Garmin Shows Depth in New 2006 Fishfinder Lineup

Fishfinder 340C

OLATHE, Kan./November 15, 2005/PR Newswire — Garmin International Inc., a unit of Garmin Ltd. (Nasdaq: GRMN), today announced its new lineup of 2006 fishfinders, packed with features that will excite both the weekend inland angler and the serious offshore salt water fisherman.

“Garmin’s new line of sonar devices offer a great combination of features that will satisfy just about any boater’s requirements,” said Gary Kelley, Garmin’s vice president of marketing. “These units offer the same value, reliability, and innovation that boaters have come to know from Garmin.”

A number of new features come standard on all new Garmin fishfinders. To help freshwater anglers better pinpoint fish, Garmin now offers Ultrascroll™, which allows boaters to get a much faster refresh rate on their sonar display. The new line of units also have improved performance in shallow water – as little as a foot deep – that makes it easier to determine depth, structure, and fish targets. Auto gain, as well as user adjustable gain, is also standard on all of Garmin’s new fishfinders.

For serious anglers, Garmin offers the Fishfinder 340C – a full-featured sonar that offers a sunlight readable five-inch (diagonal) 320 x 234 pixel full-color TFT display. The Fishfinder 340C is offered in either a dual frequency configuration (50kHz, 45 deg and 200 kHz, 10 deg) – or, for inland anglers needing a wider fish-finding cone, a dual beam model (80kHz, 45 deg and 200kHz, 14 deg). Water temperature, a round flasher-style display, and an A-scope display also come standard on the Fishfinder 340.

In addition, the 340C is also enabled with Garmin’s new CANet™ -- a one-megabit Controller Area Network that allows users to connect their unit to one of the new GPSMAP® 200, 300, or 400-series chartplotter. This allows boaters to read sonar displays on chartplotters located elsewhere in the boat.

The new Fishfinder 160C offers anglers both utility and affordability. The unit is primarily targeted at inland boaters, with the same dual beam transducer as the Fishfinder 340C. The unit features a sunlight readable 4.5” (diagonal) 128 x 128 pixel, 16-color CSTN display.

For the value-minded boater, the new Fishfinder 140 features a 4.7-inch (diagonal) four-level grayscale FSTN display and a dual beam transducer (80kHz, 45 deg and 200kHz, 14 deg). For entry-level consumers, Garmin recommends the Fishfinder 90, with a four-inch (diagonal) 128 x 64 pixel black-and-white FSTN display.

All units also offer adjustable range and a rescaling range display, as well as adjustable scroll speed, scroll pause, 2x and 4x zoom, water speed, shallow and deep water alarm, fish alarm, and improved display of fish arches.

Garmin is also proud to unveil the new GSD™-21, a black-box sonar device that transmits over the one-megabit CANet network or a standard serial connection. Boat owners can easily install the CANet network, allowing sonar information to be displayed on Garmin’s new GPSMAP® 200, 300, or 400-series chartplotter. The GSD-21 is an analog sonar that is available in either dual frequency configuration (50kHz, 45 deg and 200 kHz, 10 deg) – or dual beam (80kHz, 45 deg and 200kHz, 14 deg).

The GSD-22 is Garmin’s first digital sonar – allowing for more precise target separation and depth performance. The unit works with dual frequency 2000 to 500 watt transducers, capable of finding the bottom at up to five thousand feet deep. The GSD-22 is compatible over either the CANet or the fully integrated Garmin Marine Network. Both new GSD units feature Ultrascroll and user adjustable or automatic gain.

Garmin’s entire line of new fishfinders is expected to be available in stores on March 25, 2006.
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