Navionics boating app for phones & tablets

Oldman2 · 10 November 2021, 10:27

It seems there is no "cheap" way to get the latest UK charts with relief shading for use on chart plotters not supplied with it. SD Cards with the latest charts are expensive add ons & new plotters bundled with the latest charts reflect the price too.

You can get a free 2 week trial of the Boating marine & lakes app for your phone/tablet to take a look at what your missing. I did this and found it quite an eye opener for local fishing marks and was able to pinpoint some marks which I transferred to my Garmin DV45 for use later.
I also took screen shots to refer to once my free trial ran out.

I really wanted to see more at any one time than my phone could show and tried casting to my 50 inch TV, that worked but was a little clunky, size was the same format as on the phone, no full screen & only possible when the family didnt need the tv.

I dont own a tablet, that would have been ideal but it needs to be Android 6 or later with Glonass GPS I believe to get the most from it and thats getting costly again.

I really wanted to be able to use the app on my 24 inch PC monitor but that didnt seem possible, then I stumbled across an app while trying to link my Samsung S9 phone to the pc by usb lead.
Samsung DeX app allows Samsung S8 onwards phones to connect to use the screen of your PC. DeX for PC app available from www.samsungdex.com

I think its also possible to port to your hdmi TV with the right lead.

Other apps like flightradar & VesselFinder also benifit from being full screen

So I can now browse on a large screen any area around the UK, Kent is my main interest, in fact the charts are so full of information that over the winter it will be like browsing a good book. I was so impressed I spent £35 on a years subscription to the Boating app as a little xmas pressy to me.

woolpack phone.jpg

full screen TV.jpg

Neil R · 10 November 2021, 14:01

Thanks for posting that. Looks like I will be spending £35 also. Just so annoying that the chartplotter equivalents (Platinum+) are more like £300.

GwynWms · 10 November 2021, 16:39

Anyone tried the SavvyNavvy App?
I've got it on my phone, which is great in the house, but useless on the baot. Need to install on my iPad, but spray etc !!

Smagu · 19 January 2022, 07:48

So I use navonics on a cheap Samsung tablet (has to be gps enabled) water proof case and tablet holder on the rib.

It’s excellent and all in including a tablet I use for so so much more cost me £235

Battery lasts ages when on flight mode (just keep gps on) easily get 3/4 days of boating

Limecc · 19 January 2022, 09:51

I'm hesitant, shame it's so pricey.

Oldman2 · 19 January 2022, 10:01

I gave in and bought a Lenovo Tab M10 tablet from someone who had got it for attending a work course and didnt want or need it, so it was new in its box for £60. I installed the Navionics boating app and it works a treat. It seems the charting app does still keep working if after your year is up you dont renew your sub, it just looses the ability to update any charts you have stored.
I have yet to take it on the sib in a £10 waterproof case, i'm waiting for spring weather at least, roll on summer

jakew009 · 19 January 2022, 10:07

Quote:

Originally Posted by Limecc

I'm hesitant, shame it's so pricey.

Not being funny Navionics say they want a minimum of Android 5, which was released in 2014 (nearly 8 years ago).

The version that guy was using in the review was even older.

Ancient versions of Android have all sorts of problems with ssl certificates and layer versions of TLS not being supported.

It looks like Navionics haven’t deliberately stopped it working, they just haven’t come up with workarounds to support ancient operating systems.

Oldman2 · 19 January 2022, 10:13

Quote:

Originally Posted by Limecc

I'm hesitant, shame it's so pricey.

You can always root your tablet or other Android device and force load a much later Android version on it to get around the "too old" limitation from Navionics. That costs nothing but a bit of your time if you are still happy with the capabilities of your old model.

Mattster · 19 January 2022, 10:24

Quote:

Originally Posted by Limecc

I'm hesitant, shame it's so pricey.

It's an absolute steal compared to the sounder cards, and a nicer experience on phone or tablet IMO. I'm with Oldman, I find myself just browsing around the shaded relief of an evening and it's fascinating - just about every single marked wreck shows as a little lump (or more), and there are many lumps around that aren't marked wrecks.. very few secrets now in the well surveyed areas, that's for sure.

I'm also of a mind to get a tablet set up on the boat so very keen to hear what others come up with, how well those soft plastic waterproof covers work in the sun etc.

Limecc · 19 January 2022, 10:57

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oldman2

I gave in and bought a Lenovo Tab M10 tablet from someone who had got it for attending a work course and didnt want or need it, so it was new in its box for £60. I installed the Navionics boating app and it works a treat. It seems the charting app does still keep working if after your year is up you dont renew your sub, it just looses the ability to update any charts you have stored.
I have yet to take it on the sib in a £10 waterproof case, i'm waiting for spring weather at least, roll on summer

Based on this and Jake's reality check I think I'll probably get it. Will it install on both phone and tablet if using the same Google account?

Mattster · 19 January 2022, 11:03

Quote:

Originally Posted by Limecc

Based on this and Jake's reality check I think I'll probably get it. Will it install on both phone and tablet if using the same Google account?

Yes, I believe so.

Oldman2 · 19 January 2022, 11:05

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mattster

Yes, I believe so.

I have it on 2 phones and a Tablet, I dont believe its restricted other than by account.

Mattster · 19 January 2022, 11:16

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oldman2

It seems there is no "cheap" way to get the latest UK charts with relief shading for use on chart plotters not supplied with it. SD Cards with the latest charts are expensive add ons & new plotters bundled with the latest charts reflect the price too.

There actually is a way to get SR on your unit for free if you have the time and know how, and you have a Lowrance/Simrad. The survey data that Navionics use is freely available from UKHO for personal use. You can download the region you are interested in and use a GIS app (e.g. the free QGis) to generate a geo-referenced shaded relief image. If you run a Lowrance/Simrad, you can use a free tool to convert that image into a map for your unit. I've done all this myself for my Lowrance, but it is only really practical for small (maybe 5-10 miles across) areas - the amount of data is vast. Having said all that, I happily pay the annual subscription to Navionics and let them handle the heavy lifting!

Here's an SR image of my area (Selsey) that I processed using UKHO data. You can have whatever colours etc you want of course:

roger dodge · 19 January 2022, 12:41

hi,
Take a look at my post on the Rib Forum titled Chart Plotters.....or phone Steve .....his number is on the London Chart Plotters site .