Sentry, Foreflight's new ADS-B receiver $400 cheaper than Stratus2s

Re: the original topic of this thread, I ran across this today:

 
Jim_R said:
Re: the original topic of this thread, I ran across this today:

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Seems like the Sentry is hidden behind the other detector. Not sure how CO moves inside a box like that but I’d still expect some reading.
 
aggie06 said:
Seems like the Sentry is hidden behind the other detector. Not sure how CO moves inside a box like that but I’d still expect some reading.
Click to expand...

If this is a valid test, uAvionix had better have some solid data to share. The CO monitor is the one feature that distinguishes them from Stratus.


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aggie06 said:
Seems like the Sentry is hidden behind the other detector. Not sure how CO moves inside a box like that but I’d still expect some reading.
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It's a very small volume; the flame would set up some convective currents that would help diffuse the CO throughout the volume. Not sure if you watched it all the way through and paid attention to the timestamp, but the test spanned about 15 min (some of the dwell time was edited out), at at the end he points out that even after 5 min of the Sensorcon indicating >100ppm levels, the Sentry still showed 0ppm. A lot of atmospheric mixing would have occurred in 15 min.
 
I don't believe that the view that's being used on the iPad is designed to be live-updating - The 0 PPM would have been the value present when the view was opened.

Also, there's a lower threshold beyond which one should not expect an aviation CO monitor to alarm lest you end up with a lot of false positives. I can't remember what that limit is for sure.

Certainly bears further research...
 
flyingcheesehead said:
I don't believe that the view that's being used on the iPad is designed to be live-updating - The 0 PPM would have been the value present when the view was opened.
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BTW, further evidence that this is the case: The battery % doesn't change either, and even with a 12-hour battery, it should have dropped a couple percent over the course of this test.
 
flyingcheesehead said:
BTW, further evidence that this is the case: The battery % doesn't change either, and even with a 12-hour battery, it should have dropped a couple percent over the course of this test.
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So what’s the alarm threshold? 200? 300? That part had better still work.
 
This device is made of unobtainium. I tried to buy one and the only place I found it for sale is amazon, unfortunately when you try to order it they say they can’t ship it to me.. It is in stock and available through prime. WTF
 
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I didn't seriously consider Stratus because (when I was shopping for ADS-B IN and an EFB) Stratus only worked with ForeFlight, and ForeFlight only runs on an iPad/iPhone. It's nice, but stupidly expensive and you're locked into one solution no matter who does what.

I didn't buy Garmin because you have to be all Garmin. GDL39, Garmin Pilot, no connection to any non-Garmin system. Again - nice but stupid expensive and locked to a single vendor. Sorry, I've learned not to get locked into a single vendor "solution".

I run Avare on a Samsung Android tablet, with a Stratux I put together. Saved a pile of money, and I'm not tied to Samsung, Android, or anyone else. I can replace any piece of it (software or hardware) if the vendor or project starts to suck. I wouldn't buy Stratus or Garmin now if they cut the price in half again. They lost me as a prospective customer right out of the gate.

And yes, Nate, I know the little RTL dongles are relatively deaf, and ADS-B is far from perfect in all respects. It's better than nothing when it's working, though, and with the tablet in the plane I can also stream music though the intercom on longer trips. :)
 
1RTK1 said:
This device is made of unobtainium. I tried to buy one and the only place I find it is amazon, unfortunately when you try to order it they say they can’t ship it to me.. It is in stock and available through prime. WTF
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Yep. The only way you can purchase is through amazon but they can’t ship to my address for no reason. Not off to a good start with me.


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Did a little more research. Amazon will not sell it in komnifornia. Wonder if it is not environmentally friendly, to toxic for our state or some other stupid reason.
Thought I would give one a try, guess not.
 
1RTK1 said:
Did a little more research. Amazon will not sell it in komnifornia. Wonder if it is not environmentally friendly, to toxic for our state or some other stupid reason.
Thought I would give one a try, guess not.
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Funny part is it’s made in Cali. The factory is 30 miles from my house but I can’t purchase it? This seems crazy.


