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GaryB
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Initially Posted - 11/12/2011 : 17:06:55

I'd like something that I could use for navigation in the cockpit that's smaller than a laptop. My GPSMAP378 is too small to use without my glasses.

Anyone got a recommendation for a Netbook/Notebook?

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GaryB
Andiamo
'89 SR/WK #5862
Kemah,TX

Edited by - on

Voyager
Master Marine Consultant

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Response Posted - 11/12/2011 : 17:37:55

Gary
You can use a notebook computer running NOAA's and Google's 'Geogarage' charting software along with a Garmin or other GPS plugged in to your USB port. You need a driver that you can download.
I was at W*M today and saw a 10" 'acer' netbook for about $350.
You might find a deal on amazon, bestbuy, staples or elsewhere if you shop before Thanksgiving.
Some folks prefer a tablet computer.
You might also want to work out some kind of a water-resistant case for either one.

Edited by - Voyager on 11/12/2011 17:41:18

GaryB
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Response Posted - 11/12/2011 : 18:33:48

I've got a Motorola Zoom and it works OK but my wife has claimed it as hers now and I like having a keyboard to type.

How would I connect my Garmin to the laptop?

Edited by - on

Dave5041
Former Mainsheet Editor

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Response Posted - 11/13/2011 : 08:41:24

I use a gps puck that connects over USB or Bluetooth to provide data to my computer and iPod. I also sometimes use a Keyspan (brand name) Serial to USB adapter with a serial output cable from my Garmin.

Edited by - on

Stinkpotter
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Djibouti
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Response Posted - 11/13/2011 : 09:08:06

FWIW, I noticed that WM has a sale on the Garmin 640, which I have. The touch-screen is significantly bigger than my old 286 (which is like the 386 and 486), and it has built-in Blue Charts, street-level mapping with Nuvi-style operation, and a built-in rechargeable battery--a feature I value. It's waterproof (let's call it weatherproof) and has a nice touch-screen user interface. The $600 sale price is well below what I got it for on sale, and the lowest I've seen anywhere on the web (although I haven't searched thoroughly).

Not that a computer screen wouldn't be bigger... just some information for anyone who might be interested.

Edited by - Stinkpotter on 11/13/2011 09:46:16

John Russell
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Response Posted - 11/13/2011 : 12:10:08

Dave, I know your steering station is under the roof but, how's the visibility in bright sunlight?

Edited by - John Russell on 11/13/2011 12:10:24

GaryB
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Response Posted - 11/13/2011 : 14:13:22

I'm not a huge fan of HP lpatops but after going to Best Buy and looking at the three netbooks they had on display I decided to look for the smallest laptop I could find. The netbooks were dead slow doing the simplest web lookup. I tried to view a 50 sec video on weather.com and it would not load on any of the netbooks. Even the Zoom I have is faster than the netbooks.

HP had a 14" laptop with dual core AMD processor, dvd drive (none onthe netbooks), large HDD, etc.. for $349 which is only $80 more than the Toshiba netbook and only $50 more than the Gateway. While slightly larger than I wanted it should do a lot more than the netbooks or tablets.

We'll see how well it works on the boat and in bright sunlight.

Edited by - GaryB on 11/13/2011 14:15:30

Steve Milby
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Response Posted - 11/13/2011 : 14:45:17

I have 2 netbooks - an Asus and an Acer. I haven't increased their momery. Both have been reliable. They don't do video well at all. They are slow, but surf the internet adequately, which is how I use them. I suspect they would work with a gps ok, but never tried it. The biggest single advantage of a netbook is the incredible amount of battery time you can get with them. They'll run for hours and hours on battery. Also, they're so small and lightweight that they can be carried around town all day without being a burden. If you want a high tech machine, they won't fill the bill, but if you want portability, extremely long battery time and basic functions, they're fine. I do have serious reservations about using one in the cockpit, however. Even a little spray would probably destroy a computer quickly. They can be used inside the boat, where they'll get a little protection. I think I would prefer either a marine gps or a paper chart to the use of a netbook in the cockpit.

Edited by - on

britinusa
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Response Posted - 11/13/2011 : 16:28:34

We use an Acer One netbook on board JD, it has a built in simcard so we can connect if ATnT is available. But I also have my LG G2 smartphone with tethering option and the data rate is surprisingly good.

We have home port on the netbook, but no gps hookup. Perhaps any of our self confessed tech nerds could chime in with detailed instructions.

paul

Edited by - on

GaryB
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Response Posted - 11/13/2011 : 17:13:03

This HP although way more and larger than I wanted may work out OK. Specs say it should get 6+ hours on a charge. I doubt that will pan out but maybe I can get 5.

I think I may get a swing arm mount and mount it just inside the companionway to keep it out of the spray. With the larger screen I can probably still read it clearly without my glasses if it's inside with the hatch closed.

If nothing else I can at least play movies while on-board.

I still have the GPSMAP378 and my HTC smartphone. I get 2gb/mth with the phone and with my Verizon 4G Hotspot I get another 5gb/mth and haven't even come close to hitting either one in actual usage.

