Anyone have a side-imaging unit? What do you think? What kind you have?

currently saving for the big screen.  Don't have but want.....want real bad.  

I've got a 797c2, have had it for about 1 year now. Love it, it's all you hear and more!!! Only regret is I wish I had went with the 997 or now the 1197, but I'll probably end up getting one of them in the near future.

I've had a 997c for over a year and absolutely love it.  Side imaging will show you a whole new world.

Ya know...........

I've owned a few Humminbird units, quite honestly I was never impressed with them, Lowrance and Garmins units seemed to be easier to use and overall better.....

These days though, it appears that Humminbird is on to something with this side imaging. I too have been really considering purchasing one.

TO THE GUYS WHO ARE USING ONE:

When you look at the screen and your boat is in the center, imaging pics to right and left, how far out does the beams go? Just looked at a 797 this weekend and it said 150 right and left, is that 150 feet or degrees?

When you see an image appear on the screen, is it shown upright? Some of the imaging pics I've seen look a little confusing, alomost like they are sideways.

Anyone have a side-imaging unit? What do you think?

Don 't own one, but a friend of mine does ----->AWSOM !!!!!, that 's what I think.

The number to the left and right are how many feet you are scanning.  The SI units can scan upto 360 feet to both sides.  I do agree with past Humminbirds not being the best out there, but since Johnson outdoors purchased them a few years ago they are the ones driving the industry with innovation and quality.

Thanks for all the input. Baitmonkey has extended his reach. This may be going on my boat sooner than later. Are they hard to install? Should I install it or have BPS do it? I am very mechanically inclined. Does BPS even offer install on elec?

Rand

I have heard (not from personal experiance) that if you buy the nav bundle the map will only have the lakes that are included in the bundle. It will not have any other lakes - not even the rough outline. I have not checked this out myself. I have been told the way to go is to buy the one without the Nav bundle and purchase the card seperately.

Don't know if this is true - but worth mentioning if you are getting close to pulling the trigger

Happy Releasing!

H.G.

Installation is pretty straight forward, just like any other sonar unit.  If you are mechanically inclined it should be no problem.  The navionics bundled units have 2006 maps only.  That is the only information that navionics would allow Humminbird to put in the unit.  My has the bundle but I am using 2008 chips because of the much higher lake count.

acar555 - so would recommend NOT buying the nav bundled version and then buying the newer chip since it sounds like that is what you had to do anyway?  This way you will have a basic lake outline for most lakes and then then detailed on whatever the card comes with?

correct, get the unit without the bundle

what is this ? an underwater camera? or a sonar that picks up off and away from the boat?

It is a sonar that scans the bottom. The sonar waves are sent out from the transducer in a very thin fan like pattern. The return is processed as an exact image of what is in the water and on the bottom.

Here is an example

Since no one answered part of your question: the side image display runs from top to bottom instead of right to left like the vertical display.