Hummingbird153 or Lowrance x4?

Im looking for an inexpensive FF. What would you recommend?

Yet to see the full view but the Kayak I bought has the Lowrance Elite 4 without DSI. Does have good lake maps and more important to me is GPS. My understanding not having DSI will read good details to 300 ft.

yeah Ive read reviews of much more expensive units. It would be great if i could drop $400 to $600 bucks on a FF, but I can't. Just wondering if these are junk? Im really just want to read depth and structure.

I think you would be happy with the Elite 4. It simple and can be bought without selling your first born. Be sure to check out what features you prefer and not over buy. I would look at Amazon and Ebay.

One thing to consider is what, or where, you plan on running the fishfinder.  You can't qualify a unit by price.  Let's look at your needs then go from there with some suggestions....

Water Type -- Fresh or Salt?  Both?
Water Depth -- Shallow or Deep?  Both?
Just looking for depth/structure or do you want to pinpoint targets(fish) within structure?
Mounting Location?  How far will it be from within reach?
Transducer Mounting location/type/etc...
Built in GPS?

   This will give me a better idea of how powerful, what you need it to do, screen type/size, transducer mounting, etc...  Lowrance offers a reasonable selection of smaller units well suited for kayak use in the type of pricepoint you are looking for but we should examine the options available within this pricepoint.

   There is no sense in buying a unit simply because it fits your budget, if it won't do what you need/expect it to do.  If you have any questions, feel free to ask away.

Bill

Hate to thread jack but wanted to ask Bill his thoughts about the Elite 4 which I have. It does have built in GPD but no DSI. Its not like what my previous Furuno 582 would show so was wanting to know if its sufficient for ocean rock fish, halibut in the bay, and Salmon trolling? I know this unit works well in fresh water lakes. Thanks

If it helps I have a Humminbird 180 and its been trouble free for 3 years
Consider upgrading to the 196ci. You will get color and GPS which is great to have.
Look at Transducers available also and how you will mount??

X4 will work but right now you can get a mark4 @ Cabelas for $166. which is a better fish finder that includes a great GPS. $80 for X4 or $166 for both ff & gps. GPS is both a fishing tool and a safety item.

Hate to thread jack but wanted to ask Bill his thoughts about the Elite 4 which I have. It does have built in GPD but no DSI. Its not like what my previous Furuno 582 would show so was wanting to know if its sufficient for ocean rock fish, halibut in the bay, and Salmon trolling? I know this unit works well in fresh water lakes. Thanks

DSI has it's place & usefullness; hence the reason the Elite 4 & DSI models are now obsolete -- replaced by the Elite 4 HDI (both broadband and DSI in 1 unit).

   DSI is great for finding structure in shallower water; I belive the max rated is 200' fresh & (from my personal experience) ~ 100' salt.  I found the sweet spot to be in the under 60' range.

   The Elite 4 unit works great.  Have 1 myself!  Hopefully I will replace it with the Elite 4 HDI soon.

   The Mark 4 is a wonderful unit for the price; FF & GPS.  Shows depths & fish quite well.  Would be my choice in the B&W 'less than 5" category'.

X4 will work but right now you can get a mark4 @ Cabelas for $166. which is a better fish finder that includes a great GPS. $80 for X4 or $166 for both ff & gps. GPS is both a fishing tool and a safety item.

Didn't see that price on their site.  I could only see the new Mark 4 HDI & the obsolete Mark 4 DSI.

One thing to consider is what, or where, you plan on running the fishfinder.  You can't qualify a unit by price.  Let's look at your needs then go from there with some suggestions....

Water Type -- Fresh or Salt?  Both?
Water Depth -- Shallow or Deep?  Both?
Just looking for depth/structure or do you want to pinpoint targets(fish) within structure?
Mounting Location?  How far will it be from within reach?
Transducer Mounting location/type/etc...
Built in GPS?

