The use of Droid Tablets as Auxiliary Marine GPS's

[molson9]

So my Sea Ray 300 Weekender came with a big old Garmin 2010C without a software chip. Yes great device if all you need to know is your on the east coast. I plan on using it as a spare anchor if the need arises. My other boat has a Lowrance GPS/Sonar unit with the Navionics Coastal card in it. The screen is really small to start with and when using it in duel sonar/navigation mode the screen is even smaller.
Now with all that said lets fire up some Rants. I'm using a Samsung S4 and a 10 inch Droid Tablet as auxiliary GPS's. Both devices have the latest Google Play Navionics program downloaded on them. What that means is the Droid Tablet does not need to be linked with Wi-Fi or a cellular signal to display maps "like Google maps". and both have great GPS antennas built into them. I cannot speak for those who are located on inland lakes, but I use the US Coastal and Canada version primarily to navigate in the Mideast Atlantic coastal region "It ROCKS" I think I paid $30 for the HD version and downloaded it onto both devices.
OK I know an internal antenna can not be as good as one of the externals. I would consider this a problem if either device where dropping the signal more than the Lowrance.
Yes dedicated gear is great but it don't hurt to have plan B "droid tablet" and plan C "Samsung Droid Phone" in addition to my Garmin "soon to be aux anchor" Marine GPS.
and last but not least, a Droid device is hard to read in the glaring sun. That is for sure. but I use them mostly during low light situations when I need a really detailed gps chart.
I can not tell users enough about the benefits of the Navionics tide buoys and all the other features built into this program. And last but not least. when your out on someone else s boat a phone with a full marine navigation program loaded on it can not be a bad thing to have in your pocket. I'm looking forward to reading comments and rants about this post!

 

[AFD]

Garmin glo is a Bluetooth gps antenna that can work with both devices,probably at the same time. that is my plan with my Dell Venue8pro

 

[molson9]

wow, I was thinking that my devises were working good but;
[h=3]The Accuracy of GPS + GLONASS[/h]GLO can receive position information from both the GPS and GLONASS satellite constellations, allowing it to connect to up to 24 more satellites than devices that rely on GPS alone. This allows GLO to lock on to satellites approximately 20 percent faster and remain connected even at high speed. What’s more, GLO updates its position information at 10 times per second — that’s up to 10 times more often than the GPS receivers in many mobile devices. I just put one of these on my Amazon Wish List! Thanks

 

[Westie]

wow, I was thinking that my devises were working good but;
[h=3]The Accuracy of GPS + GLONASS[/h]GLO can receive position information from both the GPS and GLONASS satellite constellations, allowing it to connect to up to 24 more satellites than devices that rely on GPS alone. This allows GLO to lock on to satellites approximately 20 percent faster and remain connected even at high speed. What’s more, GLO updates its position information at 10 times per second — that’s up to 10 times more often than the GPS receivers in many mobile devices. I just put one of these on my Amazon Wish List! Thanks

The update times have nothing to do with being glonass and gps, that is a function of the speed of the processor. The more satellites you can track the faster you can lock onto your position. There are actually a number of GNSS systems out there right now.
GPS USA
Glonass Russian
BeiDou China
Galilaeo Europe
as well as more to come.

Each of those satellites also have a number of channels. The algorithms that are used determine accuracy. A high end GNSS system can track hundreds of channels and can have an accuracy in the cm range. A high end GNSS system can also track at speeds of greater than 600 meters per second but at greater than 600 meters per second they become controlled goods and you can't buy one.

 

[molson9]

my bad Westie, I should have noted the source of information I pasted earlier. When I opened the Garmin site and read those specs i thought the "Glo" would improve my Droid based GPS experiences? Guess I need to re read that information and/or test one out to see if it makes a difference.

 

[Westie]

The addition of Glonass will help when you are in a bad signal environment such as in a canyon or the middle of a city full of high rise buildings where you do not have a full view of the sky. A GNSS system actually only needs 4 satellites to calculate a solution. In a marine environment where you have a very clear view of the sky the addition of Glonass actually does very little since you have so many GPS satellites in view.

 

[Boat Guy]

I've had similar experience with the Ipad and the Navionics app...

The GPS never lost signal and the position on the map was more accurate than the Ray Marine plotter with Navionics charts.