Its is worth it to get a chip?

[mrklean]

I picked up a Lowrance Elite dsi 5 last year, I was thinking about getting a chip when I bought it but since it had a lot of preloaded maps on it I figured I would save the money. On smaller lakes that don't have lots of fast changes its fine but when I went out to Tonka last year I noticed that it wasn't that accurate for the depths and changes which didn't surprise me. For the guys that do have the lake chips is it worth it, I have the Navionics app on my phone and love it but would rather have something like that on my sonar. Which chips do you recommend?

[TMF89]

TOTALLY worth it! The maps that come pre-loaded on the Lowrance units are very basic, and relatively inaccurate. They're good for telling you which part of the lake is shallow or deep, and that's about it.

Your two options would either be a Lowrance Insight Pro chip, or a Navionics Premium North chip. The Lowrance will cost you $99, and the Navionics $149. I have a Lowrance chip myself, and I really like it. It scales a bit better than the Navionics, by which I mean it resets the contour lines based on how far you zoom in. The more you zoom, the more lines you get, and also the more counter depth numbers. On the Navionics chip if you zoom in too far, it doesn't scale up the amount of numbers on the chart, so you can actually zoom in far enough to not see any of them. In other words, you just have some lines on the screen, and you have to scroll around to find a contour number to tell you what the depth of those lines are. However the Navionics maps do have a "cleaner" look because of this. The Navionics cards can do shallow depth and depth range highlighting, where you can set a depth where anything shallower will show in red, and you can also set a range (say you're working a break in 20-24 FOW) that will be highlighted as well. However I have to be honest and say I'm not sure if the Elite units can take advantage of this feature, and I wouldn't be surprised if they couldn't, just FYI.

I would recommend hitting up both of their websites and checking out their lake lists to see if any lakes you particularly care about are covered differently between the two chips. I would also look at some screen shots of the chips in action so you can get an idea of what to expect when you use the chips. Finally, Navionics does have a web app that lets you preview the chips, seeing what they'll look like on your unit. Hope that helps.

[Northlander]

Yup. I would get a chip that has the most of the waters you fish.

[H2O Milfoil]

You might also consider trolling the online sites to see if you can find an older one. Don't worry if they're older, if they have the lakes you fish, especially in hi-def, just make sure they work in your unit. I have 3 Lowrance Lakemaster chips, 2005, '08, and '11. They work in my hand held unit and my boat units just fine. But they're not available anymore. Look for used. And, no, I don't plan on selling mine!

[Agronomist_at_IA]

Lake map chip is well worth it. If you fish any lakes your unfamiliar with it really helps you find structures, spots, and areas to find fish.

lakemaster or naviionics both do fine.

[LunkerCity]

I have only used one chip in my HDS. I bought the most expensive Navionics chip. I would have to say its not worth it. I thought about selling it actually. It advertised "HD" contours on some lakes I fish in my area and I found that they are not the true HD. They just added more lines (1ft increments) to the old maps. One lake I fish isn't on the chip, I have to switch to Lowrance maps when I fish it. I am not impressed and can only speak to the Navionics platinum or whatever it is. Maybe other brands are better. It seems that the maps that came on the unit are similar to the chip. None are perfect. Good Luck

[delcecchi]

You need to check whether the lakes you fish have been mapped in HD or whatever the supplier calls it. The rest of the lakes are old dnr data that you probably already have.

The HD lakes will be listed as 1 foot or 3 foot contours.

[Hawg]

I'm not sure why you would buy a unit without buying an accurate chip.

[delcecchi]

I'm not sure why you would buy a unit without buying an accurate chip.

I don't know either, but I just thought it worth mentioning that not all lakes on the chip will be much better than the ones built into the unit.

Many are, especially the popular ones, but not all.

[mrklean]

I just thought it worth mentioning that not all lakes on the chip will be much better than the ones built into the unit.

Many are, especially the popular ones, but not all.

That was my main question most of the lakes I go to it works fine no issue but on a lake like Tonka and Leech I wasn't impressed so that got me thinking about wanting to add the chip for the accuracy

[hydro]

If you want to check out what you get with the chips get in touch with me. I have both Navionics and Lakemaster on the unit in my boat. Send me a PM if interested.

[Capt. H (Ret.)]

I agree!!! I think it's partially knowing how to read the unit. I've never seen a unit that says "the fish are here" when you turn it on.

[fishnowworknever]

I just thought it worth mentioning that not all lakes on the chip will be much better than the ones built into the unit.

Many are, especially the popular ones, but not all.

[mrklean]

I love my Navionics app on my phone just a little tough to look down at my app and drive a boat

[Craigums]

I use both a Navionics and Lakemaster chip in my Humminbird. The Navionics is nice because it covers WI and IA, and has notes regarding vegetation, bottom composition ect. The Lakemaster is awesome because I can highlight depths in either green or red in addition to adjusting the water level on the map

[delcecchi]

That was my main question most of the lakes I go to it works fine no issue but on a lake like Tonka and Leech I wasn't impressed so that got me thinking about wanting to add the chip for the accuracy

If you fish lakes like Tonka and Leech, and Vermilion and many others, no question get a chip. It is totally worth it. I have fished Vermilion for many years and a chip makes it so much easier than the days of dragging an anchor to find a reef. The old maps from the depression aren't much.

The chips are only like $100 or so, even cheaper used (be sure to get one that works with your device. All chips don't work with all devices) they are worth much more than another rod and reel or dozen rapalas.

[Deitz Dittrich]

as many have already stated, the chips are worth their weight in gold... finding subtle turns in the depth can be the make or break to a good day of fishing. It can also help with nasty skeg repair bills from time to time.