New Garmin Active Captain App

RobMcClain

RobMcClain

Member
Yesterday I received an email from the folks at Active Captain explaining the original Active Captain app is being replaced by a new one to be managed by Garmin. This action is in line with the sale of Active Captain to Garmin. While I do not run Garmin electronics on our boat (it's all Raymarine equipment), it is my understanding the new app will still include free of charge all of the standard Active Captain data. For folks running Garmin electronics the app will also include some new functionality that the rest of us will simply not utilize.

I anxiously downloaded the app and so far find it amazingly slow and generally awful. It must just be me. I must be doing something wrong. I am running the Android app on a 1-year old Samsung Tab 2 tablet. No doubt many other Brats have installed the new Garmin Active Captain app. How is it working for you? At this point I can't imagine using it much anymore which really bothers me. I have found the Active Captain data to be a very valuable resource and do not want to lose it. I do have access to the data using my Aqua Map app, but I have always deferred to the Active Captain app because it has been so fast and user friendly. Both of those aspects appear to have vanished with the new app unless I am doing something wrong....

What are others finding?

Rob
 
Looking good so far and very responsive on a Samsung Note 8. I need to connect it to our chartplotter to load more maps and do updates.

Greg
 
basics from app page...

The free all-in-one ActiveCaptain™ app provides a powerful connection to your Garmin chartplotter, charts, maps and the community for the ultimate connected boating experience. Wherever you are, you’ll have unlimited access to your cartography, be able to purchase new maps and charts, and have access to the Garmin Quickdraw™ Contours Community. Connect to the ActiveCaptain community for up-to-date feedback on marinas and other points of interest. Smart Notifications¹ on your chartplotter screen keep you connected with everyone else. Plan a trip or pre-fish a lake, and ActiveCaptain will automatically sync with your chartplotter. Even view and control your chartplotter from your smartphone or tablet while you’re on the water.

- OneChart™ lets you access all your charts and maps from your mobile device and purchase new ones
- Receive Smart Notifications¹, such as calls and texts, on your chartplotter display when paired with the app
- Connect to fellow boaters with the ActiveCaptain community for up-to-date feedback on marinas and other points of interest
- Make, save and transfer routes and waypoints between the app and chartplotter
- Easily upload and download the latest Garmin Quickdraw Contours content from the community
- Download software updates and notifications from the app to your Garmin devices
- View and control your chartplotter from your smartphone or tablet
 
I posted several comments on the Garmin update thread.

Basically to use all of the features of the latest Garmin Helm and the Active Captain app, you will have to use either a very limited number of current chart plotters (ones over a year old so far don't work), and a whole new line.

Garmin Blue Chart Mobile still works fine--and that is how I access Active Captain when cruising.

The I OS Active Captain App still is not in the I OS store, There is a Active Captain Locations app. The nautical maps of NOAA or Aqua Map both loaded quickly There are a lot of people with boat cards--who show up on the map. But none of the Active Captain anchorages, hazards, marinas etc.

Although I have used NOAA charts for years, there are far better charts now, including Garmin & Navionics. Aquamaps, which are glitzy, don't seem to add much to navigation information...and I would not use them over Navionics for navigation.

I don't have any real desire to see where other subscriber's to Active Captain's boats are--although amount my "friends" are many of the C Dory boats. (most of which seem to be "at home" now.)

Garmin Helm, currently is not in the I pad store in the USA, although I have used it in the past (may have been a beta?) on another iPad. It is also possible that Garmin has pulled the app since there many changes with the latest re-iteration of Garmin/Active Captain interface.

Apparently the newest apps are not in the Apple store, but are in Google store. I'll have to get an android I use for testing and try them tomorrow

Greg--Can you get the new maps to upload on your Garmin Chart plotter?
My understanding is that it only works with the latest models--and there is no update for a model a year or so old.--or even some of the current models, which were first marketed several years ago, even though they do interphase with the chart plotter.
 
I Just ran updates for both boats and fired up the new app to see what it could do. It can connect to the 741xs and recognize the maps installed and allow me to download them over the web to the app for detailed maps within the active captain map screen. That works fine but the ability to sync waypoints/routes, do software updates, and smart notifications from the app to plotter are deactivated.

It looks like our units are one generation behind the curve for full functionality. I will be pulling the old AC app off my phone and using this new one in its place as it has garmin mapping now and nice tide/current features and a quick interface plus the helm app can go as well because that is also included.

Greg
 
Greg,

Thanks,
Those functions should just be software controlled, so my suspicion is that if Garmin wanted to, they could allow full function with our "last generation" chart plotters...Of course the new ones are 2x as expensive...
 
thataway":18lqvzbj said:
Those functions should just be software controlled, so my suspicion is that if Garmin wanted to, they could allow full function with our "last generation" chart plotters...Of course the new ones are 2x as expensive...
Click to expand...

But the app does support older chartplotters wherever it can now. The only time functionality isn't supported is when the chartplotter doesn't have the hardware needed to perform the function.

I think the chart on Garmin's website showing compatibility is causing more harm than good. That list is showing the chartplotters with full support - everything possible in the app will be supported by those chartplotters.

