Raymarine aSeries

[baggin]

I am of thinking of purchasing a Raymarine aSeries MFD to use as a chartplotter on the pod forward of the helm on my 31ft yacht (sailboat). I am concerned about the practically of this unit being open to the elements, ie does rain effect the touch screen? My Raymarine dealer says he as no experience of fitting one in the open. Any comments would be welcome. Thanks in advance baggin

[soy_el_viento]

I had the same question and thought the wet weather (I'm in Puget Sound in the Pacific Northwest) might cause some issues with full touch functionality. Even if not, I am likely to be wearing gloves in heavy weather that I would rather not have to take off all the time. So I opted for the e7D. It still has touch screen, though you can't pinch and zoom, but it also has a navigation knob and joystick. I haven't installed it yet, but I am looking forward to having it up and running... I opted for digital radar and sonar. And as with all of the Raymarine MFD's, you can use an iPad or iPhone as a fully functioning repeater. Leave the MFD outside to deal with the weather while you're inside sipping coffee and running everything from down below!

[baggin]

What a great area to sail in I have been there a few years ago I am in NW England

[Pau Hana]

Originally Posted by soy_el_viento

I had the same question and thought the wet weather (I'm in Puget Sound in the Pacific Northwest) might cause some issues with full touch functionality. Even if not, I am likely to be wearing gloves in heavy weather that I would rather not have to take off all the time. So I opted for the e7D. It still has touch screen, though you can't pinch and zoom, but it also has a navigation knob and joystick. I haven't installed it yet, but I am looking forward to having it up and running... I opted for digital radar and sonar. And as with all of the Raymarine MFD's, you can use an iPad or iPhone as a fully functioning repeater. Leave the MFD outside to deal with the weather while you're inside sipping coffee and running everything from down below!

Absolutely the correct choice. The A series is great, but the hybrid touch gives better flexibility for consistently wet areas.

[goboatingnow]

The A series is fully waterproof to Ipx6 standards. It uses a capacitive touch screen which means you need conductive gloves to operate it with gloves. With all the iThingys around its possible to get conductive gloves easy enough

Dave

[soy_el_viento]

I had considered that when looking at the A-series, but ultimately decided that my sailing gloves would be best dictated by sailing rather than electronic gizmo interface. Not knockin' the A-series. It's a great MFD and I almost went with it. Were it not for iPad functionality I may have anyway. And if you're in the tropics--where I am ultimately headed--the point is likely moot. Another reason I almost went with the a78 instead of e7D. I don't think you can go wrong with either. It just comes down to personal preference (and about an additional $80 for the E-series).

[xeon_tsd]

Originally Posted by goboatingnow

The A series is fully waterproof to Ipx6 standards. It uses a capacitive touch screen which means you need conductive gloves to operate it with gloves. With all the iThingys around its possible to get conductive gloves easy enough

Dave

You can also get conductive thread and sew it into the fingers of your favorite gloves... making them conductive gloves