How dumb can Humminbird be?

[Fishing Rhino]

In addition to my 898 side imaging unit, I also have a Humminbird 728 for the bow of my boat. 

To update the unit the accessory AS PC2 adapter cord is needed to hook it up to the computer.

And therein lies the rub.  The end that hooks up to the computer has a nine pin, female plug.  I have four computers, three desktops and one laptop.  The laptop and one of the desktops are brand new.  None of the computers has the nine pin serial port.

I call Humminbird.  They tell me I will need a nine pin to the USB adapter, forty five bucks plus ten for shipping.  That's a total of eighty bucks for a cable to update the unit.

Why not produce the cord with a USB plug?  All my computers (HP) have plenty of USB ports.  It is nothing short of outrageous to produce such an item, and to have to spend eighty bucks to update a less than three hundred dollar unit.

[J Francho]

Just go to a computer store and buy one.  Shouldn't be more than $15.

[GrundleLove]

I am literally looking at several computers at my work that have that port.

[Fishing Rhino]

I may be able to buy one for fifteen bucks, but that's beside the point.  I shouldn't have to.  I already spend 35 bucks for the connector.

It should not cost fifty bucks for a connector to update the unit.

Rather short sighted of Humminbird to produce such a thing.  The cord should come with a USB plug, period. 

[Fishing Rhino]

I am literally looking at several computers at my work that have that port.

I have four, and none of them have that port.  Not on the back, and not behind the door on the front where there are other connectors.

I'll bet the computers you are looking at have USB ports.

[J Francho]

I am literally looking at several computers at my work that have that port.

Dude, serieal ports were phased out in the late 90s.  :

[J Francho]

I may be able to buy one for fifteen bucks, but that's beside the point. I shouldn't have to. I already spend 35 bucks for the connector.

It should not cost fifty bucks for a connector to update the unit.

Rather short sighted of Humminbird to produce such a thing. The cord should come with a USB plug, period.

I have the same issue with my Glucose meter - a state of the art meter, BTW.  The cable for the computer is a 1/8" jack to serial.  Then I have the seriel to USB adapter.  Stupid, I know.  At least my insulin pump is wireless USB, LOL.

[GrundleLove]

I am literally looking at several computers at my work that have that port.

Dude, serieal ports were phased out in the late 90s. :

I am literally looking at several computers at my work that have that port.

I have four, and none of them have that port.  Not on the back, and not behind the door on the front where there are other connectors.

I'll bet the computers you are looking at have USB ports.

OH RLY?

[Fishing Rhino]

I may be able to buy one for fifteen bucks, but that's beside the point. I shouldn't have to. I already spend 35 bucks for the connector.

It should not cost fifty bucks for a connector to update the unit.

Rather short sighted of Humminbird to produce such a thing. The cord should come with a USB plug, period.

I have the same issue with my Glucose meter - a state of the art meter, BTW. The cable for the computer is a 1/8" jack to serial. Then I have the seriel to USB adapter. Stupid, I know. At least my insulin pump is wireless USB, LOL.

That's what bugs me.  I'm not really into computers, but everything that hooks up to the computer other than the chip readers, monitors, and the audio plugs into USB ports.  Keyboards, wireless adapters/antennae, the mouse, printers, unless they are wireless, all hook up to USB ports.

It would be good PR for Humminbird to provide a USB adapter with the AS PC2 accessory.  Surely I cannot be the only person who finds this offensive. 

Maybe I'm turning into an old grouch.

[Fishing Rhino]

I was correct.  Those computers do have USB ports.  By the way, you might think about vacuuming the dust from the cooling openings.

[bwell]

I am literally looking at several computers at my work that have that port.

Dude, serieal ports were phased out in the late 90s. :

They still make laptops with those ports...  I have two at my desk right now...  We need these ports for configuring control system and programing.  They are still very much in use today.

[J Francho]

I have two IBMS, a Toshiba, and an HP laptop, and NONE have them. There might be one on my Alienware desktop, that has an MSI mainboard, and they have a TON of ports, lOL. My Dell tower here at work actually has two seriels - go figure.

[J Francho]

We need these ports for configuring control system and programing.

This is probably why HB is still using the old 9-pin tech.  I recall building my own slot car timing system, and it was really easy to build a DOS program using photoreceptors under the track hooked to the computer through a serial cable.  That was a LONG time ago, LOL.

[mcipinkie]

Hey Man,  You could have a Lowrance and then you wouldn't be able to upgrade at all.

