Suggestions for GPS

May 11, 2015
27
Beneteau 323 Sakonnet, RI
My 2004 Beneteau 323 did not have a Chartplotter GPS when I purchased her and I was using the Navionics App for the last two seasons. The Raymarine AutoPilot, Ananometer, and Depth all are working well.
Since this boat has the "Preachers Pulpit" on the binnacle (11.5" X 12" OD) are there any suggestions for a good Raymarine GPS
Thank you, Captain Dave
 

jssailem

SBO Weather and Forecasting Forum Jim & John
Oct 22, 2014
23,186
CAL 35 Cruiser #21 moored EVERETT WA
Dave. Think AIS, like from Vesper 8000. They have a neat system and it includes a GPS antenna and wifi connectivity.
 
May 20, 2016
3,015
Catalina 36 MK1 94 Everett, WA
I have the e7D - sometimes the touch is frustrating so I'm glad it has buttons also - the es75 or eS78 would be the current model. Bigger would be nice - but that would takeup space I'm using for other things. (I also have depth/speed/temp/wind speed/direction, radar, AIS transceiver, autopilot, 2-i70's and 1-p70, rs11 and fusion stereo & remote all on SeatalkNG)
 
Jan 12, 2016
140
Beneteau 311 Seattle, WA
I have a 2000 311 and redid my steering station with a new pedestal guard and NavPod to house a Raymarine MFD (https://www.sailbits.com/blog/2016/03/new-pedestal-guard-and-navpod/) and I also have an extensive network of other devices connected to it (https://www.sailbits.com/blog/2016/06/grace-integrated-5-part-network/).

However it sounds like you're just looking for a GPS, not a full MFD? I see Ray has some GPS'es (http://www.raymarine.com/view/?id=13127) but I bet most of them are to enhance an MFD's accuracy, and not easily setup standalone, although they probably could be. You'd need to read their specs.

I have tried to use the iPad solution, but it just fails me in too many ways - shutting down from too much direct sunlight, not being able to see it in direct sunlight, keeping it relatively sheltered even given the nice cases I've tried. I gave up after a season and installed a MFD.

I agree with @jssailem for a GPS-only solution - get a Vesper 8000 - I have one as well. It has a great GPS, and gives you the ability to see AIS targets as well. It's quite a bit more pricey than a standalone GPS, but worth it. It streams GPS data out TCP/UDP and can be consumed by multiple different devices as a source. I actually use it to snarf AIS targets and submit to various tracking services to improve their coverage (https://www.sailbits.com/blog/2016/03/sending-ais-data-slow-cellular-link/)

Hope that helps!