Time for a new unit. GPS/fishfinder combo. Limited space to fill, leaning towards Lowrance because that’s what I’ve been happy with forever. Any ■■■■■■■■ would be appreciated.
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Down here is where a signature goes but they can confuse and anger some people so I don’t have one.
I have been impressed with Lowrance from their Elite series all the way up the touch screen HDI units. Can’t go wrong. I held onto my old Garmin Map though as I preferred the function and ease of use, but I have plenty of space. Can’t go wrong with a combo Lowrance unit. I know you have limited space, but if you go combo, get the absolute largest screen you can fit in the space. I am sure you know this though.
I have an Elite 7 for sonar, and a 5" Garmin just for mapping.
“Wailord”
1979 17’ Montauk
90 Johnson
Wilderness Ride 115
LOVING my Simrad. Very intuitive GUI and nice features for the $.
Wadmalaw native
16’ Bentz-Craft Flats Boat
SIMRAD GEO 7 GREAT UNIT
Just throwing what I have used the past 5 years in the conversation. I have used the Raymarine a series, es series, and the dragonfly series units. I have had great success using these units with no complaints. The user interface is super easy to use and I have paired all of them with somce great chart cards nav+ and platinum+ respectively. With all this said, you cant really go wrong with Navico units as well, especially if they are what you have confidence in. That being Lowrance and Simrad. Simrad’s user inferface is very similar to Raymarine’s in my opinion and fairly easy to use. I have seen some great bundles going on with units paired with chart card rebates and such in Bass Pro, Cabelas, WM, etc… lately.
Do others besides Garmin have Auto Routing navigation capabilities? I really like the looks of the Simrad stuff, but enjoy having the auto routing feature.
hey if you get a Lowrance I’ve got a chip that overlays all the hot spots out there like The Grillage, Dynamite Hole, Buoy 23…
it’s yours if you need it
I’m a Lawrence fan. I get a lot of emails from them. I think they have a new unit coming out. Newer than the Gen 3 stuff. Carbon maybe? Something to look into before buying a Gen 3 off the shelf.
Hard to go wrong these days. If you want a plain Jane unit just go with what you know. If you’re going for top of the line it’s going to depend on what you’re trying to get out of it. I still think Garmin has the most intuitive interface and their sonar has come a long way over the years. The Lowrance Elite/Simrad Go units have been really popular lately and offer good dollar value. Humminbird has the best shallow water SI performance. People say they aren’t to snuff for saltwater but that hasn’t been my experience. Raymarine probably has the clearest DI but I know of very few people using them and one has had the screen fail repeatedly. My favorites are Garmin and HB but, again, don’t think you can go wrong. I would just go with the biggest size you can fit and afford with the features you’ll use frequently not just every now and then.
By the way, if you get a SI unit don’t get a small screen or it’s going to be a lot of money wasted. You’ll miss a lot of detail and/or waste too much time zooming in on areas of interest.
Lets face it, the majority of folks including me, don’t use there machines to the max! Most don’t need all the wistles and bells in any package. Have had a 12" Lowrance for years and still don’t know anything but depth, fish signals and maping. I am looking at a Lowrance Hook 9, wish it came in a 12" version, at $499.00 a good deal! The GPS module antenna has gone out on mine and at $225.00 might just go with the H 9.