Android vs iPhone

[Kettlewell]

How about OpenCPN (free) on your laptop or netbook as a backup for your chartplotter? Much more capable than any of the phones--I personally wouldn't want to be carrying around my backup chartplotter in my back pocket all the time. Smart phones are huge theft magnets wherever things are dicey ashore too, plus chances are you won't easily be able to use it in many places you'll visit outside of the USA without the hassle of getting a local SIM card, etc., assuming your phone is unlocked. Having said that, the phone plotters are lots of fun and a good conversation starter at the bar.

[familycruisers]

Or get a tablet and ARM mount. Im going to position mine to swivel viewed from cockpit in companionway and swung around to watch movies or keep track from inside.

[familycruisers]

Originally Posted by Kettlewell

How about OpenCPN (free) on your laptop or netbook as a backup for your chartplotter? Much more capable than any of the phones--I personally wouldn't want to be carrying around my backup chartplotter in my back pocket all the time. Smart phones are huge theft magnets wherever things are dicey ashore too, plus chances are you won't easily be able to use it in many places you'll visit outside of the USA without the hassle of getting a local SIM card, etc., assuming your phone is unlocked. Having said that, the phone plotters are lots of fun and a good conversation starter at the bar.

Thats funny. Between my droid and the laptop w/ open cpn those are my chartplotter AND backup. Screw Raymarine !!! lol(besides my st1000+open cpn for nmea auto pilot)
If you've seen an EVO, screen is huge, and zooming on MXMariner is slick. Will's done a great job.

[red_sky]

I've several of both types of phone/tablets because I code both platforms. Man gotta eat. My 2 cents worth, as a platform, Android, no question.

[four winds]

Already have a Mac laptop backup (PolarView and OpenCPN) to the Garmin 441s plotter on the helm. And a remote monitor swinging on the companionway which is a tv as well.

I guess I'm thinking about a backup to the backup, or handy way to check the weather from the cockpit, or hand off to a guest to share position info, etc.

Unfortunately, I just discovered two holes melted in the side of one of my AGM batteries. So I guess I'll turn my attention to that issue instead. Dammit.

Gonna drink my second beer and call it a day.

[christinekling]

Just returned from a trip Florida - Chesapeake and back and there were many times when my iPad could connect and do email when my iPhone could not. I'm on ATT and the iPad could do email and Internet up to 10 miles offshore when the phone had zero bars to connect.

[Cormorant]

That's very interesting. I'm guessing that the Ipad's larger size allows a better antenna to be built in.