Lowrance Announces New Elite Downscan Imaging™ Sonar Series

Lowrance, a world-leading brand in marine electronics since 1957 and GPS navigational systems since 1992, announced today its new Elite series of color fishfinder and fishfinder/GPS-chartplotter combination units featuring exclusive DownScan Imaging™ (DSI) sonar technology. The Elite DSI line includes the Elite-5x DSI fishfinder, Elite-5 DSI fishfinder/chartplotter and Elite-5 DSI Gold fishfinder/chartplotter bundled with a Lowrance-exclusive special-issue Navionics Gold micro SD chartcard. On display for the first time at the International Convention of Allied Sportfishing Trades (ICAST) 2010 show in Las Vegas, Nevada, the Elite DSI models combine Lowrance’s revolutionary DownScan Imaging™ technology with brilliant color displays, smart automatic fishfinder modes and simple, intuitive operation into a surprisingly cost-effective solution with today’s most innovative sonar technology for anglers and boaters.

DSI-equipped anglers experience a new standard in fishfinding with remarkable below-the-boat, picture-like views of bottom structure such as brush, rocks, vegetation, drop offs—as well as thermoclines, predator fish and baitfish. The Elite DSI series provides crystal-clear underwater definition in shallow and deep, freshwater or saltwater—including impressive bottom readings at higher boat speeds. Capable of displaying isolated targets and hard-to-find secondary structure, DSI sonar not only allows users to see vegetation and bottom structure more clearly, but also helps anglers recognize variations in weed growth and bottom hardness.

The Elite-5x DSI and Elite-5 DSI feature a new rugged, low-profile, dual-frequency Skimmer® transom-mount transducer with built-in temperature sensor that operates at 455 kHz for wider and deeper coverage, or at 800 kHz for more concentrated scans in shallower conditions with greater target separation. For easy-to-use, touch-of-a-button execution, Elite DSI models have automatic fine-tuned fishfinding modes for simplified, instant operation and optimal performance, while allowing access to manual options for advanced control. For greater precision with bait or lure presentations, anglers can position the cursor anywhere on the sonar display to determine the depth of a marked object—such as suspended baitfish, a thermocline, or predator fish identified among suspended tree branches. In addition, DSI models feature Lowrance TrackBack™ that allows anglers to scroll backward into sonar history and pinpoint possible fishing hotspots. With the Elite-5 DSI fishfinder/chartplotter, users can also set waypoints, for easier navigation back to a desired location.

Elite-5 DSI fishfinder/chartplotter models feature a built-in high-sensitivity 16-channel GPS+WAAS precision antenna for out-of-the-box, plug-and-play navigation, along with an external antenna option. The built-in U.S. basemap provides enhanced details for more than 3,000 enhanced lake maps and detailed shorelines, creeks, estuaries and channels, as well as coastal/offshore maps with depth contours details as great as 1,000 feet. Ensuring boaters have the maximum flexibility to use their choice of charts, Elite-5 DSI units also feature a waterproof micro SD memory card slot supporting multiple mapcard options, including LakeMaster®, Fishing Hot Spots® Pro USA, and Navionics® Gold and HotMaps Premium charts. In addition, anglers can store up to 3,000 waypoints, 100 routes with 100 waypoints per route and 100 retraceable plot trails with up to 10,000 points per trail.

”The Elite DSI series provides innovative underwater detail for the cost-conscious fisherman,” said Louis Chemi, chief operating officer for Navico Americas. "Never before have anglers been able to see so much, for so little!”

Designed with a true 5-inch, 480x480-pixel SolarMAX™ 256-color TFT display with best-in-class brightness for superior viewing in all conditions and from wide angles, all Elite DSI series models have 4,000 Watts of peak-to-peak DownScan Imaging power for unfiltered target separation at depths down to 200 feet. Compact and attractively priced, the units also feature an innovative mounting design with an easy-to-install, quick-release, tilt-and-swivel bracket that allows for convenient removal and remounting. The enhanced keypad is backlit and designed for simplified one-handed control of the systems’ easy-to-use menus. To adapt to ambient water and light conditions, fishfinder options include an expansive palette of display-color choices and selectable 455 kHz or 800 kHz sounding. All Elite DSI models feature a quarter-turn uniplug cable system with watertight seals for longer, trouble-free connections in all marine environments. Fully waterproof to the IPx7 standard, the new Lowrance series is protected by a one-year limited warranty.

Scheduled for store shelves in January 2011, the Lowrance Elite-5x DSI fishfinder, Elite-5 DSI fishfinder/chartplotter and Elite-5 DSI Gold fishfinder/chartplotter will be offered through authorized Lowrance dealers throughout the United States and Canada at suggested retail prices of US $549, $649 and $719, respectively. To locate an authorized Lowrance dealer near you, and learn more about the Lowrance Elite DSI series—or the entire Lowrance line of marine electronics -- please visit www.lowrance.com.

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