Which GPS??

[kwiggy]

Okeedokee... I am in the market for a GPS, but don't know much about them. I would like to use it for open water and ice fishing. Hunting and camping are other possible uses as well as just playing around with a cool toy. What options should a guy look for? I imagine I would get a lake map disk as this seems like a "must have" Are there other accessories that are a "must have"? I am not made of money so I can't afford the top o' line, but I can go around $200ish for the unit and add accessories later.

Thanks

[Craig Plummer]

H2Oc by Lowrance with the lakemaster MN chip

[Esox_Magnum]

I second the Lowrance

[GoFish4]

Make it 3 votes but it will be around $250 to get started with the color unit

[Schloogs]

I also have the H20c and I like it alot. It is going cost a little more that what you are looking to spend but another option would be the mono H2O which I think runs around $170.

[SP180]

H2O b/w is 169 and you can get some accessories before you reach the price of the H2Oc. The color is nice, but definatly not needed. A lot of guys on this sight will only spew about the top of the line toys. Dont get swayed out side of what you can afford. Not necessary.

[Craig Plummer]

The color *IS* Needed, I concidered the grayscale one but am very glad i bought the color unit

[farmfishing]

I have had many different models and i also agree on lowrance. There are several models to choose from. Find the one that suits your needs and budget. I have the I hunt i love this unit and its features like the built in barometer.

[SP180]

craig,

And as i stated dont buy what you dont need or cannot afford. You must be able to afford the color. But it is not "needed".

[grousehunter]

I just ordered the Lowrance iFINDER® Explorer PLUS from reeds. Its on sale for 179.99 normally 299.99. Im not really sure how nice of a unit it is though, but seems to be decent quality and it comes with mapcreate software so that you can load different more detailed topo maps onto it. This way you dont need to buy the topo software seperate and it has electronic compass and barometric altimeter on it too. Its b/w instead of color, but the price looked good to me and you can load the lakemaster chips in them too. Im sure sure how detailed the mapcreate will be on the lakes...i think its like 5ft contours so i ordered the lowrance hot maps chip too. I could tell you how it works once i get it, but didnt do much research on it myself, it was more of an impulse buy since i knew i wanted to get a gps.

Blake

[Esox_Magnum]

I to belive color is a need. Makes reading the unit so much easier and safe when using it in a vehicle, less time spent looking at the unit more time watching the road.

[jwhjr]

H20C. Search around online and you can find them for a little over $200 with shipping.

[Craig Plummer]

 Originally Posted By: SP180

craig,

And as i stated dont buy what you dont need or cannot afford. You must be able to afford the color. But it is not "needed".

It was kind of a joke of course color isnt necessarily needed but oh my oh my is it nice...I to could not "afford" the color upgrade but hey thats what plastics are for haha

[rowdyf]

Another vote for Lowrance. I have a Garmin 76map S b/w and its good for what I use it for (tracks, waypoints, mapsource topo's) but its not compatible with an external card. I wouldn't buy one that isn't able to take a card such as Navionics, Lakemaster, etc.

I have some buddies that have Lowrance H20 and Expedition models and they are far better than my old Garmin.

[Sandmannd]

Go for the H2O. Get wichever you can afford. I have the greyscale and with the money I saved got the chip. I would rather have the chip, than just a color unit with no contours.

[L_Cappo]

h20c or the h20 great units.

[BobT]

Okay, you guys forced my hand and I have to do this. Someone has to put a plug in for somthing other than Lowrance so I will suggest checking out the Garmin products.

The new Garmins do support cards. Just search for Garmin on the net and go to their webpage. You can see the various models at Cabelas if you want to check them out.

Here's an example of the quality of service. I bought my Rino120 four years ago. I subjected it to many perils from dropping it in a lake to knocking it off my belt clip into mud while 4-wheeling, to dropping 16 feet onto a rock pile from my deer stand and it came up ticking. Last winter I finally did it in when I fell on it while ice fishing and damaged the mother board. I sent it in, paid the flat rate service fee, and they replaced it with a new one. They managed to extract all my points, tracks, routes, etc. from it and preload the data onto the replacement. The replacement came with a 90-day warranty.

