GPS without precedent
In the world of handheld GPS receivers, few things are as certain as rapid change. What we thought was a world-class effort just a year ago has been relegated to the yesterday's-news bin. And although it may be a two-edged sword — as in the computer world, it's hard to know exactly when to buy, for fear of rapid obsolescence — there's no denying that these are exciting times.
So into this elbows-to-rib-cages, dog-eat-dog world steps II Morrow, Inc., with an offering that raises the high-water mark in handheld GPS receivers. The Apollo Precedus, which should be available in quantity now, is so feature laden and capable that it's hard to imagine all that computing power stuffed into a 17-ounce container just 7.5 inches tall, 2.2 inches wide, and 1.5 inches deep.
A liquid-crystal display — measuring 1.6 inches x 2.9 inches and with 80 x 160 pixel resolution — makes up most of the Precedus' front panel. It's an excellent display, with good contrast and characters that are easy to read. It is, we think, an improvement over the II Morrow 920+ handheld's display. Below the screen are nine function buttons, all backlighted, that mimic the proven data- entry scheme used in the 920+.
As is becoming customary in handhelds, the heart of the II Morrow's system is a series of navigation pages. First you'll see the GPS receiver status page, with signal strength and satellite position shown. Next in line is a flight-planning page. The Precedus can hold 20 flight plans of up to 30 waypoints each and, mercifully, doesn't make you scroll through empty flight plans.
As part of the flight-plan page, the Precedus gives you the option of selecting an approach monitor as part of your destination waypoint. This function simply loads the coordinates of waypoints used in nonprecision approaches at the airport as part of the flight plan. It can also offer generated waypoints that coincide with the extended centerline of the runway you plan on using. There is no support for waypoints used in precision approaches, although the extended-centerline option will work just as well. II Morrow is adamant, however, that the Precedus not be used as your primary approach navigator; there's even a disclaimer page that you must acknowledge before moving past the approach monitor page.
Following the flight-plan information is the main moving-map page, which gives the view of your surroundings nearly full use of the large screen. Four small data blocks depict the waypoint in use, distance and bearing to it, and the map scale. II Morrow has given the Precedus a generous allotment of screen ranges, from 0.1 nm to 250 nm in 15 steps. More important, they are tightly clustered in the most useful ranges; we seldom wished for a screen range that the Precedus didn't offer. Moreover, there's an auto-scale feature that will keep your next waypoint (or your destination, if that's all you have programmed) on the screen at all times. A pan control also allows you to look beyond the map's boundaries without changing scales. A thin annunciator strip resides at the bottom of every screen, telling you about the GPS receiver's mode, level of display backlighting, battery condition and whether it's charging, and cursor-key hints.
A critical element in making the Precedus' moving map work to full advantage is the unit's sophisticated declutter routine. You can set screen-range limits that determine which symbols are shown on the screen — these include airports, VORs, NDBs, en route intersections, and user waypoints. For example, you can insist that NDBs are shown only at screen ranges smaller than 5 nm. Likewise, you can set the Precedus to offer only VORs at screen ranges in excess of 150 nm. This feature allows you to customize the display extensively for your own preferences and the density of the airspace you're flying in. It's an elegant and truly useful bit of programming.
Flexibility arrives in other ways in the Precedus. Additional navigation screens — one with a map two-thirds the size of the main display — can be customized by the user. Selectable fields include typical waypoint information (distance, bearing, track, groundspeed, time to and time en route, etc.) as well as items derived from the Precedus' extensive E6-B calculator menu. You can have winds-aloft information showing all the time, for instance, as well as various timers and graphic heading and course-deviation indicators. We advise you to spend a few hours in the simulator mode to determine how you want the screens arranged, rather than doing so in the airplane.
The Precedus includes nearest-airport search — it can look for the closest navaid, intersection, user waypoint, or patch of special- use airspace, too — and a handy, no-fuss direct-to gateway. In all, the handheld takes the straightforward operating logic from the 920+ and embellishes it. There's no impression of reinventing the wheel just to be different, and for that we're grateful.
II Morrow has wedged a full eight-channel parallel GPS receiver inside the Precedus' case, and it works marvelously. Even in suboptimal conditions — like the external antenna tossed haphazardly on the glareshield — the Precedus tracks like a basenji with fresh meat in sight. A small poker-chip-sized antenna normally resides atop the Precedus, but it can be replaced with a jumper wire for remote mounting; in a fit of stylishness, to preserve the Precedus' sleek looks, II Morrow gave the patch cord a small plastic cover where it meets the unit.
