for those of you who have used an iPad mini in the cockpit, do you find the screen is large enough enough to be practical for charts, approach plates etc? I have been using a Galaxy Tab S7 FE because i liked having all that screen real-estate (12" screen) but I find that it's a actually too big and can get in the way in the cockpit.
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ipad mini size
- Thread starter prkaye
- Start date
Majorpayne317641
Well Known Member
I use my mini and the 8in screen works fine for any ForeFlight IFR flights. I use it for moving map and approach plates. It’s the standard size we use at work for confined cockpits too.
BH1166
Well Known Member
Have used mini 4 for past 5years, 600+ hrs. Wouldn’t leave home without it.
MacCool
Well Known Member
I should have disclaimed..."personal preference". Some people (me) prefer to maximize screen real estate as long as the cockpit accommodates the multiple displays. For me, best solution is Foreflight running on the iPad Pro 11" and leaving the little Mini 6 for my IFD440. I've seen many others talk about the Mini as being great as an adjunctive screen...it's just not the paradigm that works best for me. I will say that I'm a bit of a nerd, and those two iPads are running (separate wifi networks) in addition to my EFIS running the HSI/EMS, and a second EFIS running the moving map. Lot's of data to parse on long cross countries. Keeps me from getting bored.
Certainly no judgement on anyone's personal preference! (although, i find that one does find a lot of that kind of judgement on the forums sometimes). I too prefer the big screen (my eyes are not what they used to be), but i have found that the 12" tablet I am using now kind of gets in the way (I have it on a mount that's based between the seats and elevates it above my left knee so that i can easily write on it - my short-term memory buffer is so bad that i have to jot down ATC altitude and heading instructions or else i forget them as soon as they've finished transmitting).
I was just worried that maybe the Mini would be too small to show a reasonable amount of chart at one time, but i actually don't look at the charts much in-flight (i have a GPS-175 in the panel) - mainly it's for approach plates and writing atc clearances/instructions.
I need to switch to an ios device because Garmin Pilot on my android tablet doesn't work well for chart annotation (really buggy and almost unusable for annotation). I like to be able to write cold-wx corrections right on my plates, and also jot down ATC instructions right on the chart that's currently displayed without having to switch the screen to "scratch-pad".
I'm sticking with Garmin Pilot for now because i've already paid for the next year's subscription. Maybe eventually switch to foreflight, although their subscriptions seem to be significantly more expensive than Garmin Pilot.
I think i'll pick-up a mini-6 and see if it works better for me in the cockpit.
I was just worried that maybe the Mini would be too small to show a reasonable amount of chart at one time, but i actually don't look at the charts much in-flight (i have a GPS-175 in the panel) - mainly it's for approach plates and writing atc clearances/instructions.
I need to switch to an ios device because Garmin Pilot on my android tablet doesn't work well for chart annotation (really buggy and almost unusable for annotation). I like to be able to write cold-wx corrections right on my plates, and also jot down ATC instructions right on the chart that's currently displayed without having to switch the screen to "scratch-pad".
I'm sticking with Garmin Pilot for now because i've already paid for the next year's subscription. Maybe eventually switch to foreflight, although their subscriptions seem to be significantly more expensive than Garmin Pilot.
I think i'll pick-up a mini-6 and see if it works better for me in the cockpit.
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With the mini, depends on how close you mount it. Mounted on the canopy rail it's about half the distance to the panel so takes about the same field of view as the EFIS screen and very easy to poke and tilt for glare. I depend on it so much I always carry a spare since they're only about 0.5 AMU 
I love my Mini 4 iPad, however I’m the RV-4, the space is more limited and it’s closer to your face anyway. In Vegas, I find the iPad case with the built in fans is required otherwise at certain sun angles, the iPad will overheat. Probably not a factor in other areas, or even in the side by side because the iPad can be out of direct sunlight?
