I wasn't looking to get one of these but I it caught my eye listed at $50 and I just won the bid at $104. That's roughly half price, and the unit is new.

With this device I'll be able to run NMEA in at 38.4kbps from the AIS 1000, and also take inputs in at 4800bps to the netbook over USB to feed the Coastal Explorer. I'll be able to run NMEA out to the course computer for computer-guided route steering and also feed NMEA out from the course computer to the Lowrance CP using the ($12) RS232-RS422 converter (to get heading and AIS info).

I wasn't feeling any need to do all this interfacing, but at these prices it became an impulse. Will report when I determine if it all works.