Best Gps Fishfinder Combos For High-Speed Travel

Fish finders have come a long way since their early days of simply telling you how deep the water was. Now, they are an invaluable tool for learning about fish behaviour and migrations.

When it comes to choosing the right fish finder, there are a few things to consider. Firstly, it's important to establish your budget and what type of fishing you'll be doing. If you're an avid angler looking for a feature-rich option, the Humminbird Helix 10 might be the best choice. It offers advanced sonar features, GPS, chartplotting, and contour mapping of over 10,000 lakes. However, many of its features are premium upgrades, so it may be expensive.

For those on a budget, the Garmin Striker Vivid 5CV is a great option. It offers Quickdraw contouring, enhanced screen, and ClearVU sonar, making it perfect for beginners. If you're looking for something more portable, the Garmin Striker 4 is compact and budget-friendly, although it lacks maps.

Other options include the Lowrance HDS Live, which has a clear screen and expert mapping, and the Lowrance Hook Reveal, which has impressive mapping technology and is easy to set up and navigate.

When choosing a fish finder, consider the type of sonar, GPS capabilities, mapping and plotting features, display and mounting options, durability, and transducer power and frequency.

With so many options available, it's important to do your research and choose the one that best suits your needs and budget.

Garmin ECHOMAP with LiveScope Plus

The Garmin ECHOMAP with LiveScope Plus is a top-notch fish finder for those seeking a high-performance device. This unit stands out for its amazing fish-finding capabilities, particularly in deep water. The LiveScope feature is not allowed in some tournaments, but it makes fishing more efficient by providing a clearer picture of what's beneath the boat.

The Garmin ECHOMAP with LiveScope Plus comes with a quick-release bail mount and preloaded LakeVü g3 inland maps with integrated Navionics. It also offers NMEA 2000 and NMEA 0183 network support. The device is compatible with the ActiveCaptain app, which allows you to capture screen recordings of your fish catches to share with others.

The ECHOMAP series features large, crisp, sunlight-readable touchscreen displays, making it easy to navigate through various functions. The high-contrast vivid scanning sonar color palettes make it simpler to distinguish targets and structures. This fish finder also supports a wide range of sonar options, including LiveScope, traditional sonar, and Ultra High-Definition scanning sonars.

The Garmin ECHOMAP with LiveScope Plus is an excellent choice for those seeking a powerful and feature-rich fish finder. Its advanced capabilities, particularly in deep water, make it a favourite among avid and professional fishermen. The device's wireless networking and multi-band GPS further enhance its usability and accuracy.

Humminbird SOLIX 10 CHIRP MEGA SI G3

The Humminbird SOLIX 10 CHIRP MEGA SI G3 is a powerful fish finder that combines cutting-edge technologies like MEGA Side Imaging+, MEGA Down Imaging+, Dual Spectrum CHIRP Sonar, and AutoChart Live. The unit features a 10.1" touchscreen display with customisable views and settings, allowing anglers to see multiple technologies at once and easily find what they're looking for via the sidebar menu.

The SOLIX 10 has a Cross Touch interface, which means you can control the fish finder using either the touchscreen or the keypad. The unit also has a new dual-core processor, which allows for lightning-fast responsiveness. The ultra-responsive interface and upgraded processing power mean you can perform any task with speed and ease.

The Humminbird SOLIX 10 is equipped with industry-leading sonar, including MEGA Imaging+ and Dual Spectrum CHIRP. MEGA Imaging+ provides views up to 250' under and out to either side of your boat, while Dual Spectrum CHIRP offers exceptional 2D sonar with superior target separation and fish clarity. The unit also has an internal GPS and Humminbird Basemap, which provides a clear view of underwater terrain and surrounding points of interest, including buoys, day markers, hazards, marinas, contours, and depth markers. The basemap includes charts of more than 10,000 lakes, plus coastal coverage for the continental US.

The SOLIX 10 is also premium chart-compatible, offering anglers the option to add Humminbird's LakeMaster and CoastMaster products, as well as compatible Navionics charts. With AutoChart Live, you can create real-time maps of your fishing spots, with access to patented Humminbird LakeMaster features. The unit comes with eight hours of built-in recording time and is compatible with AutoChart Zero Line SD cards for virtually endless AutoChart Live mapping capacity.

The Humminbird SOLIX 10 is also One-Boat Network Compatible, seamlessly integrating and communicating with Minn Kota and Cannon products to unlock more features and capabilities for anglers. The unit has built-in Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Ethernet, and NMEA 2000 connectivity, allowing for easy networking with other devices.

Lowrance Elite FS 7

The Lowrance Elite FS 7 is a fantastic option for kayak fishing. It is easy to mount to a kayak, and its transducer options and mapping features make it a powerful tool for finding fish and structure.

