iFly EFB
Flying with a new tablet
I charged it as advertised and booted it up. The Microsoft display was familiar enough to use somewhat smoothly, although not as intuitive to the more common user interfaces I’m familiar with as an indentured servant to Apple. Updating the database was simple, and I received Nexrad coverage with ease.
What stood out to me, though, is how small the actual display size is compared to the size of the tablet. The screen is barely bigger than my iPhone’s screen, and the resolution is significantly lower. However, as I would see in the air, its matte screen performed well in the direct sunlight, while the phone and iPad had glare.
Let’s get to how it performed in real life. I took the iFly EFB on a local flight on a normal, slightly warm, 75-degree-Fahrenheit day out of Zamperini Field (TOA) in Torrance, California. The EFB advertises that it does not overheat, a problem that I have run into with my previous iPad mini (although not my current one) while in the air, so the boast of heat-resilience stood out to me.
A CFI friend and I started up at Torrance. After zooming in on the tablet, I got position overlay on the airport diagram. Tapping “Torrance” pulled up airport information in an info box that had what I needed but didn’t look pretty. And looking pretty is important. It makes software and hardware easier to use.
After takeoff, the EFB alerted us to upcoming Class B airspace in both distance and time and showed the trend of our movement, plus a glide ring. Editing the flight plan was a little clunky but something I would expect to be easier with more use. In the air, it still felt more like a portable GPS than an EFB.
During the flight, the device heated up significantly, and had my iPad been a similar temperature, I would have expected imminent shutdown. However, the iFly kept working, and despite being uncomfortably hot to hold, I saw no degradation in performance. Upon landing, it automatically brought up the airport diagram overlaid on the chart with our position. It lost about 6 percent of its battery on full brightness over about an hour of on-time.
Although I didn’t do this, you can add checklists to the EFB and weight and balance as well. Overall, the iFly tablet is best used as a VFR-only navigation aid. The limited screen and limited resolution would prevent me from using it for IFR flying, although it was functional for VFR flying on a sunny day. Its most distinguishing features are its resilience to heat, long battery life, and matte screen. Other EFBs are seemingly more powerful, though, and the user interface didn’t make me want to learn to use this one more, but I wouldn’t say no to having it as a backup GPS/navigation aid. This EFB would best be used for VFR-only pilots, those already in the Microsoft/Android family, or as an additional aid to situational awareness on the flight deck. For IFR flying or for Apple and ForeFlight loyalists, stick to the tried and true and consider this for a backup. 
iflyefb.comiFly EFB X7 Aviation Tablet: $599
Subscription: $94.99 per year, plus $55 for IFR option
Related Articles
