Marine Electronics

Each fall, Practical Sailor editors sort through the best test products of the past year to pick those deserving of a spot on our PS Editors Choice roster. To be named to the list, products must earn the Best Choice rating among their respective peers and clearly stand out above others in their field.

Our Editors Choice roster would not be complete without the top performers in our semiannual bottom paints tests (PS October 2014 and April 2015). The most recent test looked at 55 different paints from Blue Water Paints, Interlux, Epaint, Pettit, and Sea Hawk. This years hard paint standouts were Interluxs Micron Extra with Biolux and West Marines Bottomshield. Made by Pettit, the West Marine-branded PCA Gold was the top ablative paint. Micron Extra and PCA Gold tied for best performance of the bunch.

In the April 2015 issue, Practical Sailor evaluated four handheld VHF radios loaded with all the bells and whistles, including longer battery life, positive flotation, internal GPS, and digital selective calling (DSC) capabilities. Out performing VHFs from Icom, West Marine, and its own product line was the Standard Horizon HX870, which grabbed a spot on our Editors Choice list.

As we dug into the topic of electronic storage media-the memory cards we use for routine software updates on our marine electronics-we found that even the makers of our marine electronics were a little confused about which memory cards worked with their own systems. We soon realized that a data table indicating which cards worked with which electronics would be very handy. It was one of those easier-said-than-done enterprises that dragged on for weeks. Hopefully, our tables, compiled by PSs resident electronics expert, Bill Bishop, will be helpful as you dust off your chartplotter for the coming season.

The big advantage of handheld VHF radios as compared to their fixed-mount brethren has always been portability. Its portability that allows them to serve as the primary radio on smaller boats (a dinghy for example), as an emergency backup (or secondary working unit) to a fixed unit, or even as a way to summon help during an unexpected swim. While reduced range (due to their shorter antenna height and lower transmit power) have been acceptable tradeoffs for portability, modern handheld VHF radios continue to keep pace with the many other features provided by fixed-mount VHFs.

After charging the test units for 24 hours, testers ran each radio through a series of bench tests-including transmitter power output, frequency accuracy and stability, and receiver sensitivity-using our Ramsey COM3010 service monitor. All radios in our test group met industry standards with regards to the above tests, although some did it slightly better than others. Testers took transmitter power measurements (high and low power) directly off the radio antenna port.

There are a handful of popular action cameras on the market, which is dominated by the now ubiquitous GoPro line. Weve purposely steered clear of this fast-moving field, one that is widely covered in consumer electronics magazines and websites. However, since Garmins new entry in this market, the VIRB Elite, incorporates features aimed specifically at boaters, we thought wed check it out. Techies can drop in on any online review or the Garmin website to get a complete rundown of the cameras features and specs (see accompanying table). Our field tests focused on the following.

Beginning in March 2014 with a review of wind sensors, Practical Sailor embarked on a series of articles on wind instruments. The series kicked off with a look at mechanical, mast-mounted sensors (see PS March 2014 online); Part II compared the various ways that wind data is computed and displayed (see PS May 2014 online); and Part III sought to find the ideal system, matching sensors and displays from different brands (see PS August 2014 online). The ink had hardly dried after the first round of testing, when readers began asking about ultrasonic wind sensors, which appear to offer a number of advantages over conventional mechanical sensors and their revolving-cup sensors.

Youre standing on the sailboats bow on a windy day, facing the helm and yelling There is a rock ahead. Youre doing this while youre turning forward to look again. What the helmsman hears is There is a.....

We recently had a chance to ocean test the new DeLorme inReach Explorer on a passage from Sarasota, Fla., to the Dry Tortugas in the Florida Keys. Like the original inReach (see Practical Sailor, March 2013 online) and the second-gen inReach SE, the first such standalone device designed to send and receive texts by satellite, the Explorer is primarily a satellite texting device. The Explorer has a small display screen like the inReach SE, but the Explorer features a built-in compass, barometer, and accelerometer to give it some basic standalone navigational functions.