What are good features to look for in an ODB-II reader

Question

I recently took my car in for the engine light. It turned out to be a minor problem (crack in gas cap let water in). It would be nice to have a low-cost ODB-II reader to be able to find out for myself and either go to service immediately or delay it until tomorrow. The specific vehicle is a 2003 Honda Odyssey.

What features should I look for in an ODB-II reader for this purpose?

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After reading some more:

• A unit that can reset the light is a must
• Unless you plan to always have a PC available, one with a screen that can display the numbers and what they mean
• Some people may wish one that works with an Android or iPhone. Some of those apps are wireless. But these ones seem to be more expensive.

Answer 1

For checking codes, any off the shelf obd2 reader will do.

If you want to have fun, ELM327 based OBD2 readers are all the rage right now. You can pick up a bluetooth version for ~$40 on amazon or ebay. Several iOS and android apps (like Torque) exist that can read a signal from these adapters and do full on data-logging. This will let you read/clear codes (some will even tell you what the codes mean) as well as display/log other handy data streams such as timing, RPM, coolant temp, etc etc.