First, I am NOT trying to start a debate over this question. I am just curious.
I own a Sonocaddie V300 and am very happy with it. But many people like the Sky Caddie, Golf Buddy, etc. Why? From what I can tell, those models do not have the graphical interface as the Sonocaddie. The others just show you yardage info with a representaion of the green (sometimes real time). I know that some have ALL courses pre-loaded but so does Sonocaddie AutoPlay. Sonocaddie also allows you to add hazards and additional yardage markers and doesn't have a membership fee.
But as you can tell from the photos, Sonocaddie has (in my opinion) better graphics and also, the battery lasts about 4 rounds. It will also gove you a full greenside view, distance calculator, game analysis and tracking (which show every shot you hit on the course).
Again, I'm just curious... am I missing something?
I looked at the Sonocaddies products when wanting to upgrade my GPS last summer. I really liked the features bu I quickly ruled out Sonocaddie because they had less the 30% of the courses I regularly play mapped. It can have the best features of them all but if they don't have your courses mapped it is worthless. Maybe this winter they will improve their course data base. And just because a company says all of the courses are preloaded doesn't mean ALL courses are preloaded. A bud has had a Golf Buddy since last spring and he is still missing several courses he requested to be mapped back in the spring.
With the SkyGolf product the attraction is the number of courses they have mapped, the fact that they "walk" the courses to map them (many feel this is more accurate than using aerial imagery), the accuracy of the GPS receiver used and the "Intelligreen" function.
I can't really speak to the Golf Buddy as I am just not that familiar with it.
I bought a sonocaddie, owned it for about 2 days, and returned it for a uPro. I don't think either unit is worlds better then the other but my home course had a good many errors on the v300 and I liked the promode of the uPro better then the graphical look of the v300. Once the rebate came out for the uPro I decided to return the sono and go to the one I wanted to start with.
The ability to measure to anypoint on the uPro coupled with the sat images of the holes have made my life a lot easier as my golf league plays different courses each week and most of them I have never seen before. The sat images help me understand the layout.
There is no memebership fee with the uPro, but if you want promode you have to pay for the courses. I almost always download a course I am going to play in promode so at the start I prepurhased 50 courses for $120. With a golf galaxy coupon and the rebate (which I am still waiting on......) the cost of the unit was $249 plus the $120 for a total of $369. This was still cheaper for me then most of the units I was looking at though the v300 was cheaper at the time I bought mine. To me, it was worth paying a little extra for the anypoint and sat images.
Keeping score and stats.... I thought this would be a big deal to me and was originally put off becuase the uPro didn't have this. (though it is supposed to be coming as a download) I'm not so sure this is a bid deal for me now as I really just want quick accurate measurements.
Battery life...... The uPro sucks in this regard. On a full charge I can get through 36 holes on the same day. However, if I play 18 on Sat and then 18 on Sunday without a recharge the unit dies around the 15 or 16th hole on day 2. Not a huge deal as I charge the unit the night before I play anyway and my phone car charger works as well. I can only imagine how much worse this will get once the score/stats tracking is added.
As for the other units, I really like the Garmin and would have bought that first, instead of the v300, if my home course was on their course list.
Originally I was going to buy the UPro. I liked the "measure to anywhere" feature, but a lot of people complained about seeing it in bright sunlight. The sonocaddie is very good in that respect, even with the backlight off.
But the UPro has better "video", that's probably why the battery life is minimal. Trade-offs... like everything else.
Two words primarily why they are more popular... "Marketing & Advertising." Not far behind is map availability also.
Before I became interested in a golf GPS, and before I found golf wrx, I hadn't heard of any except for the two you mention and Golf Logix. They have marketed the heck out of their products, especially Skycaddie and Golf Buddy. When I found golf wrx I suddenly learned about IGolf, Golf Guru, Sonocaddie, OnPar and more.
Obviously there are other big players now like Calloway UPro and Garmin G5 that are also promoting their products. But still I don't see any of them marketing as heavily as Skygolf and Golf Buddy.
Thanks to everyone that participates in these forums we are able to find other great products that we otherwise may never have heard about.
