What are currently the best EFBs for Android?

Ed Haywood said:
I loved iFly until it froze in flight. Twice. At bad times, when I needed it to work. Once on Android, once on Apple.
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I guess YMMV. I've been using iFly since the original 700, and have used it in the plane for dozens (hundreds?) of flights on a Nexus 7 (2013), Samsung Tab S2, Asus ZenPad 3S 10, and Samsung Tab S6. I've seen a couple of hiccups with iFly over those years, but very rarely, and no more so than I've seen hiccups with other apps.

But in general, if you "need it to work", you probably shouldn't be relying on a consumer tablet device in the first place.
 
TCABM said:
Is there feature parity yet between the droid and iOS versions of Garmin Pilot?
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Negative. Layout is different, android version can't do approaches or holds in the flight plan. I'm sure there's more, but those are the ones I was looking at earlier today. New features are usually about six months behind. In reality though, the Android version isn't lacking any of the features I actually use. It's mainly stability and load time that are an issue for me. Some of that could be this tablet, but it's only a couple years old so I hate to buy another one without any guarantee it would be any better.
 
As a new VFR pilot using Garmin Pilot on a Galaxy Tab A8 the only feature I've noticed missing that Apple supposedly has is the documents folder. I am using it on a new if lower tier tablet (the S8 is supposed to be leagues better) and I have not noticed any performance issues once I had it set up properly. The only thing it doesn't seem to like is to run the high detail settings but to be honest I can't tell the difference in the "detail" and the performance is waaay better with out it. I have had no hiccups, freezes, overheating, or crashes etc. I have GP, Spotify, Netflix, YouTube, and Libby (library app for e-books) plus the stock things like email and doc readers etc so no real clutter or junk apps (currently using 32gb of 128gb storage) ruining performance. Battery performance is good, I usually get the whole day on a charge if I'm using it "heavily" but not continuously, and it will go like a week on stand-by with minimal uses. Oh and unlike Apple products I can always stick a SD(micro?) card in it if I need to expand the storage.
 
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I don't mind fltplan go crashing and occasionally not updating the version on my throwaway lenovo 8" tablets. But that's because I pay zero for georeferenced plates when the thing works, which is most of the time. But if I'm gonna pay a yearly subscription for such a low yearly use? yeah that thing better be solid like FF on a iCrap. Thankfully I got the work tablet (FF on a mini 6) for weekend use as the backup. I would not be a happy camper with a paid GP if it crashed on the regular. I can do that for free with fltplanGo. :D
 
Jim_R said:
Uh, you have that backwards. The A8 is a budget tablet. The S-series tablets are the higher-end devices. There is a range of S-series devices, but even the lowest model S8 should outperform the highest model A8.

https://www.xda-developers.com/samsung-galaxy-tab-s8-vs-samsung-galaxy-tab-a8/
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There fixed it for you. Even if my memory failed and misremembered the A for the S the point still stands. The Galaxy S and A Tablets are bloody great and serve well with Garmin Pilot at least for a new VFR pilot like myself. They are certainly for more cost effective than apple and frankly performs as well or better ... better especially if we consider apples overheating issues. Throw in the fact that they are far less expensive and far more flexible and expandable and won't have apples forced obsolescence they are the win in my humble opinion.
 
Anyone have any experience with Airmate? Was thinking of using them instead of Seattle Avionics for charts on the Dynon and they have an efb for iOS as well as Android. Had never heard of them before last week.
 
Reject F Flight and Apple because ones doesn’t want to be cemented to one large company that precludes using other systems. And Garmin is open and friendly ??

I guess just pick your favorite poison.
 
WDD said:
Reject F Flight and Apple because ones doesn’t want to be cemented to one large company that precludes using other systems. And Garmin is open and friendly ??

I guess just pick your favorite poison.
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If your post is in response to Dana's right above yours...I think maybe you missed the tongue-in-cheek bit....
 
It was in response to who he was tongue and cheeking.

yes - it looks much worse on the screen than when it was in my head.
 
Not quite a necro thread. I didn't want to start anew one just to post a picture of part the Aviation homescreen page on my Galaxy S10 :D

upload_2023-6-22_10-49-6.png
 
I agree with @chemgeek that Droid EFB is one of my favorites. I've used it for 10 years, since before it was called Avilution. It's simple and intuitive to use and has worked seamlessly on every device I've owned over the years, including with the Stratux I built for ADS-B In with GPS. Another benefit of Droid EFB is that it is light & small, efficient code, so it has fast response and the device battery lasts longer than any other app I use. Also, Droid EFB stores your routes, waypoints & tracks on their server, so they automatically sync across your devices.

Another good one is Avilution. It has crisper graphics than Droid EFB, but it has some limitations, like it doesn't show winds from ADS-B and it zooms in "steps" to preset levels. Also it doesn't sync your waypoints and routes across devices. However, it does have terrain, navaids & airports for Canada (though not charts), which Droid EFB does not.

A dis-recommendation is FlightPlan Go. On all my devices, it is a steaming pile of bloat-ware, super slow, crashes frequently, essentially unusable. That's a shame because it's the only Android app I've found that has Canadian charts.

Overall, Droid EFB is my primary and Naviator is my backup. I subscribe to both.
 
The current Garmin Pilot system recommendations (20240411) are for less than 4 years old, Android 10 or higher, and 128GB of storage. As regional flyer I assume I would use less since I would likely only load about 10 states worth of info. Anyone using an A9 or A9+ with 64GB of built in storage? Can you put the GP data on an installed micro SD card?
 
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