For some unknown reason we all missed the introduction of the Garmin Nautix augmented reality headset completely. First announced in February at the Miami International Boat Show; the device is now available from Garmin.
The headset is a ‘see around’ type headset, meaning there is no optical combiner just a near-to-eye display. In the case of the Garmin Nautix, this may actually be a good choice since this device is made for boaters that experience extreme variations in ambient lighting conditions.
The device comes with a resolution of 428 x 240 pixels and offers by no means a high resolution experience. This is not an issue as this device focuses on viewing data from the boat’s network. This includes, for example, boat speed, direction, depth and other text-based data. These data are basically all data that can be distributed over the NMEA 2000 network (a network, sharing sensor information with several display device on a boat) and connect to Garmin devices on the network via the Garmin-owned (but widely supported in sport and fitness technology) ANT+ protocol. This very low power protocol is only for transmitting low bit rate information. This allows the Nautix an 8 hour battery life, which is mainly driven by the display power requirements. There is no connection to the user’s smartphone or other video source or device. This all makes the Nautix a very task-oriented device that will find its place on a racing or fishing boat, where having some key data in front of you at all times is very helpful.
The Garmin Nautix is available from their website for $399. – NH
