THE TECH THAT WILL CHANGE YOUR CRUISING
It’s a well-worn marketing trope that this or that latest gizmo will transform your sailing life. More often than not, the reality doesn’t quite match the promise.
The gear on display at November’s METS 2019 (Marine Equipment Trade Show) in Amsterdam, however, was very exciting indeed. Among the rows of shiny new waterproofs, gleaming anchors and twinkling LED lights, three main themes emerged where onboard technology is changing dramatically.
Integration may not be an exciting word, but as manufacturers start to combine multiple technologies, the things they enable you to do seem to multiply, making interacting with your onboard electronics intuitive and using their full potential far easier than their clunky, stand-alone predecessors.
In this way, a handheld GPS also becomes a standalone chartplotter, a satellite messaging system, an autopilot remote control and a wireless instrument repeater too. Or a man overboard tag is also an electronic kill cord, an anti-theft device and an MOB chartplotter marker. Or there’s the radio combined with AIS, remote monitoring for your yacht, anchor watch, and remote control for your fridge and heating. The list goes on.
Secondly, the arrival of two new infrstructure systems mark the largest change to electronic navigation in years. The Galileo satellite system, which first became operational in 2017, is now accessible to cruising sailors, giving more accurate positions as well as a third layer of position backup, and return messaging for distress beacons.
Onboard, you might only just be catching up with NMEA
