Jepp plates now on ipad
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Jepp plates now on ipad
Announced today at Oshkosh and can been added as an app, works fantastically and a great back up or I think personally can be used straight off the iPad in the cockpit. You need an existing jepp subscription.
Gets my vote and the app is free.
Gets my vote and the app is free.
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Unfortunatly not a very stable app. Keeps crashing and if you go back to settings it erases your jepp serial number and forces a reload of the data.
However it has potential!
However it has potential!
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Is this
- a full Ipad port of Jeppview 3
- a simple viewer/browser for the Jepp database without a GPS moving map function (like this)
- something else?
No info on Jepp website.
Anybody could do #2, subject to a license deal with Jepp.
A full port of JV3/Flitedeck would be a lot of work - a complete user interface redesign for starters - and I can't see Jepp putting in the effort, given that few professional pilots will be using the Ipad (due to the obvious backup issues) so that leaves GA - a small IFR market which Jepp doesn't pay much attention to.
Funnily enough, I gather that FliteStar was made by an outfit called Mentor Plus. It was originally made for the Mac, then they made a PC version, then they sold it to
Jeppesen who then abandoned the Mac
- a full Ipad port of Jeppview 3
- a simple viewer/browser for the Jepp database without a GPS moving map function (like this)
- something else?
No info on Jepp website.
Anybody could do #2, subject to a license deal with Jepp.
A full port of JV3/Flitedeck would be a lot of work - a complete user interface redesign for starters - and I can't see Jepp putting in the effort, given that few professional pilots will be using the Ipad (due to the obvious backup issues) so that leaves GA - a small IFR market which Jepp doesn't pay much attention to.
Funnily enough, I gather that FliteStar was made by an outfit called Mentor Plus. It was originally made for the Mac, then they made a PC version, then they sold it to
Jeppesen who then abandoned the Mac
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It is nothing more than a simple TC viewer tied to your Jepp account. I am able to view my entire European sub. Works well enough as a plate viewer apart from the bugs which will need working out.
I know you have a real hard on for some solution that gives you a PC in the cockpit but you are a bit of a minority Peter. A simple solution that will display plates and have easy update is what most of us want. This does it OK but not in any special way. However the fact that it is available on such a useful gadget as the iPad enhances it's potential.
I know you have a real hard on for some solution that gives you a PC in the cockpit but you are a bit of a minority Peter. A simple solution that will display plates and have easy update is what most of us want. This does it OK but not in any special way. However the fact that it is available on such a useful gadget as the iPad enhances it's potential.
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what's the name of this app?? anyone knows if it works also on iphone? I know that the screen is small, but can be a nice "emergency backup tool!!"
Bye,
Marco
Bye,
Marco
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I know you have a real hard on for some solution that gives you a PC in the cockpit
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Quote:
Usual bollox written by bose-x, whose posts I tend to ignore so I won't comment on this.
I know you have a real hard on for some solution that gives you a PC in the cockpit
However I will point out that your posts here and on flyer cldearly mark you out as a PC in the cockpit evangalist and apple basher. A fact that you were asked by multiple people on one thread to sling your hook.....
I did actually answer your question though if you took the time to undo your knicker elastic and bother to read it......
Last edited by S-Works; 26th Jul 2010 at 08:50.
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Would never even consider using Apple equipment in the cockpit, in any manner whatsoever where the failure or inavailability of said could have an impact on flight safety - cheap plastic, consumer-grade crap hardware and Apple reserves the right to tell you what software you can run on it. Would not fancy finding that something I needed had suddenly been forcibly uninstalled prior to a flight! And Apple has a documented history of doing this, EVEN with legitimate apps, for completely arbitrary reasons.
Having maps and plates, moving or otherwise, on a nice tablet-size form factor would be great but like many others I am standing by for a rugged or semi-ruggedized solution that does not come with Apple-inflated pricing and runs Windows/Linux or a custom embedded OS.
Having maps and plates, moving or otherwise, on a nice tablet-size form factor would be great but like many others I am standing by for a rugged or semi-ruggedized solution that does not come with Apple-inflated pricing and runs Windows/Linux or a custom embedded OS.
