Quote:
Originally Posted by rwidman
That sounds like a space heater with a keyboard.
Have you considered switching to a laptop?
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Desktop units are power hogs, between 75 and 250 watts depending on the unit. However, they are cheap, mine was $250, and for navigation underway the power use is not an issue. At anchor power is key. A dedicated laptop is my alternative to a small Garmin, as I could use my now obsolete netbook which uses 18 watts (110 volts). The netbook will not power an external monitor so I avoid using it for navigation.
Strangely the costs are about the same to use an existing netbook as buying a small Garmin. My navigation software is Nobeltec and they will charge $150 (USD) for a second dongle and require an upgrade on all navigation area software at $150 an area.