Echo sounder "Garmin": instruction and feedback

Over the ocean, it is commonly believed that everything related to GPS navigation and electronics for wireless distance measurements is necessarily somehow connected with the company Garmin. The manufacturer, which has been producing navigation equipment for two decades, has gained worldwide fame and recognition. In the focus of this article - echo sounders "Garmin" - devices that are very popular among people who prefer an active way of life, fishing. The review of popular models is made, instructions and responses about devices in a circle of professionals are described.

About the brand

With the products of the brand - the Russians are familiar not by hearsay. Some use car navigators, while others have purchased a communicator, created as a result of a symbiosis of two giants in the electronics market - "Garmin-Asus." There is still a small percentage of people using the Garmin echo sounders, which can be found on any fishing forum or in the mass media. In any case, the brand is well-known, and thanks to positive feedback, it is also authoritative. In addition to products for any category of buyers, the manufacturer provides users with detailed operating instructions, warranty service and repairs. From the official website of "Garmin" you can download free of charge any software and update for the device.

Recommended for beginners

If this is the first acquaintance with the device, then experts do not recommend making an expensive purchase, but preferring budget options that have proved themselves well in fishing. Their cost is quite acceptable for most future owners. So, the sonar "Garmin Echo" with a black and white display is presented by the manufacturer in a budget class up to 20,000 rubles. However, do not underestimate these devices. Unlike other models from a more expensive niche, they contain all the functionality that will not only be in demand, but also actively used during fishing. After all, judging by the numerous reviews, owners of expensive echo sounders, in addition to two or three functions, do not use the device 100%, and some do not know how to use it.

The best-selling. "Kid"

The cheapest Garmin echo sounders that can be found on the market are the Echo-100 model and its updated Echo-101 modification. The difference between them lies only in the increased depth of scanning - from 180 to 450 meters, and in peak power, doubled to 1600 watts. Judging by the numerous reviews of happy owners, a black and white screen measuring 4 inches and one beam with a 60-degree girth is enough for a beginner.

Two instructions in Russian are supplied with the echo sounder. In one step, the assembly and installation of the device in pictures are described. The second instruction contains a user's manual, it is designed for all modifications of devices with black and white four-inch screens, including the sonar "Garmin-150". All new owners without exception, professionals recommend during the purchase of the device, used, to reset to factory settings and verify the efficiency of the echosounder in the presence of the seller. To restore the original parameters, you need to perform the following sequence of actions: "MENU", "Setup", "System", "Factory settings", "Yes".

Acceptable compactness

A better scanning of the bottom will help achieve the Garmin-150 echosounder and its modifications. At the moment, you can find the models "Echo-151" and "Echo-151dv". From the echo sounder "Echo 100" they differ only by the price and the number of scanning beams. So, the modification with the prefix "DV" has four scanning beams, and the remaining models - only two. On the official website, the manufacturer declares an increase in scanning depth in the new Echo-151 modifications, but judging by the numerous reviews of fishermen, this fact raises doubts. After all, electronics remained the same as in the old model, and peak power is unchanged. It is to be hoped that the manufacturer says the truth, since it is nowhere to be convinced of the practicality of measuring the depth of the reservoir by half a kilometer during fishing.

Echosounder with a large screen at an affordable price

The manufacturer acted magnificently in relation to its customers, providing on the market a relatively inexpensive device with a large screen. Let the image and black and white, but it contains more information and small details. The Garmin Echo-200 has a five-inch screen with a resolution of 480 by 320 pixels and a 16-level display of gradation in gray.

The buyer will pay attention to the fact that all modifications of the 200 series are similar in functionality to the models of the 150 series. The difference in price between devices is only because of the increased screen (from 4 to 5 inches). Therefore, when buying an echo sounder from inexpensive black and white options, it is worth paying attention to such a factor as convenience of use, and to make a choice in the right direction.

Budget options with color screens

Echo-300 and Echo-500 echo sounders have color screens, which allows you to see a more detailed picture, rather than on black and white devices. With careful study, any buyer will find that the 300th series in terms of functionality, size and appearance is very reminiscent of the cheap Echo-150 series, as mentioned above. And he will be right. It's the same device. Accordingly, the series "Garmin-200" (depth sounder with a black and white screen) has a color analog "Echo-500". Between these devices the difference is only in the capacity of the battery and the peak power of the device, after all, as is known, a color screen requires more power. The instructions provided in the kit confirm that the devices are similar, since it contains a complete user's manual with all possible combinations of menu calls for a specific modification.

