Marcum Recon 5 review?

[rdhammah]

thinking of an underwater camera and considering the Marcum Recon 5. Can anyone provide any reviews? Pros? cons? considering this one for price and features. any recommendations for a comparable unit?

[kayl]

I highly recommend a model with a reel. I have the Aqua Vu Micro Revolution 5 Pro and love it. You can save 30% off most products at Aqua Vu with code VIP2020 

I'm drooling over Marcum's new Pursuit HD though!

[Papa Sly]

thinking of an underwater camera and considering the Marcum Recon 5. Can anyone provide any reviews? Pros? cons? considering this one for price and features. any recommendations for a comparable unit?

I had one, thought it would be great for scouting, barley able to see outside shanty. I live on a crystal clear lake and only 6 feet deep and was useless. I even made a sun block to try and kill some of the glare but no matter where you stand VS the sun it was aweful.

[Bucket Rump]

I use a Recon 5+ for scouting new areas and it's been a very handy tool to have in locating weed edges and pockets, especially when setting up for spearing where one doesn't exactly "hole hop" to get on fish.  IMHO, the clarity of the camera and screen is quite good with the distance the camera can "see" very much relative to the water conditions. In a heavy algae bloom on an overcast day I was still able to see weeds, but probably 6" to 12" at best, where as in gin clear water during a bright sunny day we could spot fish coming/going easily 20 feet or more.  Cable management is probably the biggest knock I have against the one I have - having to deploy/retract the camera cable by hand off the storage keeper is somewhat cumbersome and slow, but very doable. I picked this camera up for the primary reason of scouting and verifying spots to set up - it has worked well for that purpose with it's size, functionality, and price point.

[hardwater diehard]

I dont have the Recon but some tips on underwater camera in general

Whatever camera you chose make sure you you can turn all the lights on and off especially the IRs. Also a screen cover and shield is great to have....  make sure the camera can be pointed in multiple angles . For scouting I use my AV Micro II w/DVR with the camera pointed 45 deg down a quick spin and then mark the holes with any structure . Cameras are affected by clouds cover ..snow cover.. clarity and thickness of water/ice.

I also added some anti glare film to  my screen to cut down on the glare.

[hardwater diehard]

Some comparisons to Recon and Pursuit

[missoulafish]

few vids I made last year with the camera Kayl mentioned. Image all depends on water clarity, distance of object from camera and sun/cloud cover.

[Goose97]

I have the recon 5,and I love it for scouting new spots,and finding structure. My only complaint is the camera cord storage, and handling. A reel would make it way easier. But as for the camera doing its job,I love it.