Vesper Cortex: The World’s First Smart VHF Marine Radio

We are excited about this one because, let’s face it, the VHF marine radio was pretty sleepy for many years. But Vesper Marine, with its amazing new Cortex, is a game-changer.

While VHF radios are not required for recreational boats under sixty-five feet, they are essential for safe boating, especially for those who travel more than a mile from shore. Additionally, anti-collision technology is needed for offshore boating—particularly when navigating at night or during inclement weather, such as rainstorms or thick fog.

The Cortex not only modernizes marine radio communication, it includes updated Vesper AIS abilities: SmartAIS, a combination of an automatic identification system (AIS) and GPS technology. The Cortex improves the anchor-monitoring technology the company is noted for, and it includes advanced boat-monitoring technology for good measure. Let’s take a look at the Cortex in more detail. We think you will be just as impressed as we are.

VHF Marine Radio and AIS Combined

While marketing copy has the tendency to dramatize, Vesper’s description of the Cortex as “VHF Re-imagined” is right on the money. Cortex is the world’s first VHF with high-speed SOTDMA AIS transponder technology that provides all the benefits of rapid and reliable VHF communications while making your boat visible to others in the area.

The Cortex is ergonomically designed for one-handed operation with quick-touch control or navigation using the unique click wheel. The four-inch touch screen even works seamlessly if you have wet hands or are wearing gloves and, of course, the display is designed to withstand the harsh marine environment; it’s also submersible for up to thirty minutes.

The Cortex initiates direct calls with other vessels simply by tapping the boat on the display screen. You can also make VHF calls to friends, or most importantly, quickly connect with nearby boats or emergency services if you run into trouble.

In addition, you can easily see AIS-transmitting vessels around you and identify potentially dangerous vessels by viewing their speed, course, and possible collisions.

Vesper thought of another crucial detail when developing the Cortex: AIS vessel information is continuously displayed (name, bearing, and relative position), even while you are talking on the VHF radio. This capability is especially important during emergency communications.

The Cortex uses an eight-channel radio. At the product launch, it used two channels for VHF audio, one for DSC, and two for AIS, leaving three channels available for new features surely to come. Each channel is smartly dedicated to a single function, which ensures no lag, regardless of which function you’re using.

Man Overboard (MOB)

When Cortex detects an AIS MOB activation, it immediately sounds the alarm. As with all AIS MOBs, you will see where the MOB was first activated along with continuous updates to its location, bearing, and range so you can take the best course.

We love that you can label AIS MOB devices with crew names for easy identification on the display screen. We also love that, by pressing the dedicated MOB button, track-back mode is activated on all handsets and marks the MOB on NMEA 2000-connected MFDs, saving precious moments in a rescue situation.

Advanced Boat Monitoring

Anchor alarm functionality has been a strength of Vesper products for a long time, and the Cortex is no exception. Anchor Watch allows you to sleep soundly, swim without worry, or just relax knowing that your boat is exactly where you anchored it. By combining your position and heading, Cortex determines if your anchor is dragging or if your boat is moving outside its anchor swing radius and sounds the alarm if there are problems.

In previous products, that alarm function worked via an external alarm attached to the AIS unit or via Vesper’s mobile app, but that setup only allowed the anchor alarm to be available while on the boat. So it’s exciting that Cortex includes a cellular radio, making the anchor alarm accessible via a mobile phone app wherever there is cell coverage.

But the improved boat-anchor alarm is just the beginning of Cortex’s enhanced monitoring system. Of course, the system monitors anchoring and GPS position, but it also monitors battery level, bilge level, temperature, shore power, security sensors, bilge pumps, heading, wind, depth, barometric pressure, control lights, and refrigeration—really, any device that can be controlled via a relay.

Cortex Product Configuration

Cortex M1 SOTDMA smartAIS Transponder

The Cortex M1 SOTDMA smartAIS transponder with remote vessel monitoring is the core of a Cortex system. It’s compact, and water-resistant box houses an incredible number of modules. The M1 has a wi-fi and cellular radio, 8-channel VHF radio (for AIS, VHF, and DSC), NMEA 2000 connection, GPS input, analog IO port and heading, barometer and battery voltage sensors. Plus, the M1 has a no-loss VHF antenna splitter to allow sharing the VHF antenna with another radio, allowing a single antenna to serve a total of two VHF radios and AIS.

Cortex H1P Portable Handset

To enable VHF radio functionality, you must purchase at least one H1 or H1P (the P version includes a rechargeable battery) headset. Incredibly, you can connect up to ten headsets to the M1 base. All handsets, with or without a power cord, communicate with the M1 via 2.4ghz wi-fi.

The handsets feature a touchscreen covered with exceptionally durable Gorilla Glass, and it is visible in bright sunlight even while wearing polarized glasses. On average, handsets last about twelve hours on one charge but often last longer.

Vesper’s Cortex – The Takeaway

It’s been a while since we were this excited about a new product, but the Cortex’s advanced safety and boat-monitoring system is worthy of our enthusiasm. To offshore boaters, we say that the Cortex is the exact technology you’ve been looking for. It’s not only a smart VHF marine radio and smartAIS; the Cortex’s advanced monitoring capabilities are second to none.