Beats marine navigation GPS units
On a recent sailboat race to Block Island we ended up using iNavX on my iPad instead of the Garmin GPS unit whenever we had an important decision to make. The size of the iPad display and the chart detail gave a much better overall picture than the Garmin data, so we could make decisions about which way to go in real time.It was easy to plot new waypoints using the touch screen, and look at different route options as wind and tide conditions changed during the race.
Unlike marine GPS units, which have "infinite" chart data, iNavX works with the actual NOAA chart images. That means that when you reach the end of one chart, you need to select another. This is easy to do with the Zoom feature; you just tap + or - on the screen. However, its an extra step compared to Garmin and similar GPS units, and has been a point raised in several negative reviews. But once you get used to it, its no problem, and the color and detail of the charts more than make up for it, especially given that the charts are free and update automatically.
The instrument display is great. It contains all the instrument readings you could want, such as distance to waypoint, bearing to waypoint, COG, VMG and many others. The iPad display uses large font so the instrument numbers are easy to read, instead of peering at a tiny GPS display.
Some people have complained about the user interface. It takes a little practice, and it is not all intuitive, but if you refer to the manual occasionally you will pick it up quickly. This app is totally worth the money, and is fun to use.
ozprof about
iNavX: Marine Navigation, v4.7.4