Spotlight
By Jerome A. Koncel
W
hen it comes to buying marine electronics products, there
In the West Advisor section, boaters will click on “Fishfinder” and
are three important steps to follow. The first is to buy
get an article that describes what fishfinders do and then walks the
high-quality products. While price is always a priority in
reader through the selection process by asking the reader to answer
any purchase, the question inevitably comes down to how high a priority? In this case, it seems that the best advice is to buy and install those products that are reliable, easy to use, and will give the boater many years of trouble-free use. After all, boating should be hassle-free, stress-free experience. The second step is to make sure the equipment is properly installed. Today’s marine electronics make boating just not easier, but also safer. So, be sure to have your equipment properly installed by a certified professional. Remember that boating on the Great
a series of questions:
• Does the boater want a standalone, combination, or networked fishfinder? • What display specifications does the consumer want, i.e., color, size, and pixels? • How much transmission power is needed (wattage) and what type of transducer frequency (single or CHIRP)?
usually choppy, and getting home safely should be the number one
• Does the fisherman want to look to the side, straight down, or all around?
priority. Every 20-foot and larger boat on the Great Lakes should be
By answering these questions, the angler will be able to narrow
Lakes is like boating on oceans. The lakes are big, the waters are
equipped with a combination GPS/chartplotter. Finally, boaters should properly care for and maintain their marine
down the specific “Fishfinder” he or she would would to purchase for their vessel.
electronics equipment.
New products Advice Because boaters have many options to choose from when purchasing marine electronics, they should not be afraid to
The following is a roundup of some new electronic products offered to boaters by various marine electronics manufacturers for the summer of 2014.
seek advice. The most obvious sources of information about marine electronics equipment are other boaters, but don’t hesitate to contact product support staff at leading manufacturers, such as Furuno, Garmin, and Raymarine. Another valuable resource are stores such as The
Radios Cobra Electronics introduced its latest series of handheld radios at the 2014 Miami International Boat Show.
GPS Store Inc. (www.TheGPSstore.com), West Marine, Cabelas and
The Cobra HH450 DUAL Marine Radio is a waterproof, All-Terrain-
others. One highly regarded authority is West Marine, whose website
Radio™ specifically designed for year-round, multipurpose use. This
(www.westmarine.com) offers a West Advantage section that has
rugged and compact, floating marine radio unit includes Cobra’s
clear, concrete practical articles under the icon “West Advisor.”
exclusive Rewind-Say-Again® feature and both marine VHF and
As the name suggests, the articles found in “West Advisor”
walkie-talkie GMRS technology for higher-powered functionality.
provide useful advice to help boaters in purchasing various marine
The radio allows boaters to choose between low, medium, and high
products, including specific marine electronics products, such as
power for short and long range communication, plus it offers access
chartplotters, radar, and fishfinders. The articles are clearly written
to weather alerts with Specific Area Message Encoding (S.A.M.E.)
and go through a step-by-step process to help boaters select the
for threatening weather nearby. The HH450 Dual has a noise-
proper equipment. Let’s use “fishfinders” as an example.
canceling microphone for crystal clear conversations, while the
28 GLB | May/June 14