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You're just trolling right?
Apple are the only mainstream company that *doesn't* make cheap plastic crap
Where do you get the idea that Apple remove apps after installation. Complete nonsense.
Utter fantasy. Please provide one single example of where this has happened.
Enjoy your wait, and enjoy the stability that comes from running an arbitrary OS on an arbitrary piece of hardware where no proper integration testing has been done.
Finally, given that the iPad is currently unique in the marketplace, how can you claim the pricing is inflated? If there were a bunch of 10" tablet devices with 8 hour battery life and the Apple one was more expensive, then you could claim this. But there aren't, so it isn't!
cheap plastic, consumer-grade crap hardware
Would not fancy finding that something I needed had suddenly been forcibly uninstalled prior to a flight!
And Apple has a documented history of doing this, EVEN with legitimate apps, for completely arbitrary reasons.
Having maps and plates, moving or otherwise, on a nice tablet-size form factor would be great but like many others I am standing by for a rugged or semi-ruggedized solution that does not come with Apple-inflated pricing and runs Windows/Linux or a custom embedded OS.
Finally, given that the iPad is currently unique in the marketplace, how can you claim the pricing is inflated? If there were a bunch of 10" tablet devices with 8 hour battery life and the Apple one was more expensive, then you could claim this. But there aren't, so it isn't!
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Apple are the only mainstream company that *doesn't* make cheap plastic crap
Where do you get the idea that Apple remove apps after installation. Complete nonsense.
Enjoy your wait, and enjoy the stability that comes from running an arbitrary OS on an arbitrary piece of hardware where no proper integration testing has been done.
If there were a bunch of 10" tablet devices with 8 hour battery life and the Apple one was more expensive, then you could claim this. But there aren't, so it isn't!
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The basic question an "EFB" user needs to ask is what would he do if the device packed up.
Which it obviously can do, regardless of how it is made or how it is "certified". This is why commercial (installed ) EFB products come in pairs, with redundant computers and power supplies.
If you fly with paper (only), you don't need a backup.
If you fly with electronic data (only), you do need a backup.
And there are multiple scenarios where an electronic solution can let you down right when you need it
- in flight failure due to software crash, causing database corruption so a reset down't work (the most likely - happened to me when driving with TomTom the other day; the UK road database on the SD card got wiped and I had just the French road one, which was a whole lot of use near High Wycombe
)
- in flight hardware failure
- something happening the night before the flight e.g. a database update corrupting the whole thing (e.g. a friend of mine has just trashed his Jepp Flitestar installation by applying the very last update CD; probably bad luck since I know of 2 others whose update was OK). One can guard against this by never applying updates shortly before a trip, etc.
- etc (you get my drift)
So, what will be the backup??
Looking at things the other way round - flying with paper as primary and electronic data as backup for unexpected changes of plan - is a lot more sensible, because most of the time you will have paper.
The backup reliability is then a lot less critical because one is then looking at a failure of two independent "systems", and various solutions will work.
The Ipad works as well as any standard-LCD device providing the ambient light can be reasonably controlled; these pics show the kind of degradation one can expect in bright light, against my LS800 tablet which has a special sunlight-readable LCD. The Ipad has a very fast PDF browser, which is a plus; however I am sure Jepp are not distributing their "ebook" plates as PDFs because that would make it rather easy to share them around There are mixed reports from U.S. pilots on how the Ipad is affected by heat; it appears to shut down within minutes if exposed to direct sunlight while in a hot cockpit, just as most consumer-grade tablet computers would.
Personally, I am sticking with the LS800 because it runs a GPS moving map and I have VFR charts for all of Europe on it, so I can always see exactly where I am for emergency / obstacle clearance etc purposes, but if I was after just a Jepp plate viewer then the e-book based SolidFX offers total sunlight readability, and presumably due to the lack of the heat-generating LCD backlight it appears to not suffer from heat effects.
However, I wonder what will happen to SolidFX now that Jepp have pulled the rug from under their feet with the Ipad product. One hopes Jepp will continue to license their plates to SolidFX.
