Thanks to Dan Corcoran for submitting a valuable Panbo install entry while your regular editor slacks off ~ Ben:
While the ST70+ -- which I wrote about here -- continues as the largest and most readable of Raymarine's many instrument displays, the svelt i70 and its sibling p70 autopilot control heads may be the right size and price to be easy replacements for your existing displays, as they were on my sailboat Breeze Pleeze. As shown in the picture below, the new i70 can drop into the same hole as an ST60 or ST70 with re-positioned mounting screws ready to grab into fresh fiberglass. The display can also be installed in territory previously out of reach, such as shallow cavities that lack good rear access, with a new "front mounted design for simpler installation". The physical installation is done by securing the display from the front with self tapping screws in each corner that are hidden behind a slim silver snap-on bezel seen two pictures below.
Cape May, NJ: So far, so good except that I obviously haven't yet integrated Panbo writing into my delivery/cruise routine. Sorry about that, but I'll get back in the groove now that we've slowed down and also now that Gizmo and I have our sea legs back. It's been a while for both of us! Moreover, I've had a chance to test electronics in demanding conditions -- like two night time entrances to unfamiliar harbors -- and that's really sharpened my thoughts about what works well and what doesn't. Today, though, I'm going to discuss my tracking and staying-in-touch with home strategies...
The boat show season begins with a bang, at least in terms of Instruments. Who knew that Garmin would buy Nexus Marine? And what does it mean for the extensive lines of Nexus racing and cruising instruments? I have no idea, but it is a good excuse to publish that odd screen shot above. It's from a fascinating video purportedly showing the America's Cup ETNZ team calibrating wind instruments for their AC72 in a unique fashion. And while that's an Airmar ultrasonic weather station being used as the reference (I presume) those are three cleverly-designed Nexus wireless nWind sensors whirling away on the streets of San Francisco...
In July I tested the Iridium 9575 Extreme satellite phone and the AxcessPoint WiFi hotspot accessory that we first discussed here a year ago. Why haven't I written about it sooner? Well, this summer went by in a flash thanks the PBR, family, and my efforts to prepare boat and home for Gizmo's southern sojourn (starting this weekend!). Plus I wasn't really wowed by this gear, though in retrospect I wonder why...
On Tuesday Raymarine announced the e165 and while a replacement for the 14-inch E Widescreen was predictable, it's pretty neat that they managed to get a 15.4-inch screen plus large second-generation "hybridtouch" controls into a svelte casing that can swap right into the helm panel hole currently occupied by an E Wide 14 (or a C Wide 14). That's 20% more screen area, and the LED backlighting is said to be wicked bright though the e165's maximum reported power draw is only 36 watts. And of course the e165 has the triple processing, WiFi, apps, Bluetooth, and new "Lighthouse" interface that seem to be drawing customers to the littler little "e" Series (breakdown of all four "e" sizes and seven models here). But I'm going to guess that many owners of E Wides -- which was a brand-new ground-breaking Series only just announced three years ago! -- are not happy to see them superseded. There is a dark side to Raymarine's meteoric resurgence...
I think that personal AIS beacons are a deservedly hot new safety technology but, as discussed in June, the display manufacturers are just learning how to handle them well. In fact, right around that same time I had to add bug alert comments to an earlier Kannad R10 AIS MoB beacon entry about how a certain Garmin software update could cause its MFDs to shut down after receiving the beacon's test signal! It was an embarrassing moment in product improvement, as documented in these email warnings to the Newport-Bermuda race fleet, but Garmin eventually solved the issue and may indeed have set a new bar for the proper integration of AIS beacons. The screen above, for instance, shows how clearly the Garmin 7212 on Gizmo alarmed shortly after I activated the test mode on a Kannad R10...