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I have used IPad mini for at least 8 years now in my -7. Only have had it overheat and quit a couple times landing in a hot climate (Redding) Visibility good and it communicates well with the Skyview. I like flight planning at home then uploading before takeoff. It is also easier to reroute on the IPad than the Skyview. Battery is limited so plan on a charging cord. I have used FlyQ for a long time and am ok with it so far.
DavidHarris
Well Known Member
I used to fly a Bonanza, and put an iPad mini on the yoke running ForeFlight. It worked great and was the right size for the application. I could see everything I needed and it didn't block my view of the panel or make the yoke too ungainly. However, it occasionally would overheat in direct sunlight, and had a mess of wires to get power and connect to a Stratus.
Now I have dual 10" dynon HDX displays in my Vans RV7A. They are wonderful for situational awareness and provide me almost everything I get from ForeFlight. The lack of wires makes a significant difference. I just run ForeFlight on my phone now to file flight plans and look at the weather before starting the engine, and to look at fuel prices and airport services.
If I were putting an iPad on a Vans now, I'd look at a panel mount if possible, and to integrate the wiring and a fan behind the panel. Might as well go full size in that circumstance. However, the cost difference between panel mounting an iPad vs. a HDX or G3X is low enough in aviation terms that the EFIS is hard to turn down.
David
Now I have dual 10" dynon HDX displays in my Vans RV7A. They are wonderful for situational awareness and provide me almost everything I get from ForeFlight. The lack of wires makes a significant difference. I just run ForeFlight on my phone now to file flight plans and look at the weather before starting the engine, and to look at fuel prices and airport services.
If I were putting an iPad on a Vans now, I'd look at a panel mount if possible, and to integrate the wiring and a fan behind the panel. Might as well go full size in that circumstance. However, the cost difference between panel mounting an iPad vs. a HDX or G3X is low enough in aviation terms that the EFIS is hard to turn down.
David
MacCool
Well Known Member
The FAA says I’m good to go for distant vision, but wants me to have corrective lenses for close vision. I opted for the Full Monty and have progressive lenses. Vision is not a factor for me in iPad size choice. My iPad Pro 11 inch (Foreflight) is RAM-mounted on the right panel, the Mini 6 (IFD100 app) isn’t mounted…just sits in my lap, glareshield, or side pocket.
It’s an important question…I’ll have to do some careful planning with my ophthalmologist if and when I need cataract surgery. Panel vs distance will play a role in what kind of lenses I have him/her replace mine with.
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In my -10, my mini is my 3rd (center) screen. I have been happy with it. That said, be it an airplane, boat, or whatever, I would go with the largest screen that will work comfortably in the cockpit. Something too big can become clumsy, but as my friend told me once, our eyes are not improving with age so go with the largest screens that will work.
Dugaru
Well Known Member
Same here
I've used minis for a while for moving map, approach plates, traffic, and weather, and I think they're basically the perfect size for an RV cockpit. Although ask me again a few years from now as my eyes get worse.
I've used minis for a while for moving map, approach plates, traffic, and weather, and I think they're basically the perfect size for an RV cockpit. Although ask me again a few years from now as my eyes get worse.
MacCool
Well Known Member
Our eyes will age like the rest of our bodies, but those changes shouldn’t ever get to the point where eyesight can’t be normalized for a given activity by a good optometrist. IMHO the solution isn’t a bigger iPad, it’s a better eyeglass prescription. As we age, it may very well take more than the usual “new prescription every two years” to keep pace but should be do-able. In some cases, older people might find that they have specialized prescriptions for different activities to accommodate the changes in their ability to focus…i.e. glasses for reading, TV, computer, shooting, driving, flying. I do.
Other consideration with age is cataracts. That will change color perception, acuity, and focusing. Cataract surgery does a remarkable job of fixing those problems, will usually simplify corrections. If one finds, as we age, that vision just isn’t as sharp as it used to be, it will usually mean that the eyes have changed enough that the prescription is no longer optimal, or cataracts. Both are fixable.
