Improved Insight Genesis from Lowrance

I’ve previously published snippets of Insight Genesis mapping both on here and Facebook over the past year, however, Insight Genesis has recently seen some major improvements.

For those who don’t know, Insight Genesis gives you control over the waters you travel. It permits the user to create custom maps from their own sonar data. These can then be overlaid on the community-sourced Insight Genesis Social Map, or kept for private use only. Sonar data can be recorded on the majority of the Lowrance units directly onto a memory card. This can be removed after a trip and uploaded to the Insight Genesis website where cloud-based software does all the work, automatically processing the sonar data you upload to create your custom maps.

Importantly for most anglers, you can maintain your privacy. You can choose to keep your sonar data private for your own maps, or improve the Social Map by contributing community data anonymously (your trails, waypoints and other personal data are never shared). This is important, no one likes to give away their hard earned knowledge of fish holding locations!

So what’s it actually look like?, just how effective is it?. Well I generally rely on Navionics Gold for my navigation of the sea and freshwater waterways,.. though the latter is almost none existant!. For example, I’ve fished Llangorse lake in south Wales and Navionics has zero coverage for this venue. A locally produced map is available online, though it’s pretty basic to say the least!

The lake is fairly well covered by shared uploads to the Insight Genesis website and has resulted in the mapping below being available on the Insight Genesis Social Map. Although Llangorse is currently only about 70% mapped, the detail is clearly much improved and this can be improved yet further, dependent on the viewing settings dictated by the user.

Social mapping is NOW OPEN TO ALL USERS & can be downloaded for personal use on the water!. Just download the file, load it up onto the appropriate memory card and fit it to your Lowrance unit (where compatible). If you are fishing an area regularly this software really comes into its own. You can continue to upload data and your available map will grow in size as a result, with detail also improving as a result. You can even upload data when your afloat via a smart phone and download the mapping for immediate use!

Data can be displayed in both metric and imperial formats, with contour definition as high as 1 foot.

So how does it compare to say the Navionics mapping that I use?. Well I’ve looked online at the Navionics webapp and pulled off some mapping to compare to the equivalent Insight Genesis mapping of the same location. Below is a section of mapping taken from the Solent between Hurst Point and Round Tower Point.

Below is the same mapping (not fully covered yet) as a result of uploading and processing sonar data through the Insight Genesis software. This data was gathered off a single trip and it can be clearly seen that the data is far more detailed than the equivalent Navionics mapping. Imagine making a few trips in the same vicinity and putting together the collated data?, the result would be a set of very useable and highly detailed charts that can be viewed via your chart plotter/combination unit or smartphone.

Though it doesn’t finish there. Each sonar log you upload will be automatically tagged with weather, temperature and barometric-pressure readings taken while you were on the water. This data can help you chart and analyse trends that contribute to successful excursions.

Don't be worried about losing your custom mapping that you’ve gathered as a result of many hours of logging data. The Insight Genesis cloud uses several remote servers to warehouse and protect your custom Insight Genesis maps, which can be downloaded at any time, from anywhere you have an Internet connection. The cloud automatically backs up all your data, protecting against lost or damaged SD cards.. it happens!

Contour data can be customised to suit the user and they can be overlaid on bottom-hardness and vegetation-location maps created with sonar signals. It’s simple to use, record, upload and use!.

Insight Genesis mapping was used by all the competitors at the2014 Hobie World Fishing Championships that took place in the Netherland last year. The detail was astounding and enabled all competitors not only to compete on equal terms, but to have a fantastic overview of what features were beneath them.

The chart below shows the area highlighted above by the red circle, though zoomed in to show the actual detail produced.

If the areas you tend to fish have little or no mapping available, or perhaps you just wish to improve what’s commercially already out there, take a look at Insight Genesis, it might be just what you’re after.

I’m hoping to log sonar data on my Lowrance combo unit most trips this year, not only to add to the Social Maps, but to demonstrate the detailed mapping that can easily be produced by any kayak angler (or any waterborne angler for that matter!) with a suitable Lowrance unit. Watch this space!

Lowrance Elite 7 HDI – initial impressions

I finished rigging up the Elite 7 HDI a few days ago, though I’d not managed to get onto the water to have a play with it due to the extremely poor weather that we’ve experienced this past week. Today saw a break in the weather with the high tide nicely aligned with the time slot that my kids were at school. It was a case of all systems go!

As I wasn’t fishing it only took a few minutes to load up the car and hit the road. As I was launching locally into the upper reaches of Portsmouth Harbour, the journey only took 5 minutes. Rigging was equally as quick, battery, Lowrance 7 HDI, paddle and a bottle of juice.

I had played with the unit in the garage and taken a few moments to peruse the instruction booklet. Perhaps I should have taken it along?, though I reckoned that I could fumble my way through things as requied.

