# Fla Marine Tract



## DBStoots

You pay for the updates. Highly recommend it.


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## jonterr

DBStoots said:


> You pay for the updates. Highly recommend it.


I hear it's the best, I just don't want to pay that much every year


DBStoots said:


> You pay for the updates. Highly recommend it.


I heard it's the best
Turns out, I have a Hummingbird, and they don't support the card
What's the second best that I can use?
Navionics?


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## BobGee

jonterr said:


> I hear it's the best, I just don't want to pay that much every year
> 
> I heard it's the best
> Turns out, I have a Hummingbird, and they don't support the card
> What's the second best that I can use?
> Navionics?


Second best is a very distant second. The annual update cost is much less than the initial cost for FMT.


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## ebr

You don't have to pay every year - only if you want updates.

Absolutely nothing in the mapping world comes close to FMT. It is expensive, but worth it if you want to fish unfamiliar inshore FL waters.


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## jonterr

BobGee said:


> Second best is a very distant second. The annual update cost is much less than the initial cost for FMT.





BobGee said:


> Second best is a very distant second. The annual update cost is much less than the initial cost for FMT.





ebr said:


> You don't have to pay every year - only if you want updates.
> 
> Absolutely nothing in the mapping world comes close to FMT. It is expensive, but worth it if you want to fish unfamiliar inshore FL waters.


If it would run on Hummingbird I'd do it
Hard to justify buying something else


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## B_ONE

Why doesn’t Garmin figure this out and buy this technology


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## stussing

jonterr said:


> If it would run on Hummingbird I'd do it
> Hard to justify buying something else


That is why you buy the chip before the unit. The chips are worth the cost in my case, I purchased both the North and South chip.


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## jonterr

stussing said:


> That is why you buy the chip before the unit. The chips are worth the cost in my case, I purchased both the North and South chip.


I had the unit installed on the boat when I bought it almost 2 years ago
I hadn't heard of the chip then, if I had, I would have gone with something else


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## Snookyrookie

The other thing I love about FMT are the emails with the dangerous changes with gps coordinates. I fish exclusively out of ENP and haven’t updated my chip in 3 years but have been able to add danger spots. It’s really a game changer, I switched to a Simrad (from Lowrance) just to get the chip and it was worth every penny.


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## Lagoonnewb

I just got the FMT north/south combo on Black Friday with their 20% off coupon. Having only used it once so far in very familiar waters I can’t say how good it will be for the waters I normally fish, but I can already tell how useful a tool it will be when fishing the west coast, ENP, or low tides in north Florida. Can’t wait to explore more areas with the use of this chip.


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## TwitchAO

Snookyrookie said:


> The other thing I love about FMT are the emails with the dangerous changes with gps coordinates. I fish exclusively out of ENP and haven’t updated my chip in 3 years but have been able to add danger spots. It’s really a game changer, I switched to a Simrad (from Lowrance) just to get the chip and it was worth every penny.


I know this is a little too late but all the fmt chips work with lowrance units. The Unit on their home page is a Lowrance.


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## FishWithChris

I run my FMT in a Simrad Go9; I wouldn't run it in any unit of lower quality or processing speed. 
FMT is 100% worth the money for the confidence it gives me to travel to different parts of the state and throttle down


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## Egrets Landing

Snookyrookie said:


> The other thing I love about FMT are the emails with the dangerous changes with gps coordinates. I fish exclusively out of ENP and haven’t updated my chip in 3 years but have been able to add danger spots. It’s really a game changer, I switched to a Simrad (from Lowrance) just to get the chip and it was worth every penny.


You really should update your chart. It's only $119 to get the new one. Since the hurricane, hundreds of obstacles were added. Also, your chip is way out dated with respect to the quality of the imagery and many other map details including markers and track adds. Emails only go out if there is a substantive track change or a major obstacle on a track which is not very often.


