Thread: Is Humminbird Chirp worth the extra $?

Here is a thread comparing a new 'chirp' pic and an older 2D pic. Quite a bit clearer

Good question. I suppose that's hard to say . Some will feel chirp is worth it, enough to pay a little extra. From the short time that I've been using chirp, on the Onix. It's changed my mind about using chirp in shallow water. I could already see a 1/16 jig without chirp. Now using chirp I'm getting a much cleaner screen and have little problem, seeing crappie moving around in cover, while the boat is stationery. (i like chirp)

May look better but does it help catch more fish ?

I think the major concern is does it help SELL more expensive units. If assistance in catching fish was all that was desired. The manufacturers could have quit coming out with new designs and technology long ago.

But somehow I don't think the advances are going to stop. I can see specie recognition and almost picture like quality images being in the not too distant future.

The Bimford 5000 Ultramax not only finds the fish , but tells user how catch them. Informs user they are redears and if they are active or not. Will there be a market for such a thing if it retails for 4-5 K. I would think not. But I never thought 800 dollar freshwater spinning reels would sell. But somebody is buying them.

As long as there is a market. Some maker somewhere will market something to take advantage of that area of desire.
Example remember when the cell phone was just a phone ?

Originally Posted by eagle 1

May look better but does it help catch more fish ?

I think it helps me. I've been watching crappie react to my jig. If they don't bite, I've been pulling the jig away from them and watching them chase it. Just before they catch up to the jig, I'll either stop or let it fall. Seems to help.

Here's a Garmin, chirp picture, showing spotted bass and a humminbird chirp picture showing crappie.

just looking at that 360 pic makes me dizzy!

To answer the original question, I would say its worth it from the perspective of screen size alone, and the chirp would just be an added benefit.

From the pictures and threads I've seen it looks like Garmin is the way to go with chirp, but that should be the case when you start adding up all the costs.

If you're comparing similar (mid-priced) models, ie. Helix 9/10 to the EchoMap sv series, I'll take the value in Helix all day long and I used to own a 93sv.