SeaClear & Navionics

[Bradley]

Is there anyway that SeaCLear can read Navionics chips.

Can you really not back up a Navionics chip. What if one is out in the middle of the ocean, and the chip goes bad? I would never have wasted my money on something that I can't have a spare copy -- particularly in the marine environment. Their warning is right when it states you can't rely on it for navigation.

[Pblais]

Can you really not back up a Navionics chip.

They are copy protected and will not operate if you attempt to over write one or copy it to a new chip. The idea with the Navonics chips is you can't cheat the copy protection. If the chip goes bad you can send it in for a replacement or you can buy two to have a spare. What if your chart plotter goes bad?

The C-map format was so widely abused that the company gave up on C-Map since the pirated copies vastly outnumbered the legal copies.

Currently Seaclear lacks the ability to read Navonics chips. You need their proprietary card reader ($75) to use the chip on a personal computer plus you need software that adds Navonics support. Fugawi Marine ENC now supports Navonics chips and the new release of the software come with a free reader (hence the recent price increase). It reads Navonics and two other chip sizes as well. I have used it to read a chip I have and it has all the functionality of a chart plotter with all the Navonics features.

You still can not copy the data off the chip and use it for anything. The chip itself carries the encryption required to use the chip and the proprietary reader is still required.