Besides, I really didn't need another laptop, I just wanted one for use only on the boat.

Edited by - GaryB on 11/13/2011 17:16:26

Voyager
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Response Posted - 11/13/2011 : 18:51:08

A few questions came up about connections between the PC/Tablet and the GPS. Garmin GPS's use either a USB cable or a 9-pin serial cable. In the case of my GPS-72, it uses a cable with a four-pin Garmin serial connector to a 9-pin RS-232 connector (for my super-old laptop), or the four-pin to USB connector. My newer GPS-278 uses a USB to USB connector.

For a PC using XP you need to go out to the website and download a driver from Garmin. For Windows 7 when you plug in the device, it goes out to find the driver for you.

I don't know whether an iPad, an Android or other Tablet computer will automatically download the driver. Check "devices" and "preferences" to set it up. Once you have an electrical connection, a driver and a configuration, you should be good-to-go.

Other manufacturers' GPS will either come with a disk or you can download the driver from the web site.

Edited by - on

GaryB
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Response Posted - 11/13/2011 : 19:34:30

I forgot my GPSMAP378 had the USB connection on the back. Can I just connect directly from the USB on the back of the GPS to a USB port on my computer?

What Data Format should the GPS be set on, Garmin Data Transfer and Transfer Mode of Host?

Edited by - GaryB on 11/13/2011 20:33:26

Stinkpotter
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Djibouti
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Response Posted - 11/13/2011 : 21:34:14

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by John Russell
 Dave, I know your steering station is under the roof but, how's the visibility in bright sunlight?<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">At least as good as anything else I've seen, and sunlight does occasionally get into my mix. The 640 also can go to "night" mode automatically--black background, etc., at sundown, to enhance night vision.

Edited by - on

TakeFive
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Response Posted - 11/13/2011 : 21:34:21

FYI, my MSI Wind netbook has the brightest screen of any portable computer I've ever seen. It works in full daylight, much better than my Dell laptop. The matte screen is MUCH better than the high-gloss screens that you find on some computers (including my son's next-generation MSI Wind). I have a RAM Mount to put it at the helm. The only moisture protection I have is a TPU membrane for the keyboard. But I only sail in fair weather, and the GPS, AIS, and autopilot connections are all wireless Bluetooth, so I could move it down into the cabin and still have full functionality. YMMV.

You can barely see the screen image here because the camera is off to the side. Straight-on brightness is much higher.

<center>

</center>

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GaryB
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Response Posted - 11/14/2011 : 06:45:13

Rick,

This looks like what I was looking for. Looking at MSI's website it appears they have several different sizes and models. What are the spec's on yours, processor, screen size, etc..

I have 13 days left to return my HP. I may just purcahse one of these. The price is about the same.

Edited by - GaryB on 11/14/2011 06:54:50

TakeFive
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Response Posted - 11/14/2011 : 07:02:41

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by GaryB
 Rick,

This looks like what I was looking for. Where did you purchase yours and is it reasonably fast?
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
It's 3-4 years old, and was sitting around gathering dust, which made it an easy decision to repurpose it for the boat. I had originally bought it from buy.com or Amazon for about $400. It's plenty fast to run my chartplotter software. I did put in a 1 GB memory upgrade to bring it up to 2 GB total. I have been able to play videos on it, so my performance seems to be better than some others here have described. I think the Intel Atom processor gives a very good balance between performance and energy savings. I was also able to hack Mac OS X onto it, though I haven't used that much.

At the time I had already bought the Garmin 640 that Dave has. I had found it (almost exactly a year ago) at WM for $720 (including 10% off coupon) and bought it on impulse. I changed my mind and decided to go with the unused netbook that I had, so I returned it (unopened). But it is a REALLY nice chartplotter, and $600 is a great price for it. If you'll at all inclined toward a turnkey system, this would be a great one.

Back to the netbook: My model (Wind U100) is discontinued. Last Christmas we bought [url="http://www.msimobile.com/level3_productpage.aspx?cid=3&id=259"]a similar one[/url] for my son ([url="http://www.msimobile.com/level3_productpage.aspx?cid=3&id=259"]click link[/url] to view). We found it at Office Depot for about $230, but it did not have Bluetooth and it had a smaller battery. It also had the really shiny screen. If I were to use it on the boat I would buy a non-glare sticker for the screen. That model is still on MSI's website, but I don't see it around anywhere. I think it has been replaced by [url="http://www.msimobile.com/level2_productlist.aspx?id=3"]other more recent models[/url].

MSI has a [url="http://www.msimobile.com/level2_productlist.aspx?id=112"]tablet model[/url] also. If I were to start from scratch, I'd consider going with that if I could find the computer for under $400. Running OpenCPN on a touchscreen would be really cool (assuming the OS provided good mouse emulation for the touchscreen). Touchscreens are often much less bright than normal screens, so that might be a showstopper for outdoor usage. Also, after scanning the reviews, I also see a lot of references to Win7's deficiencies for tablet computers, so it's possible Win7 on a tablet is "not ready for prime time." iPad is still the king, but I don't think Navionics can accept AIS signals via Bluetooth (which is what I've managed to accomplish with my netbook - see August Mainsheet).

