Gear Review: Vesper Cortex after a few months
The Vesper Cortex is an AIS Class B+ SOTDMA transponder combined with VHF radio and remote monitoring. It shows amazing promise after the first few months of use. The Vesper Cortex has been one of the most anticipated…
Smooth running NMEA 2000 networks with smart universal terminators
Keep your NMEA 2000 network running smoothly with a universal terminator that has an LED showing bus voltage, and can be used easily at either end of the bus. NMEA 2000 networks can be frustrating as evidenced by the amount…
Adding a NMEA 2000 powered Raspberry Pi to your boat
Easy to install Raspberry Pi computer that gets its power from the NMEA 2000 bus — Great for SignalK, OpenCPN, and OpenPlotter. Running a Raspberry Pi aboard a boat has been a popular thing to do for a number of years. I’ve…
Rendezvous Internet Setup for 2020
I am constantly making updates and changes to my internet system on board Rendezvous, but I do usually settle on a stable system that I go back to when I am not testing, or when I have guests aboard. This is that system for…
Supercharge Your Boat’s Information Gathering with Signal K
People today want to see the same level of information on their boats that they can for their homes and cars. Onboard questions abound, like: How much water and fuel am I using? How is the engine performing? And how much…
Internet Aboard: Testing New Routers and Antennas
48° North columnist Steve Mitchell gives the latest on staying better connected aboard There has been a lot going on lately, and I wanted to provide an update on what I am working on and testing. My primary focus has been on…
Getting real-time weather from the boat
I’ve always dreamt of having real-time weather from the boat while I am away, and for analyzing trends after a day of being on the water. Most of the attempts I’ve made in the past have used stations and instruments that…
Adding a Cell Booster to Your Boat
From the March, 2020 issue of 48° North... Staying connected while you’re out on the water can be important for cruisers who work remotely or simply want to browse their Instagram feed; and one of the easiest ways to do that…
Adding docking and engine room cameras to Rendezvous
The ins-and-outs of adding cameras to your boat One thing I found early on with Rendezvous is that a camera on the side of the boat seemed like a pretty important thing to have while docking. I’ve had a system in place now…
Internet Aboard: Teltonika RUTX11 LTE router
If you're looking for a fast, inexpensive single LTE radio router with an excellent user interface, the Teltonika RUTX11 might be for you. In the last few years, there have been a lot of new, affordable LTE routers showing…