Your life would be much simpler.

[slonezp]

How dumb can they be??? How smart are they? is more like it. It's all about the bottom line.

[Fishing Rhino]

My 898 is a breeze to update. Plug a chip in the computer, download the update to the chip, plug the chip into the 898 and turn in on.

When it starts, it will detect the update and ask if you want to install it. Select yes, then enter, and voila.

These are obviously old cables they've had around for some time. They give instructions for Windows ME, XP and Vista. Nothing about Windows 7.

And, about that "adapter", with tax, it was forty bucks at Best Buy. It comes with a mini disc to install the correct drivers for your operating system, be it Mac, Linux or Windows.

It's never "smart" to aggravate your customers. Hurts the bottom line far more than it benefits.

[Todd Driscoll]

Hey Man, You could have a Lowrance and then you wouldn't be able to upgrade at all.

Your life would be much simpler.

Huh?  Lowrance has provided free updates on the internet for years.

http://www.lowrance.com/en/Downloads/Product-Software-Updates/

[Team_Dougherty]

And, about that "adapter", with tax, it was forty bucks at Best Buy. It comes with a mini disc to install the correct drivers for your operating system, be it Mac, Linux or Windows.

http://www.google.com/products/catalog?q=usb+serial&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&cid=5824150819034150596&ei=jmdVTdS9DcqBtgfom4X6DA&sa=X&oi=product_catalog_result&ct=result&resnum=5&ved=0CEEQ8wIwBA#

[CJ]

Well I was about to post a topic about upgrading a Hummingbird and a Lowrance but I think I'll take them to the boat place and let them do it. I'm so stupid to modern tech. Plus, it looks like the cords will cost more than it would for them to do it a couple times.

[CWB]

Just go to a computer store and buy one. Shouldn't be more than $15.

What he said.

I might be able to appropriate one from work here if you can wait. No cost.

[Fishing Rhino]

Just go to a computer store and buy one. Shouldn't be more than $15.

What he said.

I might be able to appropriate one from work here if you can wait. No cost.

Already have one.  Not for 15 dollars though.  Close to forty with the MA sales tax added.  It's not just a simple adapter.  It comes with a mini disc to install the necessary drivers.  Choose from Mac, Linux, or Windows.

I'm kicking myself for not getting the small Humminbird side imaging unit for the bow, rather than the 728, or anything else that takes a card.  Live and learn.

[Tpayneful]

Looking at the AS PC2 cable I would suspect that the 728 and lower models have an RS232 (db9 pin) port on them. They would have to add an RS232 to USB converter to the AS PC2 for it to talk to most computers that only have a USB port. Depeding on Humminbirds design philosophy they may be moving to SD cards and ethernet to replace the RS232 port. I don't know but it is things like this that ensure I will have a job in the future

[Fishing Rhino]

Looking at the AS PC2 cable I would suspect that the 728 and lower models have an RS232 (db9 pin) port on them. They would have to add an RS232 to USB converter to the AS PC2 for it to talk to most computers that only have a USB port. Depeding on Humminbirds design philosophy they may be moving to SD cards and ethernet to replace the RS232 port. I don't know but it is things like this that ensure I will have a job in the future

Nope, the 728 unit does not have a nine pin port.  The plugs are identical to those on my 898, except for the transducer.  It is compatible, and can share the GPS antenna, and certain info with the 898.  While the 728 does not have a mapping capability, though it will display a grid with waypoints etc.  The same harness would work if I had another 898 at the bow.

The problem is that the 728 cannot use chips.  That necessitates connecting it to a computer.

It one of those live and learn things.

[Wayne P.]

Fishing Rhino, you can use the 83/200 khz of the HDSI transducer with your 728. I used a HDSI transducer with my former Matrix 97 when I didn't use my SI unit on the bow.

[Fishing Rhino]

Fishing Rhino, you can use the 83/200 khz of the HDSI transducer with your 728. I used a HDSI transducer with my former Matrix 97 when I didn't use my SI unit on the bow.

I'll have to study up on that.  For most of the places I fish, my main concern with the bow unit is to maintain a certain depth range.

The bank is steep in some ponds, and when the fish are holding in the ten to fifteen foot depths (as an example), you don't have to drift far to end up in five or twenty feet of water.

Funny thing about the update.  It's to improve shallow water performance.  I never had any problem in shallow water, so I'll be anxious to see what the improvement is.