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Tablets

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PaulR

Well Known Member
As I'm getting near the end of my 40 hour test period, I've been trying to figure out the best way to get rid of the paper charts and go to a tablet of some kind. I'm not very computer literate when they start in on processors and such and wondered if the brain trust here on VAF may have some opinions ;) on brands, sizes and such.

My primary use will be for sectionals and low altitude charts in the plane and then surfing the internet while not flying. I probably don't need a 3G or 4G device as the costs for the service for this may not be worth it to me.

I've never been a huge Apple fan but if that's the best for the money then I could convert.

I've looked at several apps including FF, Garmin Pilot, and naviator to use. Any other opinions on those would be helpful also, though they about all have a free trial.

I've searched already and read about all the threads but there's not much about the devices, more about the apps. I'm really looking for advice on a device.
 
I have a first generation I pad, got it used here on VAF.

I am using Sky Charts Pro, by a member here at VAF.

And, like you, not a big fan of Apple-----but this combination above is quite fantastic, and my navigator/wife is totally thrilled with it. I am also very happy with the setup, and the value is outstanding for the $$$.
 
iPad

There is no contest here - iPad is your answer. (1 or 2 it don't matter)

Then use whatever app you take a liking to through the trials.
 
iPHone ?

If you're just trying to stay legal, everything on ForeFlight or Garmin Pilot will run nicely on the iPhone and you can carry it all in your pocket! Depending on how your plane is equipped you may never pull a chart out.

I have both as many do but find the iPad not really dependable enough if it were the only thing I had for IFR use but very pleasent overkill for VFR. I use the iPhone 90% of the time for weather, filing flight plans, IFR Charts(reference only), etc.

I would just hate to shoot an approach to mins with no paper on my knee. Having said that, usually you can just print out the chart area and the approach plates ahead of time assuming you end up where you intended to go and didn't have to divert.

You'll love whatever you do ;) My preference for the moment is ForeFlight but I am thinking about switching to Garmin for ADS-B reasons.

Just another .02

Bill S
7a Ark
 
A lot of folks are really liking the new Google Nexus 7 android tablet. Being a 7" screen, it's more compact than an iPad yet still big enough to view charts, and seems to have a bright enough screen to mostly deal with a bubble canopy (which the iPAD fares poorly in bright sunlight). It costs a lot less than the iPAD too ($199 with 8GB storage, $249 with 16GB, and you can get them at many Walmarts, as well as order one online straight from Google). Like an iPAD, the Nexus does not have an SD slot, so you're stuck with the built-in storage only. I may pick up one this weekend.


Edited: typo on price of 16GB Nexus.. Doh!
 
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Neal@F14 said:
A lot of folks are really liking the new Google Nexus 7 android tablet. Being a 7" screen, it's more compact than an iPad yet still big enough to view charts, and seems to have a bright enough screen to mostly deal with a bubble canopy (which the iPAD fares poorly in bright sunlight). It costs a lot less than the iPAD too ($199 with 8GB storage, $149 with 16GB, and you can get them at many Walmarts, as well as order one online straight from Google). Like an iPAD, the Nexus does not have an SD slot, so you're stuck with the built-in storage only. I may pick up one this weekend.
Click to expand...

Need a little correction there. It's $249 with 16 GB. I do like mine. I think it's the perfect size for cockpits. It's also much lighter than the I-pad. I'm using the Garmin Pilot 30 day demo. As to brightness, it's still not as easily seen as my Garmin 696, with bright sunlight conditions. Sure has high resolution graphics though. The charts are very easy to read.
 
A smaller iPad is expected Octoberish and I think that is a better size for the RV cockpit.
 
L.Adamson said:
As to brightness, it's still not as easily seen as my Garmin 696, with bright sunlight conditions. Sure has high resolution graphics though. The charts are very easy to read.
Click to expand...

The Garmin 696 is the King Daddy Paw-Paw of screen brightness. I've not seen any handheld device, aviation or otherwise, as bright as the 696 not even the 796.
 
I have a friend who just showed me his set up using a Samsung Galaxy 7 Plus and Anywhere Map. It was really impressive. I used Anywhere Map back in the dark ages with a HP gizmo but it was unwieldy and had a bunch of wires. After using FF on a IPad 1 for over a year, I like it a lot but this looks pretty good for $250 for the unit + $79/yr with georeferenced approach plates and virtual glideslopes. You can add additional memory, too. I haven't bought one yet but am thinking about it.

John
 
IPad with Foreflight is fantastic! Having always been a paper chart guy, I was a little worried about the switch for my big Oshkosh trip though. Ended up working great even with a ton of sun.

I would recommend a stick on anti-glare shield though. Mine is an HD something or other.
 