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## Egrets Landing

jonterr said:


> If it would run on Hummingbird I'd do it
> Hard to justify buying something else


That seems to be the case for many until they crash due to the uncertainty in many areas created running Navionics and other Garmin charts. Once that happens, the expense of the repair changes the perspective on things. Then it's the opposite perspective and you can't justify running the Hbird any longer given the supported charts. About 1,000 people in 2019 switched theirs out who found the charts supported in their Hbird and Garmin units poor at best.


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## jonterr

Egrets Landing said:


> That seems to be the case for many until they crash due to the uncertainty in many areas created running Navionics and other Garmin charts. Once that happens, the expense of the repair changes the perspective on things. Then it's the opposite perspective and you can't justify running the Hbird any longer given the supported charts. About 1,000 people in 2019 switched theirs out who found the charts supported in their Hbird and Garmin units poor at best.


Good point!


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## BobGee

FishWithChris said:


> I run my FMT in a Simrad Go9; I wouldn't run it in any unit of lower quality or processing speed.
> FMT is 100% worth the money for the confidence it gives me to travel to different parts of the state and throttle down


I’m running FMT and Louisiana MT on a Lowrance 12” Carbon. Working great.


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## windblows

Anyone have experience with FMT in the Jacksonville area? It looks like there are much fewer tracks compared to the west coast from what I can tell on their site.


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## Drifter

I have never even heard of this, my gps is so off Id still be out in the ocean somewhere if I used the depth charts on it.


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## Egrets Landing

windblows said:


> Anyone have experience with FMT in the Jacksonville area? It looks like there are much fewer tracks compared to the west coast from what I can tell on their site.


There is tons of tracks in Jax. Watch the video part 3 of 3.


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## Zika

Egrets Landing said:


> About 1,000 people in 2019 switched theirs out who found the charts supported in their Hbird and Garmin units poor at best.


What is your source for this claim?


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## GullsGoneWild

I know that FMT has a chip for Louisiana. Has anyone ever used it? How does it compare to the FL FMT? I haven't used any of the FMT chips but the testimonials here are making me think of getting the La Chip.


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## Monoman

Zika said:


> What is your source for this claim?


He's the guy that creates and sells FMT so he should know. HE can answer all of your questions.


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## MariettaMike

GullsGoneWild said:


> I know that FMT has a chip for Louisiana. Has anyone ever used it? How does it compare to the FL FMT? I haven't used any of the FMT chips but the testimonials here are making me think of getting the La Chip.


I've been using LMT out of Delacroix/Hopedale, and though it isn't as current or detailed as FMT, LMT is much better than anything else out there. Especially the Louisiana One, Standard Mapping e-card that many use for LA. It's not even close in comparison to LMT, and I own and have run both on my Simrad NSS9 EVO3.

The only reason I have the LA One chip is for cross reference to the printed maps the locals use.


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## Zika

Monoman said:


> He's the guy that creates and sells FMT so he should know. HE can answer all of your questions.


Well, that is very REVEALING.


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## jonterr

Zika said:


> Well, that is very REVEALING.


I don't understand why Hummingbird won't support it???


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## K3anderson

I have FMT for FL and have good experience so far. I don't sell it or have anything to do with anyone who does.


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## Zika

jonterr said:


> I don't understand why Hummingbird won't support it???


I was not aware of Egrets Landing's relationship with the product. This now explains many of his posts.


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## BobGee

MariettaMike said:


> I've been using LMT out of Delacroix/Hopedale, and though it isn't as current or detailed as FMT, LMT is much better than anything else out there. Especially the Louisiana One, Standard Mapping e-card that many use for LA. It's not even close in comparison to LMT, and I own and have run both on my Simrad NSS9 EVO3.
> 
> The only reason I have the LA One chip is for cross reference to the printed maps the locals use.


