wrote:

Maule Driver,
What do you plan to get out of the 396 besides XM weather and GPS
moving map?
That's it. The XM weather in particular. Specifically the radar
images. Worth the price of admission in the SE US.

I use the Lowrance Airmap 1000 for GPS and have been checking out
various EFB and XMweather options. While the 396 provides a convenience
XMweather/moving map, I find its small display size a drawback.
I'm counting on the display being an order of magnitude better than the
Palm VII I used with Cheap *******s. CB completely sold me on the value
of downlinked Nexrad. On a poor b/w display, without a gps driven map,
25 minute old images, no service level agreement, and an unreliable RF
uplink - it was magic. You CB guys deserve an award.

After lugging several stacks of NOS charts in our NY-MI-IL trip, I
think the digital charts maybe a better option for longer cross
country trips so I am looking for a display system for both weather and
digital charts.
Yep, I'd like that too. Mainly for backup. I think I'm still hooked on
paper. A paper chart and a dull pencil are the two most reliable things
in my cockpit - got to keep it simple in single pilot IFR. I've
downloaded backup plates onto my Thinkpad for possible use. When I
needed them, opening up the Thinkpad was not a good exercise. But I'd
love to have the option.

I have followed threads on XMweather options using PDA, tablet PC or
laptops with various pros and cons. Right now, I am leaning towards
getting a small Tablet PC with blue tooth for XM weather and Jeppesen
FliteDeck electronic charts with moving map. I had thought of getting
the IBM X41 tablet 12" tablet PC but the latest Motion Computing tablet
LS800 at 8.4" and view-anywhere display seems to be a better option.

That's about where I was. The Lenovo X41 was attractive, blue tooth,
XM, etc. Though after considering footprints and the fact that my
laptop desk is almost always occupied, a PDA based approach was winning
out. As much as I like cobbling things together, it just seemed less
than ideal for the IFR mission. I want simple, dedicated devices
(pretty amazing to say that considering the function involved) and no
Windex or Windox or whatever you call that thing.
I am quite aware of increased possibility of hard drive failures at
high altitude. However, with most of our flying done at 10,000' and
the lack of data on laptop failures due to prolonged usage during
commerical flight (with cabin pressure at equivalent of 8000'), I am
not too concerned.

I too saw those discussions here. My original iPod just began acting up
in the plane. Never on the ground but now always in the air. Very
screwy (but another justification for XM). After all the other aircraft
investments, it seems to make some sense to stick to purpose-designed
devices.
Here are the links to some websites

http://www.metzair.com/fujitsu.html
http://www.turbopilot.com/efbx/
http://www.motioncomputing.com/produ...blet_pc_ls.asp