No Phone

[Nrvna76]

New to this community and the Tesla world. Still a ways off from my delivery but I have a semi unique issue where I'm not allowed to bring my personal iPhone in to work. This brings with it a few drawbacks and I'm curious on opinions for the best option. There is a phone lockbox of sorts in the parking lot that I could use, but I live in NY so it's not exactly ideal in winter time. So far, I think I've only got 3 options (other than buying a smart ring or something), unfortunately I think all of them mean I won't be able to set the cabin temperature before I leave work. Is there a way to log into the car from your Tesla account through a computer browser? Any other options I'm not aware of that may work better?

#1 Leave the phone in the car with bluetooth off and utilize the keycard during work days.
#2 Purchase the key FOB.
#3 Leave the phone in the lockbox and ensure I park out of bluetooth range.

Appreciate any thoughts and/or experiences. Thanks!

 

[tashtibet]

believe it or not I do not have cell phone for 13.5 years (still don't)-I've owned the very early model 3 RWD-sold & bought MY. I use just the fob-there're departure setting you can condition your car in the summer heat or winter storm/cold-just chill!

 

[sleepydoc]

If your phone is not allowed to be physically in the building at all I think the key fob is your best option. You can use the lockbox and turn the BT off so you don't need to worry about it being out of range, but then you're fumbling with the lock box in the wintertime.

 

[M109Rider]

believe it or not I do not have cell phone for 13.5 years (still don't)-I've owned the very early model 3 RWD-sold & bought MY. I use just the fob-there're departure setting you can condition your car in the summer heat or winter storm/cold-just chill!

Respect.

 

[Nrvna76]

believe it or not I do not have cell phone for 13.5 years (still don't)-I've owned the very early model 3 RWD-sold & bought MY. I use just the fob-there're departure setting you can condition your car in the summer heat or winter storm/cold-just chill!

I choose not to believe it.

I did not know about the departure setting so that'll be good for the cabin conditioning. Thanks!

 

[Nrvna76]

If your phone is not allowed to be physically in the building at all I think the key fob is your best option. You can use the lockbox and turn the BT off so you don't need to worry about it being out of range, but then you're fumbling with the lock box in the wintertime.

I think if I got the fob I'd probably just leave the phone in the car and turn it off. Wasn't sure if the fob improves the experience by $250. haha

 

[sleepydoc]

I think if I got the fob I'd probably just leave the phone in the car and turn it off. Wasn't sure if the fob improves the experience by $250. haha

It's listed at $175 on the web site, but yeah, you're the only one who can say if it's worth it or not.

 

[GtiMart]

Is there a loophole that lets you have a smart watch? I think there are smartwatch applications that will let you control the car like the app does. Some watches have LTE as far as I know and thus don't require a phone in your pocket... I have never tried it, it's just an idea...

 

[Nrvna76]

Is there a loophole that lets you have a smart watch? I think there are smartwatch applications that will let you control the car like the app does. Some watches have LTE as far as I know and thus don't require a phone in your pocket... I have never tried it, it's just an idea...

Appreciate the reply.. no loophole.. it's the LTE and onboard microphones that isn't allowed. I think with setting my time I plan to leave and scheduling that in the car I should be able to get most of what I'd like.

 

[Nrvna76]

It's listed at $175 on the web site, but yeah, you're the only one who can say if it's worth it or not.

Numbers are hard...

 

[GtiMart]

Ok, at least I tried Do you have access to a computer at work? There are sites/apps like TeslaFi that can expose controls on the web page, you could use that. They also have different scheduling capabilities that you might like.

 

[digid80]

I also work in a building that I can not have my phone in. I was worried about this before taking delivery and it turns out I had nothing to worry about. I bought this from amazon https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08JPD2WTK/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 and when I get into work I just disconnect the Bluetooth on my phone pull the card out and lock the door with the key card. You actually don't even have to disconnect the Bluetooth but I do it for peace of mind because I leave my phone in the car. No issues. No need to buy the Fob.

 

[DanDi58]

New to this community and the Tesla world. Still a ways off from my delivery but I have a semi unique issue where I'm not allowed to bring my personal iPhone in to work. This brings with it a few drawbacks and I'm curious on opinions for the best option. There is a phone lockbox of sorts in the parking lot that I could use, but I live in NY so it's not exactly ideal in winter time. So far, I think I've only got 3 options (other than buying a smart ring or something), unfortunately I think all of them mean I won't be able to set the cabin temperature before I leave work. Is there a way to log into the car from your Tesla account through a computer browser? Any other options I'm not aware of that may work better?

