Canadian Boating December 2024 - 8

MARINE ELECTRONICS
Connecting All Boats
to the Future - Old and New
DIVING DEEP: Communications, Information, Navigation and Entertainment
By | Andy Adams
ithout a doubt, the fastest
moving sector of the marine
industry is electronics and all
the operational and navigation systems
that encompasses. I recently attended
the NMEA (National Marine Electronics
Association) Annual Conference and
Expo for marine electronics professionals
in Providence, Rhode Island and learned a
host of amazing things. The biggest news
is something that wasn't even being talked
about two years ago. It's called Starlink,
part of SpaceX and Elon Musk's amazing
new ventures. One of the opening sessions
at the NMEA Conference was a discussion
about the various satellites that are
now in orbit around planet earth. Within
that field, there are now a number of different
companies specializing in bringing
connectivity to your boat when travelling
or just moored at the pier.
W
Especially during the Covidlockdowns,
lots of people have invested
in live-aboard boats. Then other developments
in business that followed allowed
the " work from home " option for people,
and some of the creative ones who could
afford the investment interpreted that as
" work from boat " .
CONNECTIVITY
As long as we have a good Internet
connection, many of us can do our
work from wherever we happen to be.
Internet connections to the home are
very common; pretty much everybody
is now connected in our society. But
being connected from a boat is a little
more complicated. If you're near the
shore and there's a reliable cell signal
you can run on cellular data, but as soon
as you cast off and move out of range,
8 CANADIAN BOATING | December 2024
(often only a few miles out) everything
changes.
The opening presentation at the NMEA
conference discussed the rapid adoption
of satellite driven internet around the
world. But even as recently as 2019, when
there were already thousands of satellites
orbiting Earth, it was still very expensive
to get satellite time for offshore phone
calls or Internet, and the antenna systems
were often big, complicated, and housed
in high-mounted domes on superyachts.
Now that has really changed. The latest
development is Starlink Services LLC,
a wholly owned subsidiary of SpaceX.
Although Starlink Services are available
through many retail sources, it looks as
though KVH Industries offers the most
" marine-friendly " version, with data
packages designed for the unique needs
of boaters.
Image: Liu zishan/Shutterstock
Photo: Andy Adams

Canadian Boating December 2024

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Canadian Boating December 2024

At the Helm: Boating Education for Everyone
Marine Electronics: Connecting All Boats to the Future - Old and New
Power Review: FIM 340 Regina
Destination: Sidney by the Sea
The Port Hole: December 2024
Tech Review: Sound on the Water
Crossing the Line: How to Cope with the Off-Season
Canadian Boating December 2024 - Intro
Canadian Boating December 2024 - Cover1
Canadian Boating December 2024 - Cover2
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 3
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 4
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 5
Canadian Boating December 2024 - At the Helm: Boating Education for Everyone
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 7
Canadian Boating December 2024 - Marine Electronics: Connecting All Boats to the Future - Old and New
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 9
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 10
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 11
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 12
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 13
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 14
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 15
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 16
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 17
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 18
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 19
Canadian Boating December 2024 - Power Review: FIM 340 Regina
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 21
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 22
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 23
Canadian Boating December 2024 - Destination: Sidney by the Sea
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 25
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 26
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 27
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 28
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 29
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 30
Canadian Boating December 2024 - The Port Hole: December 2024
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 32
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 33
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 34
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 35
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 36
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 37
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 38
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 39
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 40
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 41
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 42
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 43
Canadian Boating December 2024 - Tech Review: Sound on the Water
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 45
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 46
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 47
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 48
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 49
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 50
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 51
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 52
Canadian Boating December 2024 - 53
Canadian Boating December 2024 - Crossing the Line: How to Cope with the Off-Season
Canadian Boating December 2024 - Cover3
Canadian Boating December 2024 - Cover4
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