Edited by - TakeFive on 11/14/2011 07:11:38

GaryB
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Response Posted - 11/14/2011 : 07:09:38

Yeah, I was just looking at MSI's website. The L1350D-1672US apparently has been discontinued as well even though it's listed on their website. I tried finding it online and several sites listed as discontinuted in August.

Where's a good place to get the RAM mounts?

Edited by - GaryB on 11/14/2011 07:10:19

TakeFive
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Response Posted - 11/14/2011 : 07:14:28

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by GaryB
 Yeah, I was just looking at MSI's website. The L1350D-1672US apparently has been discontinued as well even though it's listed on their website. I tried finding it online and several sites listed as discontinuted in August.

Where's a good place to get the RAM mounts?
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
http://www.gpscity.com/ram-mount-tough-tray-ii-hd-dual-steel-u-bolt-netbook-mount-1.5-ball.html

You can browse for other variants. They are very high quality, but not inexpensive. Once you start to add it all up, $600 for a turnkey system is very attractive.

I edited my prior post above. You might want to reread it to see the changes.

Edited by - on

Dave5041
Former Mainsheet Editor

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Response Posted - 11/14/2011 : 10:12:42

I keep my MacBook Pro in the cabin, and it is readable from the helm while shock corded to the table. A computer on a swing arm at the hatch should be more than adequate. MacENC accepts signals over USB, bluetooth or wifi and repeats any of the screens, regardless of which one is displayed on the computer, to my IPod Touch or IPhone with INavX in the cockpit for closer reading. It is a really slick, inexpensive package, but a pretty expensive option if you don't already have a Mac. You could always go with a refurbished Mac at the Apple site, but it would still be more than a relatively cheap PC. The handheld devices suffer in the sun, but I'm going to waste some money and trial several brands of anti-glare screen protecters this winter in Florida and will report on them. Set your Garmin output to NMEA 0183 or 2000.

Edited by - on

GaryB
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Response Posted - 11/14/2011 : 18:44:27

Rick - Thank you very much for the detailed report on the MSI. If I can find one I will probably buy one and try it out.

Dave - I set my Garmin to NMEA and I can't get the computer to recognize it. It keeps asking me to select a port but there are no ports listed.

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Dave5041
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Response Posted - 11/14/2011 : 19:12:30

You might have to set up some kind of virtual port over USB or bluetooth. I went Mac a decade ago, so you will need a pc guy to chime in.

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TakeFive
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Response Posted - 11/14/2011 : 19:41:40

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by GaryB
 ...I set my Garmin to NMEA and I can't get the computer to recognize it. It keeps asking me to select a port but there are no ports listed.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
Try the Spanner software, available for free download from Garmin's website. That does the NMEA COM port emulation for USB connected devices. I'm not sure exactly which models it supports, but it's the first thing you should try.

Some software, such as OpenCPN, will support Garmin USB devices natively without any intervening software.

Edited by - on

GaryB
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Response Posted - 11/14/2011 : 23:45:01

It appears its only for the Garmin GPS18.

Edited by - on

TakeFive
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Response Posted - 11/15/2011 : 04:29:08

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by GaryB
 It appears its only for the Garmin GPS18.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
I would try it anyway - Spanner was definitely designed to also work with other devices. It's free, so there's nothing to lose.

It works fine with my Oregon 400c, and I know others with different model GPSs that have it working also. In fact, there's even a "Spanner" button in the Oregon that you select to activate the interface. When you power on with the USB cable, the device wants to know whether to come up as a generic USB storage device or use the Spanner software interface to act as a GPS dongle.

So it's certain that other models were designed for Spanner also. The fact that the website doesn't mention using Spanner for other devices is an omission. I suspect that Spanner was originally written for the 18x-USB version, but other devices follow a similar protocol for their USB communications, so they may work as well.

Edited by - TakeFive on 11/15/2011 07:04:03

GaryB
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Response Posted - 11/15/2011 : 19:49:24

Thanks Rick! I'll definitely give it a try!

Edited by - on

PCP777
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Response Posted - 11/16/2011 : 11:19:54

well guys, I bought this Kindle Fire for the boat:

http://www.amazon.com/Kindle-Fire-Amazon-Tablet/dp/B0051VVOB2/ref=amb_link_357728122_4?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-1&pf_rd_r=0049RJ09CGQ5DX60N55D&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=1331433982&pf_rd_i=507846

$199, fast web browsing, great media content. Being a lake sailor I better not need navigation. :) It does have a USB port, dual-core processor, 7 inch touch screen, android OS. It was released 11/15, it will be on my doorstep on 11/17. Not sure how well it would integrate with nav gear but it has way more horse power than a netbook at a lesser price point.

I will use it for reading, web browsing and movies and music when at the dock or on the hook. I will use my MT4G wifi hotspot to get on line. Perfect.

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