New RYA App for iPhone and Android

[Prhperio]

Just in case you haven't seen this on the regular RYA mailing, they have an app out. Haven't tried it yet so just flagging it up… Looks interesting though. The brief description is "RYA SafeTrx tracks your passage and alerts your emergency contact if you fail to return within your ETA." The tracking function is free to RYA members and on iTunes it notes there are in app purchases so there's no such thing as a free lunch (though the app itself is my favourite price (free))!

http://www.rya.org.uk/cruising/Pages/RYASafeTrxavailablenowfordownload.aspx

Will be interesting to see what people think…

Paul

 

[SteveSarabande]

How does it report you are lost if you are out of phone range? Or if the battery goes flat?

 

[oGaryo]

Just downloaded. The popup prompts when filling in the forms are a pita. Works on GPS so needs that enabled on your phone. Nice map feature to plot your course. If you don't have an RYA account you purchase trips in blocks of 10, works out at about 17p per trip

 

[Hurricane]

Does it track Offshore Power Boat events!!

Said with feeling.

 

[oceanfroggie]

The ISA launched it over here a year ago. It's quite a useful tool for notifying folk ashore if you are late. Given most leisure boat traffic is inshore or coastal the app will be in cellular range most of the time. The central monitoring server texts family/friends if you are late reporting at destination. It does NOT inform the CG, that's up to family/friends, but they and CG can see a track log of your vessel if needed, it's intended route and current or last recorded position ( ie assuming in cellular range for parts of the passage). In Ireland its free to download and free to use. I guess they spent the last year proving the app here before wider release. Simple and effective.