Customer Reviews

Humminbird Smartcast RF35 Fishfinder

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I bought this for use mainly in my kayak since I didn't
want to install a permanent ff. I've used the
smartcast about a dozen times so far and am extremely
happy with it.
My brother has a yak and we go fishing together.
I have the edge over him in a big way with this ff.
It shows bottom contour, depth, water temp, and fish.
This thing puts me onto fish and bottom structure that I
otherwise would not know existed.
It's easy to learn to use, and it works...in fact it
works every bit as good as the Humminbird Wide I have
in my bass boat. :-)
One tip though: Make sure you shut the unit off when
not in use so you don't kill the battery. And when
you store the unit, make sure it's not resting on
the on button. (doesn't take much pressure to turn the unit on).
So, if you want a completely portable, full featured
ff, imo the Rf35 Smartcast is the way to fly. I love mine
and never go kayak fishing without it.

I fish several times a week but don't have a boat and so my wife got me this product for my birthday. For the price it works great.

Down sides - the watch functions are not very intuitive and it takes a while to get the hang of turning it off and switching between functions. Hang on to the user manual, you'll need it. Also the watch sucks up batteries so turn it off unless you are using it. Its not a practical watch (plus its not exactly fashionable.)

Testing and pluses - I tested the Smartcasts depth measurements against some readings from a boaters $300-400 fish finder and its accurate to the nearest foot.

The temperature gauge seems to be fairly accurate but honestly I haven't tested it against another thermometer. Its at least in the right ball park.

The Smartcast's ability to gauge the contours of the bottom and to locate structure is fairly good though you have to understand how it works.

1) the sensor only senses directly underneath it,and not much else. 2) the output screen scrolls across the watch face whether or not the device it moving. SO a sub-surface depression that looks quite gradual could actually be quite steep if the sensor is moving very slowly. (and visa versa). You have to realize the the sensor isn't taking a continuous picture of the bottom but is instead taking a series of snap shots every couple seconds. If you understand that and try your smartcast out on a dock where you can actually see the bottom you can get the feel for this pretty quick. You must compare what you see on your watch to how fast the device is moving. Plus there is about a 5-10 second lag between the sensor and what you see on your watch.

As for finding structure. the sensor was able to detect quite clearly a submerged 2x4 which was a cross member between the piers of the dock I was fishing on. It showed up as a 1 pixel solid vertical blip on the screen as it slowly drifted over the top. The sensor also detected the edge of a 2 foot weed bed quite clearly.

As a fish finder, I don't think its too practical, unless a school of fish suspended directly underneath the sensor several feet above the bottom. Fish finders in this price range generally aren't that useful at detecting actual fish so I wasn't expecting this.

Having tested out my smart cast I tied it to a $10 telescoping rod and reel set I got as a white elephant gift and so the whole thing fits in fishing bag and I don't have to switch my sensor and my lure on and off.

Anyrate, I was able to locate a depression just next too one of my favorite fishing holes, so I casted to the new hole and I have been pulling striped bass out of there for the last three days. So I'm happy with it.

This watch fish finder for about a hundred dollars is very good for the price. It shows you fish when it is directly over them, the depth, water temperature, the bottom, weeds, and other obstacles, but does not show how big the fish are. It is very convenient, just keep it in your tackle box. Make sure you have an extra pole, because the wireless part has to be thrown. Other than that, it is great, compared to the finders that are a few hundred dollars.

I took this to the lake where I usually fish. We weren't catching anything so I threw it out and it showed no fish. I moved up the bank and worked with it until I finally saw a school. We moved our gear and got our limit of rainbows in about two hours. It was absolutely incredible. The next day I took it out again and the sending unit had stopped working. It hasn't worked since. That was in June. Yesterday I ordered the rf45 sending unit. I'm fishing at a new spot this weekend (September 19) and could not stand the thoughts of not knowing. More to follow next week.

WOW! I ordered yesterday and expected to receive package next week. I received it TODAY! That rocks!

Product was exactly like described on screen.

My first unit went bad after a few uses but I contacted the seller and they swapped it out very quickly. What's to say other than it works pretty well. I use it on my jet ski prinarily for curiosity uses, "I wonder how deep it is here"? It shows what are supposedly fish at various depths and is a great design. Fishermen may want something bigger but for the casual user it woks well.