Expedition C vs. H20 C......

[Central Bassman]

Ok i need a new GPS for all my ice fishing stuff and some soft water fishing... I need to see what all you guys think between Expedition C or H20 C?? Which one is better and why?? Thanks all info wanted....

[Tippman]

The Expedition has a barometer, altimeter, electronic compass, 16 channel WAAS instead of 12 channels, and can play mp3 songs but I believe you need additional equipment. For many these aren't important features worth the extra money but you can decide if they are for you or not. The biggest upgrade in my opinion is the electronic compass. I've heard that the units without this will "spin" you around on the map once you stop as it doesn't keep track of direction, and would be irritating in my opinion. However I haven't dealt with this myself as I have the model with the electronic compass.

[red ice]

In my opinion, I would go with the Expedition. Earlier this year, I bought myself the H2Oc. Took it home for the day and played with it a while. Didn't like that I had to be moving to get a heading all the time. Called back to Scheel's the next morning and asked if I could upgrade to the Expedition. They said it wouldn't be a problem. I felt that the electronic compass would be worth the extra couple of dollars. So, after getting the Expedition and using that now, I would say spend the extra $ and get the Expedition. You my not use all the extra features on it, but I know that the compass comes in handy.

[schweady]

Both color units have 16 channels. It's the black and whites that have only 12. As far as the extra features, I hardly ever use the ones that my ExpeditionC offers over the H2Oc. I thought I was going to enjoy the electronic compass for a direction orientation when sitting still in the canoe, but the trusty Silva compass is just as good or better. And by following my trail with the map set to 'Track Up,' it's not really needed anyway. The mp3 options are a joke, what with all the extra attachments needed, not to mention the fact that you can't have a lake map chip installed at the same time as a chip with tunes on it... I owned the thing for nearly a year before I stumbled across the Waypoint Audio Note 'feature,' so I thought I'd look at what it took to do that... Need an adapter for a headphone plug, and that has to go in where the 12v power cord goes... Bring a radio along if you want music, I'd say.

[quijibo]

I agree with Red Ice about the compass and the barometer is nice too. It helps when you're trying to establish fish biting patterns.

I would like to use the MP3 player, but Lowrance wants a lot of money for their accessories and you need a lot of them if you want any kind of versatility.

I have had some issues with my ExpeditionC but I believe that most of them weren't very common and Lowrance does an unbelievably good job of correcting them.

[quijibo]

Schweady, I completely agree. They seemed to have missed the boat when it comes to versatility. This thing could have so many applications if they just made it a little more user friendly in the compatability heading. I could picture a docking station that would let a person use the GPS portion for a nav system, access the memory for custom trailmaking, setting waypoints on contour maps, using the mp3 function, etc, make it compatible with Google Earth, Live Local, etc...

Lowrance could easily make these into a sportsmans Blackberry.

Don't even get me started on the oppurtunities they missed with the Mapcreate system.

The mapping software all seems to be rebranded(& proprietarized) though.

[Central Bassman]

thanks for the info...Keep it coming!!!

[Tippman]

Quote:

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Both color units have 16 channels. It's the black and whites that have only 12.

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Yikes, I knew that. Must have been the time of night why I got that mixed up . For the record I would get the Expedition over the H2Oc. I would also recommend getting it on the internet. You should be able to pick up the Explorer for about $240 with shipping.

[CrappieAttitude]

[quote

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I would also recommend getting it on the internet. You should be able to pick up the Explorer for about $240 with shipping.

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I would be a little careful about ordering something like this online. From what I have heard the Lowrance warranty and the customer service that they provide is something that you would not want to give up even if it did cost you a little more $. Don't they void out a warrenty if it is purchased online? I don't know for sure, but I wouldn't want to take a chance and have it blow up in my face. But that's just me.

CA

[schweady]

Actually, there are many Lowrance Authorized Dealers selling these units online. Some with the most competitive pricing are jollyannmarine, tigergps, and anchorexpress. (You put in your own wwws&coms.) And don't be scared off by the prices they have on their pages. You add the item you want to your 'shopping cart' to see the actual, much lower, price. I got my ExpeditionC and LakeMaster chip from Jolly Ann, and when it the unit had problems, Lowrance first replaced the power cord no questions, and then sent me a brand new replacement unit after we figured out that a bad circuit inside the ExpeditionC was actually causing the problem.

[Tippman]

There has been some talk on here about buying online and it voiding the warranty but I don't think that is true at all. I did buy online, and told them this over the phone when my power cord wasn't working and Lowrance said send the unit back so they can fix it (free).

[Ralph Wiggum]

I contacted Lowrance about the online issue. I was told that they will cover items bought online with a receipt/invoice provided it came from a authorized retailer. This means that if you buy it from Jolly Ann, Tiger, etc. you will be covered, but if you buy from an HSOList (or similar) retailer, you will be SOL.

[CrappieAttitude]

When I mentioned the online warranty not being honored, I was referring to an hsolist type purchase. I wasn't even thinking of the online shopping with an authorized retailer. I am just not one to purchase things online in any matter. I am a little old fashioned and like to see the exchange of dollars from one hand to the other.

Sorry about the warranty confusiuon, but it is nice to know the scoop anyways. Maybe I will be a little more apt to purchase stuff this way.

CA