   This will give me a better idea of how powerful, what you need it to do, screen type/size, transducer mounting, etc...  Lowrance offers a reasonable selection of smaller units well suited for kayak use in the type of pricepoint you are looking for but we should examine the options available within this pricepoint.

   There is no sense in buying a unit simply because it fits your budget, if it won't do what you need/expect it to do.  If you have any questions, feel free to ask away.

Bill

I will be fishing the salt mostly. SP, SF Bay, and off the coast. Mounted on my center hatch far enough forward, so its out of the way when I self rescue. I have no experience with gps and don't think its necessary, but Im a total noob and asking the more experienced for help. Im thinking scupper transducer.
thanks

Think very long & hard before you rule out having GPS on board ... Esp. when fishing in the bays & offshore.  Between swells, wind, chop, waves, fod, rain & the unthinkable, an accident, having GPS is one of the most critical pieces of lifesaving equipment you can have on board; second to your VHF radio.  I've gone out on glassy, clear days & had the fod set in just like that with no point of reference.  Mind you, a GPS is only one tool in a complete "package" and should not be replaced by common sence.  I'll step down off my soap box now.

   Really .... it should be a high consideration since it is far less expensive to have it integrated in your FF rather than buying a handheld one separately.

   Based on what I see, most of your fishing will be less than ~120 FOW.  I'd suggest, in your price range, not going with a DSI unit and stick with a Mark 4 with the GPS, x-4 or x-5 pro (no GPS), an Elite 4x (color, no GPS but a little more $).

   Lowrance sells a Scupper Transducer Mount that allows the transducer that the unit is sold with to be mounted in select scuppers.  Doesn;t work with all kayaks since the scuppers are far from uniform in shape, size, location & the hull shape/scupper tunnels vary in size thus not allowing all Lowrance transducers to fit flush under a kayak hull, within a scupper tunnel, through a scupper.  That was clear as mud, I'm sure.  Lowrance does not make a scupper specific transducer, just an adapter mount that works with most kayaks.  Aternative is Duct Seal/Wet Bath shoot-theru-the-hull method or a Liberator type arm over the side.

Bill

I will be fishing the salt mostly. SP, SF Bay, and off the coast. Mounted on my center hatch far enough forward, so its out of the way when I self rescue.

My personal suggestion: Do not get a unit that only runs DSI (or DI if you buy a Humminbird) because they do not perform well in saltwater deeper than 60ft. Since you're going to mount it out of reach, consider getting a 5" screen because the smaller screens are difficult to view.
I had an X-4 and gave it away to a friend (you install it yet Mike?!  ). It does exactly what it's supposed to do: shows the depth, bottom structure, and occasionally fish in a very pixelated (think Atari 8bit) format. They may have updated the X4, but mine was a single beam transducer. And those are totally obsolete nowadays...you definitely want a dual-beam transducer. GPS is not necessary, but it's a nice luxury (I went from a handheld Lowrance gps and multiple sonars to a combo gps sonar and have to admit it's much better).
When you're comparing entry-level FF's, they generally all have the same features. So the first thing I'd suggest is decide if you want a 5" screen or a smaller screen. If you're looking for a 5" screen, I'd suggest either Lowrance Mark4 or the Humminbird 561 (both can be found in the $150-200 range). I don't have as much experience with the smaller screens so not much help there. But I would lean towards either a Lowrance or Humminbird unit (probably due to my own familiarity with these brands). Overall, the Humminbird units seem less likely to get corroded due to kayak fishing in the ocean.

Corrosion:  Good point Pat.  Best thing you can do is heat shrink all your electrical connections & use Dielectric silicone grease on all the electrical connections.  Freshwater rinse & dry after use (reapply di-grease if necessary).  I believe all the 2014 Lowrance units will now ship with a little cover for the unused port(s).  I apply a liberal amount in this cover & use it to hold my "spare" grease.

Oh ... one last thing.  I second Pat's comments about considering a 5" if it is more than an arms reach away or else the screen will look really small.

   Off my soap box now.