For me it is not about graphics but about the information I get from my Skycaddie. I get up to 40 different yardage points per hole. I get yardages to both reach and carry hazards. And because the yardages come from walking the course, I get yardages no one else gets. If there is a flat part of the fairway that would be the best place to hit your shot, I get that yardage (important info playing golf in North Georgia). The intelligreen is also a big help on my approach shots to the green. And shortly I will start getting slope information about the greens. Also Skycaddie is the only one that has yardages for all of the courses I play. When I looked the rest, I found a handful to maybe half of the courses I play have been mapped. Finally the yardage books that PGA Tour players and caddies use comes from data gathered by the Skycaddie measuring equipment.
By the same token, these new smartphone apps seem pretty slick (I haven't tried any yet as I'm waiting for an update for one to work on my phone)- but the reviews they're getting seem very good from those that have tried them.
So my question is, why would somebody use a dedicated GPS rangefinder when you can use a smartphone with the same (or more!) features plus get lots of other stuff as well? Plus, the smartphone apps cost like $30-$50. Even if you paid that per year, I'd have to have this for ten years before it approached the cost of an SG5.
By the same token, these new smartphone apps seem pretty slick (I haven't tried any yet as I'm waiting for an update for one to work on my phone)- but the reviews they're getting seem very good from those that have tried them.
So my question is, why would somebody use a dedicated GPS rangefinder when you can use a smartphone with the same (or more!) features plus get lots of other stuff as well? Plus, the smartphone apps cost like $30-$50. Even if you paid that per year, I'd have to have this for ten years before it approached the cost of an SG5.
There is a high probability that all of the smartphone apps will be declared non-conforming by the USGA. The issue will not be the apps but the smartphones. The smartphones can also provide additional information not allowed in a round. Things like wind direction and strength, slope of the green using a level, slope from the fairway to the pin. Because the smartphones are able to provide that kind of non-conforming info (even if you do not use it), the smartphone apps will probably be declared non-conforming.
By the same token, these new smartphone apps seem pretty slick (I haven't tried any yet as I'm waiting for an update for one to work on my phone)- but the reviews they're getting seem very good from those that have tried them.
So my question is, why would somebody use a dedicated GPS rangefinder when you can use a smartphone with the same (or more!) features plus get lots of other stuff as well? Plus, the smartphone apps cost like $30-$50. Even if you paid that per year, I'd have to have this for ten years before it approached the cost of an SG5.
There is a high probability that all of the smartphone apps will be declared non-conforming by the USGA. The issue will not be the apps but the smartphones. The smartphones can also provide additional information not allowed in a round. Things like wind direction and strength, slope of the green using a level, slope from the fairway to the pin. Because the smartphones are able to provide that kind of non-conforming info (even if you do not use it), the smartphone apps will probably be declared non-conforming.
Interesting. So that means a Skycaddie SG5 should also be non-conforming, no? Doesn't the newest software version provide all kinds of information on the break of a green? A lot of lasers also provide slope information.
The technology landscape in golf is starting to get confusing.
What Skycaddie will provide is no different that you would find in yardage book. It will be curves showing ridges and false fronts on the green. It will not tell you the break of your putt on the green. What is non-conforming of the smartphone is you can have an app that you can place on the green and it will tell the break of your putt. With the lasers, if the laser will take the slope between the fairway and the pin and tell you the yardage you should play because of the slope, not just the true yardage, they are non-conforming. You cannot even carry those lasers in competition.
First, I am NOT trying to start a debate over this question. I am just curious.
I own a Sonocaddie V300 and am very happy with it. But many people like the Sky Caddie, Golf Buddy, etc. Why? From what I can tell, those models do not have the graphical interface as the Sonocaddie. The others just show you yardage info with a representaion of the green (sometimes real time). I know that some have ALL courses pre-loaded but so does Sonocaddie AutoPlay. Sonocaddie also allows you to add hazards and additional yardage markers and doesn't have a membership fee.
But as you can tell from the photos, Sonocaddie has (in my opinion) better graphics and also, the battery lasts about 4 rounds. It will also gove you a full greenside view, distance calculator, game analysis and tracking (which show every shot you hit on the course).
Again, I'm just curious... am I missing something?
Of course you're trying to start a debate over it.
Your stating why you think it's better is evidence of that.
