You can use this app as your inexpensive car tracker. Find an old phone (Android or iPhone) and install the FollowMee app. Place the phone inside the car with connection to the car USB port or cigarette lighter port. When the car is driven, the app tracks the car location while the phone battery is being charged. When the car is parked, the app goes to sleep to preserve the battery. SIM card is not a requirement in this use case. If you have one, then you can track your car in real time. Otherwise, the location data will be uploaded to this website for your viewing when the car arrives home and connects to wifi.
The app uses the phone motion sensor to detect if the car is moving or stationary. Since the phone is stationary inside the car all the time, the motion sensor might not work for some Android phones. In this case, you need to open the app settings screen and enable "Car Mode" (app settings -> advanced settings -> car mode). The app will use the charger state to detect the car's operation state. Please note that the "Car Mode" setting is only available for Android phones. iPhone does not need this setting.
Pay attention to the phone battery and the connection to the charger. The only time for charging the battery is when the car is driven. If the car is not driven often, the battery might run out sooner. The charger might detach from the phone and it does not charge the phone as a result. When the battery dies, the phone shuts down. Most Android phones do not start up automatically when the battery is charged to a sufficient level. You need to push the power button manually.
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Does my phone need cellular data service to run this GPS tracker app?