Tesla

The Tesla app lets an owner remotely precondition cabin climate, lock and unlock doors, check charge state and range, locate the car, summon it in a parking space (where equipped), and manage software updates, service appointments and Supercharging payment. It also handles account and vehicle key management, and integrates with the Tesla solar and Powerwall products for owners who have those too. The defining constraint is that it is entirely hardware bound: there is nothing to use the app for without owning or leasing a Tesla vehicle, unlike most consumer apps which have some standalone value. On top of that, Tesla splits connectivity into a free Standard Connectivity tier, which is limited largely to over-the-air software updates and basic connectivity, and a paid Premium Connectivity subscription, priced at 9.99 USD a month or included for the vehicle's first several years on some models, which is required for live traffic-based navigation, streaming media, live camera viewing and satellite-view maps. Which specific features fall behind Premium Connectivity has changed with different model years and firmware updates. Buyers are simply Tesla owners, since the app is mandatory rather than optional for basic tasks like using a phone as a car key on some models. The trade-off is that owners are locked into whatever remote feature set and subscription structure Tesla chooses at any given time, since none of it is available through third party alternatives.