a killer good shirt pocket chartplotter
I bought this application for my iPhone, it is nothing short of amazing
(usual disclaimers, enthusiastic new user only):
Far too many capabilities for me to describe fully here. Includes:
works with all the free US raster charts, which it downloads in just a
moment each at the touch of a fingertip (freshly corrected with NM each
week, I think). Lots of other chart formats and countries available to
instantly download (for a fee). AIS (plotted and an info panel with
twelve data items per contact shown). GRIB weather plots. Tides, nav
aids, light lists, facility lists, etc., both plotted and listed. All
on the iPhone touch screen -- pinch zoom, sweep and all. Able to
download/upload or freshly plot waypoints, WP lists and routes. A
really nice instrument panel, with graphic compass with course to
waypoint indicated, COG, SOG, and all sorts of other stuff shown.
Determines position from internal GPS, 3G cell tower & wifi. Wifi links
with some laptop nav programs too. The only things it doesn't have, by
my reckoning, are a radar overlay or a 12 inch screen. Daylight
viewable. Completely portable. Incidentally, it still does all the
other things iPhones do, although not every function all at once. I
even found a workable SEXTANT app!
My iPhone is now a far more sophisticated and capable chartplotter than
my couple of year old Raymarine,
iNavX costs $49.95. I spent maybe 5 BU on the Raymarine.
I bought it directly from my iPhone and the program downloaded to the
phone in just about a minute.
This is the first iPhone app which does this, from the 35,000 listed
today. I expect competition soon.
Program vetted by Apple -- released 17 May '09. Not a beta release.
Promises of additional upgrades, charts and features to come.
Kewl
Mister Science, aka Gary Bell
iNavX
Does anyone have any experience with this using an iPod Touch and getting
GPS data through a wireless onboard network and software such as Coastal
Explorer?
Rich
Rich & Laura Werner
GB32-277
rwmobile@keyadvice.com iTouch Mail
(206) 789-6310 - Office
(206) 786-0081 - Cell
http://www.werner2.com/poco
This is the first iPhone app which does this,
from the 35,000 listed today. I expect competition
soon.
There are currently at least 3 iPhone nautical navigation products:
-
iNavX:
http://www.inavx.net/ -
Navionics Mobile:
http://www.navionics.com/mobile_Marine.asp
http://www.navionics.com/Mobile_UserGuide_(1).htm -
Navimatics Charts & Tides:
http://navimatics.com/nav4iphone.aspx
If you have an iPhone, you're crazy-out-of-your-mind if you don't try
the Navionics product. It is the full Navionics Gold charts with the
application, tides, etc. all together for a total price of $4.99 per
region (the entire East coast is a region). I think it could use some
additional features and I'd assume that Navionics will continue to
update it. They are promising that the price will increase in the
future.
iNavX is OK. I don't think it does enough yet to warrant the price.
Rich Ray is pretty good about continuing development on it and I'd
expect the features to keep expanding as time goes on.
The Navimatics product needs a little more time in the oven in my
opinion.
I would certainly expect other applications to appear in the future.
Right now the applications are mostly about displaying nautical charts
with a GPS cursor display. After building apps like this on mobile
devices for the last 7 years, I think there's more needed than that.
Time will tell...
---===
Jeffrey Siegel
M/V aCappella
DeFever 53RPH
W1ACA/WDB4350
Castine, Maine
www.activecaptain.com
The Interactive Cruising Guidebook
Our cruising blog:
http://takingpaws.blogspot.com
..
I have used GPSnavX (same developer as iNavX) on my notebook for
sometime and Maptech's Offshore Navigator before that. While both of
these products are missing some features that I would like to see, they
are both solid applications (at least to the extent that anyone can
build a solid application on top of MS Windows).
However, I recently installed Raymarine E120 displays with Navionics
PlatinumPlus charts. Based on this experience I am extremely skeptical
of any Navionics product recommendation. While some of my disappointment
is attributable to the Raymarine product (e.g., a "clutter on/clutter
of" toggle rather than multiple layers of data that can be selected
independently, inability to use any charts other than Navionics,) the
Navionics charts, at least for the Bahamas, are pathetic. They appear to
be based on a collection of old and incomplete data from multiple
sources compiled with absolutely no editing (e.g., depth contours that
change abruptly along a straight join, inconsistent color coding of
depth, use of the same style black line with no labeling to represent
everything from routes to contours to restricted area boundaries.
Paul Konnersman
m/v Carry On
Jeffrey Siegel wrote:
This is the first iPhone app which does this,
from the 35,000 listed today. I expect competition
soon.
