Finding fish on your boat or kayak in big lakes like Okeechobee or the ocean is not an easy task.
There’s a huge area for the fish to move around in and the first key to success is finding them.
You can read current patterns, watch the wind and water quality to get a read on them, but that’s only getting you halfway there.
Throw in a fish finder like the Raymarine Dragonfly Pro, and you’ll have all the information you could need to find fish with ease.
Why Use a Fish Finder?
The Raymarine Dragonfly Pro fish finder will show you the depth, what fish and structure are under your vessel, and you can use the chart plotter GPS to read the bottom contours and mark hot fishing spots for you to return to another day.
Having this kind of information at your fingertips teaches you where fish are and why, so the next time you go out, you’ll find them with ease.
What To Think About Before Buying A Fish Finder
Fish finders like the Dragonfly take you from fishing blind to the underwater world to being able to see right to the bottom.
These fish finders show you the fish, bottom contours, and the structure beneath your boat, but are they the right fish finders for you?
Does The Raymarine Dragonfly Pro have GPS?
Yes. The Raymarine Dragonfly Pro is a fish finder, chart plotter, and GPS.
It uses 72 channels of the GPS & GLONASS networks to accurately pinpoint your location or position down to 15m or accuracy.
The GPS capabilities don’t end there though, you can also mark up to 15 tracks, each with 10000 points, and mark 3000 waypoints.
Does The Dragonfly Pro Have Wi-Fi?
Yes. The Dragonfly Pro comes with a wifi hotspot that you can connect to your smartphone or tablet via the Wi-Fish App.
The Wi-fish app allows you to view the depth finder screen on your smartphone or tablet so you don’t have to sit by the fish finder the whole time.
Connectivity
Not only can you view the fish finder on the Wi-fish app, but you can also control it too, changing the mode wirelessly from your smartphone or tablet and more.
You can review your sonar history with the Wi-fish app, pause, zoom in, and share your fishing data with friends also using the app.
Hunting solo is fun, but doing it as a group can make you all a lot more successful, and the Wi-fish app ensures this is possible.
Does The Raymarine Dragonfly Pro Come With A Transducer?
Yes, every Dragonfly Pro fishfinder comes with a CPT-DVS Transom mount CHIRP DownVision and a conventional CHIRP sonar transducer.
The included transducer ensures that all the features of the fish finder open up, and work to depths of 600 feet in CHIRP DownVision mode, and 900 feet in CHIRP sonar mode.
Which Raymarine Dragonfly Pro Should I Buy?
The Raymarine Dragonfly Pro comes in three models, 4 Pro, 5 Pro, and the Raymarine Dragonfly 7 Pro.
They all have the same sonar, GPS, and Wi-Fi capabilities, and the major difference is the screen size and the price.
Models
The number of the model corresponds to the diagonal display size in inches…
So the Dragonfly 4 Pro has a 4-inch display, the Dragonfly 5 Pro a 5-inch display, and the Raymarine Dragonfly 7 Pro a 7-inch display.
The price also goes up with the size.
So which one should you buy? It comes down to your budget, and how big a display you want.
TIP
A larger screen is easier to see and if that’s what you’re after, go for the Pro 7. If spending a bit less is key, then the 4 Pro is perfect. If you want a bit of both, the 5 Pro was made for you.
Who Should Buy A Raymarine Dragonfly?
These fish finders are ideal for anyone who has a vessel with onboard power.
Whether it’s a kayak, a small boat, or a sport fisher, these fish finders are good to go as long as you have a battery to run them off.
NOTE
If you’re looking for a portable fish finder that doesn’t need a large battery to run it, and that you can take home every day, these fish finders are not the ones for you and you should look for full portable options.
Raymarine Dragonfly Pro 7
Gives you all the features you need to have increased fishing success out on the water.
Raymarine Dragonfly Pro 7
Raymarine Dragonfly Pro – Overview
These Dragonfly Pro fish finders give you all the features you need to have increased fishing success out on the water.
Features
They show you accurate and excellent images of fish and structure beneath your boat down to 900ft with DownVision and CHIRP, allow you to use charts of your fishing areas like Navionics Gold to navigate around on, and have excellent GPS capabilities to ensure you know where you are and can mark hot spots.
They even connect to your smartphone or tablet via wifi so you can view and control the unit from your phone.
Raymarine Dragonfly vs Pro
The Dragonfly Pro is an upgrade from the Dragonfly 4 which they don’t make anymore.