My wife has an Ipad 2 with Wing-X. She flew the Women's Air Race Classic with it and absolutely swears by it. flight planning, charts and pretty much everything else. We don't have any real problems reading it in our 6A but the screen could be much brighter. I am not particularly fond of it because of it's size. When both of us are in the plane there is no really good place to store it. Google is coming out with a new series of tablets that are smaller, cheaper and supposedly easier to read in bright sunlight due to new tech in the screen design. I am looking forward to trying one of these units out. All that being said, tablets are definitely the way to go for lightening the load while traveling. They are going to completly take over, it's only a matter of time as they improve over the years. 50 years from now kids are going to be collecting paper books because they will be so rare.
 
Being your in a Side by Side, any of the tablets will work. All of them are hard to view in the cockpit, harder in a tandem as you have to raise them up a bit to see. S by S makes it easier to view and block the sun.
I have the iPad, Kindle Fire and Nexus 7. I choose the Nexus 7 when traveling in the 8. Its the right size, right cost etc for the mission. I find the Nexus 7 to have the right feature set, price point, size and function for my needs in the cockpit. There are as many opinions as there are people on this.
 
I like my iPad for the battery life, built-in GPS and I use FF. FF is great for IFR planning and filing. I haven't heard others comment on battery life on the other tablets. I hate cables in the cockpit.
 
I am looking to upgrade from my current anywhere map duo. It has been a great system and it looks like their new "app" based software on a tablet is a significant upgrade and the way to go.

They sell Samsungs but I have also looked at the Asus Transformer prime (latest archtecture).

To me it comes down to sunlight readability. Which of the new tablets has the best display for this??

tech Gurus, I suspect that there is some promising new display technology just over the horizon. Is a breakthrough worth waiting for??

I hope to never have to fly another approach single piloted IFR without a geo-referenced moving map approach in front of me. Situational awareness is just that much better!!!
 
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I have not been a big fan of Apple for a long time based on some price for performance comparisons my wife and I did starting over 2 decades ago. That said, I kept waiting for Foreflight or WingX for Android for a long time and finally bit the bullet and got an Ipad 2 a while back. I fly a 7A and put a ram mount on the side bulkhead just aft of the instrument panel. I mount the Ipad horizontally there and with a glare screen it is readable. Not great but certainly readable. I've tried both Foreflight and WingX. Both are great. I lean towards using Foreflight simply because it seems to suit my workflow. With either one, the functionality of not needing multiple charts, no folding or flopping charts, completely variable chart size, pinch to zoom in and out and geo referenced airplane on the chart is a tremendous aid. Airport info, weather, flight planning at home, on and on. It's great. I have a feeling that Foreflight and WingX are the most mature of the tablet programs and having invested their time in the Ipad app development, it was probably unrealistic to hope for an Android version with the same functionality. I tend to like stable software and my days of going with the bleeding edge of tech are probably over:eek:

I hope other platforms develop great apps, but for now my needs were more than met by the Ipad and either Foreflight or WingX.
 
Jeremy - Check anywhere map's android app. It looks improved over their classic version software that I think is already very good.
 
I just started looking at the Android tablets and am just curious how you picked the Nexus 7 over the Samsung Galaxy 7 Plus that you can add memory to. It would seem to be a great benefit to add another 32 MB card. They seem to be basically the same price. I may just update my iPad from the 1 to the next one but am looking at my options. I really like the iPad but it seems that there are more restrictions all the time about my Jurassic version.

Thanks,
John

>>I have the iPad, Kindle Fire and Nexus 7. I choose the Nexus 7 when traveling in the 8. Its the right size, right cost etc for the mission. I find the Nexus 7 to have the right feature set, price point, size and function for my needs in the cockpit. There are as many opinions as there are people on this.
 
Hands down the iPad

The iPad is without question the #1 choice. I run ForeFlight and have been more than happy with the performance. I also carry the iPhone which serves as a backup to the iPad if needed. While some believe it to be large, I find the iPad is nice even in the tight confines of the RV-4. I have it on a elastic kneeboard on my left leg with no issues with obstruction to the stick or throttle. Not only do I carry charts, the .pdf storage in iBooks contains many FAA documents, maintenance manuals, POH, catalogs for Vans, Aircraft Spruce, etc. I is the one stop shop in the cockpit.The biggest benefit is the flexibility it brings outside of the cockpit with iTunes service. I use it as my travel computer and it works well while on the road. I would recommend waiting a couple of months to see the new smaller higher resolution iPad soon to be announced.
 
Silent_Flyer said:
The iPad is without question the #1 choice. I run ForeFlight and have been more than happy with the performance. I also carry the iPhone which serves as a backup to the iPad if needed. While some believe it to be large, I find the iPad is nice even in the tight confines of the RV-4. I have it on a elastic kneeboard on my left leg with no issues with obstruction to the stick or throttle. Not only do I carry charts, the .pdf storage in iBooks contains many FAA documents, maintenance manuals, POH, catalogs for Vans, Aircraft Spruce, etc. I is the one stop shop in the cockpit.The biggest benefit is the flexibility it brings outside of the cockpit with iTunes service. I use it as my travel computer and it works well while on the road. I would recommend waiting a couple of months to see the new smaller higher resolution iPad soon to be announced.
Click to expand...

