I wonder if the OP thinks that if it was a new car that had a problem very soon after buying the dealership should or would give him a new car? Or try buying a computer and it messing up first time out. Would Best Buy give him a new one? Nope and the funny thing he probably would even ask for a new car or computer.
Fisherman are the worst there is about expecting a product be replaced with a new one if it breaks.
Whether it be a fishing rod or a depthfinder.
I know this also if he wanted to pay for overnight shipping to and from Humminbird would turn the unit in one day. I have done it before.

I've always taken my stuff to Boris Marine, they handle all of the warranty rif raf with Humminbird and I get my products back quick.

Pretty simple....

I expect to be told the truth. I expect it to ship when I am told it will ship. I expect to be updated with tracking information which I never was.

I wrongly assumed their shipping label would be for fast shipping. They emailed it and said present it at FedEx....I should have checked the service but i didn�t. My main focus was being sure there was a pickup time after my drop off.

Yes....I expected a new unit because I knew if I had bought it at a retail location in the area....I would have exchanged it for a new one. I messed up by taking the advice of one of HB�s installers and instructor.

If you are willing to be bent over and you like to take it that way....up to you.

I will continue to be sour on HB and. Will take my business back to Lowrance or Garmin.

Believe it or not, I have had great luck with Lowrance CS. I only went with HB because of Mega imagining. I got suckered into the hype.

Every one has a bad customer service story for every single sonar or fishing company in the industry. Each one is the "worst customer service" story.

Could it have been handled smoother? Sure

Could you have been a more educated buyer? Yep

Always two sides to a story.

IMO, get whatever graph you want that fits your needs. Hope for good customer service and move on.

Part of what happens when you shop online to save a couple of dollars. It is much harder to exchange the product as that takes time also in shipping. I don't think that anyone is an authorized installer or trainer working for Humminbird so I wouldn't try to put the blame on him. Humminbird tells you up front that they will repair a bad unit unless it is not repairable and then they will trade it out. The decision and assumptions to go the route you did is on you.

Ok....so what are intending to do with posting this topic?

Steer potential customers away from the product?

Somehow influence the manufacturer to change their policies?

Just "vent"?

I hope it's the last choice, because the first two ain't happening.

I�ve always been a HB guy and have had great customer service, that being said I have no confidence in their tech support! I have contacted them 5 times recently with 2 separate issues... 4 of the 5 they were absolutely wrong in there diagnoses and explanation of set up and functions. Turned into 2 months of grief and about $250 in unnecessary expenses. Got better info off fishing forums!! I won�t call again for tech support, have no faith they would get it right! Just my two cents....

I will give you $500 cash for the Helix 12 "refurbished" unit when you get it back, so you get something for it and so when you see it, you will not be triggered into some kind of cosmic spinout...

LMK

I�ll toss it in one of your brush piles on Hubbard If you show me where it is!!!!

Update here.....Finally made it to the lake this afternoon and the imaging is amazing. But the kicker is MY UNIT STILL HAS THE SAME FREAKING PROBLEM. GETS HOT AND WILL NOT RESTART. NOW THE POS WILL NOT EVEN BOOT UP WILL NOT TURN OFF WILL NOT DO SPIT!!!!

That's unfortunate! I didn't read the whole thread, but I can guarantee if this unit is new and having that problem, I would be getting a brand new unit to replace it, at HB's expense.

I�d be on the phone with h�bird first thing in the morning askingvthem what they intend to do to fix their faulty equipment that they just �fixed�. Venting on here won�t do anything except make them less likely to help above and beyond their norm.
1 customer in 500,000 doesn�t matter in big corporations.

That stinks. I've had gen 1 Lowrance HDS units for 6-7 years now and they've never skipped a beat. No idea what Lowrance CS is like, but sounds like it couldn't be worse than HB.

I'd buy a Lowrance or Garmin if I got into the market today. No reason to deal with this mess.

That's mega bad