Category : What to choose

Items about the issue of choice hardware and software

Which iPad for navigation ? [Update-12]

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Many of you ask me about choosing an iPad for boating use. Unfortunately having no time to respond to every request a post is required. Each year it is advisable to review this question, and sometimes more often.

With the presentation of the last two iPads this 18 October 2022, the chipset Apple Silicon M2 comes up on models iPad Pro 11″ up to 12,9″, with 8 or 16 GB of RAM of RAM memory (depending on storage capacity). The new iPad 10 " low cost" receives the A14 Bionic chip from the iPad Air 4 with a screen extended to 10.9″. The great novelty of all these devices is the appearance of the USB-C connector imposed by the European Union, and the supply of the USB-C charger and cable. Read more …

Application for navigation ?

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I'm not a follower of the comparative tables for applications, and I already said, so it is difficult to measure and compare completely subjective aspects such as ergonomics, the graphic quality of a user interface, the speed of execution of such and such function. However, a recent comment in a previous article I was sufficiently annoyed that this makes me an attempt of comparison of purely objective aspects, namely the offered functions and prices. Read more …

Why I'll keep my iPad 1 [Update]

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I use an iPad 1 for a little over two years for two reasons : the first and foremost as a navigation device, the second as viewer for many PDF documents related to my job. I'm not using it for watching movies, no more to store photos, even less for games. On the move, I use most frequently on my iPhone to manage my emails, see the latest tweets about my business, few RSS feeds, and sometimes see Google News.

March 2011, in a post dedicated to the release of the iPad 2, I concluded by a prospective trial of what could be the future iPad. I note with "New iPad" I had just seen in part. Improvements in cameras and graphics quality. However I was mistaken about the connectivity : no new physical connector, only WiFi, Bluetooth improved, and 4G (for U.S. !). Read more …

iPhone built-in GPS : a formidable accuracy !

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You've probably heard the song Helmut Fritz "It annoys me" ? It will make a good number of holidaymakers dance this summer in campsites and on beaches. Well me, what irritates me, is the disbelief of a number, still, about iPhone GPS accuracy. Isn't it stupid, isn't it ?

I have performed a few days ago a small experiment, during a call in the charming little harbour of Saint-Vaast-La-Hougue. Read more …

The difficult choice of electronic charting

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Which to choose ? Raster ? Vector ? What costs, for which application, how to Navigation ? As many questions as most of you arise, and rightly. I will try to shed some light.

While visiting my website pages devoted to charting (¹) on my website achieves the full information and links to various suppliers, a synthesis is needed here. Read more …

iPad , a Chartplotter Killer ?

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ipad-inavxWith iPad 3G finally in hands, featured iNavX and (beta) version AyeTides XL in testing, I'm going to give you my first impression, previously to perform an extended test at sea.

Regardless of the fact that the iPad can be used for many other things than shipping, I am now totally convinced of its utility on board, here are the reasons. Read more …

Question of choice

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A reoccurring question comes regularly by email from my visitors : which computer equipment to choose for yachting ? Actually, cope with the dramatic growth of material available for yachtmen, it becomes very difficult to form an opinion. By dint of giving partial answers to each other, often unsatisfactory, I ended up going to the evidence. Actually, choosing a navigation system based primarily on the answer to a question : for what need ?

So I tried to define these needs and to meet each an appropriate solution. This may seem a bit simplistic, but it was mainly the merit of simplicity. I took the opportunity to calculate the current budget to each of the solutions put forward a criterion that seems fundamental : the Need/Coast ratio. Let's go… Read more …