I purchased a Golfbuddy 5 weeks ago and love it, I play with a couple of guys and one has the skycaddie. I was going to go with it at first but liked the idea that all the courses where already loaded and i did not have that annual subscription fee ever year. (I went through that when i had Igolf) I also like the fact that i can add additional target,hazards. I think they are all pretty good now. I did get the tour model so i have the color screen. Battery life seems to go about 4 rounds then a recharge is needed, but i can use AAA batteries when I'm dead on the course. I play a lot of courses when on vacation in Florida and some times well play somewhere new, and of course it will be a course that i did not have downloaded when i had my Igolf. The main disadvantage i can see with skycaddie is if you play some where on the fly you may not have that course downloaded & i think it only holds 40 courses? so you will have to remove some if you reach your limit.
What Skycaddie will provide is no different that you would find in yardage book. It will be curves showing ridges and false fronts on the green. It will tell you the break of your putt on the green. What is non-conforming of the smartphone is you can have an app that you can place on the green and it will tell the break of your putt. With the lasers, if the laser will take the slope between the fairway and the pin and tell you the yardage you should play because of the slope, not just the true yardage, they are non-conforming. You cannot even carry those lasers in competition.
By the same token, these new smartphone apps seem pretty slick (I haven't tried any yet as I'm waiting for an update for one to work on my phone)- but the reviews they're getting seem very good from those that have tried them.
So my question is, why would somebody use a dedicated GPS rangefinder when you can use a smartphone with the same (or more!) features plus get lots of other stuff as well? Plus, the smartphone apps cost like $30-$50. Even if you paid that per year, I'd have to have this for ten years before it approached the cost of an SG5.
I agree with TM Hoyer in that I also think that iPhones will be deemd illegal just like the rangefinders with slope function.
As to why buy a dedicated golf GPS, it boils down to accuracy. The GPS receivers used in a dedicated GPS as opposed to a phone that has GPS capability are just more accurate. Those who are proponents of lasers mock the 2-3 yard accuracy of a dedicated GPS. An iPhone only uses "assisted" GPS, which is overall far less accurate than a WAAS enabled GPS used by most of the dedicated devices. A study showed median accuracy of an iPhone using A-GPS at 8m which is sufficient for location based services but probably not as accurate as many/most golfers would really like. Of course, one will see posts about yardages being "dead on", but the likelihood of being consistently within even the 2-3 yards a dedicated device will yield 95% of the time is really fairly slim.
I actually saw a post in an iPhone forum about how WAAS information (updated every 2 minutes) is available on line. The gist is that someone can create an iPhone app that supplements the GPS reading with the WAAS information (assuming you can pick up a network signal).
Of course that means your battery will die on the 15th hole instead of just after completing a round...
By the same token, these new smartphone apps seem pretty slick (I haven't tried any yet as I'm waiting for an update for one to work on my phone)- but the reviews they're getting seem very good from those that have tried them.
So my question is, why would somebody use a dedicated GPS rangefinder when you can use a smartphone with the same (or more!) features plus get lots of other stuff as well? Plus, the smartphone apps cost like $30-$50. Even if you paid that per year, I'd have to have this for ten years before it approached the cost of an SG5.
I agree with TM Hoyer in that I also think that iPhones will be deemd illegal just like the rangefinders with slope function.
As to why buy a dedicated golf GPS, it boils down to accuracy. The GPS receivers used in a dedicated GPS as opposed to a phone that has GPS capability are just more accurate. Those who are proponents of lasers mock the 2-3 yard accuracy of a dedicated GPS. An iPhone only uses "assisted" GPS, which is overall far less accurate than a WAAS enabled GPS used by most of the dedicated devices. A study showed median accuracy of an iPhone using A-GPS at 8m which is sufficient for location based services but probably not as accurate as many/most golfers would really like. Of course, one will see posts about yardages being "dead on", but the likelihood of being consistently within even the 2-3 yards a dedicated device will yield 95% of the time is really fairly slim.
That accuracy within 2-3yds. due to the WAAS capability in dedicated devices should really be two-fold. Once, for the reading on where you are hitting the shot from and again, for where you are hitting to (the reading that was measured when the course was walked and recorded). You must also take into account weather, location, foliage, recorder accuracy, etc. For the most part, I think the dedicated devices are pretty accurate. I've played plenty of rounds with friends who own Skycaddies (SG3, SG5), Golfbuddys, Sonocaddies, and one UPro. All of them pretty much on target with a laser...but every now and then an anomaly of 5-10 yd. differences. For the most part...they get it done.
I found a nice article at Computerworld.com, for anyone interested, that talks about how the iPhone works, everything from the touch screen, to tilt, to the GPS. The GPS function is simple triangulation.
