If it’s something you care about… pretty important.
It may not look like there’s a lot of difference between the marine products sold at Solid Signal and other products sold for land use. For example, this radio:
probably wouldn’t look out of place in a car, at least if you overlooked the white color. Yet, it’s designed specifically for marine use. That means it uses the right connectors and the right voltage for marine connections. It’s water-resistant (including the speakers) meaning it’s going to survive at least casually getting wet. Any component that’s out in the open is rated to survive against the highly corrosive salt air. It’s just a better device for putting in your boat, which is of course the whole point.
If you care about a piece of electronic gear, it should be marine rated if it lives on your boat. If you use “plain old” electronics, they will fail faster and probably when you need them the most. That’s the whole point.
Don’t worry, there is a marine version
Luckily, almost anything you want to put on your vessel is going to come in some sort of marine rated version. That includes entertainment gear, too — satellite, TV antenna and cellular booster equipment is all available in marine-optimized packages. If something isn’t marine rated and you want to keep it safe, it will have to go deep in the cabin, as waterproof as possible, and protected with a surge protector so that it won’t short out if it gets wet.
While some things are almost identical in their marine versions, some things can be pretty different! Take satellite dishes for example. The satellite dish on your home’s roof is a fairly simple thing. It’s really just a fancy antenna that’s packed full of electronics. Those electronics are needed in order to get really weak signals from space.
It works pretty well. But, take that same dish and put it on a boat and it won’t work at all. Satellite dishes more or less depend on your house not moving from moment to moment. That obviously doesn’t happen on a boat. On a boat, you’re moving constantly. So, marine satellite systems look different. They have computers on board that constantly watch the signal levels and re-aim so you never lose your favorite program.
Internet systems for boats are also fairly different. Most folks get their internet from a local company that runs a fiber line to the home. Obviously you can’t have a fiber line that runs from the shore to your boat… it just doesn’t work like that. Marine internet systems either use cell phone technology (if you’re close to shore) or satellite technology (if you’re further from shore.) Either way, the equipment is a little different from what you’ll get on land.
Get marine gear — and service — from Solid Signal.
The fact is, there is a difference. You don’t want to just bring “normal” stuff onto your boat. If you’re interested in getting the best marine-rated electronics, check out the selection at Solid Signal now! If you’re interested in talking to an expert about satellite or internet service, call us! We’re here during East Coast business hours. The number is 888-233-7563. If it’s after hours, fill out the form below and we’ll get back to you, usually within one business day.
