This year's marine electronics are heavily focused on one idea: simplifying your navigational search. Instead of spending the majority of your time figuring out which buttons do what, make your trip effortless by using detailed guidance technology that won't give you the runaround. Simply view and select. Because, the less time you spend fumbling with your electronics, the more time you'll have for boating fun.

Garmin GPSMAP 4212

If you thought having X-ray vision, especially on the water, was virtually impossible, think again. Garmin's GPSMAP 4212 comes standard with Bluechart® g2 cartography, which gives you detailed offshore maps with coverage of the United States and Bahamas.

A nice add-on is the optional g2 Vision plug-in SD data card that provides high-resolution aerial reference photos to help navigate tricky harbors and channels or locating spots like area marinas, fuel stops or restaurants. It's equipped with a 12.1-inch XGA big screen that displays rich color and video-quality resolution for precise viewing. The GPSMAP 4212 abides by the "less is more" rule, with fewer buttons for easier operation. If that's not enough, the Auto Guidance technology works like a personal guide that advises you on your journey with the best and safest routes. Prices start at $2,666.66. www.garmin.com.

Humminbird 997c SI Combo

Humminbird's 997c SI Combo is its newest and most advanced GPS/fishfinder, which is good news for anglers wanting state-of-the-art information in a 8-inch, HDTV style, wide-format display that gives you 25 percent more viewable area, compared to traditional displays. The Humminbird 997c SI Combo is a great fishing tool that gets down to the nitty-gritty of scoping out the primary locations for fish. The Combo uses the new High Definition Side Imaging to reveal fish, structure and topography up to 480 feet underwater at once. You're coverage above water is just as good with the 16-channel GPS/WAAS receiver and built-in Uni-Map, detailing U.S. rivers, lakes and coastlines. If you want to study a promising bottom contour in greater detail, treat the 997c SI Combo like a digital camera and take a picture of the screen shot with the Snap Shot feature. The same goes for the Sonar Recording feature, which can fast forward and rewind, and show sonar and the GPS's history. All these vital settings and more are at your fingertips with the X-press menus. Prices start at $1,999.99. www.humminbird.com.

Northstar M84

What do you get when you combine chart, sonar, radar, video and fuel management functions into a compact display? An all-inclusive electronics package. Northstar's M84 has a crisp, 8.4-inch SVGA display and identifiable keys that access these menu navigations easily. The M84 comes with a detailed 32 MB embedded background chart, which can be upgraded to include C-Map's NT MAX card for more detailed chart data, value-added port information and land detail. The optional High Definition Digital Radar uses Digital Signal Processing to produce sharp images of harbors, shorelines, slips, breakwaters and even moored boats. Mercury-powered boats can take advantage of SmartCraft gateway and digital fuel computers, which supply diagnostic and fuel readings. And if you need an extra pair of eyes on board, there are video input capabilities for deck and engine room surveillance. Prices start at $1,699.95. www.northstarnav.com.

Raymarine A65 Dual Function Chartplotter-Fishfinder

If you're the kind of boater who just refuses to delve into the world of advanced GPS technology because of all the intimidating gadgets and components, it's understandable, since you haven't been introduced to Raymarine's A65 Dual Function Chartplotter-Fishfinder. The A65 combines chartplotting and fishfinder technology for simple operation on a 6.5-inch, sunlight viewable color screen. You can store 1,000 waypoints and 500 routes, or for more capability, you can add an optional flashcard that has virtually unlimited storage capacity. The A65 comes standard with Navionics Silver chart coverage on a single CompactFlash card for the continental U.S. coastal areas, Great Lakes and the Bahamas, which also includes present currents, tides, navigations aids, shaded depth contours, spot soundings and more. You can even upgrade to Navionics XL3 Gold or HotMaps for more detailed cartography and locations of fishing hotspots. Prices start at $1,649. www.raymarine.com.

Magellan Crossover GPS

Your two principal modes of transportation are by boat and car, and you have different navigation devices for both. To solve this problem, Magellan has created the CrossoverGPS to take you from land to water and back again without getting lost. Don't let the pocket size fool you either, because this 3.5-inch, color touch-screen display offers clear imagery, including a 3-D birds-eye map view. For road travel, it's preloaded with street maps of the 50 United States, Puerto Rico and Canada, and offers voice-and text-prompted, turn-by-turn driving directions. Once you cross over to water, its mapping software - MapSend BlueNav XL3 and MapSend Lakes - provides information on marine charts for saltwater activities and fishing hot spots. When back on land, the optional TrafficKit can get you safe and sound to your desired destination by showing accidents, traffic jams and lane reductions, and then reroutes you onto a new path to avoid the chaos. Prices start at $549.99. www.magellangps.com.

Lowrance iWay 600c

If you need to get to a specific restaurant on a specific street, but you're  traveling on water, Lowrance's iWay 600c has you covered. This 5-inch, portable and colorful, touch-screen display comes preloaded with charts to navigate both highways and waterways. With a roomy 30GB internal hard drive, there's a NAVTEQ® digital map to view the United States and Canada, along with other charts showing depth contours for U.S. coastal waters, inlands lakes and the Great Lakes. If you really want to get into details, there's access to more than 5.5 million high-interest destinations like hotels, restaurants, gas stations and leisure facilities, using the NAVTEQ Points-of-Interest database. The iWay 600c makes water travel an elementary task with its straight-line navigation mode of up to 100 saveable and retraceable plot trails. Did we forget to mention the extras? If you're a music lover, enjoy the built-in MP3 player with 5 GB of storage, and check out the JPEG picture viewer and full-screen FM transmitter. Prices start at $799. www.lowrance.com.