I also used LMT out of Delacroix/Hopedale on a recent trip. I also have the Standard Mapping Louisiana One chip that I used the previous spring when I was fishing from a kayak. I thought the LMT chip was terrific. I fished for a week, found my way around and ran 40 MPH without hitting anything. LMT is at least 2x the cost of the Louisiana One chip but it’s 2x as good. That’s about the same as my deductible (not including the value of a ruined trip/lost fishing time). So in the end I think it was well worth it. After the cost the only downside is that I don’t feel comfortable anymore without it - especially running around the limestone rocks east of Tallahassee. 
I want to also say that I’ve heard some people comment that good seamanship should get you by. My reply is that I’ve got about 60 years of experience running fast boats in shallow water- including 65 foot planing hulls. When you’re running into the sun or in low light conditions in unfamiliar water it’s great to have all the help you can get.


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## GullsGoneWild

MariettaMike said:


> I've been using LMT out of Delacroix/Hopedale, and though it isn't as current or detailed as FMT, LMT is much better than anything else out there. Especially the Louisiana One, Standard Mapping e-card that many use for LA. It's not even close in comparison to LMT, and I own and have run both on my Simrad NSS9 EVO3.
> 
> The only reason I have the LA One chip is for cross reference to the printed maps the locals use.


Going to add LMT to my xmas wish list.


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## windblows

FishWithChris said:


> I run my FMT in a Simrad Go9; I wouldn't run it in any unit of lower quality or processing speed.
> FMT is 100% worth the money for the confidence it gives me to travel to different parts of the state and throttle down


Good to hear. On the FMT site, they advise against using the Simrad Go models. Do you experience any issues using yours?


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## windblows

Egrets Landing said:


> There is tons of tracks in Jax. Watch the video part 3 of 3.


I watched the video, and while some of it is impressive, it doesn't compare to other areas of the state. There is only one track going through Mill Cove for instance. The detail around Ft. George/Nassau is impressive, however.


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## TwitchAO

windblows said:


> Good to hear. On the FMT site, they advise against using the Simrad Go models. Do you experience any issues using yours?


The chip works fine on either. I changed to the NSS because of the dial. Much easier to use while running the boat. You will find the pinching while running to zoom in & out will get a little annoying.


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## jonterr

I


TwitchAO said:


> The chip works fine on either. I changed to the NSS because of the dial. Much easier to use while running the boat. You will find the pinching while running to zoom in & out will get a little annoying.


I watched the fMT video last night where the guy compared it to Navionics
Navionics looked like crap, but on my phone it looks a lot better
Is Navionics sard not the same as the phone app or what???


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## jonterr

jonterr said:


> I
> 
> I watched the fMT video last night where the guy compared it to Navionics
> Navionics looked like crap, but on my phone it looks a lot better
> Is Navionics sard not the same as the phone app or what???


Card
Not sard


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## TwitchAO

I run both the Navionics Platinum+ and the FMT South Florida Chip. The Photo overlay is definitely better on the FMT. The Navionics are good for looking at depth contours and looking at areas without all the navigation clutter, but I only run the photo overlay on land only. The FMT chip is defiantly better for running and navigation applications.


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## TwitchAO

jonterr said:


> I
> 
> I watched the fMT video last night where the guy compared it to Navionics
> Navionics looked like crap, but on my phone it looks a lot better
> Is Navionics sard not the same as the phone app or what???


If you are a technical skiff guy the fmt is more of a guide line as you can sometimes run in areas that are not listed on the fmt chip. It is designed for boats with 12 or 14" of draft or less. My skiff runs in 8" of water so I don't always have to stick to the lines. This is definitely the case in a lot of the back bays in the everglades and even around Charlotte Harbor (East side of Pine Island Sound, Smoke House, and Buzzard Bay.


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## iMacattack

I just placed my order today! Can't wait! It is by far the best chip on the market. My buddy has one and the detail is impressive and the tracks are a life saver.


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## K3anderson

jonterr said:


> I
> 
> I watched the fMT video last night where the guy compared it to Navionics
> Navionics looked like crap, but on my phone it looks a lot better
> Is Navionics sard not the same as the phone app or what???


I replaced the Navionics FL chip with the FMT. I like the Navionics one other than using it in areas I am not familiar at all with. That was why I got the FMT. It gives you the exact track you can run in an area you haven't been to before.


