A custom computer might include some laptop components—from left, a 2.5-inch hard drive, CPU, ûand optical drive—integrated into compact motherboards and case.

Used to be, that if you wanted an affordable computer on board to handle marine navigation software, a laptop was an obvious choice, primarily because it was small, portable, and power efficient. All that is changing with the introduction of a new generation of small, power-efficient components that can be incorporated into a fairly rugged PC that will fit on an average cruiser.

In this, the first of a three-part series on marine computing, Practical Sailor looks at some of the cutting-edge options for onboard computers. In the next part, we’ll review the most popular navigation software for cruising sailors, and in the third part, we’ll look at the various headaches…