Buyer’s Guide: MFDs
Multi Functional It’s a sign of the times that Multi Function Displays have become the nerve centre of the modern yacht. Sam Fortescue looks at the latest upgrades
W
hether your old instruments are starting to fail you, or you just want to upgrade, the four top marine electronics brands offer unprecedented firepower. The multifunction displays which form the nerve centre of a modern network are more powerful than ever, with dazzling colour screens and sophisticated user interfaces. The digital charts they display have never offered more features, from automatic route planning and user’s pub reviews to the most astonishingly detailed seabed detail – viewable in a kind of Jules Verneesque 3D. Not only that, they can be updated electronically via Wifi, so no more messing about with Notices to
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JUNE 2021 Sailing Today with Yachts & Yachting
Mariners and purple ink. Finally, the instruments that they support are becoming more sophisticated, too. We’ll always need the basics of speed and depth, wind direction and water temperature. But to that you can add solid-state radar that tracks targets, dedicated collision avoidance and cameras for remote monitoring. Increasingly, the MFD is the portal through which you can control everything from the
BELOW Raymarine's Axiom range
music streaming in the focsle to the underwater lights, via tank levels and engine diagnostics. Here is a look at what the main brands are offering this sailing season.
Raymarine
It may seem as if it was just yesterday that Raymarine launched its new Axiom displays, but it was back in 2017, and they’ve had an important upgrade this year. Axiom has become
