I don't know if the Avier is still available. I understand that neither of the similar units previously sold in Europe, the Vertica V2 and the GliderGuider, are available any longer. Vertica may have plans to introduce a new improved product in due course.

I have extensive experience of Oudie 1, Oudie 2 and GliderGuider. Currently, I run SeeYou Mobile on a GliderGuider using the internal gps but external power as a backup to my LX9000. I can confirm that Oudie 2 and GliderGuider have the same - truly excellent - screen brightness, and that for either one you need an external power source if you want to run for more than about 2 hours.

The big advantage to me of GliderGuider is that it uses an aviation gps. Oudie uses a car gps, which is not accurate when circling and therefore does not give accurate wind. As a result, if you are using the internal gps, Oudie does not give an accurate final glide - Naviter accept this. This was my reason for getting the GliderGuider to replace an Oudie. SYM on the GG gives very similar wind and final glide to the LX9000. The GG was also supplied for less money than an Oudie 2 with a good selection of accessories and leads. I had good support when I experienced a hardware issue - not the fault of the unit - on the GG. I do not consider it difficult to install any of the software programmes on the GG but some people might want help with it.

Most people at my club who have bought in the last 18 months have bought the GliderGuider, and are using it with the free LK8000 - a stunning value combination. (If you want to use the also free XC Soar, you do better to find an Android device to use it on, maybe a cheap e-reader if you can accept monochrome - see the XC Soar forum.). Personally, I prefer SYM to the free programmes and have a license. I recommend it strongly - but on choice of software what I mostly recommend is to use a product which is popular at your club. All the rival software products are enormously powerful, none are particularly easy to learn.

On the other hand, I can also confirm that the faster processor and greater memory of the Oudie do make a noticeable difference to screen refresh times. There are many situations where there is a noticeable delay to screen redrawing, and it is much longer on the GG than on the Oudie - and slightly annoying. We are talking about several seconds delay on the GG before the map details come back after exiting the thermal assistant, for example. If you use SeeYou Mobile software, the internal gps can be used as a backup to an external gps only on the Oudie. SYM cannont do this on any other device, although LK8000 and XC Soar can both do this on most devices. If you buy an Oudie, you get lifetime free updates of SYM, whereas if you want to use SYM on another device as I do and to keep it up to date you have to pay an annual fee (current £50).

For somebody intending to use an external gps source I would recommend the Oudie 2 even if the Avier is still available because of the better performance. The best device of the lot is the Oudie IGC with a day long battery, accurate gps and IGC logger, but it is much more expensive. It is poor value unless you need an additional IGC logger.

I would mention that however good Naviter's support has generally been they have made a bad mistake in the last few weeks, issuing an update which has caused substantial problems. This is a rare mistake by Naviter and has already been mostly sorted out.

I expect that whatever you buy now, there will be something better along shortly - probably a colour e-ink Android device.

Good luck!

Mark Burton, serial gps buyer, London Gliding Club, UK

On Monday, 19 May 2014 04:42:55 UTC+1, Nicholas L wrote:
Can someone comment as to Sunlight readability of the Vertica V2 in comparison to the Naviter Oudie 2?



I have read that the Vertica can run multiple applications at once while the Oudie only can run one. The gps accuracy of the Vertica is supposedly better.



Are there other features of the Oudie that make it a superior choice to the Vertica / Avier?



Nick