View Single Post
  #46   Report Post  
posted to rec.boats
RG
 
Posts: n/a
Default Yikes! Consumer Electronic Rip...


"
There's a relatively new system called "Follow Me TV" available for
about $900 which does azimuth only. Supposedly it works well at
anchor. Haven't tried it but have gotten good reports.

http://www.followmetv.com/


I suppose that would be one way to go, but I see two fundamental problems
with it. Since it only compensates for azimuth, it would be less effective
on smaller boats, which are more prone to pitch and roll, even at anchor.
It's ironic that the larger the boat, the more effective this system might
be, but also, the larger the boat the more likely the owner could afford one
of the more expensive systems that will fully track a satellite under all
conditions and vectors.

The other problem I see is that this system is essentially a device to
rotate a standard mini-dish. This means that the ugly mini dish is
displayed on your boat in front of God and everybody to see. Personally I
think the dishes are ugly and not very nautical looking (and prone to rust
in a salt water environment I would suspect), and I'm more than happy to
leave mine behind, permanently mounted to the dock when I'm out boating.
Just an aesthetics thing. I thought the photo in your link showing the dish
mounted to railing was just hideous looking. At least with the big dollar
systems, the dish is fully enclosed in a plastic dome, which I think looks
much more appropriate on a boat. You could even pass it off to the
unknowing as some sort of sophisticated satellite communications system.