IPAD vs Android as Chartplotter

finding41 · Nov 16, 2012

I am planning to use my 10.1 Android 4 with active captain and see how things go. Mine has an internal and external GPS bobble. The instructions say to use the external one. (I think the bobble is just an antenna extension.) I have had it on the boat but just for movies etc.
I forgot to get another memory card today... Once I get another I'll put it on and see how it goes.

Bad Obsession · Nov 16, 2012

I had a free chart plotting program for my Droid X. It worked really well and I was using my phone as a backup. I do question on how they would do in areas without cell signal.

I will say that something like an iPad or a Droid may be the future of chart plotting. The ability to mount it temporarily to an area near the helm and then take it in the cabin to the nav station for later could be a huge advantage.

I would like to see a day when the wind direction/speed, speed through water, depth, radar, and chart plotter all network onto one screen (reasonably priced too). The technology is out there if they were just put together. These being networked into a large touch screen and displaying all real time data would be nice.

Delezynski · Nov 16, 2012

I am standing by....

for one of the new Windows 8 (NOT the RT!) units. I see a couple of them coming that can be used as a laptop and pad. One I am looking at has a 9 hour battery in it. That way I can keep using my OpenCPN (FREE) nav program that I like a LOT with all the charts I already have. AND, it will run my HAM & SSB radios:dance:.

Greg

atwhite2 · Nov 16, 2012

I use my Asus Transformer tablet with the Navtronics app as my chartplotter. It works great, the internal GPS has not let me downs so far and the internal storage on the tablet is suitable. The Navtonics app lets you download the areas that you are interested in, so I don't NEED to download all of North America, only the areas that I cruise. I don't have a waterproof case for it, but it fits into a gallon ziplock bag and the screen still reacts to my fingers. The Navtronics app was pricey... I think it was $49.00, but I have both a Android tablet and an iPad, and I would rather have the Android exposed to the elements at 1/4 the cost of the iPad.

kenn · Nov 16, 2012

The first company that produces an industrially-tough waterproof, daylight-readable 10" tablet running Linux, at a reasonable cost, will have my heart.

Maine Sail · Nov 17, 2012

wufibugs said:
A while back there was a thread [now closed] in which several people endorsed using an IPAD in a waterproof case at the helm. They were persuaded because the screen size [10.1"] and brightness were much better than most chartplotters. With free software, it came out hundreds less than a plotter. Of course, durability, and hence reliability might be an issue in the marine environment.
I note that Androids are now out with 10.1" tablets at about 1/4 or less than the cost of an IPAD. Has anyone tried these as a navigation tool?

We have an iPad 2 and daylight visibility is HORRIBLE compared to our chart plotter. In outdoor daylight it is close to useless. I consider these an okay back up to the back ups but would never be my first or even second choice. Also with the iPad you need the more expensive version to get built in GPS... Just my .02 from one who owns an iPad and a color plotter...

xcyz · Nov 17, 2012

Maine Sail said:
We have an iPad 2 and daylight visibility is HORRIBLE compared to our chart plotter. In outdoor daylight it is close to useless. I consider these an okay back up to the back ups but would never be my first or even second choice. .

I've had mine for sometime now, like MS I too own both but unlike MS I LOVE my iPad (gps version) running NavX and use it more then my JRC1800cp.

Not picking on MS but surely you don't prefer paper charts or a sextant as your 2nd choice over the iPad, right?

I wouldn't leave the slip without it, it also has my movies and music on it.

Maine Sail · Nov 17, 2012

RGDavis said:
I've had mine for sometime now, like MS I too own both but unlike MS I LOVE my iPad (gps version) running NavX and use it more then my JRC1800cp.

Not picking on MS but surely you don't prefer paper charts or a sextant as your 2nd choice over the iPad, right?

I wouldn't leave the slip without it, it also has my movies and music on it.

