iPhone vs. Android for nautical apps

[bluedragon]

Forgive me if I'm wrong, but it looks like we haven't had such as thread for 12 months and the world has moved on a lot since then. Following on from my Symbian post I've been looking at the bewildering range of smart phones in town today...and I'm totally lost! I'll be upgrading my Nokia in the near future and would like to try out the nautical apps that everyone but me now seems to have.

At least with Apple there's no choice - it's iPhone 4. Choosing an Android phone seems a lot trickier as there's so much choice it seems.

Can anyone point me towards a good comparison of the two choices for a) general use b) nautical apps? Or maybe we just need to run last year's thread again.

PS - This might become the new "anchor thread" topic for the next year, I know that. Let's hope Rocna don't introduce a smart phone

 

[snooks]

This months Yachting Monthly (July 2011) has a review of the 6 chart plotting apps currently available for the iPhone.

Of those 1 (navionics) is available for android at the moment (Memory Map's android app is coming out soon). There may well be more just for android, but I was tasked with finding the iPhone apps.

 

[bluedragon]

Thanks Snooks...just bought it! I guess there's more than just plotting apps out there though. Tides and somebody mentioned even AIS(?)

 

[snooks]

There are a wealth of "nautical" apps out there, some are more useful than others. To be honest I only really know about the iPhone apps of which there are many.

AIS either needs a phone/data signal or a iAIS wifi transmitter from digital yacht, then you also need a VHF splitter/aerial, but that will also output AIS via wifi, NMEA 0183 and USB for £350.

Personally I would even entertain the thought of getting AIS info from a mobile telephone signal for navigation

Also there is nothing to say the information you are getting from your app is actually correct, so be a bit weary to begin with until you know the source of the information from a known source.

 

[Bosun Higgs]

Got an android that I have had for a year now with the navionics plotter ( this includes tides and even wind) . Never use it - it just isn't useable in real life. The screen ( and mine is a Galaxy S with the best screen around when it was new) is too small for serious use. The battery life when using the GPS is maybe 2 hours. My sons I phone 4 is no different.

Thinking about it, I dont regularly use any of the apps I have downloaded. But I do find the email, browsing, phone, texts , camera and music player good. All come as standard.

So your choice depends on whether you like Apple or not. Personally I wont go near them - they are too controlling IMO and thats only going to get worse as they introduce cloud computing and auto downloads of everything on your machine. Plus the I Phone wont happily work with the music I have " acquired" as I understand it.

The android is cheaper, works as well , and lets you load whatever you want. Which is presumably why it is outselling the I Phone now.

 

[Ross D]

I have a Blackberry for work and as far as I know there are no nautical apps for Blackberry, but I would love to be corrected if anyone knows of a good app.

 

[dunedin]

This months Yachting Monthly (July 2011) has a review of the 6 chart plotting apps currently available for the iPhone.

Of those 1 (navionics) is available for android at the moment (Memory Map's android app is coming out soon). There may well be more just for android, but I was tasked with finding the iPhone apps.

So out of interest why did YM just look at iPhone. Differs by market, but I believe Android now outsells iPhone in many markets, though doesn't have the same brand following

 

[Clarky]

Got an android that I have had for a year now with the navionics plotter ( this includes tides and even wind) . Never use it - it just isn't useable in real life. The screen ( and mine is a Galaxy S with the best screen around when it was new) is too small for serious use. The battery life when using the GPS is maybe 2 hours. My sons I phone 4 is no different.

