Route creation consists of marking waypoints along your route. Distance measuring is useful for route planning.
The tracking feature basically just lays down a yellow line where you've been and records your average speed. This is very handy if you want to capture the look of a harbor entrance or an important landmark.įrom the main charting screen you have the option of tracking your course, measuring the distance between two points, or creating a route. The community layer allows users to edit map objects, including adding photos of particular features and waypoints right from the camera on your iOS device. The only other display choice you have is toggling the "Community Layer" on and off. Terrain gives a topographical look with greens, browns and yellows. The "No overlay" choice displays land in a raster-like yellow, while Google and Bing both use highly detailed aerial photography. You have four choices for land display: "No overlay", "Google", "Bing", or "Terrain". Water and hydrographic features display in bright white and several shades of blue, complete with depth contour lines. If you're someone who prefers the look of raster charts (basically a full-color digital image of NOAA's paper charts), then you'll immediately notice the different look of Navionics' custom chart renderings. The first thing you'll notice about Navionics is the beautiful hi-definition charts. Now on to the review of Navionics for iOS. The bottom line is that if your cockpit isn't dry and shaded, you may be better off keeping the iPad down below at the nav station. Having said that, you can purchase all-weather protection for your iPad such as dry bags and there are also temporary mounts available. However, the screen can be difficult to view in direct sunlight and obviously the device isn't suitable for a damp, wet environment. The iPad's size, touchscreen and brilliant display are excellent for looking at charts. Let's get some iPad basics out the way first. More recently, I've put the Garmin in a back-up role and begun using the Navionics HD app for iOS on my iPad 2, along with a suite of other great navigation and sailing apps.
#Navionics charts android
Download the iOS or Android versions of the Navionics app.I have traditionally used a Garmin GPSMap 76cs Plus handheld plotting GPS and more recently added a netbook computer running the free OpenCPN chartplotter software tethered to the Garmin. So your "free" app may actually end up costing you a lot more than the one you paid for a few years ago. This move is also evidence of a shift that is happening more broadly with navigation apps: moving from stand-alone fee-based products to free apps that require add-ons to integrate with chartplotters and other electronics.
Navionics is likely also counting on us buying the add-on modules, such as the advanced navigation or chart updates that you are still required to pay for. We all like free, right? This will help develop a whole new user base, including casual boaters and people that have been hesitant about using mobile apps on the water. What this means for the expense-conscious boater (aka cheapskates like me) is that you can download this app, get a really easy to use navigation tool with straightforward chart data, and immediately use it to navigate around your local waters.
#Navionics charts for free
In a move that I for one appreciate, they released a new version of their boating app for free including all the Government S57 charts, and also free trials of their add on Nav module. But when the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) stopped printing charts in October last year, they began offering free vector and raster chart downloads, which led to the introduction of quite a few new mobile apps that provide free or low-cost charting and navigation.
Navionics is introducing a free version of its popular smartphone and tablet navigation app.