The unit takes a good thirty seconds to power up, then the Lowrance logo is replaced with the display screen. Firstly, the screen is bright!, I turned it down from the max level of 10 to 8, though this will be darkened right down for night use. There is in fact a night mode, though I’ve only tried it briefly. The screen can be viewed in multiple customisable formats, basically triple page screen, split screen, single screen and the steer screen. The chart, broadband and down imaging (DI) sonar can be viewed in the various screen formats, either alone in single screen format, or combined within split and triple screen (combo pages).

There’s a ‘setup wizard’ which guides you through the initial setup, asking questions such as do you fish lakes, what depth, type of fishing etc. However, it’s worth mentioning that despite this, it states in the instruction booklet to use ‘freshwater mode’ in less than 100’ of water to avoid problems tracking the bottom. Most of my fishing takes place in water shallower than that so it was duly set to ‘freshwater mode’.

With the unit up and running I peddled out into some open water. I decided to setup the overlay data first, placing the time, voltage, speed, depth and water temperature onto the display. That was easy enough, positioning and re-sizing the various data items was very straightforward. Anyway, I initially set the display to the three panel page and pedalled off to a pair of derelict ammunitioning cranes.

Chart, broadband & DI sonar in triple screen

Mmmmm, well the cranes were there last time I was here!, sadly no longer. They are still showing on the Navionics charts, it’s a real pity and they provided some excellent structure to fish. There was still evidence of their foundations on the sonar, though to all intense and purposes they were gone.

The sonar setting needed a little tweaking, I founding turning up the surface clarity on the DI reduced the noise dramatically, whilst targets were still clearly visible and had not noticeably degraded as a result of changing the settings. There was a lot of weed pushing through on the flood tide and this considerably cluttered the broadband sonar display , whereas the DI display only shows the weed as much smaller returns providing a far clearer display. The DI defaulted to 455Khz, though it can be selected to 800Khz to provide better definition. I didn’t compare the 800 to 455khz during this trip.

On the DI, fish are displayed as a return according to size and profile. This may be a simple dot or a larger sized return. It takes some practice to discern fish returns on DI and I’ve been gathering some experience over the past few months whilst using my Elite 4 DSI. On the broadband sonar fish returns show as ‘arches’, so it’s quite handy to have the broadband and DI side by side for comparison. You can also overlay the DI onto the broadband, though I didn’t try that out in anger on the water today.

DI excels when is comes to accurately imaging structure. Below are a couple of photos, the first showing an underwater piling, the second a series of wooden piles that were part of an old wooden pier. The upper photo shows some fish returns to the left of the piling, possibly some small fish to the right as well (more noticeable on the broadband). Though it’s the clarity of the DI structure returns that really stand out.

Broadband & DI sonar in split screen 

Broadband & DI sonar in split screen 

I pedalled around the stern of an anchored warship awaiting disposal, coming close to a large metal mooring buoy. This was secured to the sea floor with a very heavy gauge metal chain and gave a very strong return. However, the broadband return is very cluttered with the structure being rather unclear, whereas the DI provides a very different picture (see image below).

Broadband & DI sonar in split screen 

I played with both sonars in single page view, though I immediately missed have the direct comparison that the side by side display provided. Perhaps having both sonars overlaid when in single screen will work better. I’ll try this in due course and provide some feedback later. The two photographs below were taken within seconds of one another, permitting both boroadband and DI in single screen to be compared. Again, the difference is extremely noticeable, with the broadband being far more cluttered and lacking in structure definition. However, fish returns (arches) are clearly visible either side of the buoy rope compared to the much smaller, harder to distinguish, returns on the DI.

Broadband sonar return

DI sonar return

I moved on and began to have a play with the Navionics Gold charts that I’d just installed. When viewing multiple screen you are required to press the ‘page’ button twice to switch between the split panels. For example if you press the zoom button, it’ll either zoom in/out on either the broadband, DI or chart depending on which segment of the display you have selected. This is where I wished I’d bought the instruction book along as it took me five minutes to work out how to select the separate panels within a split/tri screen display.

Chart screen (fitted with Navionics Gold)

I had ‘tracks’ selected on, the track colour can be changed to suit the user. Setting a waypoint is simple enough, just hit the ENTER button and edit the details as required before saving it. Accessing saved waypoints is straightforward via the menu options. What I really do like is the Lowrance ‘track back’ feature which allows the user to use the cursor to scroll and look back as the historical sonar data returns. You can then save a waypoint from a mark than has been passed over and lies some distance behind. There’s also the option to immediately select navigation back to that mark… very handy!

Lastly is the ‘Steer’ screen. This displays shows your current track, direction to waypoint and additional navigational data. What I don’t like is that is states your ETA as ‘clock time’, as opposed to time remaining. The problem being that there is no ‘real time’ clock to compare to the ETA. I’m hoping this ETA can be changed to time remaining, I’ll report back on that at some point. You can also follow the ‘navigation course line’ that appears on the chart page when navigating to a waypoint, my preferred method of navigation.

