How many of you have been wondering what the future has in store for fishermen when it comes to technology?

We have detailed electronic equipment for mapping bottom contour and structure. GPS navigation systems. Auto-pilot trolling motors. Reels with computer chips to control backlashes. Under water cameras which are affordable for many anglers.

I can't help but wonder what the next 10 years will bring. Has anyone heard of other new technologies that we may be hearing about in the near future?

How do you think technology will play a role in professional bass fishing?

Just something I thought you all might enjoy talking about...

BC

i know one thing if it soon gets rilly eazy to catch fish it wont be fun any more. but for now there is still an edge to it
but i do want something that can see through the deepest merkie water just to see whats down there and see what the lake looks like i for some reason dont trust fish finders
i always think they are lieing.

IMHO; Technology will play a role in fishing, but mainly related to the boats engine/propulsion system rather than terminal tackle. Example: The automotive industry. You cannot purchase a new vehicle today equipped with a carburetor, all are fuel injected. Many vehicles today feature up to 25 microprocessors that are multiplexed together, communicating with each other while making finite adjustments. Two cycle engines have come a long way but there is a multitude of improvements that will come forward. This also applies to 4 cycle marine engines, technology will make good engines better, improvements will be reliability, reduced emission's, and improved fuel economy.

Bassin
Butch

What will the future bring? I know one thing that's got to happen is improved ways of conserving fish, that's a better attitude in handling fish, and technological advances in the survivability of fish. Rejuvinaid and live well boats are a start, but more needs to be done.

Although I cannot comment on what new technologies and products that we will be producing in the coming years (and keep my job!), I can make a general statement about the level of technology that will be available for the average fisherman:

It will all be driven by the amount of money that he is willing to pay for a product.

There are and have been many technologies available for fishermen to use but they have been cost prohibitive to be put in a consumer electronics product. So unless the cost of these technologies allow for them to be built into a product for the dollars John Doe fisherman is willing to pay, they will never be available. A good example of this is the recent boom in sonar and GPS units with color displays. Until the cost of color LCDs came down, these units were only available to the salt water market (mainly commercial fishermen). Advances in LCD technology and the ability to produce them has driven the cost of these down to the point that they are now available in sonar and GPS units for under $500. It wasn’t that many years ago that you would have had to shell out over a grand to have one on your boat.

You have to remember that the fishing industry is consumer based. If John Doe fisherman wants to buy a product that does a certain thing and is willing to pay “X” number of dollars for it, he will. If the cost of the product is too high or the product does not perform as he wants it to, he won’t buy it.

I know of several innovations that we had the capability to produce but they would have driven the cost of the product beyond what the average fisherman would pay.


Greg Walters at Humminbird

Interesting views from everyone. Thanks for the feedback. Anyone else out there have some comments on technology?

Just a couple of comments:
First, we are very lucky to have Greg Walters of Techsonic veiwing our posts and commenting without promoting his great products.
Second. Heavy, why don't you trust depthfinders? Had bad experiences with them or do you think they are all just hype?
Heavy, believe me, all those pros wouldn't use and rely on their depthfinders if they wern't true and accurate. I wouldn't fish without one, or more. When I see a disply on my Humminbird, I know that there is something between me and the bottom, that gives me the confidence to fish that area. If the bottom has no features and no fish, I move on. Learn to use and trust your depthfinder to become a better angler.
As for new technologies, I agree, there will be some-some that may even condense the sport to who can afford to compete. Still, with all the innovations we have at our disposal today, it's still the knowledge of the angler that tells the tale at the end of the day. I have an underwater camera, it's great for learning the bottom structures in new lakes, but I never try to use it to locate and catch fish, they're not legal in most tournaments.I hope the sport is never so technologically advanced that the element of surprise is taken away.

First off, nice to see you around here Greg. For those of you who do not know, Greg and I work together on the field testing of Humminbird products.

Now for some other new items I heard about a few years ago, which may or may not come to be. There is a helmet, which has a visor showing the angler all of the information as he is cruising along - such as water and air temperature, depth, barometric pressure, etc. The back deck of the boat will be a solar panel set, which will constantly charge batteries, making it possible to have a lighter weight battery setup. Cellphones will be a standard feature. A trolling motor is being designed that will pop out of the underside of the boat's bow.

The ice fishing industry is also coming along with a few things.

Anyway, these are few more.

Best of fishing,
Dan

i just think that fish finder will somtime mistaken a log for a big fish or a school for weed
seeing is believeing for me sorry but i guess by now they have some rilly cool good ones oooo yes buy the way ok okok ther are theys things that are ice fish finders i think and they dont rilly have a skreen but there is a circle with lines coming out and number and some thims i have seen them colord what are thouse thing HOW do they work i am verry interested i have all ways wonderd :p

o and sorry for being a jerk a wile ago

Dan, I had to chuckle at your post. I'm a pilot, also ex-Army, and can just see myself cruising like Apache gunship driver with a heads-up display. lol

Heavy,
The whole idea behind depthfinders is to show us that there is something between us and the bottom. True, it could be a log, could be a bass. What's important is-is that there is something there, we're not just fishing a featureless-fishless bottom.
It's okay to not believe in depthfinders, in fact, I wish no one else did. Bet I'd win a lot more tournaments. But; I respect your right to not have faith in them.
The ice depthfinders you quiered about are for ice fishing. Each colored line represents either the bottom, baitfish or fish of some kind, plus bottom cover or structure. By identifying the depth, where the baitfish are and finding some type of cover our chances of catching fish are greatly enhanced.

o cool