Summing up the budget class

After considering all the budget options, it remains to determine the functional, which have inexpensive echo sounders Garmin. The instructions supplied with the devices appear to be the same. Accordingly, we can conclude that the whole cheap class of devices is based on a single chip and is able to perform the same list of functions.

1. Function of measuring water temperature with thermocline display. Having determined the non-moving layer of water and the absence of flow, you can determine on a hot summer day where the predator rests. Because of this function, the cheap Garmin echo sounders, which are only positive in the media, are quickly sorted out by fishermen during the summer season.
2. Determining the quality of the bottom and finding fish or fish in the water is available due to the very high sensitivity of the sensor. This is also a useful function for fishing in ponds with muddy bottom.
3. Completion and protection from moisture. IPX7 speaks for itself - dropping the device into the water and taking it out within an hour from the bottom, you can continue working. Pleased that all budget echo sounders in the set have not only a transducer, but also a mounting kit for it for all kinds of mounting on the bottom of the boat or the engine.

Inexpensive device with navigation

Judging by the reviews of many fishermen, GPS navigation is not very popular among those who prefer to fish year after year on the same pond. Therefore, they are attracted by inexpensive echosounders Garmin. Being guided by the help of a compass, you can easily find a parking place for fish or a pit with a predator's dwelling. But lovers to navigate the terrain by satellite will have to fork out a little. Thirty thousand rubles, and the user receives a four-inch sounder with a color screen and a GPS-navigator using the Russian GLONASS.

The model "Echo MAP 42dv" has built-in memory and is capable of storing one hundred routes or creating 50 tracks, each of which can mark up to 20,000 points. But taking the instruction in hand, you can find that it is the same as for the budget series "300", just added a menu for working with maps. This similarity applies to bundling.

The Hunter of the Fish

Also on the market you can find devices whose purpose, judging by advertising, is hunting for fish in a pond. Echo sounder "Garmin" for fishing of the Fishfinder series have all possible amplifications of the sensor and the possibility of increasing different areas of the screen of the device for a more careful study of the picture.

In gratitude for this function will have to pay a round sum, which, depending on the modifications will be in the range of 20-40 thousand rubles. But after getting acquainted with the instructions and bundling the buyer can come up with the idea that the functionality is almost the same as that of the entire Garmin Echo series. And he will be right.

The main difference between Fishfinder and other modifications is the availability of the split screen function, which provides two scanning results, a wide and narrow beam. Comparing the data in different pictures, you can draw your own conclusions on previously inaudible objects in the water.

Elite devices

There are echosounders "Garmin", reviews about which attract new customers to the brand. The instruments are equipped with all the modern functions required by many inveterate fishermen. Let the price of such devices start from 100,000 rubles, but the functionality will impress any user. What's the only thing worth having a chartplotter that displays the position of the ship on the water using navigational charts! By exchanging maps with other fishermen, you can easily find the best place to catch in any pond.

In expensive devices there is no such thing as scanning speed. Even if you walk along the surface of the water on a glider, the picture of the bottom scan will be ideal due to the many built-in sensors that work with different power and from different angles. Maximum pleasure from such fishing can be obtained with the devices of the GPSMAP series and "Echo MAP".

Impresses all buyers who paid attention to the echo sounders "Garmin", the instruction. To say that it is big, is to say nothing. Thanks to the enormous possibilities, the instruction reminds with its appearance the encyclopedia, which is written in plain language and will be understandable even to the child.

About accessories

In most cases, fishing on the boat lasts not one day, so any owner of the echo sounder should take care of buying additional accessories. Owners of boats with a battery for starting engines, it will be enough to buy a portable charger with the ability to connect to charging by means of terminals. But if there is no battery on the boat, it is worth paying attention to an additional battery for the echosounder Garmin, whose range on the market is huge. Among the fishermen, judging by the reviews, a solar-powered charger has proven itself . With its own high-capacity battery and a lot of adapters, no mobile device will remain without charging, because the solar device is capable of outputting 5 Volts.