Outdoor Empire choice as best affordable fish finder.
The Garmin Striker 4 Fish Finder is an entry-level sonar unit that is ideally suited for those who fish from small boats or kayaks. The unit is packed with impressive features and intuitive controls, despite its budget-friendly price tag.
Most users found the Garmin Striker 4 to meet all of their needs, while not overwhelming the user with a lot of unnecessary, complicated functions and features.
Features
The Garmin Striker 4 Fish Finder is a straight-forward scanner and GPS combo unit that not only help anglers locate fish, but also helps them to “see” the contours, structure and scattered pieces of cover hiding under the water’s surface.
Screen and Display
Despite being an entry-level product, it features a 3.5-inch full-color, vertically oriented display.
Although this isn’t as large as the screens of many high-end fish finders, it is more than sufficient for displaying all of the structure, cover, baitfish and target species you’ll encounter.
CHIRP Technology
The Garmin Striker 4 Fish Finder relies on CHIRP technology to show you what lies beneath. In fact, it is one of the most affordable fish finders on the market that comes equipped with this impressive technology.
Traditional sonar units often emit sonar signals of a single frequency. However, different sonar frequencies excel at imaging various types of objects.
How it Works
For example, you’ll need a higher frequency signal to image small objects such as baitfish, but you’ll need a lower frequency signal to image soft river beds and downed trees.
Fish finders that rely on CHIRP technology emit several sonar signals at a time instead of just one. Accordingly, they can simultaneously provide great image quality of anything your boat may float over.
Some users reported that the Garmin Striker 4 doesn’t work well when you are traveling at high speeds, but others have not experienced such problems and have found that it still produced quality bottom images even when trolling at high speeds.
What’s More
The Garmin Striker 4 does not only function as a fish finder, it also provides some navigational benefits through its integrated GPS circuit.
With this, you can mark the locations where you find suitable structure or congregating fish and also plot your course to and from this spot in the future. Additionally, you can track your craft’s speed with a GPS tracking software.
It includes a high-sensitivity antenna and is contained within a waterproof casing. For those who would rather see the information displayed in a flasher-style readout, the Garmin Striker 4 provides this option.
Specifications
The Garmin Striker 4 is about the same size and shape as most other fish finders at this price point, but its performance and collection of features elevate it above the competition.
• Dimensions: 3.5 inches x 5.9 inches x 1.6 inches
• Display Type: Color HVGA
• Maximum Sounding Depth: 1,600 ft freshwater, 750 ft saltwater
• Transmitting Power: 200 Watts
• Display Resolution: 480 x 320
• Transducer: Dual Beam 77/200
• Frequency: 50/200+ 77/200
Compare Similar Models
| Product |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|
| Screen Size | 3.5 inches | 3.5 inches | 4.3 inches |
| Display Type | HVGA color | TFT 256 colors | 16:9 WVGA Color TFT LCD |
| Maximum Depth | 1,600 ft freshwater, 750 ft saltwater | 600 ft freshwater; 320 ft saltwater | 600 ft |
| GPS | Yes | No | No |
| Cost | Check Price | Check Price | Check Price |
Rating The Garmin Striker 4 Fish Finder
This is based on a 1 to 5 stars rating.
Display
It has an easy to see full-color display that is on the smaller side. This isn’t a huge problem for kayakers, who are rarely far from the screen, but those fishing from large boats (who may be 10 feet or more away from the scanner) are likely to struggle to see the display.
Additionally, because of the scanner’s small screen, many users report that the split-screen view is difficult to use. 3 stars are given for its display.
Features
It includes all the features you need without unnecessarily increasing the cost by adding features you don’t.
It has an integrated GPS circuit for helping you plot your course and mark important places of interest so that you can find them again. No other comparably priced fish finder includes GPS capabilities. 4 stars are given for its features.
Ease of Use
Typically, users find it very easy to install and set up.
Most are using it to help find fish within a few minutes. The controls are easy to access and because the unit features permanent, dedicated buttons rather than a touch-screen interface, navigating through the scanner’s various features is a piece of cake.
Many users report that they are able to start finding fish even without reading the manual. 5 stars for its ease of use.
Value
Anglers seeking a high-quality, entry-level fish finder can’t go wrong with it. Although plenty of fish finders have larger screens, the ability to probe deeper depths or more advanced features, these types of fish finders are not usually available at that low price-range.
Further, because it is a combination GPS-fish-finder, you get two-for-one value in an affordable package. 5 stars are given for its value.
Summary
When compared to other fish finders, the Garmin Striker 4 leaves a little to be desired, particularly in terms of screen size. However, it still offers more features and superior performance to most other entry-level models.
If you are in the market for a fish finder and a GPS unit, you can’t go wrong with the Garmin Striker 4. It received an overall rating of 4.3 stars.