Yesterday, I called their service department because I recently began having trouble with the battery power dropping out intermittently. We determined that it must be a cold solder joint or deteriorated wire connection. They issued me a RMA# and told me to send it in and they would repair the unit under warranty. I told them I had scratched the display lens shortly after I got it and they said they would repair that as well. I fully expected to pay for the repairs since the warranty ran out about 8 months ago.

I am very impressed.

Bob

[Thump'n em big]

i have heard that the garmins are much better as far as getting close to a particular point.... i have been told that lowrance gets you withing roughly 25 feet and that a garmin such as the legend or vista will get you within 9 feet... a substantial difference... does anyone know if this true?

[Tom7227]

Hard to beat the service record BobT reports. I have a Lowrance IFinder and have the MapCreate Software as well as the LakeMaster chip for Minnesota. If you put a 512 meg chip in it you can download incredibly detailed maps for the 5 area states including all sorts of public hunting areas. There is no real detail for the lakes on it. You get that with the LakeMaster chip.

I wish I had the H2O for the waterproof feature, but I would vote for the Lowrance product. I believe LakeMaster sells a combo chip and GPS for a decent price.

I'll stay out of the color vs B&W debate. I'd put the money towards the MapCreate software before I would go for the color. Detail is more important than pretty to me.

[grousehunter]

Tom, do you have the mapcreate 6 or 7 CD? I am not sure which one is comming with mine, but hope its the 7. For the 512 chip is that the chip they give you with the Ifinder or an aftermarket one? If aftermarket how much did it cost you? Thanks...(sorry to hijack the thread a little there just interested since i just ordered the ifinder yesterday.)

Blake

[anyfishwilldo]

Another vote for the H2O. I have the color and I love it. I bought the 2006 chip 2 y/a, and am waiting for the 08 or 09. My brother has the greyscale and wishes he would have bought the color. If $ is an issue go with the non color and get the chip.

[NCLaker]

Bob, It is great to hear about the cust svc on your Garmin. A lot to be said about companies that stand behind their products this way. I've experienced similar levels of service from Vexilar, Marcum, & Stikemaster. When you spend that kind of money it is comforting to know you won't get hassled with you need help or SOL if it fails/breaks.

Anyways...sorry to get off topic a bit. I agree that you need to get what you can afford - that includes both the unit and the chip. If you really want to get the most out of your time on the ice finding new potential hot spots you need both right away. The HSOforum I bought mine from has the H2O for $137, and the H2OC for $219. You can probably get an older 06 chip (i.e. Navionics or Lakemaster) for around $60 new/used (Cabela's bargain cave had it at this price). Lakemaster has great road info, but Navionics gives much more bang for the $ IMHO (Premium Hotmaps North) it includes WI,SD,ND,MI,IA states, all state bodies of water, and more high Def lakes. I have the LM and am looking to buy the Navionics just to get Wis and the HD for more of the lakes I fish.

If you want to protect your investment - may want to consider buying the neoprean protective case (someone on this site confirmed will prevent it from sinking in water).

[Tom7227]

Grousehunter

I have the version 6. The chip was after market. They only cost $10-15 nowdays. I got a 1 gig chip but it was too slow to load to be useful. Bit of a hassle getting set up with the card reader and registering the cards. Keep the book handy or find a 12 year old to do it for you. If you give me your e-mail we can do this without cluttering up this thread.

You can buy clear plastic pieces that stick to the screen at most electronics stores. Get that in place to avoid scratches that will drive you nuts.

Tom

[BobT]

One point I would like to make for you kwiggy. If you have friends that already use one particular brand such as the Lowrance it might be in your best interest to consider the same one. This is because it can be difficult to share data such as waypoints, tracks, routes, etc. between two different manufacturer’s products. All of those that I hunt or fish with use Garmin and so I can download all my waypoints or tracks, or routes to my PC and email the files to my collegues. They can then open the files using their PCs and download the data they want. This can be handy. I don’t know for sure but I doubt the files from my Garmin software would be compatable with Lowrance GPSs and vise versa. Something to keep in mind.

Bob

[fishinlocal]

I decided to throw my Lowrance iFinder hunt to the bottom of Mille Lacs this weekend, and of course it had the Navionics chip in it. The lowrance units are by far the best out there for angling. I have now gotten a new GPS, the Expedition Color unit which is great. I have also already bought a Ram mount and it is mounted in my portable shack, no more fishing for dropped GPS units.