I've a few tasks looming on the horizon, and wonder on the best solution. The car is an E92 330D lci (2011). There's a new battery that will require registering (not coding), distance to brake renewal resetting, monitoring the DPF and perhaps forcing a regeneration, and whatever comes up. The vehicle is serviced for oil and brake fluid at whichever BMW dealership is convenient, so those setting don't require resetting. In no particular order, I've considered purchasing either Carly, a D-Can cable together with all the usual software, Rheingold, or a Foxwell NT510 or something similar. The Carly I have now ruled out after they confirmed their change in pricing policy in an email the began: "Yes this is correct. The App costs 54,99 EUR per Year. " I'm not adverse to using a PC based solution, but not sure I'm willing to go through the learning curve that some feel is necessary to avoid a coding catastrophe. Rheingold looks easiest to use but relatively expensive. Comments and suggestions appreciated and welcome.
Rheingold can be downloaded for free and a D-can cable isn't expensive. Unless you're wanting to code modules then you'd need something like an ICOM A2+B+C device. Or, you can use the old suite of products WinKFP, NCSExpert, DIS and INPA for diagnostics and coding. Rheingold is easier to use than NCSExpert and quicker than DIS.
You can get rheingold/ISTA for free but I ended up just buying it off eBay for £25, was the latest version at the time and he even let me update it a few times afterwards. Was about an 80gb download though because it had ISTA/p included as well.
Many thanks all for your feedback, it's much appreciated. It's reassuring that Rheingold is the preferred solution, so that's the direction I'll take. Adie, the ista manual will make an interesting read, and much appreciate the link.