Pricing-wise, the two solutions are likely to cost the same - sub-£100 if you already pay for the appropriate Jepp coverage (nearly £2000/year for all of Europe, IFR and VFR) under another heading.
Neither product runs Jeppview (a windoze application) natively so both rely on a Jepp license and the supply of the Jepp database and some kind of rendering software.
EFB certification has no relevance because (G- and N-reg context) it is 100% legal (if not necessarily wise) to fly with only electronic data, with no backups, and this has been the case for a very long time. It comes down to the hardware/software, and consumer stuff = consumer stuff no matter what you do with it. But even a mil-spec computer (which tend to be too heavy) can pack up.
I have used Jeppview and Flitestar for a few years and the software is mostly reliable if used out of the box with default configs (don't try to edit the aircraft performance data) except for the Flitedeck program which is a piece of rubbish and which crashes readily. I am thus not suprised that Jepp's first Ipad product release crashes as well; it would be out of character if it was solid
Which it obviously can do, regardless of how it is made or how it is "certified". This is why commercial (installed ) EFB products come in pairs, with redundant computers and power supplies.
If you fly with paper (only), you don't need a backup.
If you fly with electronic data (only), you do need a backup.
And there are multiple scenarios where an electronic solution can let you down right when you need it
- in flight failure due to software crash, causing database corruption so a reset down't work (the most likely - happened to me when driving with TomTom the other day; the UK road database on the SD card got wiped and I had just the French road one, which was a whole lot of use near High Wycombe
)- in flight hardware failure
- something happening the night before the flight e.g. a database update corrupting the whole thing (e.g. a friend of mine has just trashed his Jepp Flitestar installation by applying the very last update CD; probably bad luck since I know of 2 others whose update was OK). One can guard against this by never applying updates shortly before a trip, etc.
- etc (you get my drift)
So, what will be the backup??
Looking at things the other way round - flying with paper as primary and electronic data as backup for unexpected changes of plan - is a lot more sensible, because most of the time you will have paper.
The backup reliability is then a lot less critical because one is then looking at a failure of two independent "systems", and various solutions will work.
The Ipad works as well as any standard-LCD device providing the ambient light can be reasonably controlled; these pics show the kind of degradation one can expect in bright light, against my LS800 tablet which has a special sunlight-readable LCD. The Ipad has a very fast PDF browser, which is a plus; however I am sure Jepp are not distributing their "ebook" plates as PDFs because that would make it rather easy to share them around
There are mixed reports from U.S. pilots on how the Ipad is affected by heat; it appears to shut down within minutes if exposed to direct sunlight while in a hot cockpit, just as most consumer-grade tablet computers would.Personally, I am sticking with the LS800 because it runs a GPS moving map and I have VFR charts for all of Europe on it, so I can always see exactly where I am for emergency / obstacle clearance etc purposes, but if I was after just a Jepp plate viewer then the e-book based SolidFX offers total sunlight readability, and presumably due to the lack of the heat-generating LCD backlight it appears to not suffer from heat effects.
However, I wonder what will happen to SolidFX now that Jepp have pulled the rug from under their feet with the Ipad product. One hopes Jepp will continue to license their plates to SolidFX.
Pricing-wise, the two solutions are likely to cost the same - sub-£100 if you already pay for the appropriate Jepp coverage (nearly £2000/year for all of Europe, IFR and VFR) under another heading.
Neither product runs Jeppview (a windoze application) natively so both rely on a Jepp license and the supply of the Jepp database and some kind of rendering software.
EFB certification has no relevance because (G- and N-reg context) it is 100% legal (if not necessarily wise) to fly with only electronic data, with no backups, and this has been the case for a very long time. It comes down to the hardware/software, and consumer stuff = consumer stuff no matter what you do with it. But even a mil-spec computer (which tend to be too heavy) can pack up.
