Which GPS/Chartplotter
 

Ive been looking at different GPS units and Chartplotters trying to figure out what to get for next season.

Does anyone have any recomendations? The one that was on the boat is a bit dated and does not update fast enough at cruise speed.

Im thinking about redo'n the dash so now would be a good time to get something decent sized and up to date.


thanks guys.

Garmin. None better! Look at their web site to get some ideas on size. They have great support also.

yeah been lookn, i would like to hear what real users have to say. Im not going to just go buysomething off the shelf only to be pissed off at it in a month.

Look at the Lowrance HDS-5...HDS-7

garmin all the way, the 5208 does it all

Agree. I have a 5208 touch screen in the Donzi and 5212 in the Nor Tech. Also used earlier models in various boats. Very user friendly, great maps, daylight readable, what more can I say?
Enjoy,
Bob

If a seven inch screen is big enough, the Garmin 740 is a good touchscreen unit.

We use the older 182c in the race boat. OSS requires them to check speed. Great in a smaller space. Can find them on ebay. I also have one on my personal boats and love them. I guess I could upgrade but why change what works!

Go to a boat store like West Marine that has them on display so you can play around and pick the one you like. I also went with Garmin, although I personally don't like the touchscreen models. I went with the 4208 and now they have the 6208 model which is updated so that the chart isn't as jerky when you want to pan or zoom. It's $1k more that the 4000 series though. If you go Garmin spend the extra couple hundred for the G2 Vision Chip, worth it IMO just for the auto guidance alone.

Garmin all the way.

They work great at any speed.... :D :eek:

I have the 5208 garmin. Nice plotter but a little slow on the redraw. I would recommend the 7200 series. Have lots of experience with units. In the marine electronics business. Ck out some of the new ray marine ewides also. Hybrid touch and better chart features from navionics. recommend the sat weather option also.

Agreed, it is by far the easiest and most intuitive unit I have used. We had the hd radar built in, and it would overlay over the chartplotter. I also found it to be incredibly accurate, both distance to a channel mark and depths. With the size of the screen it was also very easy to pan around and look at the surroundings. Also very easy to see even in direct sunlight.

If your concerned about dash space this is a good way to go.
We went with the 740S (Depth sounder option)
I have it mounted right under our smartcraft and tied in to XM weather as well.

http://www.teamjustice.net/DCB/dcbdash.jpg

have had the garmin 182C in numerous boats and am looking for a used one as we speak