In real life I naviagte with mine all the time,in the end of the day you only need to use it occasionally to check where you are. That included a night trip up the river to Kirkudbright for the first time,which is not straightforward in the dark,and around the Isle of Mann. Didn't look at a chart for either.
I have an I phone 3 gs

 

[snooks]

So out of interest why did YM just look at iPhone. Differs by market, but I believe Android now outsells iPhone in many markets, though doesn't have the same brand following

The feature was about whether the smartphone was the going to be the death of the handheld chart plotter. There are 6 chart plotting apps for the iPhone that cover the UK, there is one for android. That one (navionics) is also available for the iPhone. When more charting apps become available, we'll test them, but we can't test what doesn't exist

 

[maxi77]

I have an Iphone and have no charting aps on it the screen for me is to small. It is great though for tides which needs no data signal, and weather which does need a data signal. Mrs Maxi has an Ipad which I am not allowed to palay with but it's screen is great for charting aps I an waiting for a decent android pad with a 10 inch screen, and that may be my back up plotter.

 

[Tintin]

I've been using the Samsung Galxy S with Navionics for a year now and am very happy with it as a back-up to the chartplotter which of course is back up to real old fashioned sheets of paper.

On a recent trip from Italy I discovered it had a camera function so any photos taken using Navionics to start the camera got plotted on the route.

For sure the screen is small, so good practice such as going along your intended route at a scale of 1nM to get a general feel, then back at 0.1nM to check for hazards is a must.

Where it scores, IMHO, over handheld chartplotters is the price - £10 for a full set of Med charts, similar for Western Europe, and similar for UK & Holland - £ for £ it blows me away.

It is power hungry, but so is any such handheld device, so regular charges are a must.

I believe also that Android phones now officially have outsold iPhone and Blackberry platforms,

rgd
Red

 

[sam_uk]

I have Android + Navionics. A useful backup.

http://www.marinetraffic.com/ais/services.aspx also do an Android app which I have.

I don't have proper AIS, but do get good mobile signal where I sail, If the fog came down and I had mobile signal I think I would probably have a look.

 

[colingr]

I was sitting on the back of the ferry a couple of days ago and was impressed by how up to date the AIS was on the android version of shipfinder. I was expecting it to be several minutes out of date but as we were passing several other ferries and cargo ships they were shown in pretty much the right place. Certainly good enough to ID them and get their call signs etc.

 

[Cappen Boidseye]

I use Watermaps UK & Ireland on my Iphone 4. I find it extremely useful. The Iphone screen is bright enough for typical West coast of Scotland weather (Overcast of course!). It will run for several hours but I sometimes use an extension 12v lead and have it topping up from the boat's battery. The charts are excellent, the only downside is that you can't indulge in route planning with this app.
I have Seapro on a laptop which I bought for the boat, but then I looked at how much power the laptop was taking from the battery and gave up on that idea, according to my battery monitor it (the laptop) takes about 7 amps when it is also charging it's own battery. That is double what I have ever seen the alternator put back in! OK so the alternator will be also charging the engine starter battery and I know that unless the battery is low it won't take a high current, but the combination of tillerpilot and laptop rapidly had the battery down to 60%. (Or is my battery monitor just very pessimistic?).
The Iphone by the way takes 0.4 amps when plugged into the boat. Much better! How power hungry are Ipads?

 

[Dave_Seager]

Navionics Waypoints and Routes

I have just bought Navionics for my Android 'phone (HTC Desire S). I have managed to defines some waypoints and a couple of routes. However, I cannot find any way to use Navionics to guide me to a waypoint or follow a route. The only documentation is a small help file which very poor.

Does anyone know whether the mobile version of Navionics can provide a course to steer other than transferring a bearing from Navionics (true) to a compass (magnetic)?

 

[upthesolent]

I have a few Android apps on my Samsung Galaxy 5500. SailDroid, TidePrediction and MarineTraffic. The first two I don't really use, but the MarineTraffic AIS app is good and seems to be accurate.

Indeed, as I sit in the club quaffing Hole Hearted ale and see a craft movement across the water in Portsmouth Harbour, I go straight to my app and there it is,giving me quite a bit of info about the boat's movement. I believe it would be useful out on the water - as well as being informatively interesting.

Pretty damned good for free!

As for an iphone - well, I cannot justify the price when Android is such a close alternative.

