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Pro's and con's of using a tablet as a chartplotter
LaRea
Member, Moderator Posts: 7,592 mod
With so many people considering iPads and other touchscreen tablets in place of conventional marine chartplotters or multi-function displays (MFDs), I thought it might make an interesting discussion.
Pro's:
Cost. Tablets are cheap, and many people already own one for other reasons. The high cost of marine MFDs is probably the biggest driver towards tablets.
Ease of installation. Tablets are slim and easy to install using a stalk or suction mount, so you can sometimes fit a larger display than you could with an MFD. It can be done without making any permanent changes to the boat. And I've seen some really impressive custom installations using hardwood or fiberglass bezels.
Software. Instead of being stuck with the MFD manufacturer's software and slow development cycles, you get to pick software from the commercial market (which is getting pretty good these days). And, obviously, a tablet can run all sorts of other software.
Con's:
Ease of use while underway. In an express cruiser or sport boat, using a touchscreen while the boat is moving and bouncing can be almost impossible. It's much harder compared to an MFD that has dedicated buttons and knobs with non-slip rubber covers.
Visibility. Tablets can be hard to read in bright sunlight because they are not as bright as MFDs. Also, tablets have terrible problems with glare and reflections because touchscreens cannot use the same anti-glare screen coatings as MFDs. (Anti-glare coatings get gummed up with fingerprints.)
Reliability. Picture yourself caught in severe weather -- high winds, pounding seas, canvas leaking salt water all over the helm. The safety of your crew depends on accurate navigation. Will a tablet fail when you need it most? Marine MFDs are designed for such conditions, and have a well-established track record of reliability.
My thoughts:
For most express cruisers and sport boats, I think a purpose-built marine MFD is safer and more practical than a tablet. Certainly, any boat going offshore needs an MFD. But an MFD won't fit into every budget. Tablets provide attractive options -- especially for smaller boats used mostly in protected waters. And some boaters might find tablets useful as a secondary or backup display.
Thoughts? Tablet users - what do you like or dislike about your system?
Thoughts? Tablet users - what do you like or dislike about your system?
Comments
One more con I'd like to mention and one of the reasons I MUST have an MFD.
- Can't connect radar to overlay on an Ipad or similar. I use the radar on my boat to track those pop up summer storms (I don't have to rush around like a mad man to put stuff away and take shelter in the cabin when a downpour is coming) and especially to navigate in the dark. I like the idea of an Ipad for a back up as Navionics has some really great contour line software but my Ipad does not have built in GPS so it's a PITA. I have a small handheld GPS anyway.
Great point about GPS accuracy. Modern marine GPS receivers are usually good to within 15 feet, not 50 like older systems. I'm not sure how accurate an iPad is. I think it only uses cell towers to reduce the GPS boot-up time.
http://ipadpilotnews.com/2015/12/ipad-real-gps/
I realize it doesn't REQUIRE towers...... What y'all missed I stand by, though, that the card is a combined 3-4g/wifi/bluetooth/gps- which means the same antenna is used for each- and that the iPad 'cheats' to find location by triangulating towers... it will work without them, but it's reliant on the same card... having a card that does all is great for space concerns on the board, but bad for reliability.... which is why a tablet with either a peripheral device OR a second dedicated card is a good plan IF you are using the tablet in lieu of a plotter...
I love the navionics app... it is dead balls accurate... I don't NEED it for my coastal excursions, but it's nice to have especially the depths on rarely used sound waterways..... what I don't like about it is when it crashes (fault of hardware or software? don't know) it doesn't give any indication other than freezing, and if you don't monitor it you won't notice... if you're cursory glancing, you may find yourself on a sand bar thinking you're in ten foot of water.
I bet Apple has manufactured at least 1000 times more iPads than Raymarine has sold MFDs. (300 million iPads and counting) Raymarine can't compete price against that.
People will keep finding new ways to integrate tablets into marine systems - no doubt about it.
