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Well my pontoon came with an Ok (I guess) Eagle Fishfinder it measures depth, and shows the fish pretty good it's nothing fancy but I want to get a GPS for just in case situations. Like for example, get turned around on the channels and stuff and cannot find my way back to boat launch because I was being a dummy and not paying attention to channel markers (this has not happened yet *knock on wood* but what I want is something I could program the coordinate of the boat launch into then run around all day and like with a car GPS his 'HOME' and it will take you back to that location. Do they make anything like that in the way of Marine GPS?

Or what equipment are you guys using?

pontoon_dude wrote:like with a car GPS his 'HOME' and it will take you back to that location. Do they make anything like that in the way of Marine GPS?

Or what equipment are you guys using?

Yes sir they sure do. You can get as nice and spend about as much as you'd like on one, from hand held to mounted on the console. I'm in the vast minority but I prefer Lowrance to Garmin but have quite a large selection of price points.

I have saw some of the Lowrance chartplotters and WOW $2 Grand!!! Is about 3x more then I want to spend....Is there anything quality for around ~$200-$400 range?

***edit

Never mind just found some Lowrance Handhelds for my price range

You could opt for the any of the assorted Garmin handhelds also. (Colorado, GPSMAP 76C, etc) Just do some online searching and you can find some deals.

Yeah I have been looking at the Garmin hand helps The Colorado, and the 76C, but it looks like they dont have any marine maps built in....you have to buy the "BlueChart g2" map, and that is adding another $160 to the price.

I have a Lowrance chartplotter on my jon boat but I have always used my Garmin GPSMAP 76 on every boat I have owned even with dash mounted units. Its hand held and works like a champ. 5 years old and still kicking!

Flint River Pirate wrote:I have a Lowrance chartplotter on my jon boat but I have always used my Garmin GPSMAP 76 on every boat I have owned even with dash mounted units. Its hand held and works like a champ. 5 years old and still kicking!

but did it come with the marine maps without buying the bluechart g2 stuff??

pontoon_dude wrote:

Flint River Pirate wrote:I have a Lowrance chartplotter on my jon boat but I have always used my Garmin GPSMAP 76 on every boat I have owned even with dash mounted units. Its hand held and works like a champ. 5 years old and still kicking!

but did it come with the marine maps without buying the bluechart g2 stuff??

My Lowrance has the maps but the handheld doesn't. I just use it to mark waypoints or lead me back to the hill. You can mark your path on the way out, then just follow it back. The maps are handy when fishing an unfamiliar area though.

I got my Garmin Colorado 400C preloaded with coastal maps. The "C" denotes coastal. There is "I" for inland waters and a "T" for topography. Check amazon for deals but there could be better sites. Amazon worked for me. This version changed to a touchscreen and is now a closeout deal. Anyway, my 400C has nothing but coastal navigation, no roads or anything. I like the idea of the other model mentioned GPSMAP 76C as they float and are waterproof. I would assume that the C in 76C is preloaded coastal.

I think Delorme just released a handheld with Spot locater built-in. I haven't used a Delorme in a few years but back then, they seemed a little more difficult to sync and maps had to be purchased separately. Things may have changed. The plus for the Delorme is that they correspond with the Atlas and Gazetteer mapbooks.

The C designation on the GPSMap 76C is for color.

Do a lot of research and know what you're buying. Garmin sells units with no mapping and units pre loaded with Bluechart. Depending on what you want to do, there are several ways to go. If you buy a Garmin unit pre loaded with Bluechart you get mapping for the entire country. If you buy a Garmin with no mapping you then have to buy Bluechart for $160 and you get 1 unlock code for 1 region. If you ever want to go to a different region and want the mapping for that region you have to buy an additional unlock code for that region for around $120. I have purchased Bluechart and 2 additional unlock codes. Or you can buy separate pre loaded Bluechart chips for each region you want mapping for. However, you can't transfer that mapping to your computer. You still have to buy the software.

Now, with all that said, if you want the Bluechart mapping on your computer, along with the capability of managing your waypoints in multiple files, and the capability of transferring waypoints to and from your computer, you have to buy the Bluechart software. If that's a consideration look at the units with no pre loaded mapping and buy the Bluechart software separately. Keep in mind, if you go this direction, you'll also have to transfer the mapping from your computer to your GPS.

I also have a Humminbird GPS. Humminbird and Lowrance use the same mapping (Navionics). With these units you buy a pre loaded map card and stick it in the unit. If you want to manage your waypoints on your computer you have to buy another piece of software and a Navionics card reader. The software allows you to transfer 1 area of mapping to your computer at a time, for viewing. It is not permanently stored on your computer. Im assuming Lowrance works the same way, since you're dealing with Navionics, not the unit itself.

I've rambled enough. The bottom line is "What do you want the unit to do?" It's my opinion that if you want to manage your data on your computer, go with Garmin. It's much more user friendly than Navionics. If you don't care about the computer end, and all of your waypoints are going to reside in the GPS, Garmin, Lowrance, or Humminbird will do what you want. I still think Garmin is the most user friendly.

I'll say again, do a lot of research and know what you're buying.

Great info Tin Can. I agree with all the above. One thing I really like about the BlueChart software is that I can go to the desktop and plan or just day dream about what I want to do and where I want to go on upcoming trips.
It also keeps a record of all of JT51's fishin' holes
There are a lot of sites that will give you public numbers you can download.

Thanks for the loads of information....I found some Garmin 400c's on ebay for ~$200 because it's a discontinued model. That is what I mean leaning torwards, the only thing that bothers me is that most of them are refurbs and probably no Garmin support.
Or I could go with a water proof hand held and just mark my path in the way out........Are far as way points, and marking sports, I dont think I'd be doing much of that on the PC i'd probably keep it all stored in the handheld.

Thanks for all the info guys.

pontoon_dude wrote:Thanks for the loads of information....I found some Garmin 400c's on ebay for ~$200 because it's a discontinued model. That is what I mean leaning torwards, the only thing that bothers me is that most of them are refurbs and probably no Garmin support.

I purchased a refurbished unit from Get Feet Wet. Before I bought it I called Garmin. Garmin DOES NOT distribute refurbished units. If the seller says it's refurbished it's been sold and returned. If the original purchaser didn't register the unit with Garmin the warranty will be the same as a new unit. The one I bought was a new, never opened unit. But if the seller ships it and takes it back as a return they can not sell it as new.

pontoon_dude wrote: I dont think I'd be doing much of that on the PC i'd probably keep it all stored in the handheld.

As Tidedancer said, it's a good thing to look at your waypoints on a large screen map. It's also helpful to break your points down into multiple files and only load your GPS with the points in the area you're boating. I fish fresh and saltwater. I have over 30 waypoint files. If all of those points are in the GPS it takes forever to scroll through and find the one you want.

Not to mention the fact that if you have the points on JUST the GPS, you will lose those points if the GPS takes a crap on ya "or you lose it" I have my numbers on my machine at home and on the server here at work, just in case