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Guides and professional anglers need and use the performance and features of top of the line equipment to make a living. On the other hand most weekend anglers desire high performance but top of the line units are generally out of their price range and rarely used to their potential. With that in mind, the following list details sonar, GPS and GPS combo units from the major manufactures under $600 along with important features of each.
Under $200
Eagle Fish Mark 320: Best Buy in this price range. A full
feature unit at a very affordable price offering; a five inch screen, Hyperscroll, 320 x 320 pixel count, FishReveal target separation and a 200 kHz transducer.
Lowrance X96: High performance at a reasonable price. Full 1,500 watts of peak to peak power, five inch screen, 320 x 320 pixel count, Hyperscroll, 200 kHz transducer, with all of the features of higher priced Lowrance units.
Garmin 160C: Color for under $200, unheard of just a couple of years ago. 1,200 watts peak to peak power, dual frequency transducer, Ultrascroll technology and adjustable gain (sensitivity) at an affordable price.
Eagle Fish Elite 480: Right at the $200 mark the Eagle 480 is an unbelievable value. 480 x 480 pixel count, 200 kHz transducer, 1,500 watts peak to peak power, Hyperscroll and built in temp sensor add up to professional quality at a very affordable price.
Humminbird 717: High resolution, power and performance. Features; 320 x 320 pixel count, 2400 watts peak to peak power, dual beam transducer net workable & upgradeable fishing system.
$200 - $300
Humminbird 727: Ultra clear display and 8x zoom make the 727 a great buy. Superb detail at this price with 640 x 320 pixel count, 4000 watts peak to peak power, dual beam sonar technology, upgradeable to GPS with temp sensor. Fully featured unit under $300.
Lowrance X125: Best Buy in this price range. Professional features and operation at an affordable price; 480 x 480 pixel count, five inch screen, 2400 watts peak to peak power, Hyperscroll, FasTrack flasher bar and 200kHz transducer create a unit with the power and display for deep fishing at a very affordable price.
$300 - $400
Humminbird 747c: Clear color display at a great price. The Humminbird 747c offers; 320 x 240 pixel count, dual beam transducer, five inch display, 4000 watts peak to peak power that is upgradeable and network capable GPS.
Garmin 400C: Another inexpensive color unit from Garmin. Features; 240 x 320 pixel count, easy operation, adjustable gain (sensitivity), 4000 watts peak to peak power, dual frequency transducer and Ultrascroll technology in an affordable package.
Lowrance X135: Professional features at an affordable price; 480 x 480 pixel count, Hyperscroll, FasTrack flasher bar, 4000 watts peak to peak power and 200 kHz transducer with built in temperature sensor.
Eagle 500C: Ultra bright color display on a low price fully
featured unit. Featuring; five inch color display, 320 x 240 pixel count, adjustable ping speed, Hyperscroll, FasTrack flasher bar, 1500 watts peak to peak power and 200 kHz transducer with temperature sensor.
Eagle Fish Elite 480 GPS: Best Buy in this price range. Professional sonar and GPS features for under $400. Sonar features; 480 x 480 pixel count, 1500 watts peak to peak power, five inch display, Hyperscroll, FasTrack, 200 kHz transducer with built in temperature sensor. GPS features; 12 - parallel channel GPS WAAS reception, Navionics compatible, saves up to 1,000 way points.
$400 - $500
Humminbird 767c GPS: Best Buy in this price range. High power features under $500; 640 x 320 pixel count, dual beam transducer, 4000 watts peak to peak power, five inch display. GPS features include; 16 precise channel reception, WAAS compatible, Navionics compatible, expandable and upgradeable fishing system.
Eagle Fish Elite 500c GPS: Full color GPS / sonar combo for under $500. Features include; 320 x 240 pixel count, five inch color display, Hyperscroll, FasTrack flasher bar and 200 kHz transducer with built-in temperature sensor. GPS features include; 12 – parallel channel GPS WAAS reception, Navionics compatible, and 1,000 waypoint capacity.
Garmin 498C GPS: Full color GPS / sonar combo featuring; 320 x 240 pixel count, 4000 watts peak to peak power, dual frequency or dual beam transducer, Ultrascroll, Whiteline and 2x or 4x zoom. GPS features include; Bluechart mapping technology which offers 2-D and 3-D mapping.
Lowrance 510c: Impressive color display and professional
features in an affordable package. Features include; 480 x 480 pixel count five inch color display, 2400 watts peak to peak power, Hyperscroll, FasTrack flasher bar, FishReveal target
separation technology and 200 kHz transducer with built in temperature sensor.
$500 - $600
Lowrance 520c GPS: Best buy in this price range. Upper end features and performance at an affordable price. Features; 480 x 480 pixel count, 2400 watts peak to peak power, Hyperscroll, FasTrack, FishReveal and 200kHz transducer with temperature sensor. GPS features; 12 – parallel channel WAAS reception, built in 3,000 lake maps with depth contours, Navionics compatible and 1,000 waypoint capacity.
Humminbird 787c GPS: High resolution color GPS / sonar combo. Features; 640 x 320 pixel count, 4000 watts peak to peak power, dual beam transducer, five inch color display. GPS features include; 16 channel WAAS reception, UniMapT mapping of inland lakes, expandable and upgradeable fishing system.
Eagle Fish Elite 642c GPS: Full feature high resolution GPS combo featuring; 640 x 320 pixel count, 1500 watts peak to peak power, Hyperscroll, FasTrack, five inch color display and 200kHz transducer with temperature sensor. GPS features include; 12 – parallel channel WAAS reception, Navionics compatible and 1,000 waypoint capacity.
Notes: Prices vary greatly from one retailer to another; the pricing for this article came from differing sources on the internet and local retailers. It is important that you shop thoroughly before you buy. The best buy in this price range is strictly my opinion of the features and performance of each unit in the range. The opinion is based on the technical features of each unit and the performance of the unit on the water.
Buyer beware: As mentioned above, the best pricing in electronics tends to come from the internet, buyers should take note that shipping and handling fees vary as much as pricing does on the internet, make sure you know what it will cost to get the product to your door. Also, internet sellers do not provide installation of products, as we learned in
previous articles proper installation is key to performance. While you may save a few dollars by purchasing over the internet, if you cannot properly install the unit you may be better off buying from your local marine dealer.
