New Lowrance V4 Software update
Submitted by mejutty on Thu, 2011-04-28 11:25
For those of you with Lowrance HDS new update out V4, a few reports indicate they have sped it up and improved some of the sonar readings and added a few different things.
http://www.lowrance.com.au/apac/Downloads/Product-Software-Updates/HDS-Software-Update/
Ben Derecki
Posts: 1926
Date Joined: 10/10/07
Thanks for the heads-up mj.
Thanks for the heads-up mj.
spanishmackeral
Posts: 940
Date Joined: 05/01/11
cheers mate, will download
cheers mate, will download tomorrow
Lucky Tim
Posts: 2536
Date Joined: 28/11/07
did the download today and it
did the download today and it actually has a few good features, decent download size at 250MB though
Tomcat
Posts: 614
Date Joined: 24/02/11
Hds
Did download and it looks ok will find out in exxy next week
r.gates
Posts: 573
Date Joined: 15/11/10
I have 2 questions
Thanks for the update info...I have a couple of questions before I do the software upgrade.
Should the SD card used to download the upgrade to, be blank? I have an 8MB card in my digital camera and I was going to use it, but should I transfer/delete all the current photos first...don't want to upset/corrupt the download process.
Will downloading the new software have any effect on the waypoints already saved into the unit? I'd hate to lose them.
I have an fairly new HDS8m and I've just checked it and it's running version 3 so it's time for the upgrade.
Thanks in advance for you help, it's greatly appreciated.
regards
rusty...
If life is boring, you must be doing it wrong!
Tomcat
Posts: 614
Date Joined: 24/02/11
Hds
You can format card but for 10 bucks get new one will not affect way points or settings
r.gates
Posts: 573
Date Joined: 15/11/10
Thanks Tomcat
Appreciate your help....having a dedicated card makes sense.
Meant to say 8GB card in digital camera..slip of the finger.
regards
rusty...
If life is boring, you must be doing it wrong!
Lucky Tim
Posts: 2536
Date Joined: 28/11/07
you download the .exe file to
you download the .exe file to your computer then run it and it saves the executed files to your memory card.
I had no probs doing the upgrade but I had backed up all of my waypoints, routes, tracks and settings before doing it. I have a SD card just for my unit that I use to back everything up to my computer every month or so. Cheap insurance in my opinion.
mejutty
Posts: 96
Date Joined: 21/12/09
Tim you still got your 10??
Tim you still got your 10?? I like being able to hide the softkeys and ge that bit of screen back.
Lucky Tim
Posts: 2536
Date Joined: 28/11/07
yeah I decided to keep it and
yeah I decided to keep it and run a 10" gps instead. Big thumbs down to the HDS10 as a sounder, thumbs up as a plotter. The option of hiding the soft keys didn't mean much to me, I'd prefer to have them there right when I need them rather than have to press to see them.
Tomcat
Posts: 614
Date Joined: 24/02/11
Lucky Tim
Heading up to exxy sat how's the fishing and what the weather like
Lucky Tim
Posts: 2536
Date Joined: 28/11/07
not gonna be much help to you
not gonna be much help to you mate, the weather has been average and I haven't had the boat in since Saturday. Things were hard going for last week, lots of drops on good soundings for minimal fish. Billfish few and far between at the moment.
harro
Posts: 1959
Date Joined: 07/02/08
could do with another update
personally they should update the waypoint log, making it quicker to add to cursor or point, like navplanner, i have done the update, and it is faster, but cant see many more options, someone plse tell me whats the go with some of the hds units and touchscreen?
cheers'
:::: Bass Hunter ::::
Lucky Tim
Posts: 2536
Date Joined: 28/11/07
which HDS do you have Harro?
which HDS do you have Harro? There are no touchscreens, just soft keys that change function depending on what screen you are on. Another update they should do is make the soft keys customizable so you can have your most used there and not other things they think are important.
