NutiChart Lite is a free Android app that like a chartplotter shows you your boat's position on a chart, assuming your Android smartphone or tablet has an internal or external GPS receiver. It uses standard NOAA raster charts, the same as many other apps - which display the same as standard paper charts.
The enticement here is that while the app is free, the method by which you download charts for use is so clunky that most mariners who want to continue using the app will be motivated to purchase chart packages, sold by state, to avoid the problems of the free downloads. So it's not free at all except for those who boat in only a small geographical area that can be more easily downloaded for offline use on the boat - or for people who are constantly connected (a risky thing to trust on a boat).
In addition, NutiCharts lacks many of the features of other low-cost charting apps.
Version reviewed: NutiCharts Lite 1.0.9 - free at Android Market
Tested on Lenovo A1 Tablet running Android 2.3
What It Does
Here are the key features of NutiCharts Lite:
- When online, view your GPS position on the NOAA chart - zoom and pan to look ahead and around.
- Enter and save bookmarks for locations (instead of waypoints - but with no navigational functions.
- Once a section of chart is viewed online, it is apparently saved to memory and can be recalled when offline (but see limitations, below).
- For offline use, purchase a downloaded chart package (currently at $5.99 per state - note that these are standard NOAA charts that are free in other contexts but must be purchased here).
- When online, you can also obtain weather information within the app (present and forecast data).
- When online, or if you have purchased a chart package, you also have access to ActiveCaptain data (which is also free on the web and present within some other apps) - a useful feature for cruisers.
The Downside
NutiChart Lite is not a full chartplotter like many other apps, but essentially just shows your position on the chart. It does not include routes or other navigation functions. Rather, it has very simple functions, which would be fine for a free app, except that to use it well you may end up purchasing a chart package (clearly the developer's intent) - and thus it can appropriately be compared to paid apps with many more features, like Memory-Map, MX Mariner, and Navionics Marine & Lakes.
My biggest complaint is the clunky and confusing function for free chart downloading and what I see as a great risk in using this free system. Here's how it works. When you are online, you look at the chart in "NOAA Online" mode, which lets you zoom and pan around you, and the app saves that section of chart (but not the whole NOAA chart) for later offline use. The kicker is that it saves chart bits only to the extent that you zoomed and panned when online. This can easily give you the illusion that you have what you need when you go out on the water and find yourself offline.
Here's what can happen then: you think you have the appropriate chart and are using it to navigate, say, a narrow channel. You try to zoom in for more detail but suddenly the screen blanks and reads "Please zoom or pan map" (as in the photo above) - which means that you don't have that section of chart at the level of zoom you need. And the maximum zoom in is much more limited than other chart apps - you can only get in so far (at least in the free version). Or maybe you go a mile farther than you had planned to and sail right off the chart segment's edge.
Users also complain that it runs very slow and does not zoom in very far.
Conclusions
NutiCharts Lite has a fairly high reviewer rating on Android Market, but I suspect the 4- and 5-star ratings come from either boaters who stay within a small geographical area (and thus can avoid the chart downloading problems) or those who have not looked at better charting apps like Memory-Map, MX Mariner, or Navionics Marine & Lakes - and perhaps those with constant G3 or G4 connectivity who may not realize the risks of losing a signal when depending on an online chart.
Frankly, I find the problem of the offline free charts potentially dangerous. Almost all serious boaters are used to paper NOAA charts and don't anticipate that they might have only a tiny piece of a chart in the device they're depending on. It's just a screwy way to do it. Of course, if they had made the free system work better, then you wouldn't be motivated to buy their charts. That six bucks per state may not seem like much if you never leave your state, but many of us (like me in New England) might have to purchase 3 states just to cover a 10-mile stretch of coastline for a Saturday sail. At any price, frankly, you'd do much, much better with one of the competing programs.
Here’s a comparison of 5 Android apps for boat charts and navigation to help you choose the one best for you.
This app as described here is available for Android devices. For Apple devices, check these apps.
