Boating - June 2016 USA

PHOTOS: (COUNTERCLOCKWISE FROM TOP) COURTESY BAK USA (3), COURTESY RAM MOUNTS, CRAIG HASHIMOTO

RAM Mounts for Tablets

Some boaters use electronic chart programs on their tablets and

iPads to augment their navigation electronics, but in rough seas, it’s

tough to hold these mobile devices while you run the boat. To make

a tablet such as the Bak Seal 8 accessible, readable and secure, use

a system like the RAM Mounts Universal 7- to 8-Inch Tablet Flat

Surface Mount ($56.59, westmarine.com). A special frame grips

the sides of the tablet while the adjustable, corrosion-resistant

RAM Mount lets you fi ne-tune the viewing angle and place the

touchscreen within easy reach. For larger tablets, use the RAM

Mounts 10-Inch Tablet Flat Surface Mount ($58.76, westmarine.

com). The RAM quick-release system lets you install or remove the

tablet in seconds. – J.H.

Increasing the antenna

height can also increase

distance, so mount

your antenna as high

as possible, such as

on top of your boat’s

hardtop or radar arch.

You can also get greater

range with a longer

antenna — it has a larger

radiating element.

Additionally, keep

in mind that not all

VHF radios are created

equally. Maximum

range is in part due to

the quality of the signal

they produce and their

ability to “hear” weak

and distant stations, as

well as screen out noise

and interference. As a

basic rule, better radios

generally cost more.

— Ken Englert

ASK KEN ONLINE

For more exclusive

electronics content, visit

boatingmag.com/askken.

For many reasons, tablets have become common on today’s boats both big and

small, but most of these mobile devices aren’t really built for the aquatic life.

That’s changing, however, thanks to companies like Buffalo, New York-based

Bak USA and its Seal 8 marine tablet. — Jim Hendricks

The name sounds like an elite

fi ghting force, but Bak USA

spokesman Tim Connelly says

that was unintentional. “We

thought about creatures that

live in water, and we came up

with a seal,” he explains. “The

8 refers to the diagonal screen

size.” Yet this rugged marinized

LED touchscreen Android-based

tablet might be a tool that Seal

Bak Seal 8 Marine Tablet

Team 8 could use. It features a

built-in GPS that works in the

absence of cell service or Wi-Fi,

and it’s submersible to 1 meter.

The 1.6-pound tablet will fl oat

with a single buoyant wrist

strap. Designed to withstand

extreme temperatures, humidity

and shock, the Seal 8 sports a

rubberized case. Engineered to

use Windows 8.1 and 10 with

an Intel Quad-Core processor

and speeds up to 1.33 GHz, it

also has front and back camera

lenses, a fi ngerprint reader,

bar-code scanner, and ports

for 2.0 and micro USB, micro

HDMI, headphones, and 10-pin

interface for docking. Prices

start at $499 (add $100 for

LTE 4G); visit bakusa.com for

more information.

90 BOATINGMAG.COM JUNE 2016