 

[Tintin]

Does anyone know whether the mobile version of Navionics can provide a course to steer other than transferring a bearing from Navionics (true) to a compass (magnetic)?

That's how I do it - I haven't found any other way yet and I'm happy with that. I guess at the end of the day these are a back up when navigating, or for pub rough planning. I kinow the battery life on my Samsung means that using it for any length of time would mean installing a charging point in the cockpit.


I have however used it handheld for close quarter pilotage into rock strewn anchorages with (so far) success (success being measured by no bangs and crashes ).

 

[Heckler]

Forgive me if I'm wrong, but it looks like we haven't had such as thread for 12 months and the world has moved on a lot since then. Following on from my Symbian post I've been looking at the bewildering range of smart phones in town today...and I'm totally lost! I'll be upgrading my Nokia in the near future and would like to try out the nautical apps that everyone but me now seems to have.

At least with Apple there's no choice - it's iPhone 4. Choosing an Android phone seems a lot trickier as there's so much choice it seems.

Can anyone point me towards a good comparison of the two choices for a) general use b) nautical apps? Or maybe we just need to run last year's thread again.

PS - This might become the new "anchor thread" topic for the next year, I know that. Let's hope Rocna don't introduce a smart phone

Ive just had a free HTC Desire S from Orange and my monthly has gone down to £12.50!
Its gob smackingly good, as good as an I phone or better, apps are all there, navionics works superb. They offered me an Iphone 4 for £169 plus £35 a month. It was a no contest.
Stu

 

[gjgm]

Forgive me if I'm wrong, but it looks like we haven't had such as thread for 12 months and the world has moved on a lot since then. Following on from my Symbian post I've been looking at the bewildering range of smart phones in town today...and I'm totally lost! I'll be upgrading my Nokia in the near future and would like to try out the nautical apps that everyone but me now seems to have.

At least with Apple there's no choice - it's iPhone 4. Choosing an Android phone seems a lot trickier as there's so much choice it seems.

Can anyone point me towards a good comparison of the two choices for a) general use b) nautical apps? Or maybe we just need to run last year's thread again.

PS - This might become the new "anchor thread" topic for the next year, I know that. Let's hope Rocna don't introduce a smart phone

Before you get too enthusiastic, these screens are godamm lousy in sunlight, so I'm not convinced there is much use for charting on a phone if you are in the open. Down below, or under a hardtop or something, maybe...
What they are really good at is tide/weather etc where you can widen the weather chart area by "pinching" the screen.. xc weather for example works really well.
Of course they come with gps,multimedia,wifi,bluetooth etc, so they are extremely competent, but if I was going to rely on something in case my plotter went down, I think a paper chart would be far more useful.
I handle our company contracts for mobiles, so get to see/test Iphone,HTC,Nokia,BBerry etc.
Iphone definitely has some cache if thats your bag over the others, and does have a password/swipe functionality. Otherwise HTC is just as competent at half the price.
Of course if you are already in an Apple world, take the Iphone. Otherwise, stay away from it, IMHO
Oh, and dont worry about apps.. most of them are of little use !

 

[lukecsmith]

Got an android that I have had for a year now with the navionics plotter ( this includes tides and even wind) . Never use it - it just isn't useable in real life. The screen ( and mine is a Galaxy S with the best screen around when it was new) is too small for serious use. The battery life when using the GPS is maybe 2 hours. My sons I phone 4 is no different.

In real life I naviagte with mine all the time,in the end of the day you only need to use it occasionally to check where you are. That included a night trip up the river to Kirkudbright for the first time,which is not straightforward in the dark,and around the Isle of Mann. Didn't look at a chart for either.
I have an I phone 3 gs

I have an iphone 3GS and the navionics plotter. Its good .. but the 3G receiver is prone to random results though. It might be because my phone is 2 years old. It does occasionally decide I am 100s of metres from where I really am. This is obviously really dangerous. Id say suggest using these phone plotters as an aid and an extra opinion .. but not as a sole source of nav info.