How You Earn:
Earning rewards with DIMO is easy. After installing the device or app in your vehicle, just use your vehicle as usual. You need to drive your vehicle at least once a week to earn rewards. If you don't drive at all during a week, you won't earn any rewards.
Hardware Options:
DIMO offers two types of hardware, and two types of software.
- AutoPi: It's bigger and connects to the 4G network for sending data.
- Macaron: Smaller, uses the helium network for data transmission.
The main difference: AutoPi costs 3 times more than Macaron, but it also earns around 3 times as much.
If you own a Tesla, you're in luck! You can download the DIMO app and start earning without buying any hardware.
There's one more option: if you have a newer car like a 2020 model or newer, you might use the car's smartcar feature. But it's a bit complicated and requires monthly/yearly fees. I won't discuss it further since it's not very popular. Instead, you could buy a Macaron for the same price as using the smartcar function. More details here: https://smartcar.com/docs/help/brand-subscriptions
For the rest of this article, I'll focus on Tesla, AutoPi, and Macaron.
Rewards Calculations:
Your rewards depend on the type of device or software you are using, which will determine the points you earn. To determine your total earnings, simply add up these points.
- AutoPi: 6,000 points
- Macaron: 2,000 points
- Tesla API: 4,000 points
- Smartcar API: 1,000 points
Additionally, the duration for which you've had the device connected influences your rewards. Here's the breakdown:
- Level 1 (0-3 weeks connected): 0 points
- Level 2 (4 - 20 weeks connected): 1,000 points
- Level 3 (21 - 35 weeks connected): 2,000 points
- Level 4 (Over 36 weeks connected): 3,000 points
In the first year of DIMO, it emits 1,105,000 tokens per week, decreasing by 15% each year. For example:
- Second year: 939,250 tokens per week (We are currently here!
- Third year: 798,362.5 tokens per week
As you can see, this number drops quickly. The longer you wait, the fewer tokens you will earn.
Let’s make an example to illustrate:
Suppose you own a 2018 Toyota Yaris and have an AutoPi. You earn 6,000 points for that. Now say you've had your DIMO and you've been connected for 23 weeks (Level 3), you get an additional 2,000 bonus rewards.
Now, let's do some calculations:
- Your car has 8,000 points.
- The average points for all cars on the network is also 6,000 points, so we are above the expected average.
- Currently, there are 75,736 vehicles connected. You can find the most recent value by visiting: https://explorer.dimo.zone/vehicles
Multiplying the total vehicles connected (75,736) by the average points per vehicle (6,000), we get: 454,416,000.
Dividing your points (8,000) by this number (454,416,000) gives us: 0.000017605013908.
To estimate your final rewards per week, multiply this(0.000017605013908) by the emission (939,250). So, you should get around: 16.53 DIMOs per week.
If you want to see how your rewards are affected, use the sliding car DIMO calculator on this page.
Final thoughts:
A couple things worth keeping in mind.
- If you don't use your car for 2 weeks, your progress resets, and you'll start again from level 1.
- Buying an AutoPi gives you 6,000 points. If your car has the smartcar function, using it with the AutoPi can give you a total of 7,000 points. Same for the Macaron, you can earn an extra 1,000 if combined with the smartcar connection.
The DIMO hardware is a great piece of kit to install in family or friends car, as there's nothing needed to do once the unit is installed. It's a truly passive income system.