Economic Stimulus !?!?

[Esox Chaser]

Guys,
Looking for some advice here.
I'm considering the purchase of a GPS system for the boat however given the current lack of response from Barack on my request for a billion or two for my personal economic stimulus program I'm thinking maybe a handheld unit is on the horizon. While I realize that a handheld unit isn't going to come close to the detail of a larger unit I'm thinking that the economic impact of the handheld unit will be considerably less than a larger unit.
So now that all the gibberish is out of the way does anyone have a handheld unit that they would recommend?

[Cold Front]

I have an ETrex by Garmin. It does have a little tiny screen but I like it for taking along when not fishing from my boat. I can waypoint spots that I haven't fished before and get us close to spots I want to fish. It would work to help navigate but the map of the Chip that is on it isn't exactly accurate. I haven't looked into more detailed software for it because I have a lowrance on the boat.

Cold Front

[Ryan M]

I have the Lowrance H20. It is a popular handheld geared towards fishing. It takes all the major mapping chips and has worked well for me. I don't have the color screen but woulnd't mind having it. I think it's $100 more but it does help when deciphering the depths.

The only complaint I would have is that it sucks the batteries down pretty quick. It does come with an AC adapter but still draws from the batteries when it's plugged in.

[FatBoy]

I have a Garmin Quest2 GPS unit for the vehicle. It is pocketable, has color screen and does a fine job. I purchased US Recreational Lakes with Hot Spots Central version and loaded it on the unit. It uses the Fishing Hot Spots maps. It is quite convenient, I can navigate in the truck, and by switching to the lake mapping software I can use it on the water. You can buy an extra bracket and mount in the boat and run on your 12V system or the internal battery.

[jkahler]

Make sure to check ebay. I've seen Garmin units that cost almost $400 for around $165 brand new on there.

[JeremyD]

I have had the H2O C since it came out. Combined with my Navionics chip, I wouldn't be without it. Yes, the screen is smaller but is very readable. I installed an additional power outlet in the boat in order to save on the battery suckage. The other benefit for me is to be able to mount it in my boat AND my Suburban. It's very easy to go back and forth with. That being said, if I had an extra $2000 laying around, I would upgrade the boat electronics.

[MuskyMaven]

If you want to spend a little more $$ I'd suggest going with a stand alone as you get a MUCH better receiver and the larger screen is easier to see/read.

I've got the Lowrance 5200c and LOVE it. You can find them brand new on ebay for around $425 or about $500 from Cabels etc. so about 2 times the price of a H2Oc, but a MUCH better and more useful unit IMO.

[Esox Chaser]

First of all thank you to everyone for their input. As soon as my check from Barack comes in the mail I'll be out shopping.
That brings me to the next question-Navionics or Lakemaster and why?

[Ty Sennett]

The Navionics Vs. Lakemaster chip is debatable. I like the easy to read part of Navionics but the Lakemaster chip seems to be a little more accurate.

[deantre]

I used the h20 last year with the Lakemaster chip, worked very well as far as info though the small screen was not the easiest to read and the sun really made it impossible to see unless you turned it away from the rays. At night it was really great, showed up well then. The accuracy of the lakemaster chip was amazing, though it is not realtime satellite and you still need to remember the floating islands and other fishermem. I got a 521 lowrance pkg from cabelas that included the ice fishing transducer/case etc for around $500 on sale.