There are currently at least 3 iPhone nautical navigation products:
-
iNavX:
http://www.inavx.net/ -
Navionics Mobile:
http://www.navionics.com/mobile_Marine.asp
http://www.navionics.com/Mobile_UserGuide_(1).htm -
Navimatics Charts & Tides:
http://navimatics.com/nav4iphone.aspx
If you have an iPhone, you're crazy-out-of-your-mind if you don't try
the Navionics product. It is the full Navionics Gold charts with the
application, tides, etc. all together for a total price of $4.99 per
region (the entire East coast is a region). I think it could use some
additional features and I'd assume that Navionics will continue to
update it. They are promising that the price will increase in the
future.
iNavX is OK. I don't think it does enough yet to warrant the price.
Rich Ray is pretty good about continuing development on it and I'd
expect the features to keep expanding as time goes on.
The Navimatics product needs a little more time in the oven in my
opinion.
I would certainly expect other applications to appear in the future.
Right now the applications are mostly about displaying nautical charts
with a GPS cursor display. After building apps like this on mobile
devices for the last 7 years, I think there's more needed than that.
Time will tell...
---===
Jeffrey Siegel
M/V aCappella
DeFever 53RPH
W1ACA/WDB4350
Castine, Maine
www.activecaptain.com
The Interactive Cruising Guidebook
Our cruising blog:
http://takingpaws.blogspot.com
..
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Based on this experience I am extremely skeptical
of any Navionics product recommendation.
I do know what you mean. It is extremely frustrating to install
thousands of dollars of equipment only to find that some charted areas
are unacceptable. I've experienced the exact same thing.
The difference here is that the iPhone/Navionics product costs a grand
total of $4.99 for the entire East coast. The US coverage is extremely
well done. The built-in tide display alone is worth 5 bucks.
I'm not saying that you should run out and buy an iPhone just to run
this software. But if you have an iPhone, this is something you
should buy right now, today.
---===
Jeffrey Siegel
M/V aCappella
DeFever 53RPH
W1ACA/WDB4350
Castine, Maine
www.activecaptain.com
The Interactive Cruising Guidebook
Our cruising blog:
http://takingpaws.blogspot.com
..
Jeff, I fully agree. I downloaded this to my IPOD touch and have been very
impressed for the cost. Very good value and easy to use. Fun to play with to
boot. All the maps included for the price. I wouldn't use it for my primary
nav instrument but great to have in the pocket wherever I am and it's
virtually free.
If you have an iPhone, you're crazy-out-of-your-mind if you don't try
the Navionics product. It is the full Navionics Gold charts with the
application, tides, etc. all together for a total price of $4.99 per
region (the entire East coast is a region). I think it could use some
additional features and I'd assume that Navionics will continue to
update it. They are promising that the price will increase in the
future.
Hotmail. has a new way to see what's up with your friends.
http://windowslive.com/Tutorial/Hotmail/WhatsNew?ocid=TXT_TAGLM_WL_HM_Tutoria
l_WhatsNew1_052009
For the past couple of months, I've been trying to find a reasonable
deal on mobile internet in British Columbia. The three main cellular
phone providers (BCE, Telus and Rogers) all offer 3G USB sticks, but
data plans are not cheap ($25/0.5 GB, $30/1.0 GB and $60/3.0 GB) and
added to those rates are the @#*%@** system access fees.
Then came the possibility of tethering with the new iPhones (and also
with the older iPhones after installing a free software upgrade). Rogers
currently have a promotion that expires July 31 which gives both iPhone
and Blackberry users a 6 GB tethering-enabled data plan for $30 per
month (on a 3 year contract), and unlike the 3G USB sticks, they don't
charge a second system access fee for the data plan. The promotion is
not on Rogers' website at the time of writing, but information is
available from Rogers' call centres.
I am now the happy owner of a new iPhone.
At the time I made my deal with Rogers, Telus and BCE were not matching
the data rates and features for their Blackberry customers. It would be
great if they change their minds as they both provide decent coverage in
Johnstone Strait and Bella Bella. Roger's has very little coverage in
Johnstone Strait and none in Bella Bella.
Bruce Gelhorn
M/V Single Malt
Mainship 34-I
Vancouver, BC
Thanks to a tip that Jeffrey Siegel posted about a month ago, I
purchased the Navionics application for my iPhone.
For the sum of $9.99, I got the chart plotter as well as a full set of
vector charts covering the entire inside passage from Puget Sound to
Glacier Bay. Tides and currents are included.
I can now use my iPhone as a chart plotter when in the dinghy, and it
will serve as a backup chartplotter whenever Nobeltec crashes (frequently).
I have yet to figure out if Navionics is using a consistent datum
throughout the entire series of charts. As well, the vector charts
don't provide the level of detail present in the CHS charts. However,
when used in conjunction with printed charts and alternate means to
verify position, this software serves as a convenient and very
affordable navigation tool.
I really like the vector charts for their ability to provide readable
captions regardless of zoom levels -- very useful on the iPhone's small
display.
Bruce Gelhorn
M/V Single Malt
Mainship 34-I
Vancouver, BC