Marine Electronics

Testing Telemedicines Limits

Early into the 645-mile race between Marion, Mass., and the island of Bermuda in 2009, trouble brewed aboard the C&C 40 Corsair. The bizarre...

Wind Sensor Testing

For better or for worse, the modern cruising sailor is becoming more like an airplane pilot. Safely ensconced out of the wind, the helmsman...

When Technology Catches the Wind

Photos by Ralph Naranjo A lot can be learned from really small boats that carry no crew. In fact, sailing robotics-SailBot for short-is attracting sailors...

Performance Racing App for Sailors

Practical Sailor downloaded Regatta Recon to an Apple iPhone 4 and took it for a test drive. While underway, PS compared Regatta Recons readouts...

The SPOT Sat Phone

The number and popularity of satellite-based communication gadgets have grown rapidly over the last few years. These devices range from one-way communication electronics like...

Bad Elf GPS Pro Boosts iPad Nav Apps

We used the GPS Pro while hiking and sailing in Norway and were able to get satellite fixes inside sailboats, ferries, even at cruising...

Test Driving New Nobeltec TZ

Nobeltec, a marine-navigation software developer based in the U.S., recently released a new chartplotting app for the iPad: Nobeltec TZ (or Time Zero). We...

Spare One Emergency Phone

Testers recently checked out the Spare One standby cell phone, which is just what its name implies: a spare phone for use in an...

Comparing Class B AIS Transceivers

The popularity of Automatic Identification Systems (AIS) has grown exponentially in recent years, particularly among small- to mid-sized cruising sailboats. Lower costs have played...

Updating Onboard Electronics with N2K

A sailboat is no place for unnecessary complexity, which was the direction we were headed on my Beneteau 39, Breeze Pleeze, when it came...

The History of Cape Dory Sailboats

Cape Dory Yachts was founded in 1963 by Andrew Vavolotis in East Taunton, Mass. In the following 28 years, the company built over 2,800...

Latest Sailboat Review

Cape Dory 30 Used Boat Review

When the Cape Dory 30 entered production in 1976, it was the largest boat in the expanding line of the Taunton, Massachusetts boatbuilder. In...