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## SkinnyMatters

If interested, Simrad has a rebate up to $500 till the end of the year on certain products. Got $300 back by buying an NSS9EVO3. I bought it through FMT and got 20% off the chips. Good Christmas gifts.


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## jonterr

SkinnyMatters said:


> If interested, Simrad has a rebate up to $500 till the end of the year on certain products. Got $300 back by buying an NSS9EVO3. I bought it through FMT and got 20% off the chips. Good Christmas gifts.


I'm thinking in my 20' bay boat that the black tracks would be not of much use even at high tide?
Basically 18" draft


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## Egrets Landing

Zika said:


> What is your source for this claim?


I'm the source. Sales don't lie.


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## Egrets Landing

jonterr said:


> I'm thinking in my 20' bay boat that the black tracks would be not of much use even at high tide?
> Basically 18" draft


 That is true. A boat with 18" draft is not a typical inshore rig. But most of the Red tracks will work. Or just turn the tracks off and run with the map. No other chart has tracks anyway.


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## Zika

Egrets Landing said:


> I'm the source. Sales don't lie.


And any sales figures can be manipulated. For example, you don't know or don't cite how many comparable Garmin and Humminbird units were sold in the same period.

Haven't used FMT, but have heard good reports for certain regions in the state. As a consumer, however, i prefer to be educated about a company's attributes rather than hear a bashing of the competition.


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## Egrets Landing

As for sales figures the number of Garmin or other units sold is irrelevant. It is clear based on ISLAs chart and unit sales data however, that in 2019 about 1,000 boaters got rid of their Garmin or other non compatible unit and purchased a Navico unit primarily because their Garmin controlled chart was felt to be unsatisfactory. That is more than 3 people every day that had that discussion with ISLA and changed their equipment. That is really something that so many would throw in the towel on their their Garmin or Hbird or Raymarine and go to all of that expense just because they found the chart running in them to be poor. Most liked their machines just fine. Many realized too late that the map was really more important to them that the machine itself because the machine can only be as useful as the chart running in it. After all, it is a CHART plotter. I have said it for years --- poor map = poor utility. It doesn't matter how capable the machine may be. 

As for the charts they speak for themselves. Because daily requests for comparisons are made discussing the differences is unavoidable. The comparisons are provided verbally, in discussions, and on film so it is fully supported and the truth is exposed without the ridiculous puffing and BS claims such as High Res you hear from the others. Because the comparisons are so dramatic and even shocking in some areas, some take it as bashing but it's not. It is just truth telling. For example, if a chart doesn't clearly show dangerous jettys or other well known and long standing obstacles that can kill someone it is a dangerous chart and its not bashing to say so. If they say they provide hi res imagery and you look at it and its nothing but a pure white cloud for miles and miles and you can't see anything its not bashing to show it and disclose it. It could save someones rig or even someones life not to mention the environment. Some such as yourself don't like to hear the truth for a host of reasons but it is what it is and it's not changing anytime soon. Those that seek the truth find it to be a great thing when products that are promoted to be something that they are not are exposed for what they really are with shocking side by side comparisons and apples to apples truthful detailed analysis. There are always people that find the truth unsettling and don't care for those who expose it. I prefer to live in reality instead of a PC world of fantasy and wishes. You can wish all you like that your charts will one day really be high resolution as they advertise but you will still be looking at those dull fuzzy images that provide nothing but uncertainty in most areas. How it is you would be more comfortable with that when they lied to you about the resolution and accuracy of what those premium or platinum charts really contain makes no sense to me. But perhaps you really don't know the difference and that does happen. You have not run a really accurate truly high res chart before so you have no grounded perspective. It seems you prefer to purchase from companies that feed you a crock of BS in their ads and deliver the opposite. You seem to be totally OK with that but not so OK with companies that expose the BS when people question the differences and deliver something that solve so many of the other's shortcomings. That is ok. There are still lots of people that want to vote for Hillary again and think she is an honest and trustworthy person too.