2002 FV 342 on Lake St. Clair - Past Commodore SHC - Vessel Examiner USCGAUX
I guess none of you have seen that Raymarine has come out with an app that will allow you to overlay their radar onto your phone or tablet. I think Furono has it as well.
I like my MFD and will stick with it (12" is really nice and can see what I need to). I can overlay what I want and it works well. Phone or tablet as backup is fine for me.
With the new SmartCraft app, that will be available as well. I think it's great having all the options.
Dream 'Inn III -- 2008 400 Express
Mercury is taking a gamble with the Smartcraft Bluetooth interface, which could potentially hurt sales of VesselView and MercMonitor.
I had both - in one unit!
The Raymarine E packages provide touch screen and rotary capability in the same GPS/Plotter unit.
On a very rough day I agree with @LaRea that your finger can wander a bit making it hard to touch exactly what you want. BUT mine was fixed to the dash. I have friends who had HAND HELD units and would have the Admiral use it or take the helm while they used it. That is what my Admiral did after a few months so we had that too! As one friend said if it's too rough to do that I shouldn't be out there. If I got caught out there it's still doable and how many times has that happened to me....zero.
As for me, I only had to use the rotary knob function once when 3 foot waves were present with a very stiff cross wind and we were coming into a group of islands and I wanted the zoom feature, so I switched to knob/button use ......the rest of the time the touch screen soooooo outperformed the rotary knob/push button feature that is was ridiculous.
I loved the zoom, the Bluetooth sling features, the load it at home and go on the fly.
If I really like both options but if I had to choose only one it would be - touch screen.
If I had a fixed knob/button unit "in the dash" I'd for sure use a tablet or smart phone with touch screen....BTW we DID as the Admiral after a few months of owning the fixed, in dash, unit had the Raymarine and Navionics apps on both her phone and our tablet. We could load at home etc. and we had a 3 station touch screen system. It was AWESOME! To be honest it was a bit of a pita to set up and co-ordinate, probably because we didn't have a 5 year old living with us but we did get it done.....Now its deleted as we don't have a boat :-(
MT, imagine your worst boating nightmare: You're in an unfamiliar river, caught out in bad weather, zero visibility, but you can't slow down because somebody needs medical attention, or whatever the scenario ... would you still have used the touchscreen? Or would you have reverted to the buttons?
I think that's the main question for any MFD or tablet: how would it perform in the worst-case scenario, when you absolutely, positively need it to work?
@La Rea, I have never been in that scenario, although I am sure others have given our list size, in 50 years. So when I prepare I have to do so on likely outcomes for me.
The answer to using the "fixed" touch screen in absolutely severe conditions would be no I would use the rotary knob because I had the dual capability.
But would I not buy a touch screen for the one time the conditions might be nuts with an injured person on board..... the answer would be no. Because the odds are too low. If I thought like that I'd never take the boat out.
However, all of that worry is moot because we always have a second back-up on board.... a hand held GPS/Plotter (tablet/smart phone) synched to the main system.
If the hand held could not be used due to conditions I think I would be on my knees praying because we would be in the edges of a category 5.
IMO the touch screen is the modern way to go because it is so far superior to the single option rotary /push button knob.
Given a choice, of course I would purchase (and I did) the dual version, but I would be absolutely comfortable with a fixed touch screen as a main unit.
That is because, no matter what, we always had the back-up of a tablet of smart phone with the apps.
Dream 'Inn III -- 2008 400 Express
Boat Name: King Kong
"Boat + Water = Fun"
this year, I decided to remove the 3300 and make a filler with cherry wood and mount my Dell Venue using Navionics. It looks cool, I like it but it certainly has some drawbacks. Integration, customization and glare are the biggest but I'm using my old HDS 5 for the Sirius weather and other ship info. Someday I will upgrade my MFD...Not the best picture but you can see my Venue on the bottom left in this picture.