I have used Jeppview and Flitestar for a few years and the software is mostly reliable if used out of the box with default configs (don't try to edit the aircraft performance data) except for the Flitedeck program which is a piece of rubbish and which crashes readily. I am thus not suprised that Jepp's first Ipad product release crashes as well; it would be out of character if it was solid
Last edited by IO540; 26th Jul 2010 at 11:10.
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While I will admit that few other companies are any better, there is certainly nothing about Apple's hardware that makes it stand out in terms of quality. The iPad and iPhone are very pretty to look at (until they get scratched), but the components are the same asian-made lowest-bidder crap that everybody uses.
Even the "magical" A4 processor was revealed as just a repackaged Samsung core.
From their own phone-home API, as described and documented here. Granted they do not seem to have used it yet, and I apologize for this incorrectness in my previous post - they do, however, have a history of removing apps arbitrarily from the App store which is unacceptable in itself since the it is the only distribution channel for iOS software, effectively denying users control over what software to run.
The suggestion that out of every hardware vendor only Apple does proper integration testing is laughable.
I can get a fully-featured PC with a bigger screen and more than sufficient battery life for much less than the price of an iPad, so yes, it's overpriced.
I know you can get a fully-featured PC with a bigger screen and (just about) adequate battery life for less than the cost of the iPad. But then that isn't an iPad is it, so it's a pointless comparison...
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Steve - I agree Apple make stuff which is better quality than a lot of IT stuff out there, but they don't have a monopoly on it.
Solid aluminium - this is common in the form of machined diecastings, and most upmarket laptops use this, or magnesium, or other stuff. My girlfriend has a stunning 2004 Sony laptop which is built from nickel loaded carbon fibre (current Sony stuff is largely crap though). The Ipad appears better built than most other £500 stuff, currently.
99% of malware comes not from software installs but from viruses people get over the internet, from emails especially if using Outlook, infected websites (including pilot forums ), bootleg software downloaded from P2P networks (P2P is flooded with trojans nowadays), and kids get malware transmitted over MSN chat, etc. Apple's control over the sale of application software does almost nothing to stop viruses.
Historically, Apple have been much less of a virus writing target because of Steve Jobs' PR alignment with the widespread anti-Microsoft sentiment; whether this cosy situation will continue is anybody's guess looking at the growing anti-Apple sentiment over their Iphone 4 and more general signal strength indication cover-ups.
Long term, I see Apple having an ever bigger profile as a "big American corporation" and that will make them a target for malware written in China/Russia, and given the high correlation between being an Apple user and being non IT savvy, Apple users will be an easy target because while most serious PC users have effective AV software, most Apple users have no virus protection whatsoever.
Apple will pull an application from their store if they receive a complaint alleging some kind of legal issue. It is easy for one's competitor to make such an allegation.
Solid aluminium - this is common in the form of machined diecastings, and most upmarket laptops use this, or magnesium, or other stuff. My girlfriend has a stunning 2004 Sony laptop which is built from nickel loaded carbon fibre (current Sony stuff is largely crap though). The Ipad appears better built than most other £500 stuff, currently.
99% of malware comes not from software installs but from viruses people get over the internet, from emails especially if using Outlook, infected websites (including pilot forums
), bootleg software downloaded from P2P networks (P2P is flooded with trojans nowadays), and kids get malware transmitted over MSN chat, etc. Apple's control over the sale of application software does almost nothing to stop viruses. Historically, Apple have been much less of a virus writing target because of Steve Jobs' PR alignment with the widespread anti-Microsoft sentiment; whether this cosy situation will continue is anybody's guess looking at the growing anti-Apple sentiment over their Iphone 4 and more general signal strength indication cover-ups.
Long term, I see Apple having an ever bigger profile as a "big American corporation" and that will make them a target for malware written in China/Russia, and given the high correlation between being an Apple user and being non IT savvy, Apple users will be an easy target because while most serious PC users have effective AV software, most Apple users have no virus protection whatsoever.
Apple will pull an application from their store if they receive a complaint alleging some kind of legal issue. It is easy for one's competitor to make such an allegation.
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As an interesting aside from the Apple bashing.....
The iPad meets the definition of a Class 1 EFB using Type A applications (no dynamic or interactive data). I understand that there is already an application for approval of it in this category with the FAA pending.
