The Wind Instrument RB is their newest model, with a Replaceable
Battery. It has been out for 2 years. There are reviews from RB customers on the manufacturer’s order page at
https://wi-rb.com/product/rb/#reviews. Many of the comments on the forum links above look like they are about early models that were pre-ordered.
There is a good list of of the evolving SailTimer apps and
electronics at
Media Coverage. There are also over 100 ratings for the free SailTimer tacking app in the
Google Play store (
https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...r.chartplotter) with an average of 4/5, and also good ratings for the iOS version (
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/sailti...on/id546654923). The Wind Instrument RB works with lots of different apps on tablets and smartphones.
Note that the wireless
Raymarine i60 above sends an analog signal that is prone to
interference, not the
reliability of Bluetooth which can be used for streaming
music. I looked at it before
buying my SailTimer RB. The Raymarine only has an average of 1.8/5 in the reviews on West Marine’s page (
https://www.westmarine.com/buy/tackt...ystem--5469333). Also, the Raymarine cannot transmit to smartphones/apps.
There are two physical features that made up my mind to go with the SailTimer RB. First, it can be raised on a
halyard to use until you can get at the masthead. Second, the RB wind cups have ceramic bearings that cannot corrode, and blades that are designed to turn equally well when sailing along heeled over. There is a good illustration of the SailTimer cups at
https://wi-rb.com/innovation/. With traditional wind cups like on the Raymarine, when heeling the wind hits the bottom and back of the wind cups and they do not spin as well.
p.s. I did not want the hassle of running a wire down my mast and through the
boat - the Bluetooth works great (transmission range: 280 feet).