New HB 898 or 998

[ryanmitchell]

Anyone give these new finders a whirl yet? I am going to get one or the other. My brother can't justify the extra $500 for the one inch bigger screen. It makes sense as the $500 could go for WI, MN lakemaster chips and a Navionics north chip. I don't want to regret not getting the 998 next season. This unit should last us a while so I think the hit up front would be better than wishing we got the 9.

Let me know if anyone has tried out the new features. Played with them at Bass Pro. Really nice.

[PerchJerker]

The bigger screen is nice if you can swing the price, but if you're torn between the two I think it should come down to how close you'll be to the screen. If you'll be close, like seated at the console or the tiller and have it mounted right in front of you, then the smaller screen will probably be good for you. But if you're going to be farther away from the unit and/or moving around --- ie. running a kicker in the back of the boat but trying to see the unit on the dash, or casting baits and looking at the screen from a distance, then the 998 would be a better way to go.

It could also come down to how you use your electroncis --- are you watching them all the time and constantly studying them for things like hard or soft bottoms, bugs and bait, bottom-hugging fish, etc. If you're picking apart details and subtleties in the display then the bigger screen is probably better --- but if you're not trying to pick apart every little detail in the display the 8 inch screen will do a great job of showing you want you want to see.

One other thing -- at our prices there's a $430 difference between the 2 units, not $500, so that might make it a bit easier to decide too.

I hope this helps -- good luck with your decision.

[Nick Kuhn]

The difference is the 998c has a bigger screen at the same resolution. Humminbird probably pays all of $30 more to make the 998 but they charge a $500 premium on them. From a consumer standpoint buy the 898 and sit a little closer to the screen. I suspect Humminbird will have trouble moving 998's at the current pricing scheme, so hopefully they'll knock the price down to $1600 where it belongs.