We've been arguing the best points of the I-pad versus the Nexus 7 for about three weeks now, on another forum. There's votes for the I-pad &
votes for the Nexus. Size wise, I'll take the Nexus anyday.
 
As someone who has a bunch of tablets (I lead a team of mobile software developers for my "day job"), I'd suggest that you forget about iPad vs. Nexus vs. Kindle etc. and find the application(s) you want to use.

For me, I chose ForeFlight which meant it was an iPad for me, but there are numerous other apps obviously. Read what you can about them and try them out if possible. Pick the app, and the platform comes naturally.
 
Paul, I have I-pad3 3G with Foreflight in my -10. It is too big, difficult to read even with anti-glare(had to go under trees to read it at Triple Tree Fly-In), loses gps at least once during EVERY long xc trip, overheats with any sunlight hitting it, intermittently does not connect to 3G until I power it off and back on and not as strong of a signal as my I-phone3. I bought the sectionals & TACS for the areas I will be flying for backup and also to look at the big picture. I let them expire, as I have up to date versions on I-pad. If you pinch to see the big picture on the I-pad you can't read anything...the reason I like paper. It weighs only ounces and needs no batteries.

I would look at the new larger retina display on the I-pod. You said you did not need 3G and if you have a gps on board, then internal gps is not necessary. You would purchase a FF subscription for $80/yr. I really like FF on the ground and rarely use it flying. I have blown $750 on this IPad3 so will continue using it, but I would NOT recommend it.
 
Nexus 7 Plus

The Nexus 7 (8GB) came yesterday, and without consulting any directions, I got the thing upgraded (system), got the bluetooth for the gps going, and got subscribed to the Naviator maps, put in a route, sat on the front porch for 30 sec's, and the map, present position, and the route line showed nearly instantly. Total price: $331.65

Flight test info to follow.

https://play.google.com/store/devic...51bGwsMSwyLDcwMCwiZGV2aWNlLW5leHVzXzdfOGdiIl0.
$232.69

http://www.amazon.com/GlobalSat-BT-...&qid=1347220417&sr=8-5&keywords=gps+bluetooth
$48.97

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.onetwentythree.skynav&hl=en
(b) 1 Year Chart Subscription - $49.99 USD

Barney, in Memphis
RV-3 & -4 flying
paid up VAF
 
Does anyone know if the new Kindle HD will run the usual Android apps (Naviator, Avilution, etc...)? They are claiming a screen with much less glare than before.

I ask because I understand that the OS is some sort of modified version of Android.
 
Learning A Lot

From all the answers on this topic. I have another question as I've been looking at the Nexus 7 also. Why would you have to buy a bluetooth gps for it? The specs say it comes with an installed gps.
 
PaulR said:
From all the answers on this topic. I have another question as I've been looking at the Nexus 7 also. Why would you have to buy a bluetooth gps for it? The specs say it comes with an installed gps.
Click to expand...

From the comments I've seen, folks say that it provides a more reliable GPS connection as well as a more accurate one. Some of them even allow multiple devices to connect so potentially both the pilot and passenger could be using their tablets through the one GPS device.
 
After reviewing all the opinions on tablets and software I am amazed at the technology we have now compared to less than a half decade ago. For me I'll stick with my Ipad 2 and my trusty Foreflight .

R. Means
RV 10
N595RV
Born 2010
 
I have both an iPad2 and a Nexus 7. I love the iPad, but I much prefer flying with the Nexus 7 for weight, cost, battery life, and size. If you are a Mac fan, the rumored "iPad Mini" may be something to wait for. I find the size and weight of the standard iPad make it less than optimal for handling in flight. To me, it's like flying with a cafeteria lunch tray on my knee. The lightweight, 7-inch form factor is ideal for flying, IMO. It fits on a standard kneeboard and being smaller, is less prone to inadvertent touches as well as falling off your knee. Apple should be releasing a crop of new iPads and a 7" version is rumored to be among them if you just have to have an Apple product.
 
IPad 3 and Wing X, on a trip to Kauai I was getting GPS and moving map @ 600 MPH while sitting COACH! under all that allum!
 
BOTH iPAD and iFLY 720

I have WingX and Foreflight on the iPad (much prefer WingX, but it is what you get familiar with, and I like the split screen and flexibility for ADS-B receiver compatibility) ---- but, for a 7" screen, sunlight readability, and aviation-dedicated GPS, you cannot beat the iFly720 --- the $109.00 subscription gives you geo-referenced VFR/IFR everything.

The great thing about the 720 is, at 7 inches, it will go about anywhere in the cockpit and be visable and not in the way of other "stuff". And, the 720 will interface with most of the ADS-B receivers. The customer/technical support is the best in the business.

Just my pennys' worth.
 
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