As someone who for many years made a living on a corporate scale from the endless upgrades and fixes that the Microsoft family provides I always regarded Apple with suspicion and a certain element of only being bought by beardy weirdes and fan boys. However after buying my first Mac I was stunned by the reliability and ease of use and have becomes a convert owning the full range off Apple goodies from iPhone 4, iPad to iMac and Macbooks and even AppleTV. They all do what they say on the tin and have proven reliable. We don't even own a PC in our house now and for the few occasions when I need a PC which is basically flitestar I just run parallels.
I happen to think the iPad is a very impressive tool. I run a variety of aviation apps on it that I use in the day job and then when we are in the hotel at night, I have email, web and can watch my slingbox all on a device with amazing battery life.
I don't need a PC in the cockpit, I don't need to attach sat phones and moving map GPS. I can use the Garmins that my own and work aircraft are fitted with and I can use the radio to get the latest weather. Filling a light aircraft to the gunnels with plugged in technology is frankly a turn off for me, I don't need it and manage to get around perfectly well.
I do like the iPads ability to display cockpit readable plates and have been using it for that and for filing flight plans etc on the go. I have accumulated a little collection of PAYGO sims from around Europe now for the occasions when I cant find WiFi, but to be honest even those are getting fewer and far between.
is it perfect? Not even close. Is it matched by anything else? Not even close.
The iPad meets the definition of a Class 1 EFB using Type A applications (no dynamic or interactive data). I understand that there is already an application for approval of it in this category with the FAA pending.
As someone who for many years made a living on a corporate scale from the endless upgrades and fixes that the Microsoft family provides I always regarded Apple with suspicion and a certain element of only being bought by beardy weirdes and fan boys. However after buying my first Mac I was stunned by the reliability and ease of use and have becomes a convert owning the full range off Apple goodies from iPhone 4, iPad to iMac and Macbooks and even AppleTV. They all do what they say on the tin and have proven reliable. We don't even own a PC in our house now and for the few occasions when I need a PC which is basically flitestar I just run parallels.
I happen to think the iPad is a very impressive tool. I run a variety of aviation apps on it that I use in the day job and then when we are in the hotel at night, I have email, web and can watch my slingbox all on a device with amazing battery life.
I don't need a PC in the cockpit, I don't need to attach sat phones and moving map GPS. I can use the Garmins that my own and work aircraft are fitted with and I can use the radio to get the latest weather. Filling a light aircraft to the gunnels with plugged in technology is frankly a turn off for me, I don't need it and manage to get around perfectly well.
I do like the iPads ability to display cockpit readable plates and have been using it for that and for filing flight plans etc on the go. I have accumulated a little collection of PAYGO sims from around Europe now for the occasions when I cant find WiFi, but to be honest even those are getting fewer and far between.
is it perfect? Not even close. Is it matched by anything else? Not even close.
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On ipad heat sensitivity.
I have one in a nice black case and poped it on 'the dash' for about 15 minutes on a 30C day at noon with not a cloud in the sky. when I powered back up I did get a 'Too Hot error'. However, after about 5 minutes in the shade it was back in action.
Because of the ultrathin form factor I find I am more likely to treat it like my lap baord rather than a PC (which I would never think to put on the dash for storage).
I have one in a nice black case and poped it on 'the dash' for about 15 minutes on a 30C day at noon with not a cloud in the sky. when I powered back up I did get a 'Too Hot error'. However, after about 5 minutes in the shade it was back in action.
Because of the ultrathin form factor I find I am more likely to treat it like my lap baord rather than a PC (which I would never think to put on the dash for storage).
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Some pilots have wanted a computer in their cockpit that can do everything for as long as, well, computers have been around.
For me that would mean a device that was:
Well I have to say the iPad scores 5 out of 7. Integrated WiFi via satellite ‘phone is not something many will justify although I think we may see the cost of these services fall considerably over the next ten years. The iPad is not sunlight readable but it is not bad.
