Garmin Striker 4 Fish Finder
| Overall Rating | 93% |
| Grade | Very Good |
| Maximum Depth | Freshwater: 1600 ft; Saltwater: 750 ft |
| Sonar Frequencies | Traditional Sonar: 50/77/200 kHz; CHIRP (Mid and High) |
| CHIRP |  |
| Display Size | 3.5 Inches |
| GPS | |
| Chartplotter |  |
| Down Imaging | |
| Side Imaging | |
| Transducer Included | |
| Suitability for Kayaks & Small Craft | |
| Water Temperature Sensor | |
Garmin Striker 4 Review: What Anglers Are Saying
The Garmin Striker 4 is an incredibly popular fish finder that has made a name for itself with over 11,000 positive reviews on Amazon, averaging a solid 4.6 out of 5 stars.
In our roundup, it secures the number two spot and stands out as Garmin’s second most powerful unit in the 4-inch class.
It shines with its CHIRP sonar technology and its max depth of up to 1600 ft in freshwater, features that are hard to beat at a price point under $200. Its compact design and handy GPS waypoint feature make it the perfect choice for inflatables and belly boats.
However, there are a couple of trade-offs. You won’t get Low CHIRP (which is typical for this price range), and it lacks the Garmin Quickdraw™ Contours feature for creating your own custom depth maps.
Additionally, at 3.5 inches, it has the smallest display in our comparison, which some users find a bit limiting for serious vertical jigging.
This fish finder is the ideal match for budget-conscious anglers who need a compact, powerful unit for smaller boats, inflatables, or belly boats and are willing to forgo a larger screen and the Quickdraw™ Contours mapping feature.
Here is our review of the Garmin Striker 4, including a brief summary of what other customers are saying. You’ll also find a straightforward list of the pros and cons for this fish finder.
Garmin Striker 4: The Official Editor’s Review
Maximum Depth / Sonar Frequencies / CHIRP
In our comparison, the Garmin Striker 4 ranks as Garmin’s second most powerful 4-inch class fish finder. It delivers some seriously impressive depth performance for such a compact unit, reaching up to 1,600 feet in freshwater and 750 feet in saltwater.
For the classic sonar view, the Striker 4 uses 77 and 200 kHz frequencies. Thanks to modern CHIRP technology broadcasting across mid and high-frequency bands, the Striker 4 provides high-resolution images that really help you see what’s down there.
The Garmin Striker 4 is a real powerhouse for its size, delivering impressive depth performance: it can reach down to 1,600 feet in freshwater and 750 feet in saltwater without breaking a sweat. This positions it as the second most powerful 4-inch class Garmin fish finder, right alongside the Striker Plus 4.
Whether you’re fishing your local freshwater lakes or most inshore saltwater spots, this fish finder is a reliable companion. For comparison, the Garmin Striker Vivid 4cv offers a bit more reach, with specs of 1,600 feet in freshwater and 750 feet in saltwater.
For its traditional sonar picture, the Garmin Striker 4 utilizes 50, 77, and 200 kHz frequencies.
Generally, the rule of thumb is: lower frequencies penetrate to greater depths but offer less target separation and detail.
Higher frequencies, on the other hand, provide much more detailed images but can’t reach as deep. That’s why modern fish finders typically combine both to ensure you get maximum depth and excellent image clarity.
A key highlight of the Striker 4 is its advanced CHIRP technology. By sending out and interpreting a continuous sweep of frequencies simultaneously, it creates incredibly detailed and high-resolution images of the underwater world. The Striker 4 utilizes CHIRP in the mid and high-frequency bands.
However, this also means the CHIRP function isn’t available at the unit’s maximum depth capabilities, as that would require Low-Band CHIRP.
Display Size / GPS / Chartplotter
The Garmin Striker 4 features a 3.5-inch display with a resolution of 320 x 480 pixels. Thanks to its integrated GPS, you can mark your favorite fishing spots with precision and navigate right back to them anytime, with an accuracy of about 3-6 feet.
And while the Striker 4 doesn’t have the full-blown chartplotter capabilities you’d find in more expensive units, the ability to create and use waypoint maps is an excellent and perfectly sufficient alternative for most anglers.
The Striker 4 has a 3.5-inch display with a 320 x 480 pixel resolution. This makes its screen slightly smaller than the other two compact Garmin fish finders, the Striker Plus 4 and the Striker Vivid 4cv (which both feature 4.3-inch displays).
A great feature of the display is its vertical split-screen capability, which you can set up right from the menu. This creates two easy-to-read views, one on top and one on the bottom. For example, you can show your waypoint map on top and your traditional sonar view on the bottom.
For any angler on medium to large bodies of water, GPS is essential for saving productive fishing spots so you can navigate back to them later. The Striker 4 comes with a built-in GPS that, under good conditions, achieves an accuracy of about 3-6 feet.