But for many users, the new app will allow them to use OneChart. With that, you can manually register the chartplotter into the app and then use the same charts on the app and chartplotter.

So let's say you own an older Garmin chartplotter that's "not supported." You can download the app for free, register the chartplotter manually, and then have access to full charts on the app. I think that for some older chartplotters, registering the device will actually allow you to update the charts in the chartplotter to later versions for free too. That's not as obvious and I haven't tried all combinations.

And the iOS version is coming. I've been using it for a while as a tester. Apple held it up because of a technical reason. It'll be free in the app store within a few days.
 
I just updated my Garmin 7612 this weekend. I got it connected to the new ActiveCaptain app. I'm pretty impressed with the integration. I wasn't even aware the 7600 series had bluetooth.

But with that connection, I can choose to have some of my phone notifications appear on my chartplotter like calls, texts, emails, etc. Not that I really want to be reading all that from my chartplotter, but it will be nice not missing something important since I frequently don't hear calls / texts from my wife when I'm on the water.

I had been using the Garmin Helm app. This new ActiveCaptain app seems to replace that with a similar function. Although I can't seem to get the chartplotter image to fill up the entire screen the way I used to be able to do with Helm.

This may have been my last SD card based chartplotter software update as well since future updates should go through the app directly.

It's quite the major update.
 
I noticed the less than full screen nature of the new Helm feature in the app as well. I was blaming my widescreen phone format but will have to compare the old app to it and see if there is a difference. They may have optimized the format for tablets instead of phones?

Greg
 
ActiveCaptain":1fm5z382 said:
Rotate the phone to landscape mode?
Click to expand...

Of course. It does get bigger, but it doesn't take up the entire screen like Helm used to. There's some kind of application border still around it. On a tablet it wouldn't matter, but for a phone every 1/4" counts. I still have the Helm app so I'll take screen shots of each next time I'm at the boat.
 
The iOS version of the new ActiveCaptain app is now available. Search "Garmin ActiveCaptain" in the app store.

Tech support should be directed to tech support in the app or within Garmin. There's a whole team standing by to help there.

Enjoy!
 
When using Active Captain, do you have to have other charting (Navionics or something) on the same device? I have not used AC but think maybe this would be a good time to get on board.

I am assuming you do not have to have Garmin on your tablet (so Android by Samsung should work?)

Harvey
SleepyC :moon

January_2010_342.highlight.jpg
 
Got the app. Looks great--but since I don't keep my chart plotters on the boat, or hooked up, when not using the boat--cannot really use many features until I sync with the chart plotters. Will still use the Blue Charts Mobile for planning.

I'll have to climb up on the boat and hook up my chart plotters to power them up and "register" them. I suspect that then will give me the charts on the Garmin Active Captain app. (just not allowed to climb on the boat, after my last cardiac procedure.)

Harvey, I have been using Garmin Blue Charts Mobile with Active Captain for some time. I would suggest using that. When I do the "Chart" in the Garmin Active Captain App, without downloading them--to my chart plotter, it gives all of the Active Captain information, but only the crude base map. I noticed that C maps apparently also have Active Captain.

There are other charting apps which have Active Captain integrated in them. However you can view Active Captain on the web site, which has changed some, recently at activecaptain.Com. I would suggest that you spend some time there to become familiar with the many features.
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The App does have a basic map included so you can use that with or without your table/phone GPS to view the POIs and get the local info you want. We use it primarily for anchorage/passage info or recent marina reviews.

It is a nice compliment to the guidebooks and websites we otherwise use to guide out boating trips and could likely be used at this point as a basic guide or sorts to our northwest waters.

And those functions do not rely on data services so you can use it anytime from anywhere.

Greg
 
To all to all of this "excitement" Ben Ellison (Panbo) has given us two columns on the various systems of using apps and routing for Garmin, RayMarine, and Navico chart Plotters: Here and Here (The second link may have to be changed, as time goes by. ) All who are interested in this subject will benefit from these columns.

The emphasis on Active Captain's role in the second column.
 
Reading down the blogs, on Panbo, I like to follow up the links:

this one, showing a very serious mistake in Navionics Sonar charts, lead to a grounding of a sailing vessel. A must read for those of us who use the Navionics charts--caution to check the NOAA chart, which showed the issues, and would have prevented the grounding.

We don't know if Garmin will integrate their sounding information from the charts into the Navionics database, or vice versa--but it appears from reports that is what may happen down the line...double check several sources. (Referring to SonarCharts and Quickdraw, should only be used in conjunction with NOAA charts--but even the primary Navionics charts were wrong--in many places in this specific harbor.)
 
Panbo, has information that Active Captain will be integrated into Navionics App by the end of the year. Although not specifically addressed, my guess is that down the line, we will also see Active Captain in the Navionics Charts.

There will be a new Active Captain/Garmin Web site as of May 23, 2018. No more details yet on this. Maybe a revision of the current site--still free.
 
The problem I have with the new ActiveCaptain app--- it no longer has the weather forecast!! It gives the weather synopsis, but not the forecast like the old Garmin app.
 
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