Steer page

You can set parameters that will set off alarms, these include off course, drag anchor, shallow water, etc. I deliberately steered well off course and once 100’ off course (value can be changed) the alarm sounded.

It’s my first day at using this unit so I was at times fumbling through the menus, though this will no doubt improve with use!. The Navionics charts themselves look great, though not noticeably better than the Bluecharts that I have loaded to my Garmin 60Csx. What I didn’t like was the difficulty that I experienced in locating the tidal information. On the Garmin it a couple of button presses and you’re presented with a list of local tidal stations. It appears that it’s more difficult on the Navionics, with the user having to zoom well out in order to locate a tidal marker (something that I failed to find!). I’ll have a good play with this and provide some better feedback when I’m more familiar with the software.

Ok, that was a very short introduction to my brief experience with the Lowrance Elite 7 HDI. Once I really get to grips with this unit and clocked up a few fishing trips, I’ll come back and provide a longer term review to how this unit and the Navionics software perform. That said, first impressions are very pleasing and the unit appears to be very straightforward to use. The location adjacent to the foot well works very nicely for me, I cant see it’s position being an issue at all whilst fishing. It’s very easy to reach and operate whilst afloat and underway.

The cod season is beginning so I hope to be out there fishing within the next couple of weeks, weather permitting. The temperature is dropping so I’ve been checking through my winter clothing, enduring that I have sufficient layers and thick socks in my clothing box ready to go!

Elite 7 HDI Navionics upgrade & additional waterproofing

The Lowrance Elite 7 HDI has a memory card slot to accept a blank micro SD card. This permits the recording of a sonar log if required so custom map sets can be created using Inside Genesis. The Elite 7 HDI came with a base map loaded, though this is extremely basic and not suitable for my fishing and navigational needs.

I decided to purchase a Navioncs Gold card that covered the whole of the UK and Ireland. They’re not particularly cheap, prices vary with some retailers charging over £200. However, after a little surfing I purchased one from Redcar Marine Electronics for under £170. Free delivery took under 48 hours, good service indeed.The micro SD card came well packaged, mounted into an SD adapter which is not required for the Elite 7 HDI.

 

The SD card adapter can be used to mount the micro SD card into the PC when refreshing the maps (“Freshest data”) via the Navionics website. These map updates are available for the first 12 months after purchase. I’ve already refreshed the maps and the process was relatively quick and totally painless. Navionics provide good step by step instructions, so screwing up the card is not a concern. However, it is stated that you card cannot be copied or modified in any way as the data will be corrupted. I’ve read of a few people being unfortunate enough to have experienced this – BEWARE!. You can purchase a dedicated card reader for the Navionics card that will permit it to be interfaced with a PC, permitting its interface with map reading software such as Fugawi Marine.

I also took the opportunity to upgrade the operating software for the Elite 7 HDI itself. Again, it was a quick and painless process. The latest software was downloaded from Lowrance and copied onto a blank micro SD card. This was inserted into the Elite 7 HDI and the unit switched on. The upgrade is automatic with no notification of a successful update being given. If you want to confirm the latest software state you need to go into the system menu.

The Navionics Gold card was duly inserted into the Elite 7 HDI and the unit was powered up. You need then to go into the ‘chart menu’ and select the Navionics option. The charts immediately appears, it’s as simple as that.

The memory card is concealed behind a hinged door which has a rubber seal and is a push fit. There is NO positive locking on the memory card door. As much as the door is quite a tight push fit, there’s always a slight chance that the door may take a knock whilst in storage or whilst afloat, causing the seal to be compromised.

Elite 7 HDI memory card door

Memory card door open (note roughened area of plastic to the far right)

The last thing anyone want is for the memory card to be contaminated with water, especially saltwater. To that end I decided to provide some additional waterproofing and improved retention of the door itself.

With the card inserted, I slightly roughened up the plastic surface to the far right of the card slot. A little Marine Goop was applied to this ‘keyed’ surface, enough to retain the door in a firmly shut position and make it very resistant to accidental opening. If the door does need to be opened to refresh the card data, it shouldn’t prove to much of a problem to overcome the small amount of Marine Goop that’s securing the memory card door. I also applied some silicone grease to the rubber door seal on the rear of the card door. The photo below shows both the silicone grease and the Goop applied just prior to closing the door.

Silicone grease and Marine Goop applied

I taped the door firmly shut for a couple of hours to permit the Goop to set. With the door secured shut I also ran a bead of silicone grease around the edges of the door itself, wiping off any excess.

Elite 7 HDI card door – sealed and secure

One thing is for sure, the memory card slot is not only fully waterproof, the door itself is also securely locked and cannot be accidentally opened from knocks, etc. The changes are barely visible to the naked eye, though it gives me peace of mind. Am I saying the the standard door is not up to the job?. I think it’s ok, though for saltwater kayak use and the constant fitment and removal of the head unit to and from the kayak, I reckon this improvement is worthwhile.