Tech races forward at a blinding pace, and that includes marine electronics tech. The National Marine Electronics Conference & Expo just took place in Providence, RI, where a slew of new gear was released to the public. We’re guessing you didn’t travel all the way up there for the event, so here’s the lowdown on three cool goodies that met the bar for Product of Excellence awards.
- Fishfinder – Furuno took the prize with its DFF3D Multi-Beam Sonar. It provides down-looking to 900′ and side-views out to 600′, and can combine the different views of the different sonar beams to paint a 3D picture of what lies beneath the water’s surface. Most other 3D units can only handle distances of 200′ or so. The DFF3D is available for use with NavNet TZtouch, TZtouch2, or TZtouch 3 systems and also works with Furuno’s Personal Bathymetric Generator so you can create your own high-res color-shaded charts as you fish.
- Marine VHF Radio – The Icom M510 EVO impressed judges with the ability to tap into your VHF radio via smartphone. The RS-M500 app for iOS or Android lets you use your phone as a wireless controller for the radio, a wireless microphone, and an intercom. It also boasts a 15-watt waterproof speaker and integrated AIS that displays right on the radio’s display.
- Best New Product – This one went to the BRNKL Blue, a monitoring, security, and video system. The Fish On! feature allows you to trigger automated video recording then share via social media, adding some fun to security functions like live-streaming video when you’re away from the boat and providing alerts for unusual activity. BRNKL Blue also collects engine data via NMEA2000 and supports remote digital switching control for CZone, EmpirBus, and Maretron systems.