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## bababouy

I knew nothing about FMT until I read about them on here a while back. I'm in the building process of a new skiff and have been researching chart plotters since I am going from an ocean boat to a shallow water skiff. I came across their site and spent half an hour watching this video. I feel that this video answered more questions than I was expecting. This video gave me a good idea that they know what they are talking about.


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## MariettaMike

jonterr said:


> I'm thinking in my 20' bay boat that the black tracks would be not of much use even at high tide?
> Basically 18" draft


If it were that exact, then you also shouldn’t run the red tracks at low tide. But it isn’t, and most of the tracks are actually on the deepest route where you could run any boat drafting up to 3’. Knowing where the shallow spots are is the trick.


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## jonterr

Egrets Landing said:


> As for sales figures the number of Garmin or other units sold is irrelevant. It is clear based on ISLAs chart and unit sales data however, that in 2019 about 1,000 boaters got rid of their Garmin or other non compatible unit and purchased a Navico unit primarily because their Garmin controlled chart was felt to be unsatisfactory. That is more than 3 people every day that had that discussion with ISLA and changed their equipment. That is really something that so many would throw in the towel on their their Garmin or Hbird or Raymarine and go to all of that expense just because they found the chart running in them to be poor. Most liked their machines just fine. Many realized too late that the map was really more important to them that the machine itself because the machine can only be as useful as the chart running in it. After all, it is a CHART plotter. I have said it for years --- poor map = poor utility. It doesn't matter how capable the machine may be.
> 
> As for the charts they speak for themselves. Because daily requests for comparisons are made discussing the differences is unavoidable. The comparisons are provided verbally, in discussions, and on film so it is fully supported and the truth is exposed without the ridiculous puffing and BS claims such as High Res you hear from the others. Because the comparisons are so dramatic and even shocking in some areas, some take it as bashing but it's not. It is just truth telling. For example, if a chart doesn't clearly show dangerous jettys or other well known and long standing obstacles that can kill someone it is a dangerous chart and its not bashing to say so. If they say they provide hi res imagery and you look at it and its nothing but a pure white cloud for miles and miles and you can't see anything its not bashing to show it and disclose it. It could save someones rig or even someones life not to mention the environment. Some such as yourself don't like to hear the truth for a host of reasons but it is what it is and it's not changing anytime soon. Those that seek the truth find it to be a great thing when products that are promoted to be something that they are not are exposed for what they really are with shocking side by side comparisons and apples to apples truthful detailed analysis. There are always people that find the truth unsettling and don't care for those who expose it. I prefer to live in reality instead of a PC world of fantasy and wishes. You can wish all you like that your charts will one day really be high resolution as they advertise but you will still be looking at those dull fuzzy images that provide nothing but uncertainty in most areas. How it is you would be more comfortable with that when they lied to you about the resolution and accuracy of what those premium or platinum charts really contain makes no sense to me. But perhaps you really don't know the difference and that does happen. You have not run a really accurate truly high res chart before so you have no grounded perspective. It seems you prefer to purchase from companies that feed you a crock of BS in their ads and deliver the opposite. You seem to be totally OK with that but not so OK with companies that expose the BS when people question the differences and deliver something that solve so many of the other's shortcomings. That is ok. There are still lots of people that want to vote for Hillary again and think she is an honest and trustworthy person too.


I get what you are saying but the thing is, you told me Hummingbird won't support your card, they told me yesterday it's not on them to support it, it's on you to make it work on a Hummingbird.
I'd like to have it on my boat, but honestly, I'm in NE Ga and may make it to Fla 4 times a year
I like to do SC and Ga coast too, so the dollar numbers point more to Navionics for 1/3 the price
I can live without getting too skinny


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## Zika

Egrets Landing, we have never met that I'm aware of. You don't know what unit I'm running, my navigational experience, my background or anything about me. Yet you make these comments about knowing the truth, blindly accepting the competition's claims and other un-confirmed assumptions.