How do you find Navplanner? I am tempted but most reports say it's pretty lousy and to wait for future versions where some of the issues are fixed. Apparently you can't change waypoint icons or colour on Navplanner and have it sync on the HDS? Have you tried this?
harro
Posts: 1959
Date Joined: 07/02/08
yo lucky
got a hds 7 plotter/combo only use it for plotter though as I use the 585 for sounding/fishfinding, the navplanner is great, for some reason though it does not save waypoints to card, always says to big to read, not enough memory, maybe i just have to many spots lol for it i dunno, i use it to play around add spots marks from bonzle etc, then to the gps when i plan a trip, also good to see at home with a few beers playin around,
i though one of the updates enabled touchscreen controls for the fusion/ipod dock i,m sure it was but may not be on hds7 models i dunno,
:::: Bass Hunter ::::
Lucky Tim
Posts: 2536
Date Joined: 28/11/07
I haven't seen the
I haven't seen the fusion/ipod plugged in but apparently it works through the soft keys. My stereo volume knob and "next" button do the same thing so I probably won't ever see it either.
Does the Navplanner let you save waypoints from your HDS then load them into the program on the computer and view them there? Can you change or add comment to a waypoint on the computer then update this on the HDS via the SD card? While it's nice to see the chart on the computer the main reason I want Navplanner is to be able to back up and read my waypoints on something other than the Lowrance.
gregrobo
Posts: 26
Date Joined: 09/01/11
tim why do you say the hds 10
tim why do you say the hds 10 is a lousy sounder ? i dont have one, looking at one at the moment
Lucky Tim
Posts: 2536
Date Joined: 28/11/07
I never liked it as a sounder
I never liked it as a sounder because just never really did what I expected and was very moody. Somedays it would read in 300m plus and others it wouldn't even get the bottom in 100m. It was not a transducer issue as I'm now running a Furuno 585 (what I should have got in the first place) through the exact same transducer and have even swapped between HDS sounder and Furuno over on the same spot and I wouldn't even drop on what the Lowrance displayed. I tried all different settings- manual, auto, colour, gain, 200/50, everything I could change and it made no difference. Some days you just couldn't get a clear screen and still have a bottom picture.
I don't like the way the bottom lock is scaled to the depth you are in ie you can't have a 5m B/L in 100m, it defaults to something like 15-20m and even bigger on a deeper scale. There is no "Shift" function while the bottom lock is on so you are stuck to the full water column even if you only want the bottom 20m or so.
Having said that the scroll back to mark a spot is useful- provided the sounder is working.
I would describe the bottom lock as shithouse. Put it this way, I've got a spot in 100m where I catch reds, jacks, trout etc and it looks awesome on the 585 but almost flat and featurless on the HDS. Even 20m spots where we get good bottom fish shows little flares on the Furuno bottom lock and absolutely nothing on the HDS, regardless of settings. If you're looking at spending around $3k on a sounder and GPS then get a HDS5 or HDS7 as the chart plotter and get a Furuno 620 or 585. You will not regret it and now having seperate units also confirmed why I dislike combos too. I thought about getting side by side photos but it was a bit unfair as I'd need to run the 585 through the 1kw transducer while the HDS is using the transom mount standard one and wouldn't be a accurate comparison. Maybe I'm bias as I like the way Furuno's display their information and run their menus but they are the best and that's why I now have one sitting front row centre on my dash and the HDS on chart mode off to the side.
gregrobo
Posts: 26
Date Joined: 09/01/11
what about the structure scan
what about the structure scan addition on the hds is it worth it would it make it better?
Lucky Tim
Posts: 2536
Date Joined: 28/11/07
I don't have the structure
I don't have the structure scan so can't really say if it's worth it. Provided it all worked then I'd say yeah, it'd be worth getting.
Tomcat
Posts: 614
Date Joined: 24/02/11
Hds10
Have no problems with sounder 1kl tans good even in 300 m also have raymarine cw90 prefer hds
Lucky Tim
Posts: 2536
Date Joined: 28/11/07
Yeah I tried and tried with
Yeah I tried and tried with the HDS but once I bit the bullet and got a Furuno it really highlighted how poor the HDS was. Even in shallow water the Furuno beats it in every catagory except scroll back. I have linked the two together so the 585 gets GPS data input so I can move the cursor on the sounder screen and can mark a waypoint which is saved on the HDS but they won't talk back so the waypoint then appears on the HDS. It is a bit of a pain but only takes a minute to manually transfer the coords.I think anyone comparing them side by side running through the same transducer would pick the Furuno everytime.