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flyingcheesehead said:
BTW, further evidence that this is the case: The battery % doesn't change either, and even with a 12-hour battery, it should have dropped a couple percent over the course of this test.
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The battery increments in 5%. About live updating, I'm not too sure. Most everything else on the page refreshes every few seconds (traffic updates, text update count, etc.) I did pull the debug logs after you made the comment to check, and it did report 0 ppm throughout.
 
Only review on Amazon:

What a disappointment
July 17, 2018
Verified Purchase

I have seen stratux picking more satellites and towers than this new sentry. I was excited to get it, it doesn’t connect to any gps or tower while on ground. I did not take it up yet. I’m willing to come back and re-review if they are able to fix it or else unit is going back.
BTW, it seems to be very cheaply made, very light weight and no aesthetics (didn’t care too much if it actually worked )
 
My Sentry is being delivered tomorrow. Ironically I had to make a flight to see an ailing relative today and had to fly through a field of buildups. I picked up some NEXRAD imagery on my NavWorx system while fueling but after takeoff it stopped. I was trying to dodge buildups as I waited for an update and never got one. I think I have a loose wire.

I felt naked out there thinking how nice it would be to have a backup ADSB system in the form of the Sentry.

Nonetheless I stayed visual for the most part and ATC steered me through the mess. It was amazing that this 58 minute old image was still representative of what was out there.
0f22dc94df1fa9a8c244bc7f66f2e4a9.jpg




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Bill Watson said:
Nonetheless I stayed visual for the most part and ATC steered me through the mess. It was amazing that this 58 minute old image was still representative of what was out there.
0f22dc94df1fa9a8c244bc7f66f2e4a9.jpg
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I see that as a software failure. The display shouldn’t retain a 58 minute old image. Dangerous. Good for you to know that it will, however, so it doesn’t bite you square in the butt.

Would be nice to know if it ever times out that radar data for “someday” when your image is 3 hours old... 58 is too much for most thunderstorms. Waaaay too much.
 
DaleB said:
I didn't seriously consider Stratus because (when I was shopping for ADS-B IN and an EFB) Stratus only worked with ForeFlight, and ForeFlight only runs on an iPad/iPhone. It's nice, but stupidly expensive and you're locked into one solution no matter who does what.

I didn't buy Garmin because you have to be all Garmin. GDL39, Garmin Pilot, no connection to any non-Garmin system. Again - nice but stupid expensive and locked to a single vendor. Sorry, I've learned not to get locked into a single vendor "solution".

I run Avare on a Samsung Android tablet, with a Stratux I put together. Saved a pile of money, and I'm not tied to Samsung, Android, or anyone else.
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Ummm... You run Avare and you're not tied to Android? o_O
 
BrianNC said:
Just got the Stratus 3 email from Sporty's.

http://www.sportys.com/pilotshop/stratus-3-ads-b-receiver.html?utm_source=MarketingEmail&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=A18073D&utm_content=AviationHeadsets&trk_msg=V91NET8STMUKP249DHHC6VQTEK&trk_contact=135807PIK644MOT03SGA2TA9Q8&trk_sid=K8GR2SMP3KUP7B8AFF55DIM9A4&utm_source=Listrak&utm_medium=Email&utm_term=http://www.sportys.com/pilotshop/stratus-3-ads-b-receiver.html?utm_source=MarketingEmail&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=A18073D&utm_content=AviationHeadsets&utm_campaign=A18073D&utm_content=+Introducing+STRATUS+3+-+The+Best+Just+Got+Better
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Interesting. In that "list of new features", the only substantial new hardware feature is automatic power off.

The $200 price reduction and support of the GDL90 protocol are much bigger deals, but since the Sentry is another $200 cheaper, well, color me unimpressed.
 
flyingcheesehead said:
Ummm... You run Avare and you're not tied to Android? o_O
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I mis-typed -- I'm not tied to Avare. It's free, as are charts and updates, and nothing I use is specific to Avare. I can drop it at any time, lose nothing, and use one of the other Android apps instead. If I really, really wanted to run ForeFlight I could borrow my wife's iPad, but to be honest -- after a few years with my (corporate issued) iPhone and her iPad, I'm pretty much over Apple hardware. The Android tablet was a choice I made for reasons other than flying.
 
flyingcheesehead said:
Interesting. In that "list of new features", the only substantial new hardware feature is automatic power off.