A chartplotter is a navigation device that displays a detailed electronic nautical chart on the screen. These charts are crucial for captains of large boats and ships to quickly identify and avoid shallows.
True chartplotters of this kind are typically found in mid-range fish finders, like the Humminbird HELIX 5 G3, and often require you to purchase the digital charts separately, which adds to the cost.
For anglers, the Striker 4 offers the ability to mark your best spots using its GPS. However, unlike the Striker Plus 4 and Striker Vivid 4cv models, the Striker 4 does not include the Quickdraw™ Contours software for creating your own custom maps with depth contour lines.
Despite that, you can still easily mark interesting fishing areas like underwater structure, stumps, or docks on a waypoint map, save them, and navigate right back to them whenever you want.
Fish Finder Features / Down Imaging / Side Imaging
The Garmin Striker 4 comes loaded with a number of helpful features. You get the benefit of a split-screen zoom, a Fish Symbol ID to help identify targets, and AutoGain Technology to minimize clutter for a consistently clear sonar picture.
An adjustable depth line helps you accurately gauge the depth of fish and underwater structure. The A-Scope function provides a real-time display of fish passing through the transducer beam. Additionally, a water temperature sensor and depth range shading are built right in.
Unlike the “4cv” model, the base model Striker 4 does not have ClearVü. A SideVü feature, which provides a side-scanning view, is also not available on this unit.
The Garmin Striker 4 is equipped with smart features that make finding fish significantly easier:
Split-Screen Zoom
This allows you to get a closer look at specific areas without losing the overall sonar view, letting you analyze potential hotspots in greater detail.
Fish Symbol ID
This practical feature interprets the sonar returns and displays them as fish icons, indicating whether it’s targeting individual fish or entire schools.
AutoGain Technology
Thanks to this technology, clutter on the sonar image is minimized and fish targets are maximized. This gives you a much clearer picture of what’s happening below your boat.
Adjustable Depth Line
This is an excellent tool for showing the precise depth of fish. It also measures the depth of underwater objects like submerged trees or rocks, which are often great hiding spots for fish.
A-Scope (Real-Time Display)
With the A-Scope, you can see fish in real-time as soon as they pass through the transducer’s sonar beam. This is a huge advantage for reacting quickly to moving fish.
Water Temperature Sensor
A water temperature sensor is included, providing crucial information, as water temperature often determines the behavior and location of fish.
Depth Range Shading
Finally, the depth range shading feature helps you color-code specific depth ranges. This is useful when you know that fish are holding at a certain depth during a particular time of day or year.
The Striker 4 does not feature ClearVü technology. This technology provides a high-detail, scanning view of a narrow area directly beneath the boat.
Think of it as an X-ray view looking straight down, showing structure, vegetation, and fish with incredible sharpness. It’s ideal for precisely identifying bottom contours and the fish holding to them.
On other brands, the comparable technologies are called DownScan Imaging (from Lowrance) and Down Imaging (from Humminbird).
The following models from our comparison have this feature for high-detail views under the boat:
In contrast to a sonar that looks directly beneath the boat, Garmin’s SideVü allows you to scan a much larger area – specifically, to both sides of your boat. You can imagine it as being able to “see” left and right underwater, giving you a full picture of what’s happening around you.
This feature is outstanding for quickly scouting large areas of water for schools of fish, submerged structure, or ledges, all without needing to drive directly over them.
On competing products from Lowrance and Humminbird, you’ll find this technology under the names SideScan Imaging and Side Imaging, respectively.
The Striker 4 does not have the SideVü feature. In Garmin’s Striker lineup, this side-scanning function (indicated by “sv” in the model name) is available on models starting with the 7-inch display size, such as the Striker Vivid 7sv.
Transducer / Suitability for Kayak Fishing
The Garmin Striker 4 comes with a CHIRP-enabled transducer. Its compact 3.5-inch size makes it ideal for inflatables, kayaks, and belly boats where space is limited.
The Garmin Striker 4 comes right in the box with a CHIRP-enabled transducer. This saves you the extra cost and hassle of having to buy one separately.
Space is often tight on an inflatable or belly boat, which makes compact 4-inch class fish finders the perfect solution. That’s precisely why the Garmin Striker 4 is so popular among anglers who use small boats, inflatables, or belly boats.
The following 4-inch fish finders are also an excellent choice for this type of setup:
On inflatable boats, you’ll typically find a solid transom at the stern for mounting the transducer. For belly boats, however, there are special mounting kits that use a strap-and-plate system, which can be attached to one of the inflatable tubes.
The situation is different with rental boats where you can’t permanently mount a transducer by drilling into the hull. In this case, the best option is to use a portable transducer arm or a suction cup mount for a flexible, temporary installation.
Customer Review Roundup: Feedback from Real Owners
The Garmin Striker 4 has earned over 11,000 customer reviews on Amazon, boasting an impressive average rating of 4.6 out of 5 stars.