The Lowrance Elite FS 7 has a 7-inch display, hitting a sweet spot for many anglers. It is large enough to view from different angles and can be used by multiple anglers on the same vessel. The high-definition, backlit screen is easy to read and allows for day or night use, even in light fog. The touchscreen navigation includes well-laid-out menus with options to split the screen between two or three panels to monitor sonar and imaging simultaneously or keep your chart plotter up while scouting with sonar. The interface also includes handy buttons to set waypoints, zoom in and out, and set MOB waypoints.

The Elite FS 7 has excellent sonar capabilities with CHIRP compatibility, providing better target separation and clarity. It has a maximum depth of 1000 feet, suitable for anglers in lakes and rivers. The sonar display includes standard features such as split zoom, adjustable range and sensitivity, and colourline adjustments. It also offers interference rejection settings and surface clarity adjustments for choppy waters.

One of the standout features of the Elite FS 7 is its mapping. It comes preloaded with C-MAP Contour+, which includes detailed 1-foot contours for over 15,000 U.S. lakes and 9400 Canadian lakes. The unit is also compatible with all C-MAP and Navionics charts, allowing for a wide range of mapping options. Additionally, it supports C-Map Genesis Live, enabling users to create and share their own maps.

The imaging capabilities of the Elite FS 7 include DownScan and SideScan, providing 300 feet of depth and 150 feet per side. The split-screen feature allows for simultaneous viewing of imaging and traditional sonar or lake charts. While the imaging is very good, it is limited to 800 kHz, and other options on the market offer higher frequencies for even clearer images.

The Elite FS 7 also has a wide range of additional features, including compatibility with Power-Pole anchors and Ghost trolling motors, Ethernet, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth connectivity, and support for ActiveTarget Live Sonar, providing live images of fish movements.

Overall, the Lowrance Elite FS 7 is an excellent choice for anglers looking for a feature-rich and easy-to-use fish finder with powerful mapping and networking capabilities. While it may not revolutionize the market, it offers exceptional value for its price and is a strong competitor to the Helix series from Humminbird.

Humminbird Ice Helix 7 CHIRP GPS G4

The Humminbird Ice Helix 7 CHIRP GPS G4 All Season pack is a versatile fish-finding solution that can be used in both ice fishing and open-water fishing. It features a high-resolution 7-inch HD LCD display with adjustable brightness, making it easy to view digital depth, sonar returns, and other exclusive features in real time, regardless of the environment.

The unit's Dual Spectrum CHIRP Sonar provides crystal-clear returns of individual fish, bait, and structure, with target separation down to 3/4". It also includes CHIRP Interference Rejection with six settings to prevent competing sonar signals from cluttering the screen. The Adjustable Sonar Zoom feature allows you to focus on fish, whether they are close to the bottom or suspended in the water column, with 2x zoom on the flasher screen and up to 16x zoom on the 2D sonar view.

The built-in precision GPS helps you easily locate your fishing spot by marking waypoints and navigating with GPS tracks. The Humminbird Basemap, with charts of over 10,000 lakes, provides a clear view of underwater terrain and surrounding points of interest, such as buoys, hazards, marinas, and depth markers. Additionally, the AutoChart Live ICE feature allows you to create real-time 1-foot contour maps, helping you find fish faster and identify underwater structures.

The Humminbird Ice Helix 7 CHIRP GPS G4 All Season pack also comes with a premium shuttle, a master power switch, quick-connect SAE power cables, a large handle, multiple mounting options, rod holders, and cable and transducer management. It includes everything you need for both ice and open-water fishing, making it a versatile and powerful tool for anglers.

Garmin Striker 4

The Garmin Striker 4 is a powerful yet compact fish finder, ideal for those seeking a simple, budget-friendly option without compromising on features. With a 3.5-inch screen, this gadget may be small, but its performance is impressive.

The Striker 4 offers a keyed interface with dedicated buttons, making it user-friendly and easy to install. It provides a clear view of what's beneath your boat with its ClearVü scanning sonar, giving near-photographic images and detailed representations of objects, structures, and fish. The CHIRP Sonar technology sends a continuous sweep of frequencies, resulting in crisper fish arches and better target separation.

One of the standout features of the Striker 4 is its built-in GPS. You can mark and navigate to specific locations, such as brush piles, stumps, and docks, with ease. It's like having a cheat code for fishing! The waypoint map feature turns you into an explorer, allowing you to view, mark, and navigate your local fishing hole like a pro.

Additionally, the Striker 4 has a built-in flasher, ideal for ice fishing or vertical jigging. The flasher format provides a classic view of your sonar data. The device is highly portable, making it perfect for kayaks, canoes, or ice fishing adventures.

While the Striker 4 shines in many areas, it's important to note that its small screen size may be a challenge for those with visual impairments or those who prefer a larger display. The menu system could also be improved, as some advanced features are buried deep within the menus.

Overall, the Garmin Striker 4 is an excellent choice for anglers seeking a feature-rich, user-friendly, and affordable fish finder. It may not be the biggest or flashiest option on the market, but it packs a powerful punch and offers a great value for its price.

Frequently asked questions