Best tablet for Garmin Pilot

We have purpose built devices (Aera by Garmin), but they don’t have same functionality as GP for some reason? Would have thought they would have written OS,library routines to somewhat emulate IOS, then reuse 1 code base and have same functionality as GP, saving development $.
 
teejayevans said:
We have purpose built devices (Aera by Garmin), but they don’t have same functionality as GP for some reason? Would have thought they would have written OS,library routines to somewhat emulate IOS, then reuse 1 code base and have same functionality as GP, saving development $.
Click to expand...

I would imagine Garmin wants to keep the different products somewhat protected from each other. They clearly view Garmin Pilot as an important product in their line. It integrates nicely with the panel now via Connext.
 
teejayevans said:
We have purpose built devices (Aera by Garmin), but they don’t have same functionality as GP for some reason? Would have thought they would have written OS,library routines to somewhat emulate IOS, then reuse 1 code base and have same functionality as GP, saving development $.
Click to expand...

Probably not running hardware compatible with either the Android OS or iOS.

They already have two code bases for those devices and don’t appear to share much code between them, so adding a third when they already have the development done for the much older hardware inside the Aera units (than either an Android tablet or iPad), would actually be a complete re-write for whatever hardware they put in the Aera.

What they could do is a new version of Aera model that’s Android compatible hardware under the hood, dump the Android version of Garmin Pilot into that hardware, and then get the Android version up to par with the iOS version

Then they continue to sell GP as a subscription for third party Android tablets, and essentially sell it with a “lifetime” subscription in their own hardware for the outrageously inflated Aera prices.

Or just make it a subscription model across the board but have their own Android compatible hardware so they don’t have to port anything. Just lock down the hardware, bootloader, etc. and use the best touchscreen for daylight use they can find on it.

Thats their cheapest route because they can base the initial model off of some existing android tablet and license the design from someone and have it made in the same factory in China... just change the screen and maybe a more rugged plastic case on it.
 
Samsung Galaxy Tab Active 2

Is drop proof, dust proof, water proof, etc. Has optional LTE for $100 more, has stylus to take notes with as G-Pilot has a scratchpad. And the perfect size. I did a sh*t ton of research and tried 6 diff android tablets before I settled on this one and I absolutely love it for flying! I use it in every day too, take it with me everywhere. Newegg.com carries them, I'd say spend the extra $100 and get the version that'll work with cellular.

-Edit- Tracked down the newegg link for ya

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod...alaxy_tab_active_2-_-9SIAEJW6WD4061-_-Product
 
denverpilot said:
Probably not running hardware compatible with either the Android OS or iOS.

.
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That’s pretty easy todo, Linux run on many platforms with completely different hardware. Wine (windows emulator) runs on Linux. It’s pretty easy to do, nothing a little software can’t fix .
FWIW, I use to do that for living.
 
teejayevans said:
That’s pretty easy todo, Linux run on many platforms with completely different hardware. Wine (windows emulator) runs on Linux. It’s pretty easy to do, nothing a little software can’t fix .
FWIW, I use to do that for living.
Click to expand...

Kinda. Emulators aren’t fast, so if their hardware is something that doesn’t support Linux natively, they’d probably avoid that route.

I tried looking for Aera tear downs by electronics geeks but found nothing. Not enough volume of those out there for “casual” tear downs I guess. Was kinda curious what was under the hood. Oh well.

The Aera lineup is likely just stuff that’s also in their marine lineup which is much more popular but didn’t look for tear downs of those.

Still, two different divisions at Garmin, I’m sure. There’s also the issue that to unify those they’d have to kill someone’s baby in the handheld division...
 
I have used Garmin Pilot for Android since its introduction in 2012. I'm currently running it flawlessly on two Samsung S2s and a new Samsung S3. We use it on every flight.

