What do pilots value in apps? The chart and comments at right provide a basic road map on how users evaluate what apps do and how they do it. The data was gathered from a survey returned by 984 users queried through our online sister publication, www.avweb.com. In the July 2020 edition of Aviation Consumer, […]
If the app market hasn’t quite reached stasis, it must be close to that. Our recent surveys suggest that only about 11 percent of pilots don’t fly with tablets or apps of any kind and that doesn’t leave much headroom for new entrants or for expansion of established players. So, buyers may be shifting from […]
We didn’t know what to expect when Garmin invited us to its Olathe, Kansas, testing grounds to fly Autoland. But sitting shotgun in a new Piper M600 turboprop observing Garmin’s latest layer of safety backstop systems called Autonomi, there was no question Autoland would win Aviation Consumer’s prestigious Gear of the Year award. EDITOR’S CHOICE […]
Lost to the sands of time is the quaint notion that a mechanical E6B or—gasp!—an eraser-equipped pencil were cockpit essentials. Now, it’s not just a question of having a smartphone or a tablet for aviating, but how many. Not kidding here, some owners have and use several. But which are the best buys? Which platform […]
Headsets for kids serve three purposes: They protect hearing, they keep kids entertained by providing a source of music and they allow kids to be part of the conversation in the airplane. But there are several challenges, including finding a model with the right balance of comfort, features and durability. No, kids aren’t easy on […]
In gliders, ultralights, gyrocopters and even some classic LSAs, some of the mainstream ADS-B Out/In combination solutions may not be practical from an installation (and cost) standpoint. In many aircraft, space is limited, on and off the panel. uAvionix, the company that’s had sizable success with the wingtip and tail-mounted skyBeacon/tailBeacon ADS-B solutions, has a […]
We recently showed a piece of B-roll that shows a later-model Garmin Perspective+ equipped Cirrus on a night visual approach with a windshield full of red-over-red VASI and an approaching dark tree line underneath. There are a bunch of things going on in that six-second clip worth talking about, besides its muddy image quality that […]
So many buyers are removing their vacuum system in favor of all-electronic instruments, but neglected electrical systems—including the battery—are the weak link. Reliability isn’t helped when the typical lead-acid model sits for long periods in harsh temperatures. Meanwhile, battery tech for the consumer electronics market has changed for the better, and that includes smart lithium-ion […]
In aircraft with limited panel space—maybe small aerobats, motorgliders or ultralights—equipping for the ADS-B mandate could be a challenge. Scotland-based Trig Avionics has that market covered with a line of compact avionics, including 1090ES ADS-B transponders. But to comply with the mandate, those transponders (and third-party ADS-B 1090ES models not equipped with internal GPS) need […]
In the cockpit, POV or action cameras have become as common—if not more so—as handheld radios. Driven by the action sports and social media markets, competition in these cameras is white hot and new models and accessories proliferate. For the purpose of this review, the choice is between the GoPro Hero 7 or Hero 8. […]
ForeFlight introduced its 3D Preview feature awhile back, but now version 12-2 is enhanced with 3D Approach Preview, standard on Performance Plus subscriptions. The idea behind 3D Approach Preview is to better visualize what the approach segment will look like (down to the runway threshold)because it creates onscreen markers for each waypoint in a route, […]
Last year Dynon Avionics took a different approach to avionics installations by approving A&P mechanics to install its SkyView HDX Certified integrated avionics. To review, the capable SkyView Certified equipment is essentially the same basic platform as the company’s experimental SkyView HDX, but has an AML-STC for certified aircraft. Instead of setting up a large […]
