GPS/ Fishfinder

[Hoytman86]

We just installed the HDS7 Touch over the winter. Haven't been able to use it on the water yet, but it looks to be a hell of a nice unit. I know the general consensus on this board is that the structure scan isn't necessary on Erie, but we don't solely fish Erie so we put that hideous transducer on the boat for the striper trips to Cumberland and Norris. You could add it later if you want it, and I certainly am not saying not to get it. It was included with ours so we put it on, which brings me to my next point.

Depending on if you want a touch screen or not, all of the HDS Touch units come with structure scan, meaning you don't have to find a spot for that big ass module that you need with the regular units. The module is really unnecessary, it's HUGE, and you can network everything with NMEA 2000. Check their website and make sure to check process EVERYWHERE. We got ours from some body dealer in Florida that was selling them online for about $200 less than the going rate at the time, plus there was a rebate at the time as well. I just checked their website, the only rebate they have now is for a hard water sonar, but seeing as they're bringing out the HDS 3 now, you should be able to find a Gen 2 at a reasonable price.

If you'd like, I can try to find the website of the dealer we bought from. They also had the point-1 Baja antenna for about $25 bucks less than anywhere else I found it.

Good luck. Sorry to be long-winded but I put in quite a bit of time researching this stuff last year, just want to make sure you're informed because there's so much crap it can get confusing.

Edit: If you're not opposed to the touch screen, the HDS9 Touch is actually a smaller unit (10.43" wide x 3.32" deep x 6.65" tall) than the HDS8 (10.6" wide x 3.7" deep x 7.8" tall) even though it's got an inch larger screen. It's also only $50 more for the HDS9 Touch than the HDS8 bundle that includes the Structure Scan module (which you don't need with the HDS9 Touch).