In terms of the software I want:
The iPad does not do as well. No one has come up with European moving map software, but I am confident they will. I can get plates but it is a pain. I can get all the usual aviation based services which work well enough just like on any other pc.
Now I have thought for some years all of this should be possible. On and off I have used various portable devices including iPaqs with Anywhere, and subsequently PocketFms, various notepads and the usual suspects from Garmin, including my trusty 195 etc.
However after all these years I have reached a conclusion.
I could cobble together most of what I want. I think the iPad is already a good example of a company that has nearly produced the ideal hardware. PocketFms is the perfect example of the moving map software I want. However to bring it all together in a form that I would want to use for primary navigation still remains a costly exercise that results in a package that is a best a compromise. I don’t think that is likely to change for at least the next few years.
So I find myself thinking that we are looking for a panacea that doesn’t exist and then I started using glass screens. They really do everything I want. All I need is some form of reliable backup just in case. My 195 has still never let me down.
Now I realise not everyone fly’s glass.
For those I really think you will be wasting money and effort re-inventing this particular wheel. Garmin’s really excellent moving map display does the perfect job of an MFD. It may cost getting on for £1.8K, but it works and works really well. If you cobble together something close you will have spent at least half the cost, if not more, but at best what you have will be a compromise.
So after all these years I have concluded that we are all wasting our time and money cobbling together Heath Robinson gizmos when in fact in the long term if you need in cockpit glass you would be better off buying something like the Garmin 695 supported by one of the myriad devices for ground based access to weather etc. be it an iPhone or some sort of PC.
On a positive note, since this thread is about the iPad and running Jepp Plates on the iPad, then I think if someone is prepared to produce good European moving map software for the iPad, then I think the iPad will prove to be the best blend of non dedicated glass for the cockpit that is around now or for the next few years if only because there are already positive signs that its development will be fueled by all those black turtle necked pilots in the States.
For me that would mean a device that was:
- Sunlight readable,
- About the size and weight of an iPad,
- with a battery life of at least 6 hours, like the iPad,
- built in GPS, like the iPAD
- instant boot with a stable operating system, like the iPad,
- robust, like the iPad,
- and in the perfect world integrated WiFi via satellite.
Well I have to say the iPad scores 5 out of 7. Integrated WiFi via satellite ‘phone is not something many will justify although I think we may see the cost of these services fall considerably over the next ten years. The iPad is not sunlight readable but it is not bad.
In terms of the software I want:
- Moving map,
- Integrated with NOTAMS and weather,
- Plates,
- Access to the usual aviation based web services,
- Internet, SMS and movies to alleviate general boredom.
The iPad does not do as well. No one has come up with European moving map software, but I am confident they will. I can get plates but it is a pain. I can get all the usual aviation based services which work well enough just like on any other pc.
Now I have thought for some years all of this should be possible. On and off I have used various portable devices including iPaqs with Anywhere, and subsequently PocketFms, various notepads and the usual suspects from Garmin, including my trusty 195 etc.
However after all these years I have reached a conclusion.
I could cobble together most of what I want. I think the iPad is already a good example of a company that has nearly produced the ideal hardware. PocketFms is the perfect example of the moving map software I want. However to bring it all together in a form that I would want to use for primary navigation still remains a costly exercise that results in a package that is a best a compromise. I don’t think that is likely to change for at least the next few years.
So I find myself thinking that we are looking for a panacea that doesn’t exist and then I started using glass screens. They really do everything I want. All I need is some form of reliable backup just in case. My 195 has still never let me down.
Now I realise not everyone fly’s glass.
For those I really think you will be wasting money and effort re-inventing this particular wheel. Garmin’s really excellent moving map display does the perfect job of an MFD. It may cost getting on for £1.8K, but it works and works really well. If you cobble together something close you will have spent at least half the cost, if not more, but at best what you have will be a compromise.
So after all these years I have concluded that we are all wasting our time and money cobbling together Heath Robinson gizmos when in fact in the long term if you need in cockpit glass you would be better off buying something like the Garmin 695 supported by one of the myriad devices for ground based access to weather etc. be it an iPhone or some sort of PC.
