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Walk out on the ice and ask if you can see first hand both models from guys around you. I did this before i bought my camera and glad I did. It is your choice in the end, but watching flashing lines and seeing the fish firt hand was no contest for me.
Hope all the talk about the Vex is worth it just bought one an hour ago from Dicks....429.00 .... ...18 pro pack ....yahooo
Don't have both but I do have an aqua-vu camera and a showdown unit.Showdown is the same concept as a vexilar(much cheaper 229)but has a vertical graph instead of a round one.Camera pros.Can see structure,weed cover,size and type of fish,what attracts fish and how they react to different bait motion.Also noticed that fish DO move around a lot in the winter.I have fished areas that look good without seeing fish knowing that they will show up at some point.Camera cons.Bulky,cumbersome,don't see far in murky water and only see a small bit of the water column(though since I usually fish water that isn't all that deep and the fish are typically near the bottom ,I don't find this to be too much of an issue).Also can be hard to direct at your bait.I have solved this by getting a MOPOD.It's a motorized tripod with a keyfob to turn the camera cord.Works great!!!!Flasher pros.Easy to move around,sees whole water column.Flasher cons.Can't see structure,weed line,type of fish,fish reactions.Bottom line.If you plan on moving around(which,sometime,is the difference between getting skunked and catching).I like the flasher. If you really know the body of water or are willing to poke some holes and look down them to scout out a good area so you don't have to move around a lot.I like the camera.
I have a fishTV and showdown. Together the price is cheaper the a vex. or aquaview. Fishtv works o-k to see structure but not alot of detail, but it only cost $99. I'm excited to try the showdown and it only cost $229. If you have kids the aquaview is a great babysitter other wise I would say the vex/showdown is a better tool to have. My 2cents