Other consideration with age is cataracts. That will change color perception, acuity, and focusing. Cataract surgery does a remarkable job of fixing those problems, will usually simplify corrections. If one finds, as we age, that vision just isn’t as sharp as it used to be, it will usually mean that the eyes have changed enough that the prescription is no longer optimal, or cataracts. Both are fixable.
I've been using an iPad mini for a few years now. It works great for me. If you think about it, the mini is about the same size as the book of approach charts you would have to buy every few months back before Garmin Pilot and ForeFlight came to be. Same with the sectional, think about the size of that folded up compared to a mini. Or compare a small note pad to a mini. All very similar, but if you need to zoom in even more you can do so.
Useful Ipad Mini 6
for the past several years we have used the iPad Mini 4 (now upgraded to a 6) with ForeFlight for flight planning and for informing back seat passenger in our RV8. Connecting to the Dynon HDX via WiFi gives the passenger some of the information as displayed on the HDX. The small size is much more convenient in the confines of the rear seat. However there are two issues:
1. When heading away from the sun the iPad becomes unreadable. Will a glare resistant overlay help? Looking for ideas from the Brain Trust!
2. ForeFlight does not display indicated airspeed and pressure altitude, although that information is in the data stream from the HDX and could be inserted. (It displays GPS Ground speed and GPS altitude) I spoke with the ForeFlight representative at Oshkosh last summer, was promised that a follow up would be made but no response. This would be useful to my wife, who has taken the Pinch Hitter Course, and was trained at sea level. However at 7600' airport elevation, the GPS derived ground speed data is not good for aircraft control. Still hoping for a response from Boeing.....
for the past several years we have used the iPad Mini 4 (now upgraded to a 6) with ForeFlight for flight planning and for informing back seat passenger in our RV8. Connecting to the Dynon HDX via WiFi gives the passenger some of the information as displayed on the HDX. The small size is much more convenient in the confines of the rear seat. However there are two issues:
1. When heading away from the sun the iPad becomes unreadable. Will a glare resistant overlay help? Looking for ideas from the Brain Trust!
2. ForeFlight does not display indicated airspeed and pressure altitude, although that information is in the data stream from the HDX and could be inserted. (It displays GPS Ground speed and GPS altitude) I spoke with the ForeFlight representative at Oshkosh last summer, was promised that a follow up would be made but no response. This would be useful to my wife, who has taken the Pinch Hitter Course, and was trained at sea level. However at 7600' airport elevation, the GPS derived ground speed data is not good for aircraft control. Still hoping for a response from Boeing.....
MacCool
Well Known Member
I use a non-glare screen on my iPad Pro 13, iPad Pro 11, and my Mini-6. I prefer the "paper feel" non-glare protector because it makes writing or drawing with the Apple Pencil more precise (IMHO) and because they don't show fingerprints. Fingerprints on a glossy screen significantly detract from the readability in sunlight.
Those protector screens work better as an anti-glare on the iPad Pro's (IMHO) because they're brighter (600 nits) whereas, while cutting down the glare on the iPad Mini 6 is helpful, it doesn't completely solve the daytime readability problem because of the dimmer screen (500 nits).
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RV8JD
Well Known Member
2. ForeFlight does not display indicated airspeed and pressure altitude, although that information is in the data stream from the HDX and could be inserted. (It displays GPS Ground speed and GPS altitude) I spoke with the ForeFlight representative at Oshkosh last summer, was promised that a follow up would be made but no response. This would be useful to my wife, who has taken the Pinch Hitter Course, and was trained at sea level. However at 7600' airport elevation, the GPS derived ground speed data is not good for aircraft control. Still hoping for a response from Boeing.....
Vern Little ('vlittle') has developed repeater software and instruments that take the WiFi streaming data from the SkyView system to provide air data (not GPS-derived data). The instruments just need power and ground.
Installed in the backseat of an RV:
See this Dynon Forum link:
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