The original Dragonfly came in 4 models, the Dragonfly 4, Dragonfly 5, Dragonfly 6, and the Dragonfly 7, the number corresponding to the size.
Connectivity
On the old 4, 5, 6 & 7 Dragonfly models, there was no wifi and therefore no compatibility with the Wi-fish app, so you couldn’t see or control the display from your smartphone, and you couldn’t review, record, or share your sonar data either.
The old Dragonfly 5, 6, 7 & 4 also only showed you images down to 600 feet, whereas the Pro takes you down to 900 feet.
GPS
The Dragonfly 5, 6, 7 & 4 also had fewer GPS capabilities only using 50 GPS network channels, compared to the more accurate and reliable 72 GPS & GLONASS channel networks used by the Pro.
What comes in the Box of the Pro?
When you buy a Pro, it comes with everything you need to install it on your vessel.
You get the amazing LCD display, a transducer, all the mounting brackets, screws, power cables, and documentation that teaches you how to use and install it.
Pros
- Crystal clear and sunlight-readable screen
- Accurate GPS
- Compatible with a range of charts
- Detailed images down to 900 and 600 feet
- Connects to your smartphone or tablet
- CHIRP DownVison & Dual-Channel CHIRP sonar for excellent detail
- Easy to use, install, and comes with everything you need to install it
Cons
- Can take a while to load up charts
- Doesn’t penetrate as deep as others in its class
Features & Benefits
Display
The screen across all the Dragonfly Pros are waterproof to IPX6 & IPX7 so they will handle any splashes and even being submerged.
They are built to be sunlight readable and offer excellent contrast and colors. You’ll be able to read them clearly in any light conditions, even in direct sunlight, and from any angle since the display is unbelievably bright.
Here’s the Raymarine Dragonfly 7 Pro in action…
Split Screen
You can also use the fish finder in split-screen mode.
Split-screen allows you to split the screen of the unit into 4 windows so you can look at your charts, DownVision and CHIRP all at the same time.
The only difference in the screens across the 4, 5, and Pro 7 models is the size (as we discussed above) and the resolution.
Resolution
The resolution on the 4 is 480 x 272 and on the 5 & Pro 7, it’s 800 x 480.
This 800 x 480 resolution does make the 5 & Pro 7 models a little easier to read but the difference is not that huge and you’ll still be able to understand the info on each model equally as well as the next.
Ease Of Use
On the base of the screen of these fish finders are a series of buttons for switching through modes, turning it off and on, and zooming in and out.
In terms of ease of use, the buttons make navigating the easy to use software on the device a breeze.
Imaging Sonar
All the Dragonfly Pros come with the same sonar features including CHIRP DownVision and Dual-Channel sonar.
Dual-Channel CHIRP Sonar
This kind of sonar uses multiple frequencies simultaneously to give you a detailed picture of any fish, debris, or structure like a fallen tree in the water column.
Frequency
High frequency sonar waves don’t penetrate very deeply as they get absorbed by the water, but they pick up a lot of detail along the way.
While low-frequency sonar waves go to the bottom with ease but don’t pick up as much as high-frequency sonar waves.
CHIRP
The CHIRP on these fish finders uses 50, 83, and 200kHz sonar waves to show everything down to 900ft of depth with the 50 & 83 kHz sonar and all the detail in between with the 200kHz sonar.
CHIRP is perfect for trolling and fish finding for good fishing spots.
TIP
You can cruise looking for fish and structure with the fish finder in CHIRP mode and when you find something interesting switch to DownVision to take a closer look.
CHIRP DownVision
CHIRP DownVision works in the same way as the traditional CHIRP we talked about above, but it’s intensified to give you even more detail.
The CHIRP DownVision on these fish finders uses 455 & 800kHz to ensure you see as much detail as possible.
Frequency
Being quite high-frequency sonar waves, they don’t go as deep, and when using DownVision mode, you can only see down to 600 feet.
DownVision Mode
In DownVision mode, you get almost photo-like images of what’s under your vessel.
You’ll be able to see the branches of a fallen tree for example and where the fish are sitting around it.
With DownVision you can target exactly where you want to drop your lures when fishing structure.
GPS
We have touched on the GPS features of these fish finders already, but here we’ll go into a little more detail.
The GPS on the fish finder uses both GPS and GLONASS networks providing excellent coverage no matter where you are in the world. This means when you turn on your fish finder, you’ll have a good signal and it’ll locate you quickly.
