Panbo

The Marine Technology Hub

Panbo News and Reviews

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Good Gear (non electronic) / How-to / The Trade

ZipStiks: cable management simplified

I’ve judged the NMMA’s Innovation Awards for nearly a decade, and in that time I’ve come to value innovation in its purest and simplest form, what I call palm-to-forehead innovation. When you see it, your natural reaction is to bounce your palm off your forehead in the universal gesture for “why didn’t I think of that?” When Robert Holmes of Xanigo Marine first showed me ZipStiks, I couldn’t help making the gesture. ZipStiks are a simple, clever, and, once you see them, obvious solution to a real problem.

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LiFePO4 / Electrical & Engines

Long term LiFePO4 cycle life testing continues, claims looking better

About a year ago, I posted my first article on LiFePO4 cycle life having completed 525 cycles on a WattCycle 100 amp-hour battery. Since publishing that article, I’ve also added a Blue Heron Extreme 100 amp-hour battery to the testing mix. The WattCycle battery is nearing 2,000 cycles and the Blue Heron recently crossed 1,000 cycles. So, let’s briefly check in on both batteries and see how they’re doing.

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Network & control / Electrical & Engines

Victron unveils faster Cerbo GX MK3 and emergency reverse charging for Orion XS

Victron recently answered two of the most common complaints about two of its most popular products. The Cerbo GX gets its third hardware generation, with a much faster processor for owners who have pushed the MK2 to its limits. The Orion XS hardware is unchanged, but a firmware update finally lets it charge in reverse, for now only to rescue a flat starter battery.

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Wireless & Apps / Navigation / Handheld / Charts / AIS

Argo Nav puts Army Corps surveys on the chart (and finally gets its Panbo review)

Despite a few mentions of Argo Nav’s capabilities, I have yet to write a full, hands-on review of Argo Nav’s mobile device navigation app. For the first several years Argo was around, founder Jeff Foulk didn’t feel the product was “ready” for a review. Now, as Argo has matured and Jeff is more confident in what it has to offer, my pokiness in getting a review out means I still haven’t completed a full Panbo review. Allow me to rectify that while also highlighting a new feature that is near and dear to my heart. In large part because of my time cruising the Intracoastal Waterway and its many shoaling hazards, I’m most excited about Argo’s addition of U.S. Army Corps of Engineers survey data overlays right on the chart.

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LiFePO4 / Electrical & Engines / The future

Safiery Semi-Solid-State 48v LiFePO4 battery, a glimpse into the future?

Bringing cutting edge technology to boats is not always easy. In this case, I want to give Safiery the credit they deserve for helping pioneer new technology in our boat’s DC systems while also being honest about that new technology, what it delivers, and in some cases what room remains for improvement. Safiery is among the first companies offering solid state batteries to the recreational marine market. This new development in lithium ion batteries promises improved safety, performance, temperature tolerance, and longer life. Let’s take a look at how many of those promises are realized in these batteries.

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Wireless & Apps / Network & control / Communications

Update: Starlink addresses roaming for global cruisers, but introduces a size problem

Earlier this summer, Starlink changed rate plans and made tweaks to the rules around using their various roaming plans. For boaters who travel across international borders, the most substantive of the rule changes was the move from a limit of 60 days in another country or region down to 30 days. That change generated a lot of frustration for global cruisers who have been using Starlink’s services and came to depend on them. But, it looks like there is relief coming with a new rate plan for private boats.

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Network & control / Gadgets / How-to / The future / NMEA 2000, 0183 & Signal K

$50 and four hours: an AI-built NMEA 2000 display

I’ve been trying to figure out how to write about artificial intelligence’s role in home-built marine electronics for the better part of a year, and I still don’t have a clean answer. I’m going to write it anyway. Here’s what I’ve learned about what AI can actually do for you, where it falls down, and what happens when it doesn’t. The opportunity is real; you can finally build your instrumentation and navigation electronics exactly the way you want it. But so are the potential pitfalls. AI will happily put someone with limited knowledge deep in the bowels of their own navigation electronics. On a boat, that can get dangerous.

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LiFePO4 / Electrical & Engines / The future / The Trade

Solid-state lithium-ion batteries, the future of energy storage onboard?

I sat down to write my initial review and findings of Safiery’s 48-volt, solid state lithium ion battery. But, before I get into the meat of the battery’s performance, I feel I need to dive into solid state lithium batteries in general as well as the differences among the products available in the marketplace today. So, what follows will be a primer on the technology in general and why we likely all care about the development of solid-state batteries. Following this entry, I’ll share my experience with Safiery’s battery.

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Wireless & Apps / Network & control / Communications

Starlink 2026: Same as it ever was — always changing

It’s been more than a year since I last wrote about Starlink. You might assume that silence means nothing has changed. You’d be wrong. Maybe I’ve just run out of clichés for how the pace of change never slows with Starlink — but regardless, the changes keep coming, and they’re often frustrating for the nomadic subscribers who’ve come to rely on it for connectivity. Changes include new equipment, price hikes, international roaming tweaks, and new ID requirements.