Fish Finder Comparisons
For some people, the fishing season has already begun! To help these people catch that big one that got away (was it 3 feet long or 4? Maybe 5? No I think it was 6!) are fish finders, sounders, depth finders, whatever you want to call them. These little devices show us what's unseen below and whether there are fish around or not. Check out these beauties before you go out on the boat, by the river, or to the lake.
Raymarine Dragonfly 5PRO
This fish finder wants to deliver high-end technology to you at a reasonable price. The 5-inch optical bonding LCD display will deliver crisp, bright colours and the sharper contrast you'd expect to see with a much larger price tag all while never fogging up. The Dragonfly's wide-spectrum CHIRP sonar technology sends more signals simultaneously into the water to allow you to see life-like images of what's down below. Use the sonar conical beam to find the fish up to 275 metres or Raymarine's DownVisionTM wide beam to see more of the landscape (or should I say waterscape) up to 183 metres. Wi-Fi capability allows you to connect your fish finder with the Wi-Fish app to allow you to rewind and capture sonar images right on your smartphone. Dragonfly models also come with a built-in GPS to give you the option of the use of Navionics, C-MAP, or Raymarine LightHouse charts. All this and more, operated with only a few buttons for ease of use.
Shop Raymarine Dragonfly Fish Finders at Amazon
HawkEye FT1PXC Fishtrax Fish Finder 
The Fishtrax fish finder is a small, portable unit with a simple design; just a few buttons and the display. The bright VirtuView HD colour display of the HawkEye Fishtrax allows you to easily see the different depths and any fish, even in bright daylight. HawkEye's dual-frequency Fishtrax Intelligent Sonar with 100-level sensitivity adjustability allows you to look just where you want to and easily locate where the fish are feeding, frolicking, or hiding. This handy tool will also improve your ice-fishing game! The ice-mode digital flasher allows you to tune the display for sensitivity, letting you hone in for the small area you'll be ice-fishing. The size and portability of it also makes it excellent for kayak fishing.
Available on Amazon from $132.00
Garmin STRIKER 4
The STRIKER 4, available in 3.5-inch display size, is a steady and reliable fish finder from the big name of Garmin. Using their ClearVü technology and dual-beam transducer, you can expect beautifully uninterrupted images as you scan the depths for our scaled friends. Use the STRIKER 4 to mark your favourite fishing holes, boat ramps, and docks as you go along, or use the sonar history to go back and mark it later. Utilizing CHIRP sonar technology, you will get a clear image of individual fish and the built-in flasher with help you improve your ice-fishing game as well as jigging.
Anila Schneider is a deal news and tech editor with passwird (your fave daily deals since diggity ought one) and a Canadian blogger charting her path to financial independence at bcwildfire.com