Last week we saw the launch of the latest technology released by Humminbird at the Bassmasters Elite Tournament in the United States … ‘360 Imaging’.
Is this another Humminbird scam like their ‘Down’ Imaging from SideImaging release early 2010?
No, I do not believe that it is. 360 Imaging is a great tool for scanning for structure, and in very unique situations, even fish. But scanning for structure and cover is going to be 99% of the 360 Imaging’s purpose.
I have used 360° scanning with my Humminbird 1197cxSI thanks to Per Pelin’s DrDepth ‘Fish Radar’ tool in January last year. This is a DIY device that anybody can build themselves using bits and pieces lying in your garage and a cheap little controller that can be bought off the net.
Heading -
The biggest problem I had with the 360 was that if you were not moving in a relatively constant direction and speed, your heading would be erratic. Keep in mind that our fishfinder / GPS Combo units do not have heading sensors, and the heading or COG (course over ground) as it is known is created by our movement and where we were a second ago, or each time the receiver updates with the satellite. And as a result of this, a tree that was dead ahead 3 seconds ago would now appear to be up to 90° to either the left or right. Imagine how far off you will be when using a range of 150ft?! This however will not be a problem with the Humminbirds as the data is live, and not saving as a map.
Weather / Water Conditions –
The next problem is image quality when the water becomes choppy from either wind or boat traffic. Those of you who have used SideScan sonar will know how streaky your left and right images become when this happens, thus rendering it useless. What happens if this is tournament day and the conditions are choppy, no 360 Imaging?!
Display Size –
Due to the circle shaped coverage, the pixel utilization is reduced dramatically, especially on the smaller 898 & 998 systems.
With the Lowrance HDS Gen2 you don’t have any of these problems … Why?
Heading –
When recording the log for StructureMap, you will be on the main motor idling along at a constant speed of around 3-5kph, therefore allowing the unit to create a very accurate heading, or COG (Course over Ground). This will ultimately result in very accurate maps.
Weather / Water Conditions –
StructureMap is a pre-fishing tool, so it doesn’t matter how rough the conditions are on tournament day, because your logs were done in your own time and in perfect conditions. Come tournament day you merely insert your SD memory card and voila – a perfect map.
Display Size –
StructureMap utilizes the entire screen. You can even control the transparency of your StructureMap allowing the contours of your Navionics / LCM charts to appear through your map!
Conclusion:-
I especially like that StructureMap is done before the fact, and NOT when I’m fishing. I don’t have to fiddle with my electronics and keep wondering how accurate the data I am receiving actually is.
Is this another Humminbird scam like their ‘Down’ Imaging from SideImaging release early 2010?
No, I do not believe that it is. 360 Imaging is a great tool for scanning for structure, and in very unique situations, even fish. But scanning for structure and cover is going to be 99% of the 360 Imaging’s purpose.
I have used 360° scanning with my Humminbird 1197cxSI thanks to Per Pelin’s DrDepth ‘Fish Radar’ tool in January last year. This is a DIY device that anybody can build themselves using bits and pieces lying in your garage and a cheap little controller that can be bought off the net.
Heading -
The biggest problem I had with the 360 was that if you were not moving in a relatively constant direction and speed, your heading would be erratic. Keep in mind that our fishfinder / GPS Combo units do not have heading sensors, and the heading or COG (course over ground) as it is known is created by our movement and where we were a second ago, or each time the receiver updates with the satellite. And as a result of this, a tree that was dead ahead 3 seconds ago would now appear to be up to 90° to either the left or right. Imagine how far off you will be when using a range of 150ft?! This however will not be a problem with the Humminbirds as the data is live, and not saving as a map.
Weather / Water Conditions –
The next problem is image quality when the water becomes choppy from either wind or boat traffic. Those of you who have used SideScan sonar will know how streaky your left and right images become when this happens, thus rendering it useless. What happens if this is tournament day and the conditions are choppy, no 360 Imaging?!
Display Size –
Due to the circle shaped coverage, the pixel utilization is reduced dramatically, especially on the smaller 898 & 998 systems.
With the Lowrance HDS Gen2 you don’t have any of these problems … Why?
Heading –
When recording the log for StructureMap, you will be on the main motor idling along at a constant speed of around 3-5kph, therefore allowing the unit to create a very accurate heading, or COG (Course over Ground). This will ultimately result in very accurate maps.
Weather / Water Conditions –
StructureMap is a pre-fishing tool, so it doesn’t matter how rough the conditions are on tournament day, because your logs were done in your own time and in perfect conditions. Come tournament day you merely insert your SD memory card and voila – a perfect map.
Display Size –
StructureMap utilizes the entire screen. You can even control the transparency of your StructureMap allowing the contours of your Navionics / LCM charts to appear through your map!
Conclusion:-
I especially like that StructureMap is done before the fact, and NOT when I’m fishing. I don’t have to fiddle with my electronics and keep wondering how accurate the data I am receiving actually is.