Panbo

The Marine Electronics Hub

Category: Wireless & Apps

BriarTek Cerberus, the DeLorme inReach alternative? 12

Wireless & Apps / Communications

BriarTek Cerberus, the DeLorme inReach alternative?

CerberLink_and_inReach_compared_cPanbo.jpg

The photo above is meant to compliment the one I took when first testing the DeLorme inReach satellite communicator. It shows how Briartek’s CerberLink is thinner in the depth dimension and also how it uses a USB-chargeable 2000mAh Lithium Polymer battery instead of a two AA Lithiums. And that’s important. In fact it’s pretty amazing how different the CerberLink and inReach are even though they’re both based on the same Iridium 9602 SBD (small-burst data) modem and both aim to revolutionize two-way messaging, tracking, and safety beyond cellular coverage…

DMK box hand’s-on #1, developers needed! 21

Wireless & Apps / NMEA 2000, 0183 & Signal K

DMK box hand’s-on #1, developers needed!

DMK_instrument_app_w_N2K_data_cPanbo.jpg

Even if it only happened in my basement lab, it really is wonderful to see a boat’s sensor data arrive wirelessly into an iPad app, where it could be used and displayed in so many ways. The instrument screen shown above was developed by the same DMK Yacht Instruments folks who build the WiFi box that got the data there (first discussed here in December). The wind, depth, and speed numbers went into the DMK bridge in NMEA 2000 format, but they could been in NMEA 0183 or SeaTalk, or a mix of all three. In fact, I’ve tried all three source formats with some success so far, but I’m frustrated because the DMK app — meant mainly for configuring the box, I think — can only interpret the values shown, and no other app I know of yet takes full advantage of what the box can do. Lets hope some developers start paying attention to what’s possible here!

Most popular Panbo 2011 entries, themes for 2012? 12

Wireless & Apps

Most popular Panbo 2011 entries, themes for 2012?

Panbo_2011_most_popular_entries.jpg

Looking back at Panbo statistics for 2011, the iPad was undeniably a major topic. The February entry “iPad cases for the boat, & some interesting apps” was the most read of the year, by far, and the next up was the “The damn iPad: iNavX, X-Traverse, Navimatics & AC” entry written back in May, 2010 (when I was lusting for one). In addition, March’s “Accessory GPS for iPads…” came in at #5, and May’s “iPad GRIB viewers…” at 12. So should Panbo become iPanbo? Well, certainly a major goal here is to report on and discuss important trends in marine electronics, but understanding statistics like these involves a lot of nuance…

Jeppesen C-Maps, Coastal Explorer 2011 & Plan2Nav 0

Wireless & Apps / Navigation / Charts

Jeppesen C-Maps, Coastal Explorer 2011 & Plan2Nav

Coastal_Explorer_2011_C-Map_beta_cPanbo.jpg

If you don’t cruise outside the U.S. it may not matter, but Coastal Explorer users who do seem quite excited that the PC charting program will soon support the worldwide portfolio of Jeppesen C-Map Max charts and maybe even NT+ cards. You can hear the enthusiasm, and learn a lot of detail about how support will work, by checking out this CE Beta testing forum entry. Better yet, if you already run CE 2011, you can download the Beta from the same page and then use its rich chart management features to download some of C-Map’s generous demo cartography…

Open N2K to WiFi, Chetco SeaSmart & DMK Yacht Instruments 43

Wireless & Apps / NMEA 2000, 0183 & Signal K

Open N2K to WiFi, Chetco SeaSmart & DMK Yacht Instruments

Chetco_SeaSmart_data_on_Panbo_iPad_cPanbo.jpg

It took me less than an hour to cable a sample Chetco SeaSmart E-Net to Gizmo’s NMEA 2000 network and WiFi router and use the boat’s PC to scan for its IP address, which then yielded screens like the “Weather Info” browser page above on both my iPad and Android Incredible phone. Cool!  And if I was actually proficient at the sort of IT stuff represented in that SeaSmart “Network Setup” screen, it probably would have been quicker. Admittedly there are some issues with that data — Gizmo was not pitched 30 degrees, for instance! — and I’ve got a lot more testing to do, but I am excited about the growing number of devices designed to gateway NMEA 2000 (and other boat sensor data) out to Ethernet and WiFi in forms that can be easily displayed, or, better yet, easily used by any software developer…

DeLorme inReach hand’s-on #2, text me! 16

Wireless & Apps / Communications / Safety & SAR

DeLorme inReach hand’s-on #2, text me!

DeLorme_inReach_web_portal_cPanbo.jpg

Following up on inReach hands-on #1 — which attempted to be both an overview and a close look at its associated Android app Earthmate — let’s check out the Internet side of the system. The screen above is the user’s web portal at explore.delorme.com, which DeLorme developed in partnership with GeoPro. Given that GeoPro builds its own pro-level Iridium handhelds, like its new $1,200 SHOUT Nano, it’s no surprise that the portal let’s you thoroughly view and manage inReach communications. It could even be used by, say, a fleet manager to keep an eye on multiple inReach units…

DeLorme inReach, hand’s on #1 10

Wireless & Apps / Communications / Safety & SAR

DeLorme inReach, hand’s on #1

SatMessengers_inReach_CerberLink_Connect_cPanbo.jpg

Click on this photo for a close look at the new age of satellite messaging, tracking, and distress handhelds, or at least three of the early contenders. I was cautiously keen on the DeLorme inReach when it first surfaced, but then I had to bite my tongue. Though I was experiencing its reasonably fast and affordable two-way global messaging back in August, I couldn’t discuss it because of the beta testing NDA. Fair enough, as the inReach system evolved substantially during the beta process. Plus I’ve now had a chance to compare it with the less expensive Spot Connect, whose one-way custom messaging via Globalstar was discussed here in January. Not to mention the pro-oriented BriarTek Cerberus system, which also appeared here last January and uses the same Iridium 9602 data modem as the inReach. The news is pretty much all good for anyone who boats (or hikes, or whatever) beyond cell service, but it’s going to take several entries just to lay out what I’ve learned so far…

EarthNC: routing, NEXRAD, & Baron XMWX 11

Wireless & Apps / Navigation

EarthNC: routing, NEXRAD, & Baron XMWX

EarthNC_routing_cPanbo.jpg

I use the iPad version of EarthNC fairly often because I still like how it can overlay and detail NOAA weather buoy and forecast info, a feature it had when I first tried it. I also like how the quilted NOAA raster charts look on a pad (but then again I’m an old guy). Now EarthNC has added a pretty full featured route-making routine to its iOS version, as I tried to illustrate above by laying out the San Diego America’s Cup course I’ll be seeing up close later this week (I’m so excited). Note how I was able to easily type in waypoint names, and what you can’t see is how easy it is to move one, or delete it, or add a new one along a track line…