GPS chip for LOW

[Scarface]

I heard a story the other day about an extremely detailed bottom contour GPS chip for Lake of the Woods in MN and Canada which has been taken off the market. Anyone know anything about this??

[widetrack]

Cary, I'm not sure if this is what you are after or not.<P><A HREF="http://www.navionics.com/News.asp?Id=65" TARGET=_blank>http://www.navionics.com/News.asp?Id=65</A>

[curt quesnell]

Hi Scarface how's it goin'<P>Widetrack, that was interesting info.<BR>lots of legaleze to try to get through.<BR>It seems like the problem is only in<BR>Canada?????<P>I have been trying to decide which chip or<BR>chips to get also. There always seems to <BR>be talk of a great new very detailed "super"<BR>chip in the near future. Oh well<P>------------------<BR>Curt Quesnell<BR>NorthCountry Outdoors Radio

[Scarface]

Thanks dave, that looks like what i was hearing about. The guy that was telling me about it had actually seen it and said it was quite impressive especially detail around the reefs and rock piles. You know, where the big one are...or should be...or might be....or used to be.<P>Hi Curt, I'm doing well. When I log off I'm going to the river to see if my boat still floats. There is a 100 pounder with my name on it next week end.

[57johnson]

I bought the fishing hot spots v4 for Garmin and forund it to be off by as much as .35 miles or 1800 feet from the top of the reefs. Was dissapointed but you can email discrepancies to them. It just caused me to drill a lot of holes to find a good spot. But at least it got me in the area.

[Old Guide]

widetrack, do you have the 2004 version? Is this what some have called the "pro" version? Pat

[widetrack]

OG:<P>No I don't, I'm still running a old fashioned LMS350, a garmin 12XL, and landmarks that I have burned in the noggin over the years.

[BOX CAR]

Hi Curt I have mt x15 and with same problem not knowing which chip to get,anyone know how long of a wait for a good one?<BR>BT

[Frank_Walsh]

The Navionics MMC card for LOTWs only is; CA182S S <P>IG900XL3 would be virtually the entire Great Lakes. Including LOTWs.<BR>Navionics description of coverage of the IG900XL3 is:<BR>"MICHIGAN, SUPERIOR, HURON INCLUDING LAKE OF THE WOODS, RAINY LAKE, NORTH CHANNEL, GEORGIAN BAY, GREEN BAY AND LAKE WINNEBAGO."<P>You should check both Lowrance and Navionics' websites to check compatibibility<BR>of your machine with the software, and product you require. For example; "Classic" vs. "Gold" series.

[BigBusiness]

I have a LMS320. I have the MN chip and the WI chip. I don't fish LOW enough to justify the cost of the Big dollar chip. I have NEVER been a fan of Thorn Brothers. They've come across as arrogant. But the other day I did stop by and get a demo from Josh who went to high school with a friend of mine.(The only reason I gave them a second chance) He knew more about the chips, Garmin, Lowrance, etc. than the factory reps I talked to at Cabela's this spring at their open house. It may be worth it to stop in.

[Rockin Rod]

Alright fellas, here's the deal. I have spent a lot of time researching maps for LOW for GPS units and here's what I've found:<P>Navionics has two versions of maps for LOW that you can get on an MMC card. One is the Gold series, the other the Classic series. I too was curious about the difference, so I called Navionics and talked to them about the maps. Basically the Gold series has colored shading for depth contours and a little more vector info, such as bouy info, light marker info, and so forth. The actual contour info is the same between them. He basically flat came out and said the classic version is the way to go. Also they only sell it in the XL3 size now. It's the same price as the small maps used to be, so that's a good deal. Instead of just LOW, you get Rainy lake, Superior, Lake Michigan, and Lake Huron, all on the same chip, for the same price as the small map used to be.<P>One thing he didn't mention, but I've since found out is that all sales of maps that involve Canadian territory are on hold due to some pending litigation between the Canadian gov't and Navionics over unauthorized use of Canadian maps in their products. I have no idea when that might be resolved. According to the news on Navionics website, they are going to continue to sell the chip, but a dealer I talked to said they are currently unavailable due to the aforementioned issues.<P>I have not heard of any new super detailed map in the works. The ones they have now are great, IMHO.<P>Rod<P><BR>In regards to the hotspots maps, don't waste your time, as least for LOW. It's terrible. I got one for my dad for his X-15, and it wasn't good at all. He now has the Classic, and it's awesome. Highly recommended. <p>[This message has been edited by Rockin Rod (edited 04-22-2004).]

