Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)I have had this unit for about a month, and have had it out 4 or 5 times. There is a lot to like about this product; but there are also some irritations. The fishfinder is excellent, and give a very clear image of the bottom. Also, the unit has built in GPS, which is great for marking locations with just a touch of the button. The screen size is good, and one has the option of full or split screen with combinations of GPS and/or fishfinder, however, it appears the fish finder does not have a full color option; but instead, a variety of two color options. I may be wrong on that, but I could not find a multicolor display option, and none of the two color options were as satisfying to me as the multicolor option on my past locators. The GPS works great, and automatically feeds both boat speed, and location to the screen, while the fishfinder transducer provides both depth and the water surface temp.
The unit has an array of automatic settings, which load presets, so the beginner does not have to bother with a lot of "set up".
Unfortunately the manual for this unit is one of the worse that I have ever seen on a fish locator. This is particularly troublesome because navigating through the menus is not particularly intuitive. In fact, it can be quite confusing. This is especially troublesome as the initial "Setup" selections may result in some options being left off the menus, with no simple way to access them if needed. The pathetic lack of good guidance in the instruction pamplet (it hardly qualifies as a manual) only serves to complicate the situation. It will tell you very little that will help in your pursuit of understanding.
There is a computer "Simulation Program" available from the Lowrance site, for the very simular Elite 5 model, which would have been very helpful if it were reliable; but I down loaded the program to four different computers running Win 7, Vista, and XP, and the program kept freezing on all four computers.
Also, the unit has a mini memory card slot, so maps can be changed or upgraded. The popular "HotMaps" series of HD lake maps can be loaded into this unit, according to the literature. I am not yet ready to pay an additional $100 plus for this upgrade.
In summary, this appears to be a great unit for the money. But I will not really know until I can find out how to fully access the features. A good manual, a reliable simulation program, and better yet, an instructional DVD would serve the purchaser well, but alas, for some reason Lowrance decided not to support this product to the degree it deserves. Too bad, as I suspect many persons will give up before they can figure out how to fully utilize this versatile, and seemingly well made little unit. This is the best fish finder that I have owned; far better resolution, and better clarity and detail when set up properly.
Click Here to see more reviews about: Lowrance 000-10236-001 Elite-5 DSI DownScan Imaging Chartplotter/Fishfinder with 5-Inch Color LCD and Basemap
With Lowrance's standalone Elite-5 DSI imaging fishfinder with chartplotter, you're equipped with a technologically new way to look at finding--and fishing--hot spots clearly, precisely, and affordably.
Enjoy better fishing with innovative down-looking sonar imaging technology from Lowrance.
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