Need electronics tech advice please for finding fish

[pikergolf]

I am not very tech savy and this new stuff has me frazzled.

If I buy the Canada maps for my tablet from this company, will I be able to access them on my tablet with out wi fi. No reception on the lake I want to access. Will it work as it does on my computer. Click on the map to see the features, I want to be able to zoom in and that.

https://www.gpsnauticalcharts.com/main/ca_ab_forty_mile_ab-forty-mile-coulee-reservoir-nautical-chart.html

[58thecat]

I use this on my phone, works great, can zoom in, gps knows where you are ref lake etc
Mark areas, distances, etc
Use it in conjunction with my other devices.


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[pikergolf]

I use this on my phone, works great, can zoom in, gps knows where you are ref lake etc
Mark areas, distances, etc
Use it in conjunction with my other devices.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Can you use it if there is no wi fi?

[58thecat]

Yes you can use it with no wifi


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[pikergolf]

Yes you can use it with no wifi


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Perfect, thank you.

[58thecat]

I know it works on I phones and apple products not sure on other devices though
I would check the app and the reviews etc prior to purchasing


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[mlee]

They work offline....but most of them really aren't that great or accurate.
Do your own mapping and get on the map sharing network for whatever electronics brand you run. Nothing out there more accurate than live maps created by anglers over the last 5 years.

[-JR-]

They work offline....but most of them really aren't that great or accurate.
Do your own mapping and get on the map sharing network for whatever electronics brand you run. Nothing out there more accurate than live maps created by anglers over the last 5 years.

I agree with you Mlee.
My Lowrance has mapping but its why out .
Some of the humps on lakes are 200 yards away from what the maps says Even the contour lines are 50 feet out .
At cold lake the lines may say I am in 200 ft but i am in 50 ft of water .
Not sure if Garmin is any better or a Hummingbird at cold lake .
Way points are your friend .

[58thecat]

I use my garmon, bird and I boat app to mark way points etc, maybe over kill but I like the ability to have a back up to the back up etc.
If I compare all three side by side they are all not reading exactly what the other is, ohhh well puts us in the ball park and increases our chances of catching.


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[OL_JR]

I agree with you Mlee.
My Lowrance has mapping but its why out .
Some of the humps on lakes are 200 yards away from what the maps says Even the contour lines are 50 feet out .
At cold lake the lines may say I am in 200 ft but i am in 50 ft of water .
Not sure if Garmin is any better or a Hummingbird at cold lake .
Way points are your friend .



I don't think much of the existing mapping is any better from one unit to the other. It's all based off an old survey.

The new units are allowing more updated and accurate diy mapping but I don't discount the existing maps at the same time. There is usually something worth checking out it just may be off a bit. You mention cold lake and It's funny you mentioned the 200 yards as that is right about where the mid lake humps and fingers are shifted I find. But they or something of interest is there.

[58thecat]

I don't think much of the existing mapping is any better from one unit to the other. It's all based off an old survey.

The new units are allowing more updated and accurate diy mapping but I don't discount the existing maps at the same time. There is usually something worth checking out it just may be off a bit. You mention cold lake and It's funny you mentioned the 200 yards as that is right about where the mid lake humps and fingers are shifted I find. But they or something of interest is there.

Been fishing cold lake for 20 years and yup the humps, bumps etc are moving especially the ones that pop up closer to the surface say 50-90 fow.

The one that I think is funny is on my helix 7 when fishing Ethel lake at the north end it shows my boat on land, walleye are thicker than thieves on land according to my marks:)

[fish99]

I agree with you Mlee.
My Lowrance has mapping but its why out .
Some of the humps on lakes are 200 yards away from what the maps says Even the contour lines are 50 feet out .
At cold lake the lines may say I am in 200 ft but i am in 50 ft of water .
Not sure if Garmin is any better or a Hummingbird at cold lake .
Way points are your friend .

my hummingbird helix 7 is the same way out on humps and contour lines

[OL_JR]

Been fishing cold lake for 20 years and yup the humps, bumps etc are moving especially the ones that pop up closer to the surface say 50-90 fow.

The one that I think is funny is on my helix 7 when fishing Ethel lake at the north end it shows my boat on land, walleye are thicker than thieves on land according to my marks:)

I was thinking more about how the existing maps can get shifted a bit with the georeferencing. Usually I find it doesn't take long to locate the structure and mark it. Once it's marked it's easy to return to and pretty exact.

The gps itself on sonar units, phone apps is generally really good. Not as ideal as having it referenced to your own maps but still very useful.

[HL_transplant]

It's why community mapping or live mapping is so important. Run autochart you won't ever want to run someone's pre made map.

[EZM]

Yes, all the "pre loaded" maps on ANY unit with ANY software are a "rough and coarse" view on a general contour (bathymetric) survey at best. And yes, they can be terrible in some cases as mentioned.

Using and making your own maps is the way to go here. At least then you know the level of accuracy is there. I think the Lowrance community maps are better, but there too, I've seen some deviation and inaccuracy.

[pikergolf]

Ok. an update. I have used this program on my tablet three times now. I find it most valuable. It is not accurate right to the foot but it is more than accurate enough to identify fish holding water. I can mark spots, the gps on my tablet works even without wifi reception. For the guys that just have a basic fish finder I think it is a fantastic tool, well worth the thirty bucks.

To the guys making maps on your high end equipment, how do you guys deal with water level fluctuations? The reservoirs in the south can fluctuate many feet in the course of a summer.

[mapleleafman3]

Birds have a water level offset setting for fluctuations. Not sure what the setting is called in other brands. I would assume they all have a setting to do it.