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.
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Best Compact Value
A straightforward sonar and GPS unit for kayaks, jon boats, and small boats.
Best All-Around 7-Inch Fishfinder
A capable sonar-first choice for anglers who want a useful 7-inch display without moving into a full chartplotter system.
Best GPS & Chartplotter Upgrade
The mapping step-up for buyers who need confident navigation as well as high-quality scanning sonar.
Best Side-Imaging Upgrade
A current 9-inch imaging platform for anglers ready to build around serious side imaging and boat integration.
Best Premium Expandable System
A larger-boat platform for buyers who want premium sonar, mapping, networking, and a serious expansion path.
The Cobra HH125 is the company’s marine division bare bones entry-level marine handheld VHF radio. It has a basic feature set and a maximum power output of 3-watts. The black case is constructed from UV stable ABS plastic. The radio is very compact as far as marine handheld radios go
The Cobra F75 has some unique features not found in other marine VHF radios we’ve tested. It couples a display sized for a more expensive radio with a speaker in the microphone handset instead of in the main radio case where it would normally be located. The F75 has two
The Cobra F80 is a mid-priced marine VHF radio sitting at the top of the Cobra line offering some never before seen features. It couples a Cobra Marine exclusive, Rewind-Say-Again, with a powerful audio system and a large well utilized display screen. With a dozen pushbuttons on the radio front
The Cobra F55 is a compact no-frills entry level marine VHF radio that handles communication tasks without breaking the bank. This radio is officially designated the Cobra MR F55-D in white and the MR F55B-D in black. The F55 provides for one-button operation of a number of key features including:
This tip will be helpful to small boat operators who need to increase VHF radio transmission range for operation in remote areas or during an emergency. Many small skiffs, particularly flats boats, equipped with a VHF radio, do not have their antenna mounted very high. Since VHF is line of
The Raymarine T-450 thermal camera is amazing. If I had to sum it up succinctly that would be the word. I have had two versions of FLIR camera before this unit. While this is a FLIR M series camera, branded for Raymarine, it doesn’t matter, the quality and easy of
The Cobra F45-D is the no-frills entry level marine VHF radio, officially designated the MR F45-D, that can handle all your VHF communication needs for under $100. This Cobra marine radio set ships with the radio, a front panel mounted detachable microphone, GPS interface cable, microphone mount, owner’s manual, plastic
I cruise the west coast of Florida and purchased the Raymarine SmartPilot X-5 Wheel autopilot about a year ago. Having had an electronic background I decided to install the unit myself. I installed all the Raymarine Smart Pilot X-5 autopilot components myself on my Watkins 27-foot sailboat. Installation was easier
Choosing a marine battery that will be right for your boat can be a tough undertaking today due to the numerous types and wide variety of design duties of batteries on the marine market. Two basic types of marine battery perform two distinctly different jobs. A starting battery is built
I have been using the Raymarine Smartpilot ST6001 (hydraulic) auto pilot for about five years now. It is installed on a Stamas 29 Tarpon open fisherman. I primarily fish around Key Largo, FL. The Stamas has a single diesel inboard engine and a partial tunnel drive which is great for
I have the Raymarine S1000 autopilot installed this on my 23-foot pontoon boat. When it is working properly, this autopilot is nice to have aboard. Unfortunately, when it fails to work right I find it can be a major pain in the neck. In my estimation the unit works right
I bought a Magellan Triton 2000 as a refurbished unit for 300 dollars. Unfortunately, it did not work correctly and by the time I discovered it had a serious problem, it was out of the warranty period. I called Magellan support to find out where I could send it for
The Celestron Oceana is a rather compact marine binocular that stands about six inches high when resting on the objective lens caps. Features noted in this binocular review include individual eye focus, objective lens caps secured to the center hinge, and a slide rule style distance calculator printed on the
We find the Magellan 5000 with its vintage mid-90’s handheld GPS technology which includes a with full keyboard for manually entering waypoints to be far superior than anything found on the GPS handheld market today. All mariners need paper charts for reliability, however cruisers like me are not into supporting
The Bushnell Stableview, an economical marine-grade image stabilized binocular, tested here features a magnification factor of 10x coupled with 35 mm objective lenses. The objective lenses and all the gadgetry needed to operate the stabilization are contained in a box shaped case that tapers toward the front. The rear panel
My Lowrance LCX-104C has survived about six years on a 23-foot center console Dorado with only one repair. I have over the years found many good attributes to the LCX-104C. Although it did die on me once about two years ago, going totally blank and losing all of my stored
The Bushnell Marine model 137501 is a relatively inexpensive mid-size 7×50 marine binocular. They feature individual eye focus with a diopter scale on each eyepiece. The scale is located on the bottom of the eyepieces in our preferred location for easy setting when in use. Index and scale marks are
I had high hopes for my Lowrance HDS chartplotter fishfinder. Unfortunately, Lowrance and Navionics seem intent on marketing products that are simply not ready for use. I live in Alaska and fish the south central area, Kenai Peninsula, Cook Inlet, North Gulf Coast, and Prince William Sound. I’ll start with
The Brunton MNS is one of the larger units listed on our handheld marine GPS review page. Its big?nearly three inch on the diagonal?display screen is located toward the bottom of the front panel with a leveling bubble in the extreme lower right corner. Nine pushbuttons are located above the
Here’s our How-To on making a watertight boat wiring connection that will provide years of trouble-free service aboard your boat. Boat wiring problems can play a big role in whether your boating experience is pleasureable or not. Nine out of ten times a bad connection will prove to be the