As I stated earlier, I have heard and read a lot of positive feedback on FMT/LMT. I also support small business owners whenever I can. But it's pretty obvious we have different philosophies about representing and marketing a product.


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## Tautog166

Zika said:


> Egrets Landing, we have never met that I'm aware of. You don't know what unit I'm running, my navigational experience, my background or anything about me. Yet you make these comments about knowing the truth, blindly accepting the competition's claims and other un-confirmed assumptions.
> 
> As I stated earlier, I have heard and read a lot of positive feedback on FMT/LMT. I also support small business owners whenever I can. But it's pretty obvious we have different philosophies about representing and marketing a product.


What unit are you running?


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## Zika

I've owned Humminbird, multiple Lowrance and Garmin units. I've also been aboard several boats using Simrad and Raymarine products. I'm running an EchoMap 64CV on my personal skiff now.


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## Half Shell

Egrets Landing,

I think you've answered this before but I can't seem to find it. Can you see contour lines and depth readings underneath the photo overlay, or turn off the high resolution overlay if I wanted to use contour lines and spot depths instread of the imagry?


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## Egrets Landing

You can overlay contour and depth reading on the images if you like.


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## Egrets Landing

jonterr said:


> I get what you are saying but the thing is, you told me Hummingbird won't support your card, they told me yesterday it's not on them to support it, it's on you to make it work on a Hummingbird.
> I'd like to have it on my boat, but honestly, I'm in NE Ga and may make it to Fla 4 times a year
> I like to do SC and Ga coast too, so the dollar numbers point more to Navionics for 1/3 the price
> I can live without getting too skinny


They told you wrong. They don't have any any mapping tools at all to allow cartographers to create maps for their units. The last we checked they were years behind in this area and they also expressed no interest in creating any tools so stating their current supported charts were sufficient in their opinion. They were more focused on lakes and seem to remain focused inland with Lakemaster charts.


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## Egrets Landing

Zika said:


> Egrets Landing, we have never met that I'm aware of. You don't know what unit I'm running, my navigational experience, my background or anything about me. Yet you make these comments about knowing the truth, blindly accepting the competition's claims and other un-confirmed assumptions.
> 
> As I stated earlier, I have heard and read a lot of positive feedback on FMT/LMT. I also support small business owners whenever I can. But it's pretty obvious we have different philosophies about representing and marketing a product.


I don't blindly accept any claims by others or post anything unconfirmed. We even support the claims on film to prove it. Again, the charts speak for themselves. They show what they show and that is what is claimed and confirmed. If claims are made by me, it's because I have used it and its confirmed to be true by me. But, what I confirmed with respect to charts such as G3 or plat+, etc. seems to also be confirmed by countless others who have posted similar commentary on many blogs. The web is replete with negative commentary on navionics and Garmin accuracy and imagery issues by inshore boaters and its been that way for years. I could posts links to dozens of threads on the topic. And although you may not like to hear it , it does keep many from making a poor purchase decision and they do like to hear the truth and see the truth for themselves as it helps them vet the BS marketing claims you see so often.


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## bermuda

I have the North Florida FMT and its great - really cool to go into unknown areas with some confidence that i wont hit bottom. As they say "the proofs in the pudding" lol


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## Jumbo Jet

Best thing I’ve bought for my skiff. I have both north and south as well as the LA chip (Simrad NSS9 Evo3). It’s an amazing tool for learning a new area. Used LA a few times all ready and felt extremely comfortable to run and explore new areas. I wouldn’t take an 800 mile road trip without a paper map or google maps and just hope I was taking the right roads and heading the correct direction. It’s an incredible time to be alive with the level of technology we have access to. I’m not sure why people fight this. 

thanks for everything you’ve done with this, Egrets. You’ve changed the way people look at these nav chips. It’s just a matter of time before other companies realize how far behind they are.


