Article by Capt. Steve Katz
“There is an app for that.”
It seems like everyone has a smart phone, tablet or other handheld electronic device. Most of us wouldn't leave home without it. For boaters, there are many apps that may be helpful, fun or even serious, depending on your needs.
The first group of apps that come to mind are designed for navigation. These were some of the first marine apps offered and have been refined over the years. Some navigation apps are brand specific and designed to connect with and supplement your on-board navigation electronics with brands such as, Furuno, Garmin, KVH, Intellian, Simrad, Spot and others.
Some navigation apps are a stand-alone product, harnessing the power of your electronic device and it’s own GPS to help you find your way. Navionics, one of the most popular navigation apps, now offers a free version and works with free NOAA vector charts although you can still purchase Navionics charts that have added features. The Navionics app also has a feature called Plotter Sync, allowing you to connect to Raymarine chart plotters. You can even record sonar logs and upload them to the Navionics app.
Navionics still offers their full feature marine navigation apps that have a full set of features, including Freshest Data option and Sonar Charts.
Nobletec Time Zero has a navigation chart app for the iPad. This app has many useful features, such as local tides, currents and weather on the main screen. If Time Zero sounds familiar, it is similar to the software used by the current Furuno chart plotters.
iNavx is another popular app. This app seems to be compatible with all sorts of charting sources, including the free NOAA charts. You can even share your tracks and waypoints on Facebook, just in case you want to tell the world about your favorite fishing spot.
If you have a Garmin chart plotter, then the Garmin Blue Chart Mobile may be of interest to you. It is a free app that lets you share data between your handheld device and your Garmin marine chart plotter or act as a standalone chart. For example, you can add waypoints and make routes on your iPad while at home, then when you get to your boat, transfer that data directly to your chart plotter.
As a boater, the weather is an important aspect of boating, even for a short trip. Knowing the current weather and forecast is important, especially in our area with the summertime humidity and thunderstorms. Some of the most popular general weather apps are, Weather Channel, Accuweather, WeatherBug, Weather Underground (my favorite), NOAA Radar and many more. There are some very useful weather apps specifically designed for boaters such as, Fishweather, Buoy Weather, BuoyData and Marine Weather (by Accuweather). There is also an interesting weather app called Windmeter. This app is an “anemometer that fits in your pocket”. While most boaters would like to know the forecast before it gets too windy, this app lets you measure the current wind speed by listening to the wind using the microphone on your smart phone. Interesting!
Tides and currents are a major factor in catching fish and with boating, so knowing the exact tide is even easier with apps like AyeTides and TideTrac. Many of the tide apps also show the sun and moon activity along with an easy way to look ahead and see the tides for future date.
Not surprising, there are many apps for boating safety and boat tracking. Apps for tracking boats are usually based on VHF land stations receiving a boat’s AIS broadcast and display each boat on a marine chart in relation to your current position. Popular apps in this category are MarineTraffic, AISLive and Vesseltracker.
In the safety category, the app SARMOB “turns your smartphone into a lifeguard” using a ingenious man overboard technology. All you need to do is to start the app, connect your crew and carry your phone in your pocket. SARMOB works without a mobile network, without extra hardware and is free. SARMOB utilizes the smart phone's built in features to detect a “Man Overboard” situation and help you navigate back to the position where the accident happened. All members have access to the navigational information, both numerically and graphically. SARMOB works independently of the mobile network, generates no datatraffic and is free to use, but it does cost $7.99.
Lastly, on a more technical topic, a popular marine electronics company, Maretron, offers an app called N2KView that lets your Smartphone or tablet connect to your onboard NMEA2000 network. This app displays the information such as engines, generators, tanks, rudders, navigation instruments, local weather and more. N2KView is user-configurable and you are able to create different screens for your exact needs. Digital displays, analog gauges, graphic displays, warning lights and bar graphs, all can be configured exactly how you want them. You can even set the operating limits and color bands for analog gauges so you know when things are within limits and when they are not. While the app is free, the NMEA2000 gateway device that links between your boats NMEA2000 network and Ethernet network lists for $695.
Need help learning a new fishing knot? There is an app for that. The app, Pro-Knot advertises 52 fishing knots and 50 rope knots in their latest version which isn’t too bad for $1.99.
There seems to be an endless list of apps for boaters so if we didn’t cover it here a quick internet search is sure to lead you to an assortment of apps to fit your needs.
Captain Steve Katz is the owner of Steve’s Marine Service and holds NMEA, MEI, AMEI and NMEA2000 certificates along with ABYC Master Technician certification and factory training from many manufacturers.
