There’s no getting around it – When Apple releases a new gadget (like the just-released iPad2), boaters get giddy with excitement. You just can’t underestimate the allure of a powerful computer in the palm of your hand, especially for gadget-happy boaters. I’ve been a sailor since I was just a kid, an Apple fan since the 80’s and have always looked forward to the day I could “integrate” my two favorite past times. Well, that time has come.
Whether you’re running the hundreds of great apps for available for boaters on your iPhone or iPad, you’ll agree – they are cool and handy. Now wherever I am, at the dock or the Yacht Club and I see a fellow boater with an iPhone, I can’t wait to compare apps and show them all the great things I can do with my mobile device.
Here are a sampling of some of the new cool and useful apps just for boaters.
Tracking, Learning, Logging & Sharing
Back when handheld mobile devices first appeared, we used a Palm and our PC to keep track of things like stores and provisions while cruising. We logged our sea time, fuel consumption, weather and sightings in our hardbound Ships’ Log and keep an ongoing “To Do List” on a legal pad or on an Excel spreadsheet. Having the handheld meant not having to open up the PC just to locate a tool or can of sauce! Fortunately cruisers now have a “hand-up” with a large array of mobile apps.
BoatingSuite – Boating Cafe, Inc. $4.99
Boating Suite is a professional, full-featured app for the iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch that is designed to help boaters manage all aspects of their boating activities. The suite consists of “six apps-in-one” – a Log Book, Fuel Log, Maintenance Log, Expense Log, To Do List, Shopping List and several customizable reports. This is the app that I would have designed. And although this one is primarily for power boaters, it can be useful to all and gets a 4 out of 5-star rating.
Boat Load – OneUpWeb $4.99
Has the requisite Float Plan and lists but goes a step further with extras like documenting an Insurance claim, weather, tides, marinas, and an SOS feature that can dial 911-emergency from your phone when you have signal! Though some of the interface is simply a note pad function, I still love the graphics!
Travel Trac Pro – TravelTrac LLC – $6.99 / Free Version also available
Travel Trac and Sailing Trac are social networking for any traveler that wants to share their treks, sails, or travelogue with others. You can post journal entries, photos, GPS position reports and even videos via the TravelTrac web hosting services to generate a dynamic online multimedia travelogue. Note: You’ll need to set up a free account online in order to use the app.
NauticEd – NauticEd Certification – Free
When you become a student of the best Nautical Training online – NauticEd, you can take your time on the water log with you with this handy, easy-to-use app. Share your sailing resume or log your course certification as you crew or master a vessel. Updates to your online account instantly.
Navigation
As more and more boaters replace expensive chartplotters with the lesser-priced iPad, apps like iNavX or Charts&Tides; are becoming downright hot! Imagine standing on the bow with your iPhone in a waterproof case as you enter a new anchorage. The iPhone often gives you better guidance than you would have at the nav station, especially because the phone gets better and/or more up-to-date charts for iNavX than a current fixed chartplotter gets. And, at $50 or under, these apps are still less than most chip systems. As a back up to paper charts and your PC charting, the iPhone or iPad makes charting handy anywhere!
Marine Charts -EarthNC – $12.99 (For iPhone/iPad and Android)
EarthNC offers digital vector nautical charts for Google Earth (KML format) from the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) – over 600 charts. The EarthNC charts take very good advantage of advanced KML features to present colorful information for the charts (depth contours, buoys, hazards, etc.) in an eye-pleasing and informative fashion in Google Earth. In some waters you won’t have an inexpensive broadband Internet connection. Instead, EarthNC offer simple map caching for off-line use. Other features include; view real-time weather sources including buoys, airports, local marine and tide forecasts, premium marina listings and points of interest, up-to-date bridge listing from CruisersNet.net (iPhone only – for now!). Buy the app just once and use it on your iPhone, iPad and iTouch. You can also use tools to hook up your GPS and have Google Earth provide you with chart plotting capability for your new iPad! You can also import or export GPX data, to plan trips (use www.earthnc.com to create routes as GPX files.).
NMEAremote – $7.99
With your iPhone or iPad connected to your onboard network, you can log in and retrieve important information quickly, clearly and wirelessly. At a glance, NMEAremote shows you all the information you need onboard, such as navigation data, wind speed or water depth.
Your iPhone connects with any NMEA device over an onboard WLAN such as a NMEA/RS232 – WiFi converter, a SEAMATE 1A or a computer with the appropriate software installed. Via the wireless connection, your iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch can receive the NMEA data from the onboard network. This data is decoded by NMEAremote, evaluated and presented in an onscreen graphic. Information displayed includes ship’s position, weather, speed and compass.
Fugawi brings their excellent navigation software to the iPhone or iPad with iMap, the first to offer Google Maps overlay. Create, view and edit waypoints. Choose between street map, satellite map or hybrid view. One of the best perks this app has to offer to cruisers is the ability to transfer you waypoints between Fugawi for PC and Fugawi iMap for the iPhone. Integrates easily with Facebook. Also, if you are ashore hiking you’ll find the Topo Maps very handy.
Navionics – $9.99 /iPhone, $24.99 – 34.99/iPad
Navionics has become a popular app with boaters due to easy integration with the PC/Mac software. Their newest app for the iPad received a NMMA Innovation Award in 2009 for it’s sensational hi-resolution graphics in HD. They also have excellent coverage around the world with 24 apps to choice from. The iPhone version now has BING overlays. Charts are resident on your phone to access at any time (no Wi-Fi or cell coverage needed). Plan your adventures anytime and anywhere… create a virtual travelogue of your entire trip and share it with your friends and family by email or on Facebook. (Now available for Android).
