If you have an iPhone (and even if you don't)...

Thanks for the heads up. Does anyone know how good the GPS receiver is in the 3G iPhone? I have the original which uses cell phone triangulation for location data which isn't always accurate and would be way too expensive in Canada, but if the new one works well it might be a good reason to move to the 3G model.

For right now though I think I'll stick with the C80, Nuvi 500, and a handheld Garmin and paper charts.
 
I'm paying $60/mo. for Sprints air card which has a GPS receiver. Works great with Nobeltec software on my laptop. However, I-phones are $30/mo. for their service.

Can they be tethered to a laptop? If so, would the upload speed be the same as Sprint or Verizon's aircards? If so, then it would behoove me to pay $30/mo. instead of $60/mo.

-Greg
 
That will be a welcome addition to my iPhone. To date, I havent been too impressed with the GPS in the phone, but it just maybe the mapping.

Maybe Navionics can use the lat/lon and draw a chart faster.
 
Checkpoint,

My middle son has the old iPod and it gives you your approximate location by using triangulation from cell towers, so it is slow and cannot tell which way you are going, just where you are - approximately.

He told me that the new iPod will have a genuine gps unit in it. I do not know if that is the case, but am thinking of getting one in a year or so.

do you have the new IPod 3? or the old iPod?

John
 
Dene":5hszobeu said:
Can they be tethered to a laptop?
Click to expand...

I am fairly certain that neither the iPhone and the G1 (Googlephone, which I have) permit tethering. The way I look at it, and testing over the next year or so will validate, I may be able to get enough functionality out of the smartphone that I can drop my Verizon aircard plan and rely on WiFi for the laptop. I'm still looking into amplifying my WiFi signal on the boat -- check out 5 Mile WiFi.

Warren
 
Tethering is not technically permitted on the iPhone. An app was available for a short time on the app store which allowed it, but has since been pulled. However, it still functions for those lucky enough to have purchased it. I have been told that tethering will be available soon for the iPhone from AT&T, but it will be at an additional cost, probably similar to what they charge for it on BlackBerries which is an additional $30 a month I think.
 
AFAIK, throughput speeds while tethering via Blackberry (on Verizon) are about half of what they are with the dedicated Verizon aircard. So that is another factor to weigh.

Warren
 
iNavX is another option for the iPhone. It costs $50 from the app store and uses free NOAA charts so this could be a cheap backup option if your boating is done in the US. There are some other iPhone boat related apps, search the app store or Panbo for more info.
 
I just bought an itouch yesterday. This is first post from it. It is amazing. Still learning, and have not looked into apps yet, but have surfed, downloaded movies and music. The "gps"seems to be right on, but was informed it will not be a sat gps in the near future. If ever.
Robbi
 
It has all of the features except the phone. You can connect to the net via Wi-Fi. May have other differences, unknown to me at this time.
Robbi :?
 
Hi Dr. John,

The iTouch is a video iPod with wifi capability. No phone, no camera... think: iPod that you can access the internet with.

Here's a link:

http://www.apple.com/ipodtouch/

Enjoy!

Best wishes,
Jim B. (I'd have an iPhone if they made one for Verizon. Since they don't, I have the ITouch)
 
They released the "West" i-Phone chart, which covers the Puget Sound. It does show your position on the chart, no waypoints or tracks. But hey, it makes a great backup now. They also released a HotMaps West, which is good for lakes. I guess this all happened on December 18. I learned this from the Navionics guy at the boat show today.

Remember to download the free viewer and get that installed too.
 
Just received this message from Navionics:

We are pleased to inform you…
Navionics’ charts for your iPhone are available NOW.
To download, you need to have iTunes software installed and an active iTunes account.
Go to the App Store directly on your iPhone or via iTunes software on your computer, click the “search” button and type “Navionics” to find Navionics’ award winning Gold marine charts and HotMaps Premium charts of the U.S. lakes.
Want to try before you buy? Download the free “Navionics Viewer” and tryout a free marine chart of Miami, Florida, and an outdoor map of North Tuscany, Italy.
Several charts are currently available, with many more to come in the next several days including the great outdoor and ski maps.
The charts are bundled with the Navionics Viewer. You can see your GPS position on the map, seamlessly pan and zoom, query objects, search marinas, locate boat ramps, coastal roads, wrecks, anchorages, view in both day and night modes, and many more features to come with free updates in the near future.
The maps are stored "on board" your iPhone memory, giving you very fast performance and zero data transmission fees, as well as continued service even when you’re out of cell range.

Don’t have an iPhone? We expect applications for your smartphone to be supported soon. We’ll keep you informed, or watch our website for more information as it becomes available.
Navionics, we start where the road ends.
 
Quick question...I have a first gen iPhone and most of the time when I'd want to use this I would be in Canada (read expensive data for triangulation) and cell service may not even be available. So for those of you with the 3G iPhone, has anyone tried using the iPhone just for GPS in Canada with data roaming off?
 
I just noticed (thanks Panbo!) that Navionics has quite a few chart sets on sale for the iPhone. I'm downloading the British Columbia set right now for just $9.99. Apparently this includes everything from Puget Sound to Southeast Alaska. A great deal for anyone with an iPhone since the viewer is free.
 
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