Which AIS Unit?

[SettingSail2009]

After a long break from Cruisers Forum I am now back again. I'm returning to my boat on Aruba after working like mad to raise $$$ for further sailing.

What's the obvious thing to do when you've just saved up money to go sailing? ... To spend it! I have worked on a cruise ship for a few months and by talking to the bridge officers it's really hit home how important having AIS is. All the bridge officers said that to them it was a no brainer and worth quite a chunk of change to have that additional safety net.

I read a number of threads and have done some research online, but haven't really found a unit I'm 100% about. I definitely want a send and receive unit and so far the easyTRAX is my favorite. If I use that together with the easySPLIT OCB it seems like I'll be in business.

My question goes out to other AIS owners: Are you happy with what you're using or have you seen other systems that work better?

I would greatly appreciate your help, because the easyTRAX isn't the cheapest one around, but it comes recommended from a friend.