#1 Leave the phone in the car with bluetooth off and utilize the keycard during work days.
#2 Purchase the key FOB.
#3 Leave the phone in the lockbox and ensure I park out of bluetooth range.

Appreciate any thoughts and/or experiences. Thanks!

#4 - Find a new job

 

[angus[Y]oung]

believe it or not I do not have cell phone for 13.5 years (still don't)-I've owned the very early model 3 RWD-sold & bought MY. I use just the fob-there're departure setting you can condition your car in the summer heat or winter storm/cold-just chill!

@tashtibet interesting, I always thought the Scheduled Departure feature was only/mainly about scheduling when charging starts, but didn't really get that it also affects preconditioning. That's a nice workaround, provided you have a reasonably predictable/dependable departure time from work.

 

[Nrvna76]

Ok, at least I tried Do you have access to a computer at work? There are sites/apps like TeslaFi that can expose controls on the web page, you could use that. They also have different scheduling capabilities that you might like.

I do have access, and I’ll definitely look into that. I was curious if this was possible, thanks for the info!

 

[Nrvna76]

I also work in a building that I can not have my phone in. I was worried about this before taking delivery and it turns out I had nothing to worry about. I bought this from amazon https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08JPD2WTK/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 and when I get into work I just disconnect the Bluetooth on my phone pull the card out and lock the door with the key card. You actually don't even have to disconnect the Bluetooth but I do it for peace of mind because I leave my phone in the car. No issues. No need to buy the Fob.

Appreciate the info, thanks!

 

[Nrvna76]

#4 - Find a new job

It’s on a larger unrelated to this thread list that would likely mean I don’t stay in this state.

 

[SDM44]

On a similar note, I'm one of the few people on here who does not use their phone as their Tesla key... never have with my previous 3, and never will with my current Y.

That said, I "invested" in a key fob and it's been way more useful than using the phone as the key IMO. The main reason why I got the fob is because I usually have to give my car key to the attendant in our parking garage at work in DTLA, and when you have literally 30+ other Model 3 and Y cars just on the same level as you and most of them give the attendant a key card, then my key fob with the AO silicone cover & blue Olight stands out and can quickly be grabbed for me every day. Otherwise, I've seen them thumbing through like 20+ key cards & flat card holders.

The other main reason I got the fob is because of the trunk & frunk buttons on the fob, as they work instantaneously when you double-click the buttons on the fob. Much easier & faster than opening the app, waiting for the app to connect to your car, going into the Controls menu and clicking on the trunk to open, then pressing OK to acknowledge that you really want to open the trunk, and second of two later it will finally open up. Never understood why there's a frunk shortcut on the home screen in the app instead of the trunk, unless you have a powered lift kit on the frunk. Plus the fob has passive entry, so like your phone the car will detect it as you approach the car and will unlock when you open the door.


If you don't need to give your Tesla "key" to anybody when you park, then the included key card will work just fine. As long as you don't have an RFID lined wallet, you can keep the key card in your wallet and tap the wallet on the door and on the console.

 

[sleepydoc]

On a similar note, I'm one of the few people on here who does not use their phone as their Tesla key... never have with my previous 3, and never will with my current Y.

That said, I "invested" in a key fob and it's been way more useful than using the phone as the key IMO. The main reason why I got the fob is because I usually have to give my car key to the attendant in our parking garage at work in DTLA, and when you have literally 30+ other Model 3 and Y cars just on the same level as you and most of them give the attendant a key card, then my key fob with the AO silicone cover & blue Olight stands out and can quickly be grabbed for me every day. Otherwise, I've seen them thumbing through like 20+ key cards & flat card holders.

The other main reason I got the fob is because of the trunk & frunk buttons on the fob, as they work instantaneously when you double-click the buttons on the fob. Much easier & faster than opening the app, waiting for the app to connect to your car, going into the Controls menu and clicking on the trunk to open, then pressing OK to acknowledge that you really want to open the trunk, and second of two later it will finally open up. Never understood why there's a frunk shortcut on the home screen in the app instead of the trunk, unless you have a powered lift kit on the frunk. Plus the fob has passive entry, so like your phone the car will detect it as you approach the car and will unlock when you open the door.


If you don't need to give your Tesla "key" to anybody when you park, then the included key card will work just fine. As long as you don't have an RFID lined wallet, you can keep the key card in your wallet and tap the wallet on the door and on the console.

Yeah, I never understood why they don't have a trunk button on the main screen of the app, either.

The other advantage of the key fob over the key card is you don't have to have it out at all - you can just walk up, get in and drive.

 

[GtiMart]

The two trunks are easily accessible. In the app's notification area, at least on Android, you can gently swipe within the notification and it expands to show a couple of commands you can use without opening up the app: