Plenty of megayachts carry dive gear. But what if some guests can’t dive? They can still see what their friends and family see—and more—thanks to the HydroView Sport by Aquabotix. Simply put, the HydroView Sport is one of the cleverest watertoys to hit the market.
A 19-inch-long, torpedo-shaped watertoy powered by batteries, the HydroView Sport is fitted with a camera and lights, contained within the waterproof housing. The camera feeds live footage and even photos to an iPad, iPhone, or Android tablet or phone. Since the HydroView Sport operates on motion-control technology, those same devices act as the controller when you download an app from iTunes or the Android market. Tilt your tablet or phone to the left, the unit goes left; tilt it forward, and the HydroView Sport goes forward. You can even use a laptop’s touchpad to control it. (While the photo here doesn’t show it, the watertoy is tethered via a 50-foot cable to a WiFi-equipped storage box that remains on deck.)
If you cruise in an area where the current is a bit strong, not to worry. Aquabotix has tested the HydroView Sport in 5 knots of current and says it can still move at 7 knots. Overall, regardless of current, the unit has a battery life of two to three hours. Recharge time is eight hours.
If you’d like your HydroView Sport to be more adventurous, 150- and 300-foot cable lengths are available. But the unit will never descend deeper than 150 feet. That’s because temperature and depth sensors built into it automatically shut down the unit if a user tries to make it go too far.
Best of all for your crew, the HydroView Sport needs no maintenance: just rinse off the salt water when play time is done. And it weighs just nine pounds, so stowage is easy.
Price: $3,995, directly from Aquabotix.
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