Paperless Cockpit

[N8632Y]

greg,
agreed, and would not want to rely on it for IFR nav...

[aiu0462]

I use the IPad with ForeFlight. 32gb, wi-fi only. I have enough GPS info in cockpit with 530W and Aria 510. Still print charts for destination airport, but have only used the IPad. It sits on the floor next to my left leg until I need it. If you decide later you want GPS position on the IPad, you can get a Bluetooth hook up for less than a hundred dollars. Have not found a need yet for the geo-referenced charts. Just my $.02.
Steve

[N8632Y]

steve,
not only geo ref chart/plates, but great for geo ref on taxi diagrams.
But, not all large airports have taxi diagrams, i think all controlled airports do, but
down my way there are a couple large airports, w/ mutliple runways, and at night, i wish they had
the taxi diagrams there. They only have the ones that the FAA puts out, i asked.
steve

[Randy Johnson]

Hate to say it but Ipad is "old school". Check out Garmin's latest GPS introduction...the 796. Its their answer to the Ipad, has all the charts and...powered by satellite so you dont have to burn the tree tops to get a cell phone connection. Its not cheap at 2500 bucks but most of us have a "trade in" GPS and its is amazing. New 3d technology gives you the view of your aircraft at any angle. Try it out before you buy an Ipad. Ipad is great for preflight but if you want access to all charts, on time weather and a large screen... the 796 has no peer.

I am not a Garmin Dealer and I dont own stock in the company but I am a fan. If money is no object, a 796 is my choice.

[Mark Anderson]

Randy, just saw that trade in deal. If I can find all the junk that came in the box with my 560 , I might have to consider that $1,150 at Aircraft Spruce. How much a year is the chart subscription?

Thanks

Mark

[Mark Anderson]

http://www.amazon.com/Garmin-aera-796-T ... B005MY2Q06

Randy, the above is a link to a couple of reviews on the 796. It seems that Garmin may have some software issues. It looks like the chart updates are about $300 a year for what I can tell. I think I will stick with the iPad for now. I like the ease of downloading the updated charts. Also it is nice for flight planning to be able to look at your charts on the iPad on the go, a day or two before the flight.

Thanks

Mark

[Jeff]

Stan,

I currently use a Garmin 696, which is mounted in my cockpit and works great. The terrain, charts, etc are easy to use in any lighting condition. I am happy with this, however the move is towards the IPAD. The airlines are moving this way also and as more of them become certified for their use in the cockpits there will be more apps avaailable as well as a price decreases. Garmin has to be already feeling the pain. While I love the 696, which I bought before the latest IPAD was available with all the apps, I would opt for an IPAD due to its flexibility and use outside of the cockpit as well as in. Best of luck.

Jeff

[Edward Pencosky]

[Kory Kearney]

[Fred Bauer Jr]

We have been using the "Flight Guide" service with the Apple IPAD2 in our PA30 (a couple of years now) and really like it.
#1 it has an airport information data base second to none.
#2 it has the option of being offered on a monthly basis.
#3 we LOVE the way it places the selected approach plate on top of the seamless charts. (great seeing this on a sectional chart to know where the terrain is when low to the ground)
#4 it does have a track-up feature.
#5 you can store flight plans that you use often.
We have been using the Flight Guide APP with their FLY-WI waas GPS and with the IPAD built-in GPS and it seems to work well with either GPS source.
It also has the taxi diagrams displayed which works BUT! while taxing around you need to be looking out the window which makes using this feature a little difficult.

We are REALLY waiting to get our XM weather to display from the Flight Guide FLY-WI GPS to the IPAD (they tell us it is coming soon ??) as we now are using the AvMap EKPIV to show this.

[Stan Schrek]

Just wanted to report back that, based on the excellent feedback generated by the original post, I have been operating Foreflight on a 32 GB iPad 2 3G for about a month now.

Thank you everyone for your excellent advice and comments. What a great group we have.

Stan Schrek in NJ
N6395P

[N8632Y]

I've updated my hardware:
Bought Ipad 3 and just got the STratus.
Negatives: Ipad 3 has battery issues, but manageable, just keep out of sun, keep ventilation in plane, like floor vents and put Ipad near vent occassionally.
Also went to stratus: same issue, but on glareshield, can overheat quicker, I think the newer bigger Li ion batteries are to blame.
Accuracy has gone to 1m, yes.
Weather is a bit different from XM, nexrad maybe not as good, but go to airport page, and get weather and times of updates for each airport.
Still experimenting.
steve

[Mark Anderson]

Dear Steve,

Thanks for the info. Have you tried turning off your cell data in flight to help conserve the battery? I also turn off my Wifi, but I assume with the Stratus you need this to be on. I have the iPad one and this seems to help. Altjough i have noticed that the Fore Flight app tends to drain the battery since the screen stays on continuously. I just keep mine plugged into a Cigg. Lighter most of the time.

A couple of questions about the Stratus :

Will it animate the WX?

Is the coverage area of WX any better than advertised?

Any Wifi connection problems?

Thanks

Mark