There has been a lot of movement in the navigation app market in recent years. On the one hand, large marine companies are continuing to develop applications that they have bought up, while on the other, interesting start-ups such as the Norwegian company Orca are constantly shaking up the industry.
Nobeltec/Maxsea has also been playing in this market for several years with its TZ iBoat app. Once launched as a raster chart version, it has made several major leaps in development, was already a favourite in YACHT's last app comparison test in 2020 and had caught up enormously with market leader Navionics. With version 3, a very extensive update has now been rolled out. And the programme, which previously only ran on the iPad, is finally also suitable for iPhones. Previously, buyers could not use the app on both devices at the same time. Only Android fans are still left empty-handed, as there is no version for tablets and smartphones.
TZ iBoat is customisable
One of the main focuses of the new version of the app was to make the map image highly customisable for the user. There is now a choice of eight basic colour schemes based on existing paper and digital charts. English, French, American, S52 or even digital maps in the Navionics style can be preset. The user can also customise the charts extensively: Depth ranges, sea marks and entries can be resized, visually appealing satellite overlays, length and damping of the cursor, tide information. It is also possible to switch between the new vector and the old raster charts.
Visual gadgets, which can sometimes be very helpful, are also included, such as detailed depth charts, which can be helpful when searching for anchorages.
The biggest plus is a new, very comprehensive weather and electricity model. Weather data from five different sources can be called up.
The most important functions of TZ iBoat
During a summer cruise lasting several weeks, the data proved to be very good, because in addition to the usual US model GFS, the European versions ICON and the finer-resolution ICON-EU as well as the French models Arome and Arpege are also available. The forecast can be displayed as animated coloured particles in the style of Windy, with wind arrows or in 15 knots and ranges up to five-day forecasts. Current data can also be called up, also according to three models. The service leaves little to be desired, but is not cheap: weather data costs 9.90 euros per month, which is no bargain compared to Windy's 29-euro annual subscription, which even offers route routing. But you can cancel monthly. On the other hand, the wind visualisations on the map are visually appealing and are used for another new feature: Dynamic Mooring.
Automatic anchor suggestions from TZ iBoat
If this is activated, anchor bays are marked on the nautical chart with a current icon to which the prevailing wind directions are attached in the form of wind arrows. The duration of the planned stop can then be entered and the programme takes into account possible wind shifts and then displays the protection of the bay either as green (well suited), orange (slight swell) or red (not recommended). This may be a good function for inexperienced crews. You can also set an anchor alarm, which now also sends a warning text message to a mobile phone if you leave the tablet on board and it has a SIM card. Not only does this work with a swinging circle around the boat, you can also enter the bearing of the anchor and the chain length.
Many programmable alarms
A large number of alarms can be programmed: Depth, route course deviations, lost GPS fix, battery warning and, if AIS or on-board devices are paired, proximity or depth alarms. It is also pleasing that the app now has a MOB function, although this is not obviously visible as a field on the display: touching the display with two fingers for a second activates the MOB function, which marks the location and also indicates the bearing and distance to the drifter.
NMEA compatible
Connecting existing on-board electronics: If your own on-board devices have NMEA standard and make this available via WLAN, TZ iBoat can display depth, wind data and, above all, AIS and radar signals visually and the corresponding proximity alarms can be set. We were unable to test radar as this is only possible with a Furuno model, the DRS4W. AIS and radar functions cost a one-off fee of €9.99 and €49.90 respectively.
Speaking of prices: The chart sets are purchased as an annual subscription, the set for most Baltic Sea sailors is probably "Skagerrak and Kattegat" and covers the coasts of Germany, Denmark, Sweden and southern Norway for 92.99 euros. Mediterranean sets are cheaper, 40.99 euros for the western or central Mediterranean. Good : Users can test the app and maps for seven days free of charge! If you don't actively cancel after that, you'll be renewing for a year.
During our test trip, we liked the app
In addition: clear appearance, no crashes despite use on an old iPad from 2018. The recorded tracks are statistically processed with tables and graphics and can be transferred to various file formats. There is a good twilight and night mode, you can take photos and logbook entries and share them with friends. One weak point was the satellite image overlays, some of which are outdated. In Lyø harbour, for example, the harbour extension from 2019 was visible on the map, but the photo was out of date. In general, the harbour information is sparse; if you want information about services, harbour masters and other things in the navigation app, you will hardly find anything.
The question remains as to how close TZ iBoat is to the market leader Navionics. The fact is: TZ iBoat is much more comprehensive, has more features, has been developing consistently for years and has therefore become a real alternative.
TZ iBoat in detail
- Manufacturer Nobeltec/Maxsea
- Operating system iOS only, no Android
- Card type Vector and raster maps, the latter are not always available and are sometimes subject to a surcharge
- Coverage/territories/prices (selection);all prices are one-year subscriptions, downloaded maps are retained when the subscription is cancelled Skagerrak & Kattegat (D, DK, SWE, southern Norway) €92.99; Baltic Sea (Germany eastwards to Bothnia and Finland/Estonia) €61.99; north-west Europe €40.99; western Mediterranean €40.99; central Mediterranean €40.99; Caribbean €30.99
- Additional modules/app purchases Prices AIS module: €9.99; radar module: €49.99, one-off in each case; weather: €9.99/month
- NMEA/AIS interface yes/yes
- Wind/current/wave/tidal data yes/yes/yes/yes as in-app subscription
- Auto-Routing/MOB/Weather-Routing no/yes/no
- Anchor alarm/night mode yes/yes
- Routes/tracks import/export yes, data formats TZX, TZD, GPX
- Remarks You can switch back and forth between 2D and 3D mode. Various satellite image overlays possible. You can create community entries for harbours, bays, navigation marks or buoys and also view those of other users if you wish. Photos and annotations in tracks/charts possible. Fire and light sectors can be visualised, good for night sailing!
- Rating 5 stars
