In the years I’ve been running Basscats, I’ve seen the console go from box design flat top to the more streamlined of today’s dashes. Caused my mind to start wheels turning. Because todays boats have removable consoles as opposed to the earlier models where the console was part of the cap, has BassCat ever considered making two or three different consoles to give the consumer a choice of what they want. With what you see today, the places for guages is already set according to the consoles places for the holes. Long ago, with the flat faces, the guages would work in any configuration, which would have made it easier for mounting multiple electronics than todays streamlined version. My Puma had the DF place on the right side, but wouldn’t take anything above a 9″ without having to cover the old hole and build an external mount for the gimble. So many today are using the external mounts instead of indash. Drawback is with the gauge design, multilple units cover the gauges. Yes, on the newer boats, you can bring the motor info onto the DF screen so the gauges are not needed — but they still have something in the holes. In setting here thinking — not much else to do for a retired trolling motor/electronics guy– that a choice of dashes to bolt in/out could offer sleek or offer a blank canvas.
Also, curious that since so many fishermen are utilizing Google Maps Pro to look at lakes with pictures from times past, do yall have any insight as to when Humminbird, Lowrance, or Garmin is going to have a DF that has internet capabilities so you can bring the maps up on the DF, either side by side with the current maps or as an overlay. I’m thinking if you can have aps like WAZE that tells you where you are on the cell phone, that technology is used in the GPS function of our graphs, so why not have the maps that show past water levels with a satellite view. I do understand that we already have the satellite views on the current DF’s, those are related to a map card. I’m talking about something from online. I also understand that cell towers may be a problem also on some lakes.
Just thoughts while setting here watching Fox news.
while on that subject, maybe on the blank slate console, a place where a tablet or IPad could mount and start putting USB plugs on depthfinders that would allow the android or IPad to talk to the depth finder instead of wireless. They could also be programmed to plug into the outboard for diagnostics.
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