Are the Garmin 300C fishfinders any good?

http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product_10151_-1_10001_97550_250003001_250000000_250003000_250-3-1

http://www.fishfinder-store.com/humminbird-718-lcd-fishfinder.html

Would this be better than the Garmin?

I'm getting overwhelmed with all of the options.

I fish mainly small electric lakes. Do I really need to spend the extra on something with dual beams? I noticed that the single beams only gives you 1/3 coverage of the depth. I assumed that this is where the dual beam helped out. I have been reading that dual beams are only good on much deeper lakes. 50'+ deep. If you are in 15' of water how does a single beam really help is you are only getting 5' of coverage area? Do you mainly use your finders just for depth at this point? Would dropping back to something like the hummingbird with the larger screen be better over the color garmin?

Sorry for the noob questions but the more I read the more I'm getting confused. I am trying to stay around the $200 range. I bought the Garmin 300c from Bass Pro last night based on the sales guys recommendation. I'm second guessing the small screen. If an LCD screen in my price range is going to be a better finder then I really don't mind giving up the advantage of an easier to ready color screen. The sales guy said they just dropped the price on the Garmin 300C from $350ish.

I guess my question is if the 20 degree beam is sufficient or is the dual beam worth the money in my area. I live in Southern Indiana.

Anyhow. I'm lost. I'm on a budget and this is my first fish finder if you haven't noticed. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

I'm still trying to answer my own questions. I think I got dual frequency and dual beam confused. I think...

I just noticed the the beams on the garmin appear to be Cone angle: Dual Beam: 14ø - 45ø. The beams on the hummingbird appear to be 20 and 60. I assume that this means that the HB has a broader range at the same depth?

http://www.fishfinder-store.com/garmin-fishfinder-300c-3-5.html

http://www.fishfinder-store.com/hufi565.html

I'm not really sure what else to compare other then the price and the screen type and size? G = color, smaller screen,. HB = LCD but larger screen. I assume due to the broader range the HB is better?

I just noticed that the Garmin watts are quite a bit lower. Does this make that big of a difference?

Next question. How often do you really use the dual beam? I now assume that the larger the beam area the more screen clutter there is.

The HB 565 has dual beam display and a higher pixel count. If the dual beam is not used very often would it be ok to step down to something like the HB 535 or will the higher pixel count on the 565 make that much more of a difference?

It looks like the HBs have more data refining options, and more power over the Garmin. The Garmin has a color display. Does the color display make of up shortages?

Most of the bodies of water I fish have a max depth of 30'40'. For my use, the wider beam of a dual beam is most beneficial in shallower water as the amount of bottom coverage is quite small with a 20 degree cone. The 20 degree cone is best for pinpointing fish or structure after you find it. I never met a Garmin that I liked, I prefer Humminbird and Lowrance/Eagle. For detail, the 565 would be much preferred over lesser resolution screens.