[RK]

Hiya,<BR>Widetrack posted the link that explains the whole business, but in general, the dispute between Navionics (and C-maps) and the Canadian government has been resolved - sort of. As far as consumers are concerned anyhow... <P>Basically, Navionics is resuming shipping of all charts based on the CHS maps, and putting the pending royalties in a trust find to be paid when the dispute is ultimately resolved. <P>Really, in terms of the demands the company that is the sole vendor of the CHS data is concerned, the whole thing stinks to high heaven...<P>As far as the charts themselves, I have the XL Chart, which includes Rainy and parts of the Great Lakes, and the LoTWs portion is identical to the chart on the 'small' LoTWs only chip, which is evidently not available anymore. My chart's a couple years old, so it doesn't have the updated route info from when the Canadians changed the routes and bouys. Not sure if the new Navionics charts have the updated route info or not. Guess I need to call Jeff.<P>As others have said, forget the HotMaps charts for navigation. Good way to smack a rock if you're up in the islands... I do well enough hitting them on my own - don't need the map helping out <P>Cheers,<BR>RK

[danglin]

Hi,<P>I have used the Navionics chip in a Lowrance, and I can report that it is simply awsome. The chips map shows structure in detail that is unmatched by any map I've yet seen. From a safety and equipment saving point of view, it's a must for anyone who spends any time on Lake of the Woods. The accuracy is exceptional. We could simply follow the arrow to which ever reef we wished to fish and as we got close the depth finder started showing shallower and shallower until we were right on top of it. <P>Rick

[WalleyeSnob]

I am somewhat confused by everyone's comments on these chips. I was playing around with the LOW chip at the sportsmans show and felt like it was not that accurate at all. I zoomed into the 16 mile area reef and it looked nothing like i expected.<BR>there are many smaller rock humps out in the knights and bridges area to that were not even on the map<BR>do these navionics chips you guys are talking about have all of the structure on the lake?<BR>the one i was looking at could not have been better than 5ft to maybe 10 ft increments<BR>i am just not sure if it is worth buying if it doesnt even show all the structure on the lake<BR>especially the small areas that are extrememely hard to find<P>i dream of a day that they come out with a reel bottom lake of the woods<BR>something that is just as good as mille lacs in 1 ft increments<P>in your guy's opinion how far away is the chip now from what a reel bottom mille lacs chip looks like<P>

[Hooker]

Well i just have to put my 2 cents in here, first of all your GPS will never be right on, they will always be any were from 100 feet to 10 feet off your mark and that don't matter what chip or map you have put into the unit.<BR>The government has restrictions on the accuracy of the GPS signal it's self. So your map maybe right on but the signal that your gps receives will always be off. But now if your gps supports the WAAS signal you could get with in 10 feet of your spot. If you are wondering what WAAS is go to <A HREF="http://www.garmin.com" TARGET=_blank>www.garmin.com</A> and they have alot of info on it there. I have a lowrance 3000 with hot maps in it and when i went out on the lake i had no trouble finding what i was looking for. I also have a garmin gpsmap 60cs with city select north america v5 and when i'm going down the road it will show me driving in the ditch in spots or on the lake in spots. So just remmember it's really not the chip or map it's the signal that your gps is receiving. Just my 2 cents.

[gizmoguy]

Any more opinions on the Gold vs the classic charts. I looked at them on their web site and the gold looked like it would be easier to read. Not just for LOW how about the great lakes areas too.

[BOX CAR]

GIZMOGUY <BR>Just for your info if you have color screen the gold will work.Clasic is for black and white!!<BR>BT

[Mykal]

I just got word from Lakemaster that they are going up next week to start Surveying LOW. No idea when this will be completed but the detail should be amazing!