I love to fish, and I transform into a complete geek when I discover new fish finding technology. The moment I saw that a friend of mine had a Lowrance Hook 4 Sonar/GPS fish finder on his boat I went straight to it and starting examining its capabilities. My buddy eventually pried me away from the device but by that point, I knew I was going to have to get my hands on one to review it. To be fair, this device isn’t perfect…but what fish finder is? The Lowrance Hook 4 Sonar/GPS is packed with awesome features that serious anglers will appreciate.
Physical Design
The first thing you’ll notice is the LCD screen. It’s four inches and has a pixelation resolution of 480 x 272, which is substantially larger than screens on many other fish finders. It’s waterproof and weather-resistant, so you should have no problems with this device if you encounter waves or choppy water.
Fish Finding Modes
The TrackBack feature lets you view sonar readings from the past, and it even creates waypoints so you can return to fishing hot spots. The Advanced Signal Processing (ASP) feature makes fishing easier because it can adjust the settings for you so you can see fish, underwater structures and the bottom of the area more clearly. Scanning can be done in multiple ways, including middle range, high range, DownScan, and USCAN Nav+. These features make finding fish easier than ever before. This model has a ton of options to scan beneath the water, and it’s extremely easy to convert from one setting to another.
Transducer Capabilities
The transducer uses a combination of GPS mapping and sonar capabilities to provide you with accurate results immediately. This means it can work on up to four frequencies (83, 200, 455, 800kHz). This fish finder is useful on full-sized boats and it can also be used on smaller boats and kayaks. You can mount this fish finder in the traditional way or use it as a portable fish finder. The fact that this fish finder works on multiple frequencies is also impressive, and the results you get on the screen prove that the transducer is truly top-of-the-line.
Battery, Memory Card & Warranty Info
You can connect your fish finder to your boat’s battery or you can use AA batteries to power the device. It could take a couple of minutes for the fish finder to turn on and get ready to operate, according to users of this device. If you’re used to a fish finder turning on and being ready to go in less than one minute then this could be an issue for you. It’s also kind of disappointing that this fish finder only has one SD card slot. Many fish finders have multiple sots but if you use a high capacity SD card then you should be okay. The one-year warranty is kind of a surprise because a lot of fish finders will give you at least a two-year warranty, but as far as I can tell and from what I’ve read online there have been no significant problems with the Lowrance Hook 4 that the manufacturer should worry about, so the one-year warranty is perfectly acceptable.
Ease of Use
On a scale of 1-10 I’d give this device at 8.75. It’s extremely easy to adjust the settings, which can be a real problem with other fish finders. The biggest issue I had with this model was having to wait a couple of minutes for it to turn on and complete its initial programming. If you are unable to wait two minutes for the system to be ready, though, maybe you shouldn’t be fishing in the first place!
The Verdict
I rarely use the word “love” when talking about fish finders or any type of fishing device, but I absolutely love the Lowrance Hook 4 Sonar/GPS fish finder. It works great for freshwater fishing, seawater fishing, and you can even use it for ice fishing. Additionally, it’s compatible with almost any type of boat or kayak. It has advanced fish locating features and GPS capabilities so you can mark waypoints as well as spots to avoid due to submerged obstacles or simply a lack of fish. The verdict? This fish finder is “guilty” of being a great option for kayakers or anglers on any type of boat.
Conclusion
Clearly, the Lowrance Hook 4 is a device you should seriously consider when shopping for a fish finder. It has a wide range of modes and it’s very good at locating the right spots. The GPS capabilities of this fish finder make it a great buy, and the fact that it’s so user-friendly only increases its attractiveness. If you’re in the market for an affordable fish finder that can do it all, the Hook 4 Sonar/GPS might be the right tool for you. If I’m hooked, then you might be, too.