The $200 price reduction and support of the GDL90 protocol are much bigger deals, but since the Sentry is another $200 cheaper, well, color me unimpressed.
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I just looked a bit closer at this, it's not actually a $200 price reduction. The list price is still the same, they are just offering $200 off as introductory pricing.
 
CMongoose said:
I just looked a bit closer at this, it's not actually a $200 price reduction. The list price is still the same, they are just offering $200 off as introductory pricing.
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Wow.

I'll take a possibly-flaky CO detector and $400 in my pocket over auto power off any day. And I'm not even sure the Sentry doesn't have auto power off...
 
denverpilot said:
I see that as a software failure. The display shouldn’t retain a 58 minute old image. Dangerous. Good for you to know that it will, however, so it doesn’t bite you square in the butt.

Would be nice to know if it ever times out that radar data for “someday” when your image is 3 hours old... 58 is too much for most thunderstorms. Waaaay too much.
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I was thinking the same. But then I realized I,benefited from the ‘failure’ and that I need to religiously check image age. I rather retain the info than lose it in the case of an installation or box failure.

The fact that I’ve fallen out of the habit of checking image age says something about the consistency of updates since XM 396 days.


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1RTK1 said:
Did a little more research. Amazon will not sell it in komnifornia. Wonder if it is not environmentally friendly, to toxic for our state or some other stupid reason.
Thought I would give one a try, guess not.
Click to expand...

Stratus 3 will be delivered on the 22nd. Sorry sentry. Should have got a warning sticker.


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How long are the CO detectors good for? I know on some home systems they have a 7 year life.
 
At Airventure, I saw the announcement of the $499 Sentry, then in the vendor booths I examined it, talked to the FF salesman, then across the aisle talked to the Appareo salesman. The Stratus 3 was on display — it is just like the Stratus 2s, except it works with any app (not just Forefight), and there’s something about the wifi connection that’s new, otherwise it is a 2s at a new lower price.

- The advantages of Sentry compared to the Stratus 3 are its smaller size, longer lasting battery, CO detector, and its lower $499 price point.
- Disadvantages of Sentry are that it works only with FF, it must be mounted vertically, and you cannot connect an external antenna to improve ADSB reception.


My Stratus 2 has a broken charging port connector, and I need something to replace it.
I determined that Sentry doesn’t suit me because it must be mounted vertically, standing on end, so I went to the Apparel booth, where they offered me a $499 Stratus 2, which they said is the “reconditioned” price, but they said it is actually brand new as they don’t actually recondition anything. Plus, Appareo is giving me a $100 trade-in on my broken Stratus 2.
 
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NoHeat said:
At Airventure, I saw the announcement of Sentry, then in the vendor booths I looked at it, and determined that it doesn’t suit me because it must be mounted vertically, standing on end.
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Why is that a problem for you?
 
BrianNC said:
Why is that a problem for you?
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I mount my receiver in my console between the front seats of my SR22, where a Stratus fits just fine lying flat, and where I can power it with ship’s power (lighter outlet).

The Sentry must be mounted vertically, not lying flat. It’s compact, but its height is about half of a dollar-bill length (that’s how I measured it), which probably will not fit in my console.

The provided mount for Sentry is a suction-cup Ram mount, which is well made, and it will be good if you want to mount it on a side window. Otherwise, you could diassemble the mount, discarding the Ram ball and suction cup, leaving just the locking flange which you could glue to any surface you like.
 
NoHeat said:
and you cannot connect an external antenna to improve ADSB reception
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With the 2S, the external connection makes a significant difference in quantity of towers seen.

Now I'm curious if the Sentry will do as good without antenna as the Stratus 2S does with.
 
AggieMike88 said:
Now I'm curious if the Sentry will do as good without antenna as the Stratus 2S does with.
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I asked the FF salesman, and he said the reception was tested in flight and compared to competitors without external antenna, and they were similar. (His words about his test, not mine.)
 
Just an observation - Sentry is no longer for sale via Amazon - exclusive through Sporty's only now.
 
Bought a Sentry last week. Flew to Missouri and back from NY. Its just as good as the stratus 2 save your money. Never lost signal and attitude indicator was crisp just like the stratus plus the 12hr battery life.
 
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