Here’s what buyers had to say:
- My second one. Probably the easiest one to operate. Gives you the info you need and is reliable.
- Portable, efficient and easy. This will change your game if you’re on a kayak.
- Great little unit, highly satisfied, affordable and works well for my little fishing setup.
- Lots of features in such an affordable package. I can’t imagine boating without it. Now that I have had a taste, I do wish I sprang a little more cash for a cv unit for the contour mapping feature and for the ClearVü sonar.
- This is awesome in kayaks and small boats. Absolutely love this little fish finder. I’m using it on a small ten foot bass boat.
- Great product.
- Best choice for money with great features
- Everything was in order. After I bought it, I had some doubts—the product description is wrong, I thought I had bought the one with the larger screen.
- Good product.
- It’s pretty good, but it would be perfect if it had a Japanese language option.
The Garmin Striker 4 enjoys a global reputation, with positive feedback coming from a diverse customer base in countries like Brazil, Canada, and Mexico.
Across the board, users find the device to be highly user-friendly, reliable, and easy to operate. It is consistently praised as an excellent choice for its price, delivering all the essential information an angler needs.
The unit is especially popular among those with limited space, with many describing it as a transformative tool for their kayak or small boat fishing setup.
The Striker 4 is widely seen as an affordable package with a rich feature set. In fact, many users are so impressed with its performance that it gives them an appetite for more advanced capabilities.
A common sentiment is that while the Striker 4 is excellent, the experience makes them wish they had invested a bit more for a “cv” model with ClearVü sonar and contour mapping features.
Other minor feedback from its international user base includes some confusion over the screen size based on product descriptions and requests for additional language options, such as Japanese.
The Garmin Striker 4 is not only the most affordable fish finder in our comparison but also the smallest, featuring a 3.5-inch display. For a price well under $200, it packs in CHIRP sonar, GPS, and impressive maximum depth performance.
It’s a great choice for any budget-conscious angler who is willing to trade a larger screen and the Quickdraw™ Contours mapping feature for a significantly lower price point.
For anglers looking for a fish finder with a bigger display, we recommend spending a few dollars more for the Striker Plus 4 model, which comes with a 4.3-inch screen.
Garmin Striker 4: Pros and Cons
The Garmin Striker 4 is an incredibly popular fish finder that has made a name for itself with over 11,000 positive reviews on Amazon. In our comparison, it secures the second spot and is the second most powerful unit in Garmin’s 4-inch class.
For a price under $200, it stands out with GPS, CHIRP sonar, and very good depth performance. Its compact design and handy GPS waypoint feature make it the ideal choice for kayaks, inflatables and belly boats.
The trade-offs for this price point are the lack of Low CHIRP (which is typical for this class), no ClearVü scanning sonar, and the absence of the Garmin Quickdraw™ Contours mapping feature. Additionally, at 3.5 inches, it has the smallest display in our comparison.
Pros
- Reviewed by over 11,000 customers on Amazon
- Ranked #2 in our Fish Finder Comparison
- The second most powerful Garmin 4-inch class fish finder in our roundup
- A fish finder with GPS and CHIRP sonar for under $200
- Great for inflatables, kayaks and belly boats
- Create waypoint maps using the GPS function
Cons
- No Low CHIRP (which is standard for this price point).
- No ClearVü
The Garmin Striker 4 has earned a strong reputation, backed by over 11,000 customer reviews on Amazon and securing the #2 spot in our fish finder comparison. It stands out as the second most powerful unit in Garmin’s 4-inch class, delivering impressive value.
For under $200, you get a capable fish finder equipped with both essential CHIRP sonar and a built-in GPS that allows you to create your own waypoint maps. Its performance and compact size make it a top choice for anglers using inflatables, kayaks, and belly boats.
However, to achieve this affordable price point, there are a couple of trade-offs. The unit does not include ClearVü scanning sonar for a more detailed, picture-like view beneath the boat. It also lacks Low CHIRP capability, though this is a standard limitation for fish finders in this budget-friendly category.
Frequently Asked Questions About the Garmin Striker 4
Does the Garmin Striker 4 have a chartplotter?
The Garmin Striker 4 does not have a traditional chartplotter, nor does it offer the Quickdraw™ Contours feature for creating your own nautical charts. However, you can still use the integrated GPS function to create your own waypoint maps.
What are the main differences between the Garmin Striker 4 and the Striker Plus 4 model?
The Striker 4 has a smaller 3.5-inch display but scores points with a higher resolution of 480 x 320 pixels. In contrast, the Striker Plus 4 offers a larger 4.3-inch display, but its resolution is actually lower at 272 x 480 pixels.
A major functional difference lies in the Garmin Quickdraw™ Contours feature: The Striker Plus 4 allows you to create your own custom depth maps in real-time. The Striker 4, on the other hand, only allows for creating basic waypoint maps via GPS and does not have this advanced mapping capability.