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## Tautog166

jonterr said:


> I get what you are saying but the thing is, you told me Hummingbird won't support your card, they told me yesterday it's not on them to support it, it's on you to make it work on a Hummingbird.
> I'd like to have it on my boat, but honestly, I'm in NE Ga and may make it to Fla 4 times a year
> I like to do SC and Ga coast too, so the dollar numbers point more to Navionics for 1/3 the price
> I can live without getting too skinny


How and why is it on him? 

Sounds like you guys that can’t use it are pissed off that you bought an incompatible unit and are blaming him.

Happy Lowrance and FMT owner here.


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## Tautog166

Is the Georgia coast still in the works?


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## jonterr

Walter Lee said:


> How and why is it on him?
> 
> Sounds like you guys that can’t use it are pissed off that you bought an incompatible unit and are blaming him.
> 
> Happy Lowrance and FMT owner here.


I'm not pissed off at all
Hummingbird is saying it's on him
He's saying it's on them
To me I have to try to justify spending 3k plus to go fast on areas that I'm not familiar with.
I have a 9" Hummingbird, and a small Go 5 that came on my boat
I could possibly run the chip in the go 5 but on his video he doesn't recommend running it on go 7 thru 16s, basically he says they're shit
Hard for me to justify 3 to 4 k


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## Viking1

I've used Lowrance and Hummingbirds for many years. For the last 10 years I have run Hummingbirds on my boats. I just replaced my current unit with a new one after 9 years of hard use. The only reason I hesitated in buying a Hummingbird outright was because I really wanted a unit that would run FMT. From what I have seen on my friends units that have FMT the product can not be beat. My new unit is a Hummingbird (side imaging is important to me for what I do more than mapping) so I will just have to wait.


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## Smackdaddy53

Every time I see this thread title I think of a UTI


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## Egrets Landing

jonterr said:


> I'm not pissed off at all
> Hummingbird is saying it's on him
> He's saying it's on them


 It would be on any and all companies that create charts only if 1) Johnson wanted more chart options for their customers and 2) they provided software to users and charting operations that would properly format raster and vector data for their units. 

ISLA would love to do it to serve their customer base and I am sure other companies would as well. But but the last we checked, they did not have any interest in creating any more chart options for their customers stating that creating the tools that would allow it to happen would be more costly than the generated profits from the endeavor. When they were challenged on that perspective the response was "our stock prices are higher than last year so we must be doing something right". That was a very telling statement.

So they have no tools available that would allow this to occur and had no intent on creating any because they felt the cost/benefit ratio was not favorable. Unless that has changed recently, it's totally 100% on them. There is a reason they only offer the charts they provide and no others and that is due to their own policies and restrictions and nothing else. 

Obviously, chart companies would like to run on as many platforms as possible to serve as many customers as possible. But it's a partnership and not a one way street. If they said its on ISLA or other companies and it's not in their control it is not true or you were speaking with someone who was totally unknowledgeable in this area. Unless you called their corporate office and spoke directly with appropriate management, you were likely speaking with customer service who has no insight into these kinds of matters. Johnson has to provide authorization for this to be possible as well as robust mapping tools.


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## Smackdaddy53

Just learn the area, don’t need detailed charts all the time!


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## Egrets Landing

Charts are not for all of the time. They are for part of the time or much of the time when you have poor visibility and/or are travelling in the dark and when running unfamiliar places. It's often not possible to just learn the area if you are a casual boater. But if you are working to learn an area it is far easier with a good chart on your rig you can see when running. It cuts the time on the learning curve way down. Looking at a chart in the house is totally different than when you are out there.

Also, you can master any area but if it is challenging, trying to run it perfectly with poor vis is dangerous as a few feet one way or the other can be trouble. A high quality chart is also useful for scouting holes, ditches and other fishy places that are not clearly marked with posts or stakes or buoys that would be challenging to quickly locate with no chart.