Waypoints
The GPS on the fish finder also features tracks and waypoints that are saved to a MicroSD card that you put into the MicroSD card slot.
You can save up to 3,000 waypoints (split between up to 100 waypoint groups) and 15 tracks (each track can contain up to 10,000 points).
Map Options
These fish finders are compatible with an excellent range of chart options that cover the entire world with great detail if you want them to.
You can use LightHouse maps and charts, Navionics Gold, Plus, Hotmaps, and SonarChart, and C-MAP charts via the MicroSD card slot with these fish finders.
You can also opt to purchase the fish finder with either a C-Map or Navionics chart included that covers North-America or the rest of the world.
NOTE
Loading your charts on the fish finder couldn’t be easier. Simply download the charts to your MicroSD card and slot it into the fish finder, that’s it.
Sonar Chart Live
These fish finders also work with Sonar Chart Live from Navionics.
Using the wifi of the fish finder, you can connect your mobile device and Navionics Boating App to the fish finder to stream live sonar data to it and create up-to-date bathymetric charts on the fly.
This means that all your sonar readings will be added to your Navionics Boating App charts, giving you the most accurate charts possible.
Wireless Connectivity
I already mentioned that this fish finder can create a wifi hotspot, but let’s go into the benefits in a bit more detail.
Once you have downloaded the Wi-fish app, you can connect the fish finder to your mobile device, phone or tablet.
NOTE
You don’t need a cellular network for this, the fish finder makes the network for you.
Smartphone Display
Once they are connected you can use the Wi-fish app to view the screen, allowing you to be anywhere on the boat (like at the back fishing) instead of being stuck by the fish finder giving out instructions.
Wi-fish doesn’t just provide a means to see the screen, you can control the Raymarine fish finder unit with it too.
This means you can switch from CHIRP to DownVision, pull up the charts, mark a waypoint, go back to CHIRP, and then to DownVision again, all from your phone.
Check out this awesome feature in the video below…
Sonar Record
One other great thing Wi-fish can do with the Raymarine Dragonfly is record sonar for review.
You can go back into the recording, and take a good look at what you went over to see if it’s worth going back and fishing.
You can also use Wi-fish to pause the sonar, and zoom in.
So when you’re doing some fish finding with the unit and you go over something interesting, you can hit pause, zoom in to check if there are any fish there, if there are marks on the spot, and then go and fish it.
Share
One of the last great features of Wi-fish is that it does provide a means to share your sonar data with other people.
You can even do it live while you’re fishing if there is network coverage.
This means you can work in teams and for example, share your CHIRP image or DownVision image with a buddy so they can go catch a fish that spot as well.
Transducer & Mounting
All the Raymarine Dragonfly Pros come with the same transducer CPT-DVS Transom mount CHIRP DownVision and conventional sonar transducer.
This included transducer opens up all the features of the unit from CHIRP to Downvision, ensuring the unit performs exactly as it should, with greatly detailed images of 600 and 900 feet of any fishes that are below you.
Installation
The transducer is a transom mount transducer making installation easy. You’ll just have to drill some holes on the transom, screw in the transducer, seal it up and connect it to your screen.
You can also opt to get one without a transducer if you already have a compatible one or if you’d like a better transducer with more power than the included option.
TIP
Having a more powerful transducer will enable things like DownVision and CHIRP to go deeper than their limits of 600ft and 900ft with the included transducer.
Value For Money
When you compare these Dragonfly units to others in their class, the price is about right.
There are more expensive and less expensive options out there that have fewer features, and some that are the same price but swap DownVision for their version and don’t have wifi.
I have done a comparison to other units a bit further down if you’re after some more details.
Software Updates
From time to time, Raymarine will release new software for their units, a bit like Apple does with the iPhone.
Now, updating the software on some units can be a nightmare, and sometimes involves losing all your data or more.
Sound familiar? We have all had it with some bit of fish finder tech before.
How to Update
However, updating the software on the Dragonfly is a piece of cake.
- All you have to do is download the new Dragonfly software from Raymarine to your computer.
- Then transfer it to an empty SD card.
- Then, turn your sonder off, take out the SD with your fishing data on it, put in the one with the update, and turn it back on.
- At this point, you’ll see a black screen with numbers and dots, do not touch anything.
- This is the update being uploaded to the sounder.
- If you press anything it can cause the update to freeze and you’ll have to start again
- Once done, the sounder will reboot, ask you to Accept, so hit that button, and the update is done.
- Now you can put your fishing SD card back in, and head back out on the water with the new Dragonfly software.
