Bigger screens, faster processors and more power: marine is no different from any other branch of the electronics industry. This year, for instance, Navico is launching its new NSX Ultrawide touchscreen plotter, which is 63 per cent broader than its predecessor with a massive 1920 x 720 pixel resolution. At £3,320 for the 12in display and £3,950 for the 15in, it doesn’t come cheap and currently only exists under the powerboat-oriented Simrad brand.
Next door at B&G, racers have the all-new Hercules processing unit – a black box that gives a better-than-ever readout of accurate sailing data. It can collect data from more sources, including third-party load sensors, and it does a very precise job of correcting for wave motion, heel and pitch. Exceptionally detailed polars are simple to set up for performance analysis, and it can handle advanced startline calculations. Best of all, it is simple to drop into an existing B&G system with Vulcan and Zeus plotters, as well as the full array of B&G displays. It costs £2,939.
A+T Instruments in Lymington continues to give B&G a run for its money on wind sensors. Set-up by a former B&G service technician, A&T has developed a successful drop-in replacement wind sensor for B&G’s 213 unit. The A&T 500 is claimed to be accurate to 0.2 degrees of wind angle, with full ceramic bearings providing better low-wind performance, and all for a 30 per cent weight saving. It costs from £1,182
