Top 5 Editorial Picks

Five current fishfinders chosen for distinct buyer needs—from compact value to a premium expandable system. These are editorial selections, not Amazon or reader ratings.

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

  1. 1
    Garmin STRIKER Vivid 4cv, Easy-to-Use 4-inch Color Fishfinder and Sonar Transducer, Vivid Scanning Sonar Color Palettes 4 Inch STRIKER Vivid 4cv Transducer

    Best Compact Value

    Garmin STRIKER Vivid 4cv

    A straightforward sonar and GPS unit for kayaks, jon boats, and small boats.

    • CHIRP and ClearVü scanning sonar in a compact package
    • A sensible pick when you do not need a chartplotter or SideVü
    • Best fit for budget-conscious small-boat anglers
    Check Price
  2. 2
    Garmin STRIKER Vivid 4cv, Easy-to-Use 4-inch Color Fishfinder and Sonar Transducer, Vivid Scanning Sonar Color Palettes 7 Inch STRIKER Vivid 7sv Transducer

    Best All-Around 7-Inch Fishfinder

    Garmin STRIKER Vivid 7sv

    A capable sonar-first choice for anglers who want a useful 7-inch display without moving into a full chartplotter system.

    • CHIRP, ClearVü, and SideVü sonar for fish and structure
    • Simple setup with a practical 7-inch screen
    • Strong value for most general boat anglers
    Check Price
  3. 3
    Garmin ECHOMAP UHD2 73sv with GT54 Transducer, 7” Touchscreen Chartplotter, Garmin Navionics+ U.S. Inland 7' Garmin Navionics+ U.S. Inland with GT54 Transducer

    Best GPS & Chartplotter Upgrade

    Garmin ECHOMAP UHD2 73sv

    The mapping step-up for buyers who need confident navigation as well as high-quality scanning sonar.

    • Garmin Navionics+ U.S. Inland mapping and touchscreen control
    • Ultra High-Definition ClearVü and SideVü sonar
    • A better fit than STRIKER when charts matter
    Check Price
  4. 4
    Humminbird XPLORE Series GPS Fish Finder MEGA Side Imaging+ & HD Touchscreen Display Transducer Included) 9-Inch Display

    Best Side-Imaging Upgrade

    Humminbird XPLORE 9

    A current 9-inch imaging platform for anglers ready to build around serious side imaging and boat integration.

    • MEGA Side Imaging+ and MEGA Down Imaging+
    • 9-inch display with touchscreen and keypad control
    • Recommended configuration: 9-inch, transducer included
    Check Price
  5. 5
    Lowrance HDS PRO Fish Finder/Chartplotter with C-MAP, 9 to 16-inch Options 10 Inch ActiveImaging HD 3-in-1

    Best Premium Expandable System

    Lowrance HDS PRO 10

    A larger-boat platform for buyers who want premium sonar, mapping, networking, and a serious expansion path.

    • Active Imaging HD and C-MAP charting
    • Wide networking support for integrated electronics
    • Ready to expand with ActiveTarget 2 and the Lowrance ecosystem
    Check Price

Standard Horizon CP180 Review

 The Standard Horizon CP180 we tested ships with an external Smart GPS sensor. This unit is one of the least expensive standalone chartplotters on the market today.

Another version, the CP180i is equipped with an internal GPS sensor. Our test unit comes with a base map. More detailed cartography is available for display by purchasing and installing a C-Map chart card. We tested the unit with a C-Map Max card covering South Florida; it can also use C-Map NT+ cartography.

standard horizon cp180 marine chartplotter

Standard Horizon CP180 Marine Chartplotter

The compact Standard Horizon CP180 display unit measures 7.3 wide inches by 4.4 high and 3.2 deep. We mounted it with the supplied plastic tilt and swivel bracket.

Connections are made on the back panel with twist-lock connectors. The display unit can be flush-mounted with supplied hardware.

The CP180 will interface with radar, AIS, the Standard Horizon FF520 black box sounder, and NMEA 0183 capable devices.

Screen Size and Viewability

The Standard Horizon CP180 had one of the brightest screens we’ve seen in a unit this size and we rated it excellent for daytime viewability. The screen has a landscape layout, resolution of 320 by 240, and a diagonal measurement of 5-inches. Even when we looked at it from obtuse angles it remained bright and readable. Wearing polarized sunglasses has no detrimental effects whatsoever.

The CP180 has five color palettes to choose from; we used the Sunlight and Normal to view the screen in daylight. No screen fogging was apparent in the display at anytime during our testing.

Buy this Standard Horizon GPS chartplotter here.

The one thing we did notice was a somewhat cluttered appearance of onscreen data when the unit is ranged out to cover a large geographic area. This is simply one compromise that occurs when viewing lots of information on a small screen.

A quick press of the Power button puts the screen brightness controls onscreen. Sliders can be adjusted using the joystick to one of 6 levels for brightness and one of 20 levels for contrast—hitting the Enter key locks in the setting. We used the Normal and Night palette to rate nighttime viewability of the CP180 good. We did note slight screen darkening at steep viewing angles at night.

Operation

The CP180 can display three main navigation pages—chart, navigation, and highway—all are selected from the main menu. Selecting the chart navigation page displays a map page with optional user customizable data boxes.

The navigation page shows you where to go using data boxes and a compass rose while highway shows data, a compass tape, and a virtual highway.