Skydemon

[wrecker]

I use Skydemon Lite for NOTAM checking but I wonder if anyone has experience of the Skydemon MD in bright sunlight. I fly an aircraft with a bubble canopy and wonder if the screen is easily readable on one of those really bright sunny days we are going to get this summer.

[Lagentium]

I have the MD, haven't had any issues with sunlight but have no experience of it in a bubble canopy as I fly a PA28, where are you based? The best way would be for me to borrow you it on a bright day for a test in-situ!

Cheers, Jim

[wrecker]

Thank you for the offer Jim but I think the distance separating us is too great
Cheers
Wrecker

[Lagentium]

No worries Wrecker, I'm always happy to help! Or to try and help!

Jim

[Fitzz]

I'm interested in this too. I fly a flexwing so screen glare is a real problem.
It might be that, for you, the recently announced iPad software is be the answer. But it's too big for a flexy.
Any flexy fliers with SkyDemon? Is the SkyDemon device any better than the cheap imports? How do you find screen glare?

[Immortal]

Have you considered SkyDemon on the iPad? They released their app for the iPad last week. If used properly the iPad is perfectly usable in direct sunlight. Using a anti-glare skin also works.

[wrecker]

I have considered the Ipad app, but for my a/c the Ipad is rather too big. At the moment I use a skymap 3c which is getting rather long in the tooth.

[cirrusdancer]

I use Skydemon an a cheap Chinese GPS under a greenhouse canopy (AT-3) and it's difficult to read directly in bright sunlight. Ok in normal conditions, but I can't read it directly on those rare hot summer days.
I have it positioned just to my left under and to the rear of the vent so it's about 12" away from my eyeballs. It's still useable, just means that I have to shade it with my hands to read it but it's not really a problem as I only glance at it now and again to check we agree I'm on track.
There are screens available though a bit of cardboard secured with Bogie tape would probably do the trick.
I would imagine most devices would be the same.

[Immortal]

@ wrecker: They are rumoring a 7" iPad. Dunno if it's true, but if you can hold until the beginning of march, when Apple is rumored to make the announcement, you'll know.

[Tim Dawson]

(I work for SkyDemon)

The Mobile MD is much brighter than the cheap Chinese WinCE units you sometimes see on eBay for sale. We don't make any guarantees regarding sunlight readability though because a lot depends on cockpit configuration, how bright the sun actually is on a particular day and even what you're wearing (reflections).

[tmmorris]

Tim,

Now that you have presumably had to rewrite the Skydemon interface not using Silverlight/.net (was the iPad app written in HTML5?) any chance of a version of Skydemon Light that will run on an iPad? ...

Tim

[rusty sparrow]

I use my cheap Chinese sat nav with the following simple mod:

Shroud for Skydemon GPS

'I use Skydemon on a cheap Chinese 7" GPS in a Jodel - a lot of canopy and a lot of light. What I did was to put two velcro tabs on the gps top corners. These tabs match up to two velcro tabs on the underside of rectangular 1lt ice cream tub (Kelly's Cornish Clotted Ice Cream - sure other brands will work just as well ) which I've cut out to match the the screen size.

It works pretty well and the shield is quickly removable in flight.

I've also seen suggestions about removing the thin plastic sheet from the screen - not yet tried that but it would be quick to do'

[cirrusdancer]

I like the idea of making a shade from an ice cream tub, any ideas on which flavour is best ?

There are commercial gizmos around for thse who don't like ice cream, google 'gps sun shade' and you'll find plenty.

Amazon does some -

Amazon

Amazon

for those that can't be bothered with the tat bazaar hassle.