A commonly available cellular-telephone battery powers the Precedus. Right now there is no alkaline option to the nicad pack, although company representatives said that a disposable alkaline emergency pack is under consideration. Current packaging doesn't offer enough real estate for conventional AA cells. We managed to duplicate the claimed 4-hour run time in normal use on a fully charged pack without using the backlighting. This time included some, but not extensive, use of the secondary, nonmoving-map features.
So far, the question asked most about the Precedus is how it stacks up against the Garmin 90 (see " Pilot Products," June Pilot). Fair question. In a sense, though, it's an apples-and-oranges comparison. The Precedus feels more substantial, and the operating system offers considerably more flexibility. The Precedus' eight- channel GPS engine appears marginally more adept at capturing satellite lock quickly. But the Precedus' comparatively gluttonous battery consumption — four hours compared to the real-world 15 the Garmin 90 gets from four AAs — makes having a secondary power source an ongoing concern. With the Garmin, just pack an extra set of alkalines and you'll likely complete your whole vacation without ever plugging in.
And then there's price. II Morrow has set the Precedus' retail price at $1,395. Current street prices are less than $1,200, but that's still nearly twice the going rate of the Garmin 90. Is the Precedus worth the difference? Depends on how you look at it. If you value fine machinery, want nothing less than the utmost in flexibility and capability, and are willing to look beyond the power- consumption issue, then the Precedus may well be for you.
For more information, contact II Morrow, Inc., 2345 Turner Road, Salem, Oregon 97302; telephone 800/525-6726, fax 503/364- 2138. — Marc E. Cook
Suction Cup Bugs
For those of us regularly flying a number of different airplanes, it's tough enough to stay current and flexible without having to remember important V speeds all the time. One aid in this endeavor is Whiteman International's Portable Bugs, a device as simple as it sounds. A clear plastic pointer is mounted to a small suction cup through a threaded fitting. Place the cup on the face of the instrument — it can be the airspeed indicator, altimeter, tachometer, whatever you want — twist the pointer to the number you need to remember, and you're all set.
We tried the bugs in a couple of different airplanes and found that they worked just fine. The yellow-tipped pointer is easy to see, and the clear suction cup obscures the inner part of the dial only slightly. You get two to a box for $10.95, so they're hardly expensive.
For more information, contact Whiteman International, 3600 Osuna Road, NE, #321, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87109; telephone 505/345-1859. Portable Bugs are also sold through Sporty's Pilot Shop, 800/SPORTYS. — MEC
Flight Unlimited
Now comes the true value of CD-ROM drives for computers: It's to run Flight Unlimited, the new aerobatic flight simulator software from Looking Glass Technologies. Frankly, a good many of the flight simulation games fail to impress. They lack the realism to hold even the most rabid pilot-cum-hacker's interest. But Looking Glass Technologies allows you not only to fly, but to learn aerobatics at your computer. Having just completed a beginning aerobatics course in a real airplane, I find Flight Unlimited a valuable tool for reviewing the basics.
The software opens in a virtual FBO, in which you move around via the mouse. Get too near the karate arcade on one side of the office and you will hear cartoon characters making humorous "HeeeeYA!" sounds associated with the sport. After every flight, your logbook is filled in for you, humorously but accurately; for example, it may say, "Crashed! Where did you learn to fly?" You have your choice of several aerobatic models to fly — Decathlon, Pitts, Extra, etc. My only complaint is that when the pilot makes a mistake and a crash results, the software lingers on that mistake for an embarrassingly long time. First you hear the plane come apart, then you see the pieces fall, then you hear them hit the ground. Often I would hit "Q" for Quit before Looking Glass Technologies could rub it in any further.
Obviously you will need a sound card and a CD-ROM drive to run Flight Unlimited. Also required is a 486DX/33 MHz or better computer running MS-DOS 5.0 or higher, with 8 MB of RAM, and at least 25 MB of space on your hard drive. When I ran it, I was required to edit my "config.sys" file to disable some of the commands needed by Windows. Also, while this product test was conducted using the keyboard to control the airplane, this package cries out for a joystick and rudders.
For those of you sitting on the fence of a computer upgrade, Flight Unlimited may be the kick you need. The software is available at most software stores for around $70. For more information, contact Looking Glass Technologies, One Alewife Center, Suite 450, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02149; telephone 617/441-6333. — Alton K. Marsh
Unless otherwise stated, products listed herein have not been evaluated by AOPA Pilot editors. AOPA assumes no responsibility for products or services listed or for claims or actions by manufacturers or vendors. However, members unable to get satisfaction regarding products listed should advise AOPA. To submit products for evaluation, contact: New Products Editor, AOPA Pilot, 421 Aviation Way, Frederick, Maryland 21701; telephone 301/695-2350.
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