I have been looking for a fishfinder for two months. I have decided on the Humminbird HELIX 5 SI Fishfinder & GPS Combo KVD. I would appreciate any comments, GOOD or BAD. Thanks
Printable View
I have been looking for a fishfinder for two months. I have decided on the Humminbird HELIX 5 SI Fishfinder & GPS Combo KVD. I would appreciate any comments, GOOD or BAD. Thanks
I have one works great wish it was a 7 though
I finally broke down and bought new one this yr. I looked at a bunch and finally went with the 7 si. I haven't had a lot of time on water with it. but I do like so far. It does a Whole Lot more than my last one did
Screen is pretty small........
The new widescreen format of the HELIX line is much more beneficial for SI viewing than the previous square and/or taller displays ...
Here is a comparison of the HELIX 5 and the previous core line ...
http://i477.photobucket.com/albums/r...psjgh9nvjy.jpg
Rickie
Rickie is the helix 7 screen the same size as the 800 series in the picture?
I had a helix 5 and thougt it was great. In the end I decided the screen size was just too small for me but the picture overall was awesome. I just purchased a helix 10 and am excited to see that detail on a larger screen. I now have an 899 si that I love but will be selling to offset set the cost of the helix. Personally i think the the smallest usable screen size is that of the 899 especially for a beginner in electronics. After a year with the 899 i could probably go smaller and make it work since i now have a working knowledge of what im seeing. In the beginning the larger screen makes it easier to learn.
Not a bad little unit just keep in mind the screen is about the size of an iPhone 6plus give or take but it for the money it has some great features make sure and get a lakemaster chip as the mapping isn't all that great without one
The HELIX 7 specs say "800H x 480V" ...so I would say yes ...
Humminbird | HELIX 7 SI GPS
Rickie
I still haven't been able to find any understand-able definition of the following display properties ...
899 ...:
Display Colors Grayscale = 65,000
Humminbird | 899ci HD SI NAV Combo
-----
HELIX 7 ...:
Display Colors Grayscale = 256
Humminbird | HELIX 7 SI GPS
Rickie
I understand "unique colors" ... I don't understand what that means in a discernible difference to the human eye ...
Richer colors? More detail? More contrast between dark and light? Marketing gimmick?
899 - -480h X 800 = 384,000 total pixels
HELIX 7 - 480h X 800v = 384,000 total pixels
What is 16bit vs 8bit when the total pixels is the same ?? (pixels per square inch maybe?) ...
MFD screens, TV's, phones, computer monitors ...Published display properties are written in Greek to the layman ...
Even I need layman's terms sometimes ...
Rickie
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Color_depth
Your monitor can likely only select 256 colors or 32 bit colors now a days.
The old Win95 days you only had 256 color available when you started a fresh W05 install which looked horrible, then 16 bit was available after the drivers were installed.
Richer colors,more detail, more contrast between dark and light. No gimmick....
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Color_depth
My point exactly ...
Every word in that wiki (except the, but, and or) is un-intelligible to the layman ...and what it may possibly mean to the images a user is seeing in a Sonar display ...
Multi-million pixel smartphone displays = maybe relevant ...
Low-resolution (relatively) Sonar displays = I highly doubt it's relevance to the human eye ...
Rickie
I guess if you're completely unfamiliar with some of the base level computer terms, it's no help to you.
You would need to read up on the basic terms used.
I have been repairing, building & using PCs for a while, so much of it does make sense to me.
Otherwise unless you can use a PC and shift the displayed colors from 4 - 8 - 16 -32 bit colors, you'll just have to trust that it gives you richer colors,more detail, more contrast between dark and light.
All in all, a better user experience.
UNCLE! :Rofl
As is with 99% of Sonar display users ...
If we could just use that same key-press sequence on a Sonar display - it might actually be a determining factor in understanding published Sonar display specs for that same 99% of Sonar display users ...
-----
-----
Dang ... My OCD is rampant sometimes ... :yikes
rotfl rotfl rotfl
Rickie
Hence the closing term UNCLE...
:biggrin
SOMETIMES?
:yikes
Unless people take the time to learn about something on their own, they are destined to say "I am clueless"...
I prefer to learn what I can, when I can.:highfive
Amazon.com : Humminbird 409850-1 Helix 7 SI GPS/Fishfinder with Side Imaging Sonar : GPS & Navigation
Amazon.com : Humminbird 409830-1 Helix 7 DI GPS/Fishfinder with Down Imaging Sonar : GPS & Navigation
Amazon.com : Humminbird Helix 5 SI GPS KVD Combo, Black : Sports & Outdoors
Amazon.com: Humminbird 409620-1 HELIX 5 DI Fish Finder with Down-Imaging and GPS: GPS & Navigation
A few options from amazon. The only one with KVD on it that was cheaper is the helix 5/SI. All you get for the extra money typically is the fact it says KVD. Same functions otherwise.They do have the Helix 5 and 7 with gps, without SI or DI. check it out. Amazon.com. Free shipping.
Guys, Thanks for the information. Since this my first fishfinder, I ordered the Helix 5 SI-GPS. I founded one for $446.00. Now, It's time to fish.