No, but with four Garmin color plotting GPS's on-board, two hand held units, and two fixed mount plotters one at the helm and one at the nav desk, the iPad would be in-line behind all the other plotters. I also have a Motorola Razr Maxx that would probably get used before the iPad because it fits nicely at my helm and has slightly better daylight vis, has less glare, than our iPad does

Plus, I can actually see the screens on my plotters in full daylight but the iPad I can't... The iPad also does not dim enough at night to maintain my night vision where my plotters do....

We don't leave home without the iPad but I just don't prefer it for navigation to a dedicated plotter...

Maine Sail · Nov 17, 2012

wufibugs said:
MS comment goes to the heart of the matter. The original poster touted the IPAD3 in large part because the daylight visibility was as good or better than his plotter. If that is not the case, then it does not, as far as I can tell, make a suitable stand-in for a plotter at the helm regardless of the other features it offers. Might be useful below decks, but I don't see too much advantage over my laptop which can also display to the 17" flatscreen. Wonder if the android tablets do better in direct sunlight?

I have had our iPad 2 side by side with the iPad 3 and the only differnce is the resolution. The screen "brightness" is virtually identical but the iPad 3 has more "pixels" thus better detail. This level of detail is not necessary for nav charts but to me a daylight visible screen, under all sun conditions, is ..

Joe · Nov 17, 2012

wufibugs said:
Wonder if the android tablets do better in direct sunlight?

I have navionics on my android phone......... you can't see much in bright light... just like the viewfinder on the cameras. Quite frankly, a paper chart and a compass are visible in all light conditions.

I have to put the phone in the shade of my cap or something handy to verify my position. Once I have my fix, establish a bearing and commit to course I can steer by the compass or gps.

The navionics app cost less than 20 bucks.

xcyz · Nov 17, 2012

How Many is Enough?

Maine Sail said:
No, but with four Garmin color plotting GPS's on-board, two hand held units, and two fixed mount plotters one at the helm and one at the nav desk, the iPad would be in-line behind all the other plotters. I also have a Motorola Razr Maxx that would probably get used before the iPad because it fits nicely at my helm and has slightly better daylight vis, has less glare, than our iPad does

We don't leave home without the iPad but I just don't prefer it for navigation to a dedicated plotter...

Lets see... We trust our lives with just N+1 all the time... Most airliners have only 2 engines, and use only 2 pilots. Most sky divers jump with only 2 chutes. We all get that having redundancy is good but doesn't having 4 chart-plotters seem a bit much? When is too much just too much?

Maine Sail · Nov 17, 2012

RGDavis said:
Lets see... We trust our lives with just N+1 all the time... Most airliners have only 2 engines, and use only 2 pilots. Most sky divers jump with only 2 chutes. We all get that having redundancy is good but doesn't having 4 chart-plotters seem a bit much? When is too much just too much?

When you've lost everything before in a lighning strike. One of those GPS units lives in a Faraday cage with some other stuff. Two are at the helm one for "data" and one for the full screen for radar and plotter but no data bars on. The one at the nav desk is "networked" to the helm and serves for a second "watch" of the radar in thick fog, of which we get a lot, and a good spot for laying positions on paper in fog for DR as back up. Two sets of eyes are better than one... The helm portable GPS also comes with in the dinghy when we go off gukholing...

sesmith · Nov 18, 2012

I have a 7" android tablet (archos). I use a free mapping program (Orux) on it and a blue-tooth keychain sized gps unit as the tablet doesn't have a built in gps or any link to the wireless data network (just wifi).

I did find a way to convert the free on-line NOAA raster charts to a format that Orux can use. You have to jump through some hoops to do this, and also calibrate the charts for GPS use. The charts are stored on the tablet, so all you need is a gps signal...no data network needed. It all works fine, but the tablet is pretty useless in sun, so I leave it in the cabin. It isn't a replacement for the real thing (paper charts) but it's nice to have as a backup. Our new boat purchased this fall has a Garmin chart plotter, so the tablet will probably be used much less.