Lowrance Hook 5 Fish Finder Review

Lowrance has established a reputation in the fishing industry as one of the top brands for making fish finders, especially with their Lowrance Hook 5 model. The company has been in business and takes seriously the feedback it gets from its deals, sales, reps, and customers.

It’s no wonder there are a number of Lowrance fish finder models on the market today that are available at a more reasonable price than most other brands while the product itself can outperform most others. 

The Lowrance Hook-5 is one of the top fish finder models the company has produced in recent years that is available for a more reasonable price than the more feature-rich Elite series. This fish finder has a small, but very crisp on-screen display ideal for anything from large boats to smaller kayaks. 

In this article, we will explore the many different features and capabilities of the Hook-5 while taking a more in-depth look at each characteristic that this particular model has become known for in recent years. 

Lowrance Hook 5 Fish Finder Overview 

The Hook-5 is made to serve as a stepped-down version of the Lowrance Elite series fish finder and chart plotter devices. Despite not being the headline model produced by Lowrance, there are still plenty of reasons why many anglers should find the Hook-5 to be a great option for their personal needs. 

It features a 5-inch display screen that provides a broader color palette than the Hook-5’s more feature-heavy sibling, the Elite-5. This allows anglers to get a much better feel for distinguishing between fish and the many different types of structure underground. 

Much like the Elite-5, the Hook-5 can read down to a depth of about 1,000 feet using the CHIRP technology while it can also reach down to roughly 300 feet using downscan sonar capability. 

It can store many different waypoints, routes, trails, and up to 10,000 points within each trail. Considering everything that the Lowrance Hook-5 brings to the table, it can be a very capable option for anglers who simply don’t want to spend the extra money to get the more advanced Elite-5 versions. 

Display 

As we’ve noted, the Hook-5 allows users to enjoy a wider color palette than some of Lowrance’s other models. It has a 480 x 480 pixel matrix and the 16-bit color palette will often appeal to anglers who prefer to have a bit more color options to help distinguish just what’s below their boat. 

The larger screen is certainly an improvement over the Hook-4 and this is one of the major items that Lowrance set out to rectify in designing a better fish finder and chart plotter than its previous version. Those who prefer to utilize the split-screen mode will find the larger 5-inch screen to be much more conducive to doing so. 

In addition to having a better setup for split screen use, many anglers will also be impressed that the Hook-5 actually provides a feature in which the user can set up the split-screen mode to show two screens on the right portion of the monitor, which essentially allows you to run three separate screens at one time. 

Like the Elite series models, this screen allows users to adjust between 11 different brightness settings with the LED backlighting, which means you’ll have no problem seeing your fish finder at night or in the daytime. 

The monitor itself is more than capable of withstanding any significant splashes over the bow or sides of your boat as it’s rated to be IP-X7 waterproof, meaning it can withstand being submerged into a few feet of water for up to 30 minutes before any damage is likely to occur to the device. 

Routes and Waypoints 

One of the best characteristics of the Hook-5 is the device’s massive data capability, which allows users to save up to 3,000 waypoints, as well as 100 routes that allow you to program each route in a customized fashion that allows one to add multiple waypoints into a single route. 

The Hook-5 also stands out as it provides data to keep track of up to 100 trails and users can program up to 10,000 waypoints within each individual trail. The unit is also compatible with various chart technology like Navionics. All of this data can prove exceptionally useful to anglers who regularly fish competitive tournaments and rely heavily on pre-planned routes and locations that they have gathered data on in prior fishing trips. 

Transducer and Sonar 

The Lowrance Hook-5 offers exceptional capabilities in terms of its sonar and transducers. Anglers will appreciate the fact that they can get of 50/83/200 kHz frequencies for the device’s 2D imaging technology and will manage with 455/800 kHz when using DownScan sonar technology. 

It is recommended that users purchase an upgraded transducer from Lowrance and this will virtually guarantee that you’ll be able to get better performance out of the device. The upgraded transducer will take care of most issues that some anglers experience when running certain frequencies with their CHIRP technology on the Hook-5. 

Pros

• Great sensitivity to identify individual fish with CHIRP sonar
• Waterproof IPX7 design
• Built in GPS chart plotter

Cons

• The 5 inch screen can make some information difficult to read

Lowrance Hook 5 vs Hook 7

Let’s look at what Lowrance have changed between the previous model and the evolution into the Hook 7 version. This should help to identify the similarities and differences so that you can make an informed decision based on logic.

You can see from the comparison table below that the main differences between the two options is the display screen size at 5 inch vs 7 inch. This does have its benefits – the multiview panels are easier to see and the images are much clearer.

I think the larger screen in the Hook 7 is worth the extra price tag.

Specifications	Hook 5	Hook 7
Weight	1.6 lbs	2.15 lbs
Display Resolution	480 x 480	800 x 480
Warranty	5 Years	5 Years
Sonar	Integrated CHIRP DownScan	Integrated CHIRP DownScan
GPS	Internal High-Sensitivity	Internal High-Sensitivity
Waterproof	IPX7	IPX7
Max Depth	1000 ft	1000 ft

Conclusion 

The Lowrance Hook 5 comes with a microSD card that can easily be removed and placed inside of a computer to allow users to download the latest versions and updates to their device. Most will be pleased to find that a purchase of the Hook-5 comes with everything from a mounting bracket, transducer, and 20-foot power cable, as well as a tilt mount and a few other items. 

Since the Lowrance Hook 5 offers users with a larger screen and many other notable features compared to some of the brand’s previous fish finder and chart plotter models, it’s easy to see why so many tournament anglers have been thoroughly impressed with this unit overall.

It does have a few aspects that are simply lacking when compared to the Elite-5 and especially the Elite-7 series, but the Hook-5 is certainly a fish finder that will serve anglers of any experience level quite well on whatever body of water they want to use it on.