Marine Computers

[Gary Wyngarden]

I'm getting ready to buy a notebook (laptop) computer for business purposes. I'd also like to use the computer on board my 335 with chart reading software, a GPS feed, etc. Does anyone have any recommendations on brands and/or models that survive well in a marine (saltwater) environment? I'd also appreciate any software recommendations you might have. Thanks for your help.

 

[Bob Bass]

Marine Computer??

There are a couple of laptops that claim to be "marine-ized" but they are very expensive and I question their ability to withstand any salt water much beyond what a standard laptop would withstand. I use a Dell laptop that is two years old so it has a 266mhz chip. I only use it down below, so it is not exposed to weather. Besides, you can't see the screen in bright sunlight anyway. I recommend getting a quality name brand that carries a good warranty, and get as much hard disc space as available. The charting navigation programs work best when the charts are loaded onto the hard drive and they require a lot of space to store. The computer has been a fantastic aid in navigation by confirming position and determining range and bearings when approaching anchorages and land formations. Good luck and remember that the computer is an aid to navigation, not to replace charting and conventional methods.

 

[scott dube]

computer

I agree with the last response completely! I have just bought a handheld GPS to supplement my ST50 gps because that ws as cheap as buying the seatalk converter and gave me navigation redundancy. I have bought ozi explorer as the nav software. It allows you to scan your own charts or use BSB charts. I have also found that the NOAA charts are available at low resolution on their site. They are'nt really great for navigation but are ok to experiment with and since you'll have your "real" charts anyway... The software was cheap it was $65. I connected it to my new garmin 12 quite easily. I checked out fugawi and a couple of others and this looked as good as any other to me. I am really just experimenting right now. If anyone has suggestions or questions let me know!Scott

 

[George Kornreich]

How much?

I also agree that a standard non-marinized notebook will fare well below decks on the nav table, with a sheet of non-skid material under it, and it at sea, a strap (velcro, etc) holding it down. I guess if it's gonna get soaked with salt water, it'll die and a marinized one might survive for a while, but we keep ours below and dry. The rest depends on your budget to a large extent, since you can get notebooks from under $800 to $5000. Since you're going to use it for business also you want enough storage for both. Suggest 300 or greater mhz processor, over 2 gig storage (get 4 if you can since you'll load all your digitized charts) and an active-matrix screen. If you would like to save a few $$$, a factory refurbished unit is a good choice, from Egghead or Damark online. I use "The Cap'n" software, which does it all, "all" includes stuff you'll probably never need unless you're operating the QEII! You can get a less expensive program, but if you can afford it, this is the best, as it has, in addition to navigation, maintenance logs, ship's inventory, etc, etc.