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Haven't tried mine on the ice, but I really love it in the jon boat. Just keep in mind that they recommend returning all settings to factory default before you do any updates. Not sure why, but I've played with it enough in demo mode. I can reset them to my liking pretty quickly. And as a suggestion, play with it in simulator mode.....A LOT! It has a ton of features and settings. It takes a bit of learning to get full use out of it. Fyi.... It does use the Linux operating system.
I use a helix 5 GPS only on the snowmobile and move it over to the boat. It's small but that's what I like about it. Fits on the job boat, the 20 footer and the sled with ease. I use it for recording catch rate and time etc etc. I guess battery life wise it last all day in the jon boat which is just a 9ah battery from a flasher.
When you go with a Helix 5 or 7 ICE are you just getting a different transducer than what comes with them for soft water use? and maybe a mount and battery...Any other differences? I suspect the flasher screen and all that is just software programming and could be on all Helix units, making it ready for different ducer.I have a 688 for my boat with an ice ducer for hardwater, still wasn't very good.
Do the new units give you the option of a standby mode? When unit is powered up, press power button once and an option of standby should be visible. I use this feature all of the time on my Helix 9 units and it is huge for me. Basically it shuts off the screen when not in use and only requires a touch of a button to wake up the unit without a reboot of the software. I had a gen 1 Helix 5 that did not have this feature and am very curious about the new units, especially the Helix 7. Thanks for feedback if you care to let me know on this question!
A day late and all that but if you are looking at any of the Helix offerings I would recommend checking out the online manual to see exactly what features are available on the unit you pick:https://www.humminbird.com/WorkArea/DownloadAsset.aspx?id=14120
Off topic but can anyone give me the step by step on navigating to SmartStrike on the Helix G2? I have it on the encrypted SD but can't find it enabled in the system...
So my Helix 5 arrived...without an ice transducer. What a PITA. Anyone have any successful solutions for rigging up the regular transducer to work while out on the ice? A quick look makes it seem like another 90 bucks or so to get the ice ducer.I'm excited to get it out onto the ice but I am a bit annoyed that the "ICE" Helix 5 didn't come with the transducer and the fact that there is no real manual is a bit irritating too.I'm pretty disappointed right now, but I'm sure I will be back to normal excitement when I figure out how to use what I have. This is the downside of not having a good local place to go to where you can lay your eyes on exactly what is going to be coming your way.Helix 5 Portable G2I'm sure it is because I couldn't find the right information on the posting but all the same...a bit bummed and to top it all off the weather sucks so I'm grounded until at least Wednesday.
Not sure if this will help. On my unit, I make sure and exit out of everything including GPS coordinates and then press the checkmark button which brings up smart strike at the top of the screen. Not even sure if this is exactly what you were looking for, But I hope it helps.Thanks Prospector! I actually had to reload everything onto the SD again. Got it working.
Looks like a couple of quick zip ties and good to go - thanks that looks like an elegant solution. How do you control the amount of cable dropping into the hole with this setup?
I've used 3 different 5" Lowrances over the last 15 years but always next to the hole I'm fishing, never felt a need for anything bigger till the Ice Helix 7 G2 came out. Probably don't need one that big either but all FF's are getting bigger and some bass guys are now running 4 12" units. Unfortunately the 7" unit has been on backorder for 6 weeks and they keep pushing it further back. I love the 2D chirp on my 9" Helix and the Ice Helix has 2 transducer settings (wide and narrow) and Interference Rejection for my too close buddies. It uses a little more juice but will last 7-8 hrs with the standard 9ah battery. Lead acid 9ah batteries are 5- 5 1/2 pds while a 10ah lithium Ion (Dakota) weighs 2 pds, 10 ounces. I fish a 7ah Dakota that weighs 2.2 pds and get 6-7 hrs ice fishing, if weight is a concern. If you check out the YouTubes on the Ice Helix G2, the 7" is a much bigger screen than the 2" make it look, compared to the 5".