Buddy has a gift certificate to Gander. He is a newb and has a pontoon boat.

Salesman recomends a Humminbird 698ci HD SI Chartplotter Fishfinder Combo on sale for $400 - a $50 rebate I think.

I am reccomending a Humminbird Helix 5 DI Fishfinder for $250.- $50 rebate

Since boat is in one lake and no map available I dont think he needs GPS or maps.

Since new to electronics and small screen I dont think he needs or will interpret Si very well

Will the Di unit get better Di than the 698 with Di from Si?

Thanks

The DI unit has a transducer with two crystals. One does Down Imaging and the other traditional 2D sonar.

The SI unit has a transducer with three crystals. One does traditional 2D sonar, one does left side SI, and the other does right side SI. It does not have Down Imaging, but has a Down Imaging view that is created by blending the two SI sonar pulses.

The DI model will have the best DI images.

All my units are SI and I do not use DI for fishing, just for demo screen shots. The ONIX has true DI like a DI unit, but I have that turned off most of the time.

With SI, it is all about the coverage. You are not restricted to just what is under the transducer, you can see what is away from under the transducer for a hundred feet or more

So if he does not want GPS or Si which is the better unit in your opinion?

 

ty

If he wants any Imaging, that would be a Helix 5 or 7 DI unit that does not have GPS in the model name.

All SI models have GPS/Mapping.