Navimatics Charts&Tides; with ActiveCaptain – $19.99
The smart folks at Navimatics have brought together two things cruisers really need: accurate, easy-to-use navigation charting and an amazing cruising guide to anywhere you want to go. Charts&Tides; is the first full resolution, seamless charting app for marine navigation with full compatibility for the iPhone or iPad. Purchase it once and use it on either device. As a secondary navigation system onboard it can act both as a backup or alternate view solution. Sign-up online for ActiveCaptain, (its free) and now you can integrate their huge database, giving you access to the most accurate guidebook including marinas, anchorages, hazards, bridges, and my favorite – reviews from fellow cruisers who’s wake you might follow. This app is a Must-Have! ActiveCaptain invites it’s members to share their reviews and info so you can add to the knowledge base.
Memory-Map’s founder and chief software developer is a keen sailor. His apps were originally conceived for exploring the intricate waters of the Thousand Islands (NZ) in a small sailboat.
Memory-Map uses raster charts, which are the most detailed and trustworthy electronic charts available, are a familiar, easy to use image of the paper chart. The full portfolio of the most detailed charts, from trusted government sources, is available. You don’t have to keep looking at the paper chart to see the details that the vector plotter might not have displayed. There’s a free version of the Memory-Map app but the paid version offers more functionality including the ability to download charts from your PC. The Memory-Map app can also keep the chart on the phone so that you don’t need a signal when navigating. Import and export using the Memory-Map and Maptech proprietary formats, and CSV text format. The professional version adds ESRI Shapefile format (widely used standard for distributing geographic data) as well as AIS Ship Tracking.
Cruising Guides
Cruiser’s Nav 2.0 – Deep Blue Water Productions. Free
Cruiser’s Nav is a good start for important information boaters need when entering a port for the first time. Currently covering 51 countries including the Caribbean, So America and Central America, Cruiser’s Nav has lots of information on Clearing in or out, Fees, necessary Documents, Crime, as well as some basic info accessible to most, like climate, health, language and money. There are some useful links to customs via phone numbers. Hopefully future revisions will include more web links.
Navimatics Charts&Tides; with ActiveCaptain – $19.99
With a free account on ActiveCaptain.com, you can integrate a real-time cruising guide, including marinas, anchorages, hazards, bridges, and my favorite – reviews from fellow cruisers who’s wake you might follow. This app is a “must-have” guide giving you access to the most accurate information! ActiveCaptain invites it’s members to share their reviews and info so you can add to the knowledge base.
Weather, Finders, Etc.
MarineCast – InfoBridge, LLC $5.99/iPad or iPhone
It’s SailFlow – Mobile. MarineCast offers up all the weather info you would want to consume including wind graphs, marine forecasts by National Weather Service, radar maps, satellite maps, tides and current and more. You’ll have to have a network connection to get all this but if you’re a nearshore boater or just a weather geek, this is a useful app.
MarineCast is also available on the other platforms and currently the top paid app for News and Weather in the Android Marketplace and were recently awarded as a Palm Hot Apps contest winner. Named “Top On-The-Water App” – BoatUS.
Ship Finder – Pinkfroot Limited – $4.99/iPhone, $7.99/iPad
Now that the developers have worked out the initial bugs and have added more bases, this real time AIS ship locater is quite handy. It’s like having your AIS in the palm of your hand. Take it with you and see who’s in the harbor! (Note: Will only display vessels with AIS accounts). Click on the color-coded vessel icon to see details on each vessel including name, country of origin, track and destination, if posted. Ship Finder was the only app that could plot A.I.S. data collected by coastal receivers. Ship Finder HD for the iPad is used by a huge variety of people: port pilots, yachtsmen and coastguards are all using this to supplement their own equipment.
NOAA Buoy Data – Verona Solutions, LLC – $1.99
Cheapest of the wind and wave buoy data apps and you can get the same information free online on the NOAA website. Available for iPhone or iPad.
iBoatShows – Derek Trauger & Assoc. Free
Tap into iBoatShows for a comprehensive searchable database of over 100 boat shows around the world. Boating enthusiasts will find everything at their fingertips including event details, location on a Google map, contact info, ticket info and even seminar info. Find a show near you using the location tool or find nearby hotels, shopping, fuel or good eats!
Good resource even if you’ve passed your Captains’ Course! Also great study guide app for those just learning.
US Sailing’s Racing Rules – US Sailing – $5.99
If you’re involved in racing, you’ll find this app indispensable. Just what it says – all the current racing rules including US Sailing Prescriptions.
iLingual – Emirates – Free
Imagine having a “Live” interpreter right on your iPhone. Now this is a reality with the coolest language app in the world – iLingual. The app uses the same technology that made Jib-Jab famous – simply take a photo (using your iPhone) of your mouth, move the pointers around and viola! You have a live interpreter via animation. You can choose male or female voices. Search for a phrase or choose by category, each phrase is spoken by professional linguists. Also a great learning tool, but especially fun to hold the phone over your own mouth and watch the expression on whomever your speaking to as they hear the phrase spoken to them through your lips! Lots of fun and useful phrases. Currently available in English-to-French, Arabic, Japanese or German.
SpanishDict – Curiosity Media, Inc. – Free
This app incorporates a comprehensive dictionary, phrasebook, word game, word-of-the-day, favorites and audio into one amazingly useful tool for non-native speakers. Being able to hear the correct pronunciation makes SpanishDict the ultimate learning tool on your iPhone. Users have offered suggestions for additional features and hopefully a future version will include them.