On a positive note, since this thread is about the iPad and running Jepp Plates on the iPad, then I think if someone is prepared to produce good European moving map software for the iPad, then I think the iPad will prove to be the best blend of non dedicated glass for the cockpit that is around now or for the next few years if only because there are already positive signs that its development will be fueled by all those black turtle necked pilots in the States.
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No one has come up with European moving map software
You are still facing the same challenge which is obtaining the charts in the appropriate "open" format (no longer possible with Memory Map, except where somebody has scanned a paper chart and posted it on bit-torrent) but that is the same situation for everybody.
I fly with paper printouts and am not interested in filling the cockpit with gadgets, each doing a part of what I need; especially "portable" stuff which needs to be plugged in. One can get a ~ 100% solution but it inevitably will run windoze and with a suitable type of LCD it costs a lot more than an Ipad - around £2000 + VAT. Having paid out almost that much for the LS800 in 2005 (which can displa approach plates, just about) I am not spending any more money.
Something with a big screen can enable a 50+ pilot to read approach plates without needing reading glasses
but if people are going to use the Ipad just as a file browser for the display of approach plates and other static documents, it is a very close call between it and the much more readable (but incapable of running any applications) e-book readers.BTW it is possible to get satellite phone derived wifi right now but it is awfully expensive. The next step down - much cheaper - is a standalone satellite phone used with a dial-up connection to get tafs/metars etc, for tactical decisionmaking enroute; this is what I have and is quite cheap. But I don't think the Ipad can do a PPP dial-up connection - currently you still need a windoze computer for that.
Last edited by IO540; 26th Jul 2010 at 12:18.
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IO540
Yes, my point exactly.
The iPad is very good indeed as a web browser. Yeah it doesnt bowse any differently than an old notebook purchased on Fleabay but it scores on battery life, instant on operating system and nice form factor. For me its worth it for that alone.
It will become useful in the cockpit when proper aviation moving map software is written for Europe. To repeat myself PocketFMS is superb and IMHO far and away the best. If you havent used the software it is not just scanned charts (which are a waste of time) but "proper" digital charting every bit as good as my Avidyne.
However you are right none of these products really come close to "proper" glass for in cockpit use. If this is what you want then I am afraid either invest in a panel fit unit or buy a Garmin 695, otherwise you are wasting you rmoney.
Yes, my point exactly.
The iPad is very good indeed as a web browser. Yeah it doesnt bowse any differently than an old notebook purchased on Fleabay but it scores on battery life, instant on operating system and nice form factor. For me its worth it for that alone.
It will become useful in the cockpit when proper aviation moving map software is written for Europe. To repeat myself PocketFMS is superb and IMHO far and away the best. If you havent used the software it is not just scanned charts (which are a waste of time) but "proper" digital charting every bit as good as my Avidyne.
However you are right none of these products really come close to "proper" glass for in cockpit use. If this is what you want then I am afraid either invest in a panel fit unit or buy a Garmin 695, otherwise you are wasting you rmoney.
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invest in a panel fit unit or buy a Garmin 695
Anything you put in the panel is going to go down the plughole if you get a total electrical failure - a not impossible scenario in a light aircraft especially SE.
This is the huge attraction of some kind of a handheld moving map product, and if it can display plates that's a bonus.
This is also why it is better to have approach plates on a battery-powered device and not in a panel mounted MFD. Plus the readability issue at the reading distance in the latter case...
And with a handheld radio, you have a battery backup for nav+comms
Done with just two items of "gadgetry" I have a G496 mounted in the yoke, very neatly, so the handheld radio is the only "loose" item.The other thing is that no panel mounted plate display solution can use the free EAD plates. You are stuck with the ultra pricey Jepp as the only option. I am sure the vast majority of European pilots who have a plate-capable MFD are not paying for this option.
Finally I don't think a 695 can display European plates of any kind - but it is a good moving map product. But it cannot display any "printed" VFR maps, or any user-supplied moving map images.
So many half-solutions
Last edited by IO540; 26th Jul 2010 at 14:24.