Best guesses on when Helix lineup is due for replacment?

Hey everyone………..

One of these days, I’m going to jump in and get a 21st century graph…..the old timer I’ve been running has been in service way to long !!
I don’t know if it will be this spring yet, but what I don’t want to do is jump in at the 99% life cycle of a model’s timeline.

What is everyone’s best guess when the Helix models would be due for replacement and/or HB’s next round of technology?

I already realize they’ve been through a Helix Gen1 and Gen2 timeline.

Thanks for anyone’s thoughts/best guesses.

Best guess it will be outdated before you plug it in, technology changes that fast.

Humminbird came out with Mega last year and Hbird seems to do some type of update every 2 years. Hbird is so good about keeping legacy units up to date with soft ware it is not as big a deal as it was years ago, they still do updates to my 1198. It is about done I think and the only reason is memory space and processor speed.

Not for quite a while. Planned obsolescence in a field as competitive as recreational sonar is a recipe for disaster. And with the way Garmin is coming on in the freshwater market HB is going to have their hands full growing their share, the last thing they will do is leave customers in the lurch with two year old units. Sure, there will be advances* that new generations will support and the older units won’t but they’ll keep supporting those older units. The way Garmin is including so many capabilities in mid-price units HB will have no choice but to keep the Helix up to date and affordable.

*drone submarines with wifi cameras that display to your unit or a tablet in real time, at a distance of up to 200′ and a depth of 150′. “Now you don’t just mark fish, you mark ’em down”. (Voice over by Sam Elliott)

IMO, the industry will be heading towards “Panoptix like” live interface moving forward…The enhancements you’ll see is that the sonar beam will automatically scan the entire water column (like a typical radar scan) and onscreen clutter will be cleaned up and the display becomes more polished…competition will slowly push the price down, but i think most manufacturers will make all but their biggest screen units Open & Hard water compatible (like the Helix ice series) to help consumers justify the high prices…

Not all users are going to be computer geeks. I will always be a low level user, hence, I’ll never be able to justify the high costs. Cleaner, sharper sonar picture is about all I look for in an upgrade. And opposite of the OP, I tend to look for units close to the end of production because they are miles better than my old units and at the best price.

Hopefully not for some time because I just ordered a Helix 7 DI G2 GPS today.

It’s inevitable with tech like this though. I’m more worried about product lifespan than obsolescence. I know my FLX-28 will last for a very long time. We’ll have to see how long these lcd screens last in harsh conditions now that they’re becoming dual season units.

Check out Humminbird’s new Solix models. They don’t have the smaller display sizes but the 10, 12, and 15 inch displays and functions are amazing.