the product, this black box is a GSM based system which needs to have a SIM card inside it. In the Elite model, it will save a total of 3 numbers to whom it will send messages on intrusion. Intrusion can be like door open, audio removal, engine start attempt, hood or hatch open, black box tampering attempt or SIM card removal attempt, etc. Once you get an alert (which by the way is an SMS on your phone followed by a missed call), you can choose to send back any commands you like. You can send a command to switch off the engine immediately. if the vehicle is running, the hazard light will blink for 20 seconds after which the engine will be switched off. it will only switch on if you send an engine ON message again from your phone or disarm it using remote supplied. you can also send a command to know the present location of your car, in case the thief managed to drive away or tow away your car. Also, if i have armed the car using remote & even if the thief manages to get in the car, he wont be able to start the engine, as the immobilizer is active.

Interestingly, while the installation was happening in my car, a guy in a black Scorpio came next to my car, rolled down his window & gave a thumbs up to the MicroVBB guys saying that this product saved his car twice. then he looked up to me & said, "You will be a happy man". Thanks buddy.

Overall, i would rate this product quite high & its an investment for your piece of mind. Of course, you cannot solely depend on electronics, so this is one of the many measures i have taken for my car to prevent such an incident happening again...
 
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This looks like a really great security option. Congrats rajeev, your scorpio is now theftproof..
 
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Yes i know nothing is perfect or foolproof but atleast your car is a lot safer than before.
 
Thread Starter #8
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ilango[speed thirst];32379 said:
this one is safest method. congrats for your car!

you have picked one of best useful accessory
congrats on the installation buddy. good to know that the scorp is relatively more safer.
thanks buddy.

can you pls post the photos of installation?
& very wise decision
well, the BB is hidden in my car & i obviously cannot reveal its location. so pics cannot be posted as it defeats the purpose of installing the BB then!
 

350Z

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Interesting gadget, I’ve heard about it before and should be surely helpful, not only in cases of theft but also if have you given the car in hands of a driver. I think you can also track the location of car through Internet in Google Maps?

Drive Safe,
350Z
 
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Hey Raj, This is a cool product.

Good move to install that in your car. I am not sure about the SMS thing since it all depends on the location of the car and how good the GSM signal strength is there.
Though, the GPS is a great feature and that should help in locating the car.

I noticed one thing in the list of features - "Vehicle immobilization through SMS". Why should it immobilize after an SMS instead of straight away do it.

I hope the system is more automated rather than depending on SMS handshaking!
Can you clarify?

Disclaimer: I do not doubt the product. Having worked at Siemens for 7 years, I know what they are and what is their quality strength. They are THE best in automobile products.
 
Thread Starter #11
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Interesting gadget, I’ve heard about it before and should be surely helpful, not only in cases of theft but also if have you given the car in hands of a driver. I think you can also track the location of car through Internet in Google Maps?

Drive Safe,
350Z
no, i will get the location through GSM based service.

if you want exact location through GPS service, you will have to opt for 'Navigator'. apart from the initial cost which is Rs. 16500/-, there are also lot of other costs involved. plus i feel its not that necessary.
 
Thread Starter #12
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Hey Raj, This is a cool product.

Good move to install that in your car. I am not sure about the SMS thing since it all depends on the location of the car and how good the GSM signal strength is there.
Though, the GPS is a great feature and that should help in locating the car.
yes, you cannot help it if there is no signal, but as soon as the signal improves, you can find the car or send messages.

I noticed one thing in the list of features - "Vehicle immobilization through SMS". Why should it immobilize after an SMS instead of straight away do it.
the BB straight away immobilizes the car & does not wait for an SMS. after the car is locked with remote, you cannot start the car unless it is disarmed with the same remote.

yes, the SMS feature has its own importance. if a thief is smart enough to de-activate it & start the car by shorting some wires or using a duplicate key, i can atleast send an SMS & switch it off again. also, i can use the tracking command to know the car's location.

some may say, the thief may again start the car, like he did initially. i would ask, how many times? i will get a SMS as soon as he starts the car. i will again send a SMS to switch off the engine. by the time, he is tired & abandons the vehicle, i will track the vehicle.

this is how i hope the system is made to work!
 
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Hey Raj looks like a very useful product and a must for all car users with the increasing theft activities around!

Were you given a demo of the how the product works?? And also is there any specific SMS language that should be followed??
 
Thread Starter #14
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yes, i was given a demo using a toy car. yes, the command should be exactly the way its written in the manual. (by the way, its english & commands are simple.)
 
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Raj must be enjoying the cool feature. If you have a navigator , you can connect them , provided you get a high end navigator system.

High end security system even traps the thief inside by locking the car. Have heard this from one person in this line , have not seen in real
 
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