Pilot for Android hasn't been buggy since ~2014ish. If it's not running properly on your device, it may be an issue with your device.
 
denverpilot said:
Still, two different divisions at Garmin, I’m sure. There’s also the issue that to unify those they’d have to kill someone’s baby in the handheld division...
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There is also the experimental division and certified division. I think that’s why they came out with TXi instead of certifying G3X touch, which is what I would have done, followed the G5 model.
 
teejayevans said:
There is also the experimental division and certified division. I think that’s why they came out with TXi instead of certifying G3X touch, which is what I would have done, followed the G5 model.
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Sure. Big company, big silos. No consolidated plan.
 
> Samsung Galaxy Tab Active 2

> Is drop proof, dust proof, water proof, etc. Has optional LTE for $100 more, has stylus to take notes with as G-Pilot has a scratchpad. And the perfect size.

How bright is the screen, in nits? If you know.

iPads may have taken over in planes without canopies but their screens are invisible in direct sunlight, which is why the 660 is a good choice for canopied environments. iPads with and without the retina screen are 410 nits, last I checked. I'm curious if this new Samsung is any brighter.
 
MikeS said:
> Samsung Galaxy Tab Active 2

> Is drop proof, dust proof, water proof, etc. Has optional LTE for $100 more, has stylus to take notes with as G-Pilot has a scratchpad. And the perfect size.

How bright is the screen, in nits? If you know.

iPads may have taken over in planes without canopies but their screens are invisible in direct sunlight, which is why the 660 is a good choice for canopied environments. iPads with and without the retina screen are 410 nits, last I checked. I'm curious if this new Samsung is any brighter.
Click to expand...
480 nits. Never had a problem in direct Texas sunlight.

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Thanks. Good to know.
 
Anytime, let me know if you want to know anything else about the device. Been using mine about 6 months now and wouldn't change a thing.
MikeS said:
Thanks. Good to know.
Click to expand...

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Apple’s form factor is becoming a huge problem. With the only in-cockpit usable Apple device (iPad mini4) being 4 years old running a A8 chip (iPhone 6 chip) it is getting really slow. 4 years ago Apple was the king of EFB. Now with devices like the Galaxy Note with the S pen for writing iPad is unable to compete. Unless they release a mini5 or mini pro I’ll be forced to switch.

Even though I really don’t like Apple and use an Android Phone, Apple *was* the better choice for in flight devices. Looks like that is changing. I am glad as Android devices have been superior overall for a long time.

And before some screams fanboy I purchased an ipad mini4 for use in the plane, and would gladly buy a mini5. A 9.7” screen however is less than useless though. Even if it were free I wouldn’t be able to use it!

-Brian
 
Android superior... lol, as I type from my XS max. Anyway I agree a mini 5 would be appreciated. Would go to a 9.7 before going to android. Just hated the interface. I really have limited experience with android, but I didn’t care for it.
 
Brian Green said:
Apple’s form factor is becoming a huge problem. With the only in-cockpit usable Apple device (iPad mini4) being 4 years old running a A8 chip (iPhone 6 chip) it is getting really slow. 4 years ago Apple was the king of EFB. Now with devices like the Galaxy Note with the S pen for writing iPad is unable to compete. Unless they release a mini5 or mini pro I’ll be forced to switch.
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Apple is in no danger of losing business, and the iPad's foothold in aviation is in no way being threatened by the lack of a new Mini. While many of us would love to see a new Mini introduced, most are willing to just live with the larger iPad.

It's not the hardware, it's the software which rules the roost here. FF and GP are by far the most popular products and while Garmin does build an Android version of GP, it's not nearly as well-supported and usually lags significantly behind its iPad sibling. No matter how one shakes it, for aviation, there's iPad, then there's everything else. That doesn't mean some of us can't find niche offerings which support our specific needs here and there, but for the most part, you're taking a big step back in capability when you leave the iOS platform.

Not a fanboy. Just realistic.
 
Ryan F. said:
Apple is in no danger of losing business, and the iPad's foothold in aviation is in no way being threatened by the lack of a new Mini. While many of us would love to see a new Mini introduced, most are willing to just live with the larger iPad.

