Charge Anytime with Kia

The problem here is that Im trying to make a decision on chargers...the Ohme or the Indra. Clearly Ohme not supported anymore (but I prefer it to the Indra) so I would have to use the direct to vehicle connection method for charge anytime and all the problems that seem to come with that. I also worry that if OVO cant get this to reliably work it will never make it out of Beta or worse support is pulled completely by OVO for direct to vehicle.

Or do I get the Indra which is supported for direct to charger (avoiding the problems everyone seems to be having with Kia).

As all Kias use the Kia Connect app (or now the new Kia app that combines the legacy Kia apps like connect and charge) are there any Kia users on this forum that are using the direct to vehicle connection method using the new app with any success?

Many thanks all!

No worries - it’s also worth looking at Hypervolt and Andersen too by the way.

We’ve not seen much in the way of Andersen users on the Forum, but we do know that a lot of folks love Hypervolt and we’ve seen some pretty good results too.

Hypervolt Support have also been really good at helping out - their team is probably the most responsive out of all of them, with Indra coming a close second.

Either way, please check out ALL supported Chargers before making your decision! If you have a Kia, then tbh you’re better off going down the Charger route anyway.

You’re the first user we’ve seen using the new Kia app, so I’m afraid I can’t summon anyone else right now. We’ll keep an eye out for any others just in case they stop by though.

I looked at Hypervolt (and liked that unit the most) but they only support wi-fi connectivity and my basement garage needs a 4G connection if its to connect with the hypervolt app and hence OVO. Indra supports a 4G connection fob (as an add-in).

It does seem that if you dont park your car on your drive that is in range of your home wi-fi it gets difficult very quickly to install home charging and have it work with the energy supplier tariffs….one of the reasons I was also keen on direct to vehicle was that the Kia has 4G connectivity as standard (for the life of the 7 year warranty) so it does away with the charger needing to talk to the internet.

Gotcha! Thanks for clarifying - but I hope you didn’t mind the suggestion anyway. :)

In that case, I’d say go down the Indra route. That way, you’ll get the better experience and will avoid the issues with Ohme and Kia.

All suggestions welcome. This whole home charging thing is not straightforward and you really need to look at specs of chargers, cars, internet connectivity etc...etc.

Ban on ICE vehicles by 2035 in the UK - cant see it happening unless we come up with better charging solutions.

Yeah, I agree with that. It’ll probably happen eventually, but it relies on infrastructure that just isn’t ready yet…

Only time will tell.

Probably exactly the same words to describe Ohme at some point!

​@WileyC  If you prefer the Hypervolt you could maybe use a mini 4G/WiFi device such as a TP-Link M7000 or something similar with 4G/LAN connectivity.

Hey ​@WileyC,

Regarding ​@oho's excellent suggestion about a Wi-Fi extender, they are indeed very useful for extending coverage to areas with weak signals and are readily available nowadays.

While infrastructure improvements are progressing well, it's crucial to ensure alignment and avoid the proprietary software/hardware challenges that the technology world has long faced. We need to instill confidence in both new and existing customers that purchasing an EV or charger won't be a confusing experience. As you’ve said, there are currently many complexities and considerations. Fortunately, you're in the right place, and any of our members are happy to provide help

It may also be worth seeing if a more powerful Wi-Fi Router might help. ISP ones tend to be pretty wimpy because they’re cheap, but you can use your own instead if you don’t mind doing a little bit of setup - but it’s not generally too bad!

I’m quite a fan of Ubiquiti UniFi myself, but there’s other options as well. Long story short, something with more power should have more range, so if your garage isn’t far from the house, you might be able to pull it off that way.