First, I am NOT trying to start a debate over this question. I am just curious.
I own a Sonocaddie V300 and am very happy with it. But many people like the Sky Caddie, Golf Buddy, etc. Why? From what I can tell, those models do not have the graphical interface as the Sonocaddie. The others just show you yardage info with a representaion of the green (sometimes real time). I know that some have ALL courses pre-loaded but so does Sonocaddie AutoPlay. Sonocaddie also allows you to add hazards and additional yardage markers and doesn't have a membership fee.
But as you can tell from the photos, Sonocaddie has (in my opinion) better graphics and also, the battery lasts about 4 rounds. It will also give you a full greenside view, distance calculator, game analysis and tracking (which show every shot you hit on the course).
Again, I'm just curious... am I missing something?
Of course you're trying to start a debate over it.
Your stating why you think it's better is evidence of that.
No... I was NOT trying to start a debate over my question. And as you can see nobody is debating over which is best. Everyone is answering my question. I was curious to know, since I do not own the other units, if I was missing something in my purchase. When you descide to buy something, you purchase it based on advertising, research, etc. But you truly do not know if you will like it until you have used it yourself, for awhile.
Now that I have owned my Sonocaddie for awhile and know its "flaws", I am trying to learn whether having better graphics is all that it is cracked up to be. You can tell from all the threads (not posts) that the other systems are more popular and I was curious as to why.
Many golfers like the "intelli-green" system, courses pre-loaded, and the near perfect yardage to hazards. This is what I wanted to find out. Good yardage marking is more important to me than graphics. Although the Sonocaddie is pretty good with the yardage, I think that Skycaddie might be better. Also, since I made my decision based on it's features, it turns out that I am not even using them as I thought I would.
As I stated earlier, you do not know exactly whether or not you will like a product until you use it. Therefore my question.
Finally the yardage books that PGA Tour players and caddies use comes from data gathered by the Skycaddie measuring equipment.
Only partially factual. In the initial design of the books, they may get a rough estimate of the layout using satellite technology, but the fine tuning/true yardage gathering is done with ::gasp:: A LASER.
Yes, even Peter Jacobson & Natilie Gulbis, use "The L word" during the practice sessions.
Here's how the best in the business designs his books........
I was only talking about the yardage books the pros and caddies get. A good caddie will before the tournament, laser yardages at various locations around the course. The caddie will concentrate on locations their pro will likely be based on the shot preference of the pro and design of the holes.
to answer the original question...
not sure why someone would purchase the other device, OR the skycaddie for that matter.
my vote goes to the upro - if you can get satellite imagery (in the upro case, with the ability to determine distances to any point AND with a bunch of other points pre-mapped), i don't know why anyone would get another device unless they simply couldn't stand the interface..
my only other two guesses are: 1. people buy what their friends or others recommend, without checking all the devices currently available (since there are few places that have all of them avialable to try), and 2. cost (that explains for some devices, but certainly not the SG5).
to answer the original question...
not sure why someone would purchase the other device, OR the skycaddie for that matter.
my vote goes to the upro - if you can get satellite imagery (in the upro case, with the ability to determine distances to any point AND with a bunch of other points pre-mapped), i don't know why anyone would get another device unless they simply couldn't stand the interface..
my only other two guesses are: 1. people buy what their friends or others recommend, without checking all the devices currently available (since there are few places that have all of them avialable to try), and 2. cost (that explains for some devices, but certainly not the SG5).
For me it was:
3.- The pro mode maps are very hard to read in sunlight (image looks washed out) and many of the courses I play in the Pacific Northwest have lots of tree shadows.
to answer the original question... not sure why someone would purchase the other device, OR the skycaddie for that matter.
my vote goes to the upro - if you can get satellite imagery (in the upro case, with the ability to determine distances to any point AND with a bunch of other points pre-mapped), i don't know why anyone would get another device unless they simply couldn't stand the interface..
my only other two guesses are: 1. people buy what their friends or others recommend, without checking all the devices currently available (since there are few places that have all of them avialable to try), and 2. cost (that explains for some devices, but certainly not the SG5).
I buy what I want to buy(SG5 and uPro) and returned the uPro because it was inferior to the SG5 IMO. I have a playing partner who has the Golfbuddy and I can't remember him getting thru a full round without a problem(stuck on wrong hole mainly).
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