blittle

All and all a good system.... BUT..... I believe in "don't promote what ya ain't got!" The literature and the website (MB) talk about one of the Mbrace2 functions being "romote diagnostics" "mbrace reps will be able to immediately see the condition of all systems on your vehicle" the system will send you a monthly email report on the "health" of your vehicle.... you can call up a remote report on all systems, etc.!! Well.... I didn't see that anywhere on the in-vehicle menu and/or on the remote app program. Soooooo.... i called mbrace: The poor rep hemmed and hawed and said " "you don't have that on your vehicle" I said..... wait, this is a 2013 with all the mbrace2 functions ( according the the GL literature AND the MB website ) turns out she had no idea what I was even talking about.....said she would call back....sure enough, 30 min later she called back and said..."that function is still in the "testing" stage" So..... if you were looking for that ..... not yet!!!

rmemory

Hopefully they'll finish testing soon. It would be a nice feature if they can figure out how to make it work.

I don't know about anyone else, but I'm very underwhelmed with MB apps. I've actually seen them only once, as it takes sooo long for the apps to load I give up and cancel out the screen. What kind of data service is MB using for these functions? 2G? I hope the wifi hotspot they sell as an accessory is faster than that (not that I plan on getting it).

I'll keep the mbrace basic service, but the other add ons I'll let expire at the end of the trial period.

sraza

from the website it says diagnostics will be available late 2013...

Steve Maislin

At this point, the only way I will extend this beyond the free period is at a significant discount. Since I hear they don't discount, it sounds like I will drop it. Maybe they will come back with a modified pricing model and make it reasonable enough to justify what I do use which is sending locations when using google maps. Everything else seems superfluous. I have a hard time paying $20/month for the convenience of preloading locations into the navigation system. Then, the plus features add additional cost for getting traffic data. I have not even tried that one.

rmemory

I called mbrace last week because they sent me a confusing letter saying my account wasn't activated yet. Of course, it was. They then tried to get me to pre-pay for 2 or 3 years of mbrace, at a discount of about 30% from the regular $280 annually. I passed for now as I have some time to think about it. But that's probably the best discount you'll get.

JoeMa

Mbrace is the one area I was not too excited about when I ordered a 550. When you compare the MB offering to other brands, it is just not as good or user friendly and they charge for access to their App-suite when most others do not.

The Nav screen in the GL is small compared to other manufacturers (Lexus and BMW for example). The 2014 S Class will have a much larger Nav screen so MB is starting to move in a right direction, GL owners will just have to wait several more years.

blittle

The app stuff COULD be nice but .....NOT! Too slow, too clunky to use, too expensive ( even if it worked better ) If you have a smart mobile device ( phone or iPad or such ) and have connectivity that you are already paying for, then you have something far more functional. Actually, the Sirius weather app works very nicely...and, have found on their website that there are other functions that they ( Sirius ) offer such as one called "Travel Link" that are designed to work with NAV systems that would be cool to have BUTTTT would be competition for Mbrace and therefore those functions are "not compatible" with MB vehicles.... hmmmmmm! I will be keeping the basic Mbrace....thats it!

sraza

yup thats true.. though i think the only way it'll get cheaper is when they have enough customers to be able to do so.. look at sirius- ridiculous discounts..

JoeMa

I was mainly referring to the Mbrace App Suite, which is only accessible if you have the monthly subscription through MB. Sirius/XM is of course a separate product that requires it's own subscription.

blittle is correct, if you own a smart phone, the system should allow you access to Apps via that device without a charge from MB. Their current model will not last long in my opinion since their competition does allow free access to Apps if you own a smart phone.

blittle

Yes Sirius and Mbrace are separate systems...... I was simply comparing how much faster/easier the Sirius weather app works compared to the whole package of Mbrace apps. They both use telemetric communication.....you would think MB could put forth a top notch system.

JoeMa

CNET recently reviewed the ML and said MB uses an onboard 3G cellular connection for Mbrace, which is why it is so slow. As you pointed out, if I already own an iPhone with an LTE connection, why not let me use an App suite vie that device. Of course, MB cannot charge me for that connection.

bimbocoles

Honestly, MBRACE incl. PLUS is a waste of money. Most of the features are available through your smartphone with a much faster and more reliable internet connection. I am still in the free trial period and havent used it once.

sraza

i agree.. though the valet protect and sendtobenz are pretty cool options and having the key fob on the phone is pretty sweet too, but yea the PLUS seems unnecessary..

blittle

I agree..... like the Valet stuff and remote lock and unlock as well. And will like the remote diagnostics if and when they activate the program.

JimBarnhart

I thought the "locate" button on the smartphone app was going to be really neat. I was with my brother about 250 miles away, and my wife and my sister-in-law were coming over to meet us. I tried to use it to locate her, and then call her and tell her where she was to freak her out.

Unfortunately the feature doesn't work unless you are physically within a mile or two of the GL.

JoeMa

It should work exactly like you expected so that is too bad. I can track my family when they travel via the "Find Friends" app in our iPhones. It works exactly like you would expect it too. I don't want to be too hard on Mbrace because most car companies cannot match the easy-of-use of an iPhone or most any smart-phone.

A good example of this is using the navigation feature on an iPhone, you simple tell "Siri" you need directions to 123 Main Street Mytown, PA and off you go. Instead you still have to give the address one piece at a time, and often repeat yourself. We should also be able to request a specific song and artist in a natural way.

Apple is now offering "Eyes Free" to manufacturers so you can access many if the "Siri" functions by pressing the talk button on the steering wheel. I hope more companies look into that approach.

JimBarnhart

I'm sure MBrace could tell me the location, but they've disabled for some reason. I must admit I'm not sure I'd like my wife to know my whereabouts 24/7, and I drive the GL more than she does, so I'm not too disappointed it didn't work.

Bo$$

Does anyone know if the Diagnosis feature is available?

From what I read it looked like the end of 2013 but here we are mid 2015 and I couldn't find anything searching the forums or MBRACE site.

Elric99

I'd just like it if the send2benz site worked. Haven't been able to connect to it in months.

cadetdrivr

Interesting.

I have not tried the website lately but we both use the iOS app frequently.

43221B

Are you having trouble with the app or using send2benz within Google maps? I ask because I was having trouble sending addresses from google maps and then I realized the instructions are wrong in Google for setting it up. For me, I had to use my email address instead of my MB owner's online login ID.

jtse

this app is a sick joke. I wouldn't use it even if it is free with the car. This is like pre-iphone days where all the cell phone's software is horrible. Musk is changing all of that, and car manufacturers need to focus more on software and not be over emphasis on hardwares.

43221B

I agree with your comments on the app. Send2Benz is convenient though when used from within google maps. Mercedes actually is working on a vertical flat panel display for the console similar to what is in a Tesla, believe it or not.

Elric99

I just tried it on my phone and it is working now, but my issue is with using it on my PC. You used to be able to go to http://send2benz.com/ and enter an address to send. Site has been down for me for months.

ioman

MBRACE is a joke. I pre-paid for two years (wish I hadn't) and cannot get it to work after 3 months. The Mbrace support wants me to take my car to the dealership to flash it, but I don't want to lose my car for a whole day while they flash it, so I am going to wait till my next service apt and then have them fix it. Then they will reimburse me for the months it didn't work.

It's a stupid feature for Mercedes. Chevrolet executes way better than Mercedes which is a shame.