It's not the hardware, it's the software which rules the roost here. FF and GP are by far the most popular products and while Garmin does build an Android version of GP, it's not nearly as well-supported and usually lags significantly behind its iPad sibling. No matter how one shakes it, for aviation, there's iPad, then there's everything else. That doesn't mean some of us can't find niche offerings which support our specific needs here and there, but for the most part, you're taking a big step back in capability when you leave the iOS platform.

Not a fanboy. Just realistic.
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I am curious about the actual differences.
Can you point to a recent feature set comparison of GP on iOS and Android? All the ones I have found are rather old and out of date.

Or is this perception based on history and non o longer current?

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tspear said:
I am curious about the actual differences.
Can you point to a recent feature set comparison of GP on iOS and Android? All the ones I have found are rather old and out of date.

Or is this perception based on history and non o longer current?

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Click to expand...

I don't know of an easy way to feature compare other than to go to Garmin's site and compare their latest info to FF's.

It's always changing but Android is always behind in Garmin's development cycle. That's just the way they release the Garmin Pilot updates. The level of bugginess/issues in the Android version varies as the delta in releases changes. I do feel confident in saying that the Android version lags well behind the iPad version in both features and stability. The iPad version of GP is quite good, and rivals FF.

I have both (iPad only). In my view FF has the edge mainly due to its weather briefing format, as well as its ability to load procedures (departure, arrival, approach) into the flight plan, which GP can't do. But GP's interface is slick and integrates nicely with my Garmin panel. Also has icing/clouds and winds at different altitudes in the profile view which I like. Garmin's a bit more customizable with the split view. They both have their strengths.

If I had to pick one it would be FF, but I need GP for Database Concierge if nothing else.
 
Ryan,

Missing my question, for GP how do you know that iOS still has more features and Andoid? That iOS is the primary platform?

Tim

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tspear said:
Ryan,

Missing my question, for GP how do you know that iOS still has more features and Andoid? That iOS is the primary platform?
Click to expand...

Because Garmin says so - and from personal experience using both. Garmin makes no attempt to hide that the Android version of the product is a limited featureset by comparison to the iOS version. It's also pretty clear when comparing the update history in the Android vs. iOS user manuals. The Android version shows notably fewer updates, and always around 6 months or more behind every iOS release. You'll also see fewer features listed in most of the Android updates.

I don't blame them. It's hard to code for such a varied ecosystem of hardware.

I believe the Android market for GP is fairly small compared to iPad, not surprisingly. I wouldn't be shocked if Garmin ultimately dropped it in favor of pure iOS development, the way Foreflight has, but that's just my personal musing.
 
Ask @sinister. Think he uses both
 
As of the latest GP Android release there are only very few features that are not completely mirrored. The features missing from GP Android are:
  • Ability to mark-up or draw on charts
  • Vertical profile view of flight plan for terrain/ vertical planning
    • Obviously since you don't get the profile view, you don't get the icing in profile view feature also.
That's it! All other features are there now, the rest were added in the July update for Android GP.

I also have an official email from Garmin stating these features are in the pipeline and that the profile view is next on the list to be implemented.

As for Foreflight, I have several responses from Foreflight confirming that they will NEVER release anything for android.

I do have to throw this one out there too, as for features, ease of use and planning iFlyGPS is a very good contender on the android EFB market. The only reason I do not use it over Garmin Pilot is the LogBook featureset.

Any other questions?
 
I was looking at the logbook in GP.
What do like it compared to other solutions?
I may eventually go for my Commercial; does GP track what is required for this?
 
tspear said:
I was looking at the logbook in GP.
What do like it compared to other solutions?
I may eventually go for my Commercial; does GP track what is required for this?
Click to expand...

GP logbook will track anything you need for commercial. Things I like about the GP logbook are the auto-log feature of recording flight info for each log entry. Endorsement signatures, CFI can sign on your tablet any endorsements needed.

