Raymarine Dragonfly 5 Pro Dual Channel CHIRP Sonar/GPS Plotter $569 (Was $669+) @ Whitworths

For the anglers with boats/kayaks out there - particularly those in the low to low-mid market:

Whitworths have it for I believe best price in Australia at moment for Raymarine Dragonfly 5 PRO (and I price matched at CH Smith too)

I have been researching fish finders for about the past 4 months for my kayak and have settled on the Raymarine Dragonfly 5 PRO

It took me about 6 weeks to figure out some basics of sonar though…
My summary: if you have $300 or more to spend, I suggest a dual channel sonar fish finder, and if you go away from land (ie in the ocean/sea), you should get a dual channel fish finder combined with a GPS plotter (if you don't already have a standalone GPS plotter - not a smartphone). Dual channel means you'll view fish and be able to view the structure of the bottom, rather than "fish" like stuff only. I also suggest an external ransducer (ie it sits in the water, not going through the hull of your kayak or boat) as then you'll get temperature measurements too.

Tried to be as concise as possible here and maybe save someone some research:
Dragonfly 5 comes in 3 variants:
Dragonfly 5M - chartplotter only (ie just for navigating only)
Dragonfly 5DVS - fish finder only (ie fishing only)
Dragonfly 5 PRO - combined chartplotter and fishfinder and WiFi (turns iPad/Android/iPhone into fish finder screen - great for my multiperson kayak). Comes with C-maps. And the wifi module allows me to buy navionics on my ipad/phone and it will link with Dragonfly 4 and 5 pro models only to offer 3 screens in one (plotter, CHIRP and Downvision)

For a time I was about to purchase the Dragonfly Wi-Fish for $250 which would turn my ipad/iphone into a fish finder but finally figured out why it was so cheap, it was only a single channel sonar (CHIRP only but no DownVision for structures)

To give you an idea of the images
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jARjKSZgyTE
Raymarine plugging in with iphone/ipad (I assume similar for Android):

Youtube review:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1kBwbZ3cKTk

Youtube Dragonfly 5 PRO with iPad:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIaab1rojyY

Manufacturer site:
http://www.raymarine.com.au/view/?id=11200&collectionid=155&…

Sky is the limit with fish finders and chartplotters, but my wallet isn't, particularly with a baby on the way, thought I better buy this before bub arrives! I don't think the Raymarine 6 and 7 offer any more function except for better/bigger screen, I've got an iphone and ipad so couldn't justify double the price for the 6, when I'll get a 10" screen with my ipad and better function again with navionics app. I like the idea of the PRO as well, means my ipad whilst offering complete GPS chartplotter on navionics, it's an ipad, even with a waterproof bag from ebay for $15 is still an ipad with a waterproof bag, not a purpose built marine GPS plotter.

I was considering and initially had heart set on Lowrance brand 5 or 7 for a while (and had a look at Hummgingbird), however, bang for your buck at the moment and with the wifi module built in and image quality considered, I think raymarine 5 pro really hits the mark for an amateur like myself (I'm guessing Lowrance wifi support will come on the market soon in their newer low-mid range models).

So anyway enough gas-bagging, Whitworths have a special on:
Dragonfly 5 PRO for $569 with C-maps (the navionics maps options is a whole new discussion point!)

I actually ordered mine from CH Smith Marine who price matched Whitworths as I ordered a heap of Railblaza stuff from CH Smith who have best price IMO for Railblaza in Australia at moment.

Hope this helps someone out there.

Shipping is additional if you're not near either a Whitworths or CH Smith. CH Smith shipped mine for free (order value >$1000 though) but do charge 1% credit card fee unless your bank is one of these epay banks (most Aussie banks are, I use HSBC unfort)