MiX Telematics review

Offers more than just vehicle and asset tracking

(Image: © MiX telematics)

TechRadar Verdict

A veteran telematics provider with a presence in several countries and a comprehensive offering, albeit with some limitations and caveats.

Pros

  • +

    Comprehensive solution

  • +

    Installation assistance

  • +

    Presence in many countries

Cons

  • -

    Not much user feedback online

  • -

    No free trials or demo

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MiX Telematics is a leading cloud-based telematics provider that offers a mobile asset and fleet management solution. Founded in 1996, the company operates in over 120 countries worldwide and maintains offices in the US, the UK, South Africa, Uganda, Brazil, Australia, the United Arab Emirates, and Mexico.

As of now, MiX Telematics manages over 959,000,000 mobile assets with the help of over 130 partners. Its shares are publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange as well as the Johannesburg Stock Exchange.

The company delivers a SaaS solution for enterprise fleets, small fleets and consumers, with the ability to track trucks and buses, vans, cars, motorbikes, trailers and more. Employing a unified approach to telematics, the company offers actionable intelligence to solve complex vehicle and driver-related problems.

MiX Telematics: Pricing

Mix Telematics used to be  one of the providers who are pretty transparent about its pricing and contract structure. Unfortunately, they don’t publish their pricing on their websire anymore, but we’ve attached their 2020 pricing structure here for reference. 

As you can see in the attached photo, the company used to offer a couple of plans, both payable monthly or annually. For both the plans, the company charged an additional $29.95 per order for shipping and handling of hardware. Note, however, that the pricing information may not be accurate anymore. 

Self-installation: This tier starts at $35 a month for a single vehicle and you get an additional 10% discount with the annual plan which costs $378 per year per vehicle. Businesses that opt for this DIY plan are sent the tracking hardware that comes with a limited lifetime warranty, but the company does not offer installation assistance. These devices are plug-and-play, and can be transferred between vehicles.

Among the standard features are live tracking, street and satellite maps, geo-fencing, service and licensing reminders, fuel and cost reporting, access via web or mobile phones, and a 30-second software refresh.

Professional installation: As the name suggests, this is the pricier of the two plans and is available at $39.50 per vehicle per month or $426 when paid annually (after a 10% discount).

Under this plan, the company offers an accredited installation of the hardware without charging additional fees. However, once installed the devices cannot be moved to other vehicles.

(Image credit: MiX telematics)

Mix Telematics: Features

MiX Telematics offers easy to use cloud-based software which helps to optimize costs, improve performance, ensure timely deliveries, and more, all while staying compliant with government regulations. 

The MiX Telematics solution helps your business stay organized, and allows you to control the entire fleet using a central command center that makes all the info you need easily accessible. In short, it ensures that the fleet operation runs smoothly with no hiccups.

The software is equally suitable for small, medium as well as large fleet sizes. It helps in managing vehicles effectively, optimizing fuel usage, tracking fraudulent usage, managing payrolls and more. Easy live tracking of vehicles means you don't have the stress of tracing vehicles manually, and it lets the decision-makers focus on more important and critical work.

The tracking hardware supplied by the company collects the vehicle's vital details and transmits them in real-time to the command center, where the information is processed and various reports are prepared that help fleet operators with precise details about the fleet and drivers.

Some key features of the MiX Telematics solution are:

  • Vehicle tracking: While it is the most basic feature of any GPS tracker or fleet management solution, the MiX Telematics solution offers a real-time update on the vehicle, whether it on the move or stationary. It even keeps the operator informed about the driver and gives them access to vital details such as driving speed, the route being followed, driving violations, historical trips, and more.
  • Live information streams: This is a unique solution that allows fleet operators to track vehicles assigned a specific task or event. A user-defined livestream to track a specific delivery helps in keeping the critical delivery in focus. This lets the operatory stay in touch with the connected driver/assets, keeping the message flowing. 
  • Reporting: MiX Telematics comes with a robust and dynamic reporting system that informs the operators about various aspects of the fleet including vehicle movement, location, trip and utilization reports, and so forth. Reporting like driver scoring, fuel, event violations, and cost analysis reports are also useful in assessing profitability and giving insights into driver performance. This can be further used to coach or reward drivers. 
  • ELD: The ELD devices are custom-designed to help fleet operators manage and stay compliant with various regulatory policies like Hours of Service (HoS) through electronically tracking a driver's Record of Duty Status (RoDs). ELD devices act as an effective replacement for outdate paper logbooks.

MiX Telematics: Support

The company's official website has a generic contact phone number and a basic query form for users to reach out in case of a question. It does not, however, provide any direct contact details for the sales team. The company is on most popular social media channels and while its Facebook and Twitter accounts are updated regularly, its YouTube account is not very active with videos being uploaded intermittently. 

MiX Telematics: Final Verdict

MiX Telematics offers an interesting range of products and services, including hardware installation by experts. However, this comes with certain limitations. Its cloud-based solution is fit for varied fleet sizes, though it is always advisable to carefully assess if a provider’s offerings match with your fleet’s specific requirements.

While the company is a veteran in the business, it does not have many customer reviews online. Better Business Bureau (BBB) shows that the company has been operating for over 10 years yet it's not been accredited with them.  There is a lone 1-star review about the company; however, BBB rates MiX Telematics as an A+ company.

Jitendra Soni

Jitendra has been working in the Internet Industry for the last 7 years now and has written about a wide range of topics including gadgets, smartphones, reviews, games, software, apps, deep tech, AI, and consumer electronics.  

With contributions from