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## jonterr

Egrets Landing said:


> Charts are not for all of the time. They are for part of the time or much of the time when you have poor visibility and/or are travelling in the dark and when running unfamiliar places. It's often not possible to just learn the area if you are a casual boater. But if you are working to learn an area it is far easier with a good chart on your rig you can see when running. It cuts the time on the learning curve way down. Looking at a chart in the house is totally different than when you are out there.
> 
> Also, you can master any area but if it is challenging, trying to run it perfectly with poor vis is dangerous as a few feet one way or the other can be trouble. A high quality chart is also useful for scouting holes, ditches and other fishy places that are not clearly marked with posts or stakes or buoys that would be challenging to quickly locate with no chart.


Yeah
I'm sure I wasn't talking with the owner, they may not know!
I've had the boat down around Longboat Key / Tampa area a couple times, to me, the water was clear and no prob getting around with no help, but, it would be great to have your product for the big bend area where I can't see what's under the water, and usually, it's rocks / oysters, or worse


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## eightwt

jonterr said:


> where I can't see what's under the water, and usually, it's rocks / oysters, or worse


Amen.

Which chart signifies/labels underwater obstructions best? Tracks are great to get somewhere quickly, but you fish off those tracks and actually may want to fish near that underwater obstruction/structure. 

Some are marked with PVC pipe, do any of you carry pipe along and do that? Is it legal to do so if you are not Coast Guard?


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## Godzuki86

B_ONE said:


> Why doesn’t Garmin figure this out and buy this technology


Because they don’t believe they need it. It was their asshat attitude and comments that expedited FMT’s development.


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## Monoman

Zika said:


> Well, that is very REVEALING.


hmm .. I thought it was common knowledge. You should meet him if you get the chance. Nice guy and he really knows his stuff.


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## jimsmicro

I think FMT is an example of how a small company can succeed because the titans of industry (in this case Lowrance and Garmin) are too slow to react. They are busy paying guys to lay down tracks and using the best satellite imagery they can find while the others struggle to put out a barely even passable product. The sat images the big companies have are decent but leave a lot to be desired and these guys are taking advantage of that. With all that said, I'm sure Garmin and Lowrance will come out with better imagery soon and if they do I don't personally need tracks somebody else has laid down. If it's too skinny for my rig to run there, I can see it on the sat maps.


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## Half Shell

jimsmicro said:


> I'm sure Garmin and Lowrance will come out with better imagery soon and if they do I don't personally need tracks somebody else has laid down.


I have Garmin and have always had great support from them. Being a bit cynical in nature, I've also been slow to get onboard the FMT train too but you're more optimistic than I am. Shallow inshore waters of FL and LA may seem like an important market to guys here on microskiff but in comparison to the worldwide cruiser, offshore market it couldn't be more irrelevant to Garmin's corporate HQ outside Kansas City. I doubt there is a person in the buildlng that knows what a push pole is, much less can make an arguement how it would be in the company's best interest to invest in such a significant way to overhaul the way they bring charts to market.


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## iMacattack

Small vs. Big. 

Big companies have the capital and resources to bring amazing technology and solutions to market at prices that the market can absorb. They drive down costs, improve and innovate. To do so they still need a product that will drive revenue based on mass market placement and align or combat their competitions offerings. I work for a major camera/printer/security/medical products company with a quarter of a million employees globally. What a big company can't do is innovate in small niche markets where the sales volume wouldn't cover their SG&A. 

Enter small companies like Isla Mapping

Small companies listen intently to their customers. Leverage available OTC (over the counter) resources and bring amazing solutions to market. They can leverage Big company technology and use it to their gain. This is why America is so strong from an innovation standpoint as small business can drive solutions to individual markets that Big businesses can not make the investment. Small business are nimble and can address customer needs quickly. They have 1/1000th the overhead and capital requirement. 

It's all quite logical though potentially frustrating for an individual purchaser of Big company technology who also wants it to support a niche product. What is the cost to make a product support a specific technology and how many units are projected to be sold for supporting that technology. What is to reversal on sales that cost will have? Any smart company will look at all these factors. 

We have to be honest with ourselves. If you look at the global market place for marine GPS units sold, units sold annually to shallow water enthusiasts in the coastal Florida/Louisiana marketplace is very small by comparison. 

Capt. Jan


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