What Do People Using The Unit Think?
To review Raymarine Dragonfly Pros properly I, of course, had to look at when everyone out there who already owns a unit thinks about it.
Almost every review of the units was positive, and users loved how accurate the unit is, especially in DownVision mode, and how easy it is to install.
How does the Raymarine unit compare to other similar units?
Garmin ECHOMAP Plus 64cv
If you’re after all the features of the dragonfly but want more depth, this is the unit for you.
Garmin ECHOMAP Plus 64cv
The Garmin ECHOMAP Plus 64cv is quite similar to the Dragonfly unit when it comes to the screen, sonar technology, GPS accuracy, chart compatibility, transducer, and price.
Where it differs is in the GPS capacity, and the depth the sonar signals can get to.
Here are the details.
- The Garmin ECHOMAP Plus 64cv hits depths of 2,300 ft in freshwater and 1,100 ft in salt water, compared to the Dragonfly that hits 900ft.
- The Garmin can hold 5000 waypoints and 50 tracks compared to the 3000 waypoints and 15 tracks of the Raymarine.
- The Garmin also has NMEA ports so you can view your engine’s data on the screen which the Raymarine does not.
If you’re after a sounder like the Dragonfly with all the features like the DownVision technology but if you are an offshore fisherman and want to go a bit deeper, then the ECHOMAP Plus 64cv might be a better choice for you.
Humminbird Helix 5 CHIRP G2
A little more affordable, goes a bit deeper, and has some features the Raymarine doesn’t.
Humminbird Helix 5 CHIRP G2
The Humminbird Helix 5 CHIRP G2 is another sounder that is similar to the Dragonfly.
It uses the same CHIRP technology, has equivalent features to DownVision sonar, and is compatible with the same maps.
The differences are that the Humminbird Helix 5 CHIRP G2 is a little more affordable, goes a bit deeper, and has some features the Raymarine doesn’t.
Here are the differences.
- The Helix 5 G2 hits depths as deep as 1,500 ft whereas the Pro 7 goes to 900 ft.
- The Helix 5 G2 has a feature called SwitchFire that lets you choose how much detail you see from the sounder, you can pick more or less, a feature the Pro 7 is missing.
- The Pro 7 has wifi, or Wi-fish features one thing the Humminbird does not have, so you can’t connect it to your phone.
If you’re looking to spend a little less, get some more depth, and can go without one thing, wifi, the Helix 5 is a good bet. One comment I will make is that the wifi is useful for sharing data, but you certainly can live without it.
Lowrance Elite-7 Ti2
A little more expensive than the dragonfly but has the edge on some of the features.
Lowrance Elite-7 Ti2
The Lowrance Elite-7 Ti2 is a little more expensive than the Dragonfly and the only major difference between them is that the Lowrance is a touchscreen display.
Both have wifi, charts, DownVision, and the Lowrance equivalent DownScan. The Lowrance can scan to the side though. Here are the details on how they differ.
- The Lowrance has a touchscreen, the Dragonfly does not.
- The Dragonfly hits depths of 600ft with DownVision and the Lowance’s StructureScan, its DownVison equivalent only hits 300ft.
- The Lowrance hits 1000ft in CHIRP, while the Dragonfly hits 900ft.
- The Lowrance has side scan, and structure scan.
- The Dragonfly is a lot more affordable
If you like the Dragonfly but are looking for a touchscreen, the Lowrance Elite-7 Ti2 is a good shout and you get to see what’s to the side of your boat too.
Otherwise, better to save some cash and stick with the Dragonfly.
Summing Up
Thanks for reading my review Raymarine Dragonfly, I hope you enjoyed the review and found it useful.
Features
It’s an awesome sounder that has all the features you need for success on the ocean and in larger lakes or rivers.
Things like DownVison, the charts, Global Positioning, CHIRP, and the wifi connectivity make it an all-around sounder that is perfect for any size vessel in all waters.
Range
One might comment that it doesn’t go as deep as they’d like, and if you’re bottom fishing in 1000ft of water, then I’d agree with you, but outside of this, knowing what’s in the first 900ft of the water column is enough 99% of the time.
Feel Free To Share
Thanks again for reading this article, and please feel free to share it amongst your fishing buddies. I also cover a whole range of other fishing related products from reels to rods and even trolling motor batteries.
If you’re ever looking for something new for your fishing cupboard, you’ll find some great info about it right here, such as this Humminbird Helix 9 reviews.
