Next Generation of Boating Electronics Unveiled with the New Simrad NSX

10 Responses

  1. Ben Ellison Ben Ellison says:

    It’s a really big deal to rebuild a marine multifunction display system from the ground up, and I think that’s the major overall news about Simrad NSX. So the new interface and features seen on these 7, 9, and 12-inch displays will almost undoubtedly come to other new Simrad models in the not too far future. And I’ll bet we’ll also see new Lowrance and B&G displays based on the new operating system (which is apparently built on top of Android).

    So let’s remember what happened when Raymarine and Furuno made similar major MFD operating system changes. Anyone who uses a current Simrad MFD should not be surprised if a feature they’re used to now is quite different (though hopefully better) on an NSX, or maybe is not yet available at all.

    But from what I can see so far, the NSX does all the basics and more quite nicely, and we’ll find out more soon because they are scheduled to ship in late March, plus Ben Stein will trying NSX in Miami next week.

    • Ben Ellison Ben Ellison says:

      “Full suite of Simrad technology at the touch of a finger with networking and connectivity solutions including modem plug-in for additional connectivity to devices and an ethernet port for full networking capabilities in the future.”

      Ethernet for “full networking in the future” sounds like NSX will only support limited networking when shipped. I don’t know what that means yet, but it certainly looks like Ethernet radar is supported, at least to one display.

      On the other hand, NSX is the first marine display I’ve seen with a “modem plug-in for additional connectivity to devices.” Any guesses what that means?

      • I’ve seen a few devices advertising 5G modem connectivity for remote monitoring. That’s a very competitive part of the market and it wouldn’t surprise me if they’ve included a simplified version of their monitoring stuff in the MFD…

        • Ben Ellison Ben Ellison says:

          Right, but wouldn’t a normal cellular modem connection be Ethernet, which the NSX already has?

          • A standalone router would connect via Ethernet potentially. But there are a decent amount of products that support a USB cellular modem where it’s one bit of hardware, pretty small, and allows for remote monitoring. A router would require a separate power supply, etc. and more complexity.

  2. Ben Ellison Ben Ellison says:

    Here’s the 35-minute NSX presentation that Simrad gave to partners and the press yesterday, with many interesting views of the new system in action:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9HRbCNofO10

  3. Jason says:

    I am about to buy a brand new b&g system for my new build boat. I think I will have to purchase in July. Any chance b&G will have upgraded? Will I be able to upgrade afterwards?

    • Ben Ellison Ben Ellison says:

      Sorry, Jason, while it seems quite likely that B&G will eventually offer new MFDs based on this NSX operating system, I have no idea when that will happen. Also, there’s no hint that the new Navico OS is backward compatible with any existing hardware. But then again, the current MFDs are pretty darn good.

  4. abbor says:

    Simrad GO series and B&G Vulcan don’t have the hardware resources to run the new OS. NSS Evo3S and Zeus3 would have the resources to run the new OS. When Evo3S was released there were rumors that it would get an upgrade to a new Android based OS. But I haven’t heard anything about this for almost two years.

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