tcSpeeds vs SailTimer API™
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
tcSpeeds
This app provides advanced sailing performance metrics using your device's GPS and sensors. It offers detailed speed, wind, and directional measurements, along with a proprietary performance index. Easily track your progress and compare it with others, with zero setup required.
- Advanced speed and velocity measurements
- Proprietary Pilot Performance Index (PPI)
- Wind measurement with optional sensor
- Waypoint navigation and tracking
- Apple Watch extension
- Real-time performance alerts
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tcSpeeds provides advanced knowledge of your current speed, average speeds, maximum speed, directional speeds, velocity made good, wind measurements, and much more. You will be able to measure your performance on a straight course with our proprietary Pilot Performance Index (PPI) computation. Compare how good you are at the controls with your friends or against your autopilot. tcSpeeds stands on its own and does not require external hardware or connections to operate. tcSpeeds uses your device's own internal GPS, accelerometers, and compass. For Wind measurement, you will need to acquire the Calypso Ultrasonic Wind sensor. More sensors will be supported in the future. Easy to use and conceived to minimize operational burden on the user, because we know you have other things to do. Zero setup required: install, launch and tap the start button. Designed for iPhones, and GPS-equipped iPads. CAPABILITIES - Add waypoints on the map - Apple watch extension - auto-VMG Velocity Made Good automatic detection - Add, move, or edit you waypoint location on the map - Cross track to waypoint indicator - Record and save your track - Start Line guide for speed and heading when you race - VMG automatic maximum VMG to waypoint - VMG visual assistant: guides you to the best course to the waypoint on the current tack - Maximum VMG indicator relative to waypoint - Audio alert for Acceleration and maximum speed: get instant feedback for you and your team when you are doing it right - Apple Watch Extension: Speed, Course, VMG, Cross-Track, Display remote control and more - Arrival Time: smart computation using filtered VMG averages - Barometer indicator on supported devices - Pilot Performance Index (PPI) calculation improvement - Speed indicator with color-scaled plot - Directional speed vectors panel with automatic polar graph - Maximum speed keeping - Maximum speed audio and visual alarms - Trip distance recording - Add, move, edit Waypoints - Accurate sub-second timer - GPS status with location accuracy indication - Boxed average speed by timed interval: 10-sec 1-min 10-min 1-hour - Pilot Performance Index (PPI) calculation, measurement, and guide - Target course indicator with automatic and manual fine tuning - Headings, bearings and directional indicators (magnetic/true) - Precise real-time cross track reporting - Course, Compass and proprietary C-Course heading selector - Rapid units selection: metric, nautical and imperial - Situational (non-navigational) map with color-coded speed track - Map display with target course and Look-Ahead-Vector (LAV) - Time and distance to autoscaled LAV endpoint - Velocity Made Good (VMG) relative to Waypoint - Magnetic compass and Course Over Ground (COG) integrated panel - Crab angle and local magnetic declination
SailTimer API™
This app bridges the gap between your SailTimer Wind Instrument and other navigation or performance apps. It also offers access to crowdsourced wind maps and marine weather animations through a subscription, enhancing your sailing experience with real-time wind data.
- Integrates with SailTimer Wind Instrument
- Delivers wind data to partner apps
- Crowdsourced wind maps
- Marine weather animations
- Supports chartplotter apps
- Real-time wind data
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This app allows you to use SailTimer products in other partner apps. First, if you have the wireless SailTimer Wind Instrument (www.SailTimerWind.com), this app can receive the transmissions and deliver them to other apps for viewing. Use this app with the the SailTimer™ chartplotter app, or with lots of other navigation, wind gauge or performance apps (https://wi-rb.com/apps/). But what if you want to see what the wind is doing up ahead, or around the next point? Then you need our crowdsourced wind maps and marine weather animations. You can get the low-cost subscription here, to view our marine weather animations in partner apps. We'll add a growing list of partner apps at https://SailTimer.boats App web page: https://wi-rb.com/api. If you have a question or feedback please email info@SailTimer.co - we’re here to help. If you are getting the app and like this wireless technology, please help out other sailors by letting them know with a quick rating on this version while you’re here.
Screenshots
Verdict
tcSpeeds and SailTimer API™ both sit at 4.9 stars, but that hides the real split: 100% of tcSpeeds's written reviews are positive against 0% of SailTimer API™'s. tcSpeeds also leads on monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases) and ratings volume (10 vs 1). SailTimer API™'s advantage is update cadence (every 4 weeks vs every 7 months). On price, rating, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. tcSpeeds sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and SailTimer API™ sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.9 for tcSpeeds against 5.0 for SailTimer API™. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: tcSpeeds has 10 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 100% of tcSpeeds's written reviews are positive against 0% of SailTimer API™'s.
tcSpeeds ships an update every 7 months, SailTimer API™ every 4 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 30, 2026 and October 1, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | tcSpeeds | SailTimer API™ |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.9 (10 ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better | 0.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 10 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 7 months | Every 4 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 16.6 | 16.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 18 MB | 19 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | transitional continuum | SailTimer Inc. |
Customer experience
tcSpeeds
SailTimer API™
In-app purchases
tcSpeeds
- Advanced Performance Features$2.99
SailTimer API™
- Crowdsourced Wind Maps - Monthly7 Days trial$2.991 Month
- WNI Marine Weather - Monthly7 Days trial$2.991 Month
- AI Forecasts - Monthly7 Days trial$2.991 Month
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- Crowdsourced Wind Maps - Yearly7 Days trial$19.991 Year
- WNI Marine Weather - Yearly7 Days trial$19.991 Year
- AI Forecasts - Yearly7 Days trial$19.991 Year








