I’ve spent wayyyyy too much time debating between these two options and not surprisingly, their websites are not very informative. Also watched hours of YouTube.
Can some one please tell me the pros/cons of each?
I’m willing to buy both, just don’t have time to learn both.
Would like to map live without have to so a bunch of other steps.
thank you, John.
John...
I am assuming you have lakes without good contour data which is why you are asking.
Navionics has SONARChart Live which is a feature that you can turn on assuming you have a Navionics map card and an active subscription. When you purchase a Navionics card, you get the card and a 1 yr subscription. To renew at the end of the year, it costs you $99.
The other option to consider is Genesis Live which is a function available as a chart overlay (just like the previously mentioned SONARChart Live) which allows you to create your own map on the fly just like the Navionics.
I have used both just to test them out and find that Genesis Live tends to produce the superior results for me. However, I don't think a great deal of the results that either system generates on the fly.
If you fish major lakes in NC, the C-Map Precision HD card for NC is the very best map that money can buy....but the nearest lake you to is the Catawba chain (Hickory/Norman/Wiley) in the HD format. Where you live, you are more likely to be fishing the TN side of the mountains and they do offer a TN version of the Precision HD card as well.
The BEST way to do your own maps if that is your thing, is to sign up for a free Genesis account and learn to do SONAR logs which you can upload to the website. They will take your SONAR logs and combine them with others, validate them, and update the Genesis Social maps with them. The Social maps are free to download and use on your Lowrance unit. Instructions are on the Genesismaps.com website on the process.
Navionics is still needed if you fish in areas where there isn't a C-Map Precision HD card available (now available for AL, TN, NC, and in January the SC card will be out).
Roy
Wacky Riggers
Just to let you know: I use both and Sonarchart life has a bug that causes the MFD to reboot randomly when having SCL recording on. This has been happening past two years, no fix yet. I assume that the reboots start to happen once you have lots of coverage. Reboots did not happen at the beginning.
What I like better about genesis is the integration into the social map, navionics does that too, but it's completely black box and I was never sure, if it really worked or not (in fact it didn't work a lot of times from their app). In genesis you see your logs and their status.
If you are only doing your own live layer, this will not matter much but I would advise to upload into the cloud, that way your data won't be lost whatever happens. I've been using genesis for a few months now and the social map in my part of the lake is much better already than navionics, which I have used with app and a wifish sonar for years. Unfair comparison, I know.
You choose the one that fits your primary mapping, plain and simple. If that mapping is Navionics, you use SOnarcharts Live. If that mapping is C-Map you use Genesis Live. The functionality in them is very much the same.
And as always - don`t rely on Live-mapping. Make sure to collect data (sonarlogs etc) to improve on your primary mapping as well so those can be updated in due time.
Thanks for the replies so far!
A couple of you have stated "do not reply on live-mapping" and to make sure you upload your logs to the cloud so Navionics or C-Map can update the community maps. Is this the much more accurate way of doing it?
Sounds like it doesn't really matter which company you use, as long as the base map is sufficient for the lakes you fish. I fish the western NC/North GA lakes mainly (Chatuge, Nottely, Hiawassee, Burton, Lanier, etc).
I have used the Navionics+ card for years, so it looks like I will just stick with that and pay the $99 annual fee again.
I have just never uploaded sonar logs. Not sure why I haven't. I guess because I didn't want other people to benefit from my scans? That's a dumb way to look at sharing I know. But you also know fishermen. lol.
Thank you!
John
BTW, my setup:
Console is a HDS12 gen3 and a HDS12 Carbon mounted on a BBT dual mount, 3in1 active imaging transducer.
Bow is an HDS12 gen3 with total scan transducer and a Garmin ultra 126 with Panoptix Livescope (GLS10 and LVS32) mounted on a Precision Sonar dual bow mount.
All four units networked.
Uploading data to Navionics can be done in several ways, here are three of them:
1. Use SC Live on a smartphone or IPad etc as well. Once you get back home to WIFI the data will upload to Navionics.
2. Record sonarlogs while using SC Live, upload to C-Map Genesis. Once the sonarlog has been processed, download it as GPX and upload that to Navionics.This requires Edge, the paid subscription. But the upside is that both Navionics, Garmin and C-Map get the data.
3. Use one of the tools available for converting SC Live or sonarlog to GPX, and upload that to Navionics.
Oh wow. Thank you! Was not aware that option 2 was possible!Originally Posted by Team Colibri
Option 1: Connect the HDS that is logging to my phone and let the phone record?
Would option 4 be to save the SCL log to a SD card and upload that directly to Navionics?
Option 1, correct. Connect them with WIFI and the Navionics app gets depth from the HDS. The app costs money, but you don’t need to purchase any maps in it to use SC Live on it. (As a bonus you have your SC Live when icefishing or in a boat without mapping.)
Option 4 is not possible (yet). There are aplications out there that can convert SC Live to other formats though, and GPX can be uploaded.
Excellent info. You have been a tremendous help. Hopefully this helps others as well!
I also like Navionics for the SonarCharts Live. This is huge for us during ice fishing months. I can use the app and have all the detail from my mapping from the summer months.
NPAA #803
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