Comparison

Anchor Basic vs PyNav

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Anchor Basic

This app provides a reliable anchor alarm for boats, offering drift warnings and low battery alerts. Users can pause the alarm and resume monitoring later, or set the anchor by current location, bearing, and distance. It also allows remote monitoring of other users' Anchor Plus alarms.

Highlights
  • Drift warning alerts
  • Low battery alarms
  • Pause and resume alarm function
  • Set anchor by location, bearing, or distance
  • Remote monitoring of Anchor Plus alarms
Features
Read full description

A fully functional anchor alarm designed for iPhone & iPad.  - Simple and reliable with user selectable units, drift warning and low battery alarms.  - Pause the alarm and take your device with you; simply continue drift monitoring when you return.  - Set the anchor at the current location or a bearing & distance to the anchor. - Use Anchor Basic to remotely monitor Anchor Plus. Go ashore for dinner and monitor your friends Anchor Plus alarm using Anchor Basic. - If you like this version, try Anchor Plus with a host of additional features

About

PyNav

This app provides NMEA instrument data and remote control for a pypilot autopilot. It can function as a standalone navigation hub, displaying wind, engine, and GPS data with customizable panels and configurable alarms.

Highlights
  • Pypilot autopilot control
  • NMEA instrument display
  • Customizable dashboard panels
  • Wind and engine data
  • GPS and waypoint navigation
  • Configurable alarms
Features
Read full description

NMEA NAVIGATION HUB + PYPILOT REMOTE CONTROL PyNav serves two kinds of sailors: - Have a pypilot autopilot? Control it from your iPhone/iPad AND display all your NMEA instruments. - No pypilot? Use PyNav as a standalone professional NMEA navigation hub. FREE VERSION - Autopilot tab + Settings Full control of the pypilot autopilot: - Engage / disengage the autopilot - Modes: compass, wind, GPS, true wind, navigation - Current heading + target heading entry - Real-time rudder angle indicator - IMU data: pitch, roll, heel, rate of turn - Full PID gain tuning (P, I, D, DD, PR, FF, WG, Deadzone) - IMU compass and rudder calibration - Tack settings - Pilot profiles (basic, wind, gps, simple, rate, absolute) - Servo stats: amp-hours, voltage, temperatures, runtime - Direct WiFi connection to the pypilot Raspberry Pi hotspot - no router needed The free version gives access to pypilot data only - no external NMEA instruments. PRO VERSION - Complete navigation hub One-time purchase, lifetime - no subscription. Works WITH or WITHOUT pypilot. Just needs a NMEA/WiFi module and an iPhone or iPad. Optimized for iPad - also works on iPhone with adapted layout. DASHBOARD - Customizable unified view 6 configurable, drag-and-drop panels: - Wind: dynamic rose or raw data grid - Navigation: SOG, COG, GPS data - Autopilot: engage/disengage, target heading, rudder indicator, IMU - Depth: color-coded - Pressure: hPa value, 3h trend, history chart - Engine: RPM with color coding (nominal / warning / danger) Resizable panels, 1 or 2 column layout. WIND - Apparent and true wind Dynamic wind rose, 5-minute history chart, real-time AWA/AWS/TWA/TWS. ENGINE INSTRUMENTS RPM, coolant and oil temperature/pressure, battery/alternator voltage, engine hours, fuel flow, exhaust and sea water temperature, gearbox state (Fwd/Neutral/Rev), transmission oil. Tank gauges: port/starboard fuel, fresh water, grey and black water. Unlimited custom charts (any parameter vs RPM or time). NAV - GPS and waypoint navigation Compass rose, true and magnetic heading, SOG, COG, STW, latitude/longitude (DD°MM'SS), waypoint navigation (bearing BTW, distance DTW, cross track error XTE), arrival indicator. CONFIGURABLE ALARMS On all NMEA data: depth, speed, heading, pressure, wind, RPM, temperatures, oil pressures, voltages, fuel levels, rudder angle. Each alarm: custom name, threshold, condition, individual on/off. Triggers: sound + vibration + on-screen banner. TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS Free: iOS 13.4+, working pypilot setup (Raspberry Pi), direct WiFi connection to pypilot hotspot. PRO: any TCP/UDP NMEA/WiFi module (Yacht Devices, Quark-elec, Digital Yacht, Hat Labs, Actisense...) + iOS 13.4+. Pypilot optional. Supported protocols: NMEA 0183, NMEA 2000 Raw, Pypilot (TCP). SAFETY WARNING PyNav is a navigation interface. It does not replace mandatory navigation equipment. The skipper remains SOLELY RESPONSIBLE for navigation. Permanent watch at sea is MANDATORY. Pypilot is an open-source DIY project provided "as-is". PRIVACY No navigation data is sent to external servers. Runs 100% locally on your onboard network. No ads, no tracking. LEGAL Publisher: CL Consulting SASU - SIRET 94261399300016. GDPR compliant. Pypilot is an independent open-source project (Sean D'Epagnier, GPLv3). PyNav is not affiliated with the pypilot project.

Screenshots

Anchor Basic4 screens
PyNav3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: PyNav at Free against Anchor Basic's $0.99. PyNav also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 67%) and iOS requirement (13.4 vs 15.6). Anchor Basic's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1). On update cadence, ads and device support 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

PyNav is free to download; Anchor Basic costs $0.99 up front. PyNav sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Anchor Basic asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Anchor Basic ships an update every 2 months, PyNav every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 21, 2026 and September 7, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Anchor Basic versus PyNav: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterAnchor BasicPyNav
Price$0.99Free — better
Rating3.5 (17 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews66.7% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings17 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 5 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFreemium — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.613.4 — better
Further details — not scored
Size4 MB14 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperRoy CadmanCL Consulting

Customer experience

Anchor Basic

All ratings17 ratings
Positive58.8%
Neutral5.9%
Negative35.3%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive66.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative33.3%

PyNav

Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

Anchor Basic

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

PyNav

One-time1
  • PyNav Pro$7.99

Questions

Is Anchor Basic free?
Anchor Basic costs $0.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is PyNav free?
PyNav is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Anchor Basic or PyNav have ads?
Neither Anchor Basic nor PyNav shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Anchor Basic or PyNav?
Anchor Basic ships an update every 2 months, and PyNav every 5 weeks. Most recently, Anchor Basic was updated on September 21, 2026 and PyNav on September 7, 2026.

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