Garmin Reactor 40, autopilot running change
Late last fall, Garmin started replacing the Reactor autopilot CCU (course computer unit) that is the “brains” in their various AP kits with the Reactor 40. It was what’s called a “running change” as...
Panbo News and Reviews
ActiveCaptain: Data delivery changing, but free access assured
Within minutes of announcing Garmin’s acquisuition of ActiveCaptain in May 2017 commenters here and elsewhere immediately began to worry about its future. On Wednesday evening, the Polar Navy announcement above poured fuel on that fire, suggesting that the many non-Garmin charting apps and MFDs which display ActiveCaptain cruising information would lose access to the database this May. But that quote is not the whole story by a long shot. Actually, Garmin is emphatic that AC data will remain freely available to developers and users…
Digital Yacht 4G Connect, with WiFi router and Alexa
This Digital Yacht 4G Connect was impressively demonstrated at the Miami show. The standard model shown uses indoor MIMO antennas to connect with cellular data services, then WiFi and/or Ethernet to make the link...
Furuno MIBS 2018: from TZT2BB megaMFD to GP-1x71F plotter fishfinders
At the Miami boat show, Furuno showed off interesting new products aimed at both ends of the market. Prominent at their booth were two strikingly large multi-touch displays being driven by a single TZTouch2 Black Box, a new choice for larger vessels and an especially easy upgrade for existing Furuno black box systems. But nearby were entirely redesigned multi-touch 7- and 9-inch plotter/fishfinders (that even have a radar option), plus an innovative new autopilot that further confirms Furuno’s growing attention to smaller boats…
Boatrax Box on KickStarter: N2K + SK + GSM = boat & engine monitoring
A Miami startup recently began a KickStarter campaign for an ambitious box able to “read and store all messages coming from the engine, devices, and sensors connected to the boat’s network.” And apparently that...
Raymarine MFD apps three ways: from drone control to sat comms to video streaming
MIBS 2018 saw the manufacturers putting the multi in MFD, with Garmin and Raymarine each introducing multiple new multifunction app and app-like display integrations interfacing to all sorts of third party boat systems, plus consumer electronics gadgets and online services — actually every single brand seen below, with lots more likely coming. The results are exciting, but what the heck are MFD apps? Fortunately, Raymarine is illustrating all three ways they can be created and why it’s useful to know how it’s done…
Octoplex OctoLite Shown at MIBS
The long awaited, at least by some of us, Carling Technologies Octoplex OctoLite looks very real and very close to shipping. The inexpensive OctoLite will digitally switch and protect 12 circuits with a maximum...
Airmar 2018 part 2: Ultrasonic and EM speedo mysteries unraveled, plus new UDST800
Airmar’s newly announced UDST800 Ultrasonic Smart Triducer is real! I’ve held one in my freckly hand and even installed it on Gizmo. The reality of a new product would not normally be news, but the history of Airmar’s high tech ultrasonic and electromagnetic speed sensors has frustrated boaters wanting the promised precise and reliable Speed through the Water results, which should be many boaters, I think…
Airmar 2018 part 1: Newly certified installers toting TDT1000 transducer testers
Doctor Ducer is in the house! Seriously, the already impressive Airmar TDT1000 Transducer Diagnostic Kit is now key to the company’s new certified installer program, and thus you and your sick fishfinder may one day appreciate a boat call by an informed ducer doc technician with the right tool. And if an ACI installs the transducer in the first place — let’s call it “preventative medicine” — you get a significant warranty upgrade. I tested the tester last month and learned a lot about Airmar and sonar nuances in the process…
Simrad NSO evo3 multifunction displays, and hints of Navico future
That new 24-inch Simrad NSO evo3 screen must look spectacular with its 1920 x 1080 pixel resolution, 1200 nits of brightness, and IPS-style wide viewing angles. And these big screens — there will be 16- and 19-inch models too — can purportedly be viewed with polarized sunglasses, thanks to the use of combined LCD and polarizer. The new NSO design is also packed with connectivity, including a Simrad-first J1939 engine input, and a black box processor is no longer needed. We’ve got details on the series, and then let’s ponder recent Navico acquisitions…
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