Personally, the reason I chose GP logbook vs all the others I tried is that I found it tedious to log things in the other e-logbooks vs the auto-log functions of the GP logbook. If you have no issues with swapping apps to log stuff, and have no desire to track course and altitude then using another e-logbook may be a possibility for you. One of the biggest downfalls of GP in a whole is it's refusal to inter-operate with 3rd party ADS-B IN solutions. A cheap $150 Stratux can be a real life saver, but you'd have to use an EFB other than GP. Fortunately my PA28-235 has ADS-B IN on the GTN, so this is acceptable to me.
 
Eric Fetty said:
As of the latest GP Android release there are only very few features that are not completely mirrored. The features missing from GP Android are:
  • Ability to mark-up or draw on charts
  • Vertical profile view of flight plan for terrain/ vertical planning
    • Obviously since you don't get the profile view, you don't get the icing in profile view feature also.
That's it! All other features are there now, the rest were added in the July update for Android GP.
Click to expand...

... that's only true if you have the latest version of Android, by the way, which is not available on all hardware at all times. The matrix is pretty complicated to understand, so don't take my word for it - figure out which tablet you have and make sure it can run the latest version of Android, and subsequently, the latest version of GP for Android.
 
Ryan F. said:
... that's only true if you have the latest version of Android, by the way, which is not available on all hardware at all times. The matrix is pretty complicated to understand, so don't take my word for it - figure out which tablet you have and make sure it can run the latest version of Android, and subsequently, the latest version of GP for Android.
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Incorrect, you are not required to have the latest version of Android to update to the latest GP. If you've ever written an android application you would know that rarely ever are you required to be running the latest version of Android. Most apps are written against the least possible version that meets their support requirements. In fact I'm running android 5 on one of my tablets and it is running the latest version of GP just fine.

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Eric Fetty said:
Incorrect, you are not required to have the latest version of Android to update to the latest GP. If you've ever written an android application you would know that rarely ever are you required to be running the latest version of Android. Most apps are written against the least possible version that meets their support requirements. In fact I'm running android 5 on one of my tablets and it is running the latest version of GP just fine.

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Click to expand...

You might want to advise Garmin of that fact since they have different versions for different Android OSes as stipulated in the Android Garmin Pilot manual. See 190-01532-00_M.pdf.
 
Looking through the manual, there is supposed to be a feature called scratchpad. But I do not see it on my phone....

Tim

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I am not an Apple fan.

But I put away my views and bought what ran Garmin Pilot best which was an iPad.
 
What version is it?
d2a89a04edcdfb3343b295f09e6353ab.jpg
15cecf7c14b6b8a1bf804b384040384a.jpg


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Jamie Kirk said:
I am not an Apple fan.

But I put away my views and bought what ran Garmin Pilot best which was an iPad.
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I agree that Apple has much more support from the major vendors simply because of version parity of the OS. In my book, the features weren't worth giving up my android, which has many other redeeming qualities. It might be different if I only used my tablet for flying, but I don't see the value in that. I don't think any of us are here to persuade one way or another, rather provide options and information.

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tspear said:
Looking through the manual, there is supposed to be a feature called scratchpad. But I do not see it on my phone....

Tim

Sent from my SM-J737T using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

iPhone or Android? My iPad and iPhone share the same 22 items on the home menu including Scratch Pad.
 
Stewartb said:
iPhone or Android? My iPad and iPhone share the same 22 items on the home menu including Scratch Pad.
Click to expand...
Andriod. GP release 7.0.3
If it matters. Samsung J7 Star. Android 8.0.0


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Ryan F. said:
....I have both (iPad only). In my view FF has the edge mainly due to its weather briefing format, as well as its ability to load procedures (departure, arrival, approach) into the flight plan, which GP can't do......
Click to expand...

Something other than this?

a282f188cd174a17b110b6076280523b.png


b927cb0fcd66bfb771be823dde8f397f.png
 
Ok, you're right. That's great! I found departures and arrivals. Is that a new update? I don't recall that being there in the past.

But most importantly I still can't add an approach to my flight plan. Or can I?
 
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