Most reliable GPS?

[JayManMtl]

for aspects out of the user control

Hi Guys!

I would like to gather information on the GPS that you find the most reliable out of the recent units - I know that there will be divergence of opinions on this... I'm just looking for general information here... for aspects that are out of the user control...

By that, I mean, losing the signal on the 3rd hole or the unit freezing or mapping that is obviously wrong (mapped the practice green for example and not the 18th hole)... I'm not looking for 'only 10 courses on my unit' or 'the battery life is short' because I think, to a certain degree, one can always make sure this can be ok for a particular round... I want to know about the unit with the lowest rate of 'let's put it in the bag for today's round - there is nothing to do with it'...

Please chime in with you horror stories or, au contraire, the love story you have for your 'big unit' :D

[milfordj]

I'm the first to admit that this was probably a VERY EXCEPTIONAL experience, but I upgraded my grey-scale Guru to a color Guru, and spent 3 or 4 golf outings wherein I had to put it up Very Early in the round because it did not hold the battery charge that was indicated on the screen. I would charge it the night before (after being certain it was turned off, after completion of charging -- which required turning it ON and then turning it OFF, and it still wouldn't last longer than the first or second hole. This was after repeated telephone calls to Guru support and following their recommendations. I'm certain they would have let me exchange it for one that was not disfunctional, but I had decided that the color version wasn't worth the additional money since I could not see it that well in bright sunlight (and, to be honest, I still have trouble seeing my grey-scale in anything BUT Bright Sunlight), so I arranged to "downgrade" my color version for my ORIGINAL grey-scale (with Zagg shield I had installed on it), and they were VERY ACCOMODATING! Throughout this period, I also carried my Sonocaddie V-300 and it NEVER FAILED me. With my poor vision I generally have to change from Course Layout View to Hazard View to be able to read the needed yardages, but it is readily readable to me in bright or dull light conditions, and I like the way, unlike the Guru, it will maintain a readable, non-backlit view, until it is turned off. Pushing any button will turn the backlight on, same as color guru, and unfortunately, unlike the guru, you HAVE to hit a button (Forward Search Button, which is not nearly as easy to use as the guru Search Button (or Enter button, whatever it's called)) to advance to next hole. This works well, letting me easily read yardages needed off the tee, but sometimes I don't need the GPS for several holes and then have to advance it forward several clicks to get to the current hole where I need a reading -- nothing monumental, but I'd say a definate disadvantage in not having automatic hole advance. I also wish it had the "intelligreen / green-sense" for reading correct distance to F / B of green from other than center of fairway. Best of luck in your decision.

[phil75070]

If we are talking just reliability (whatever that specifically refers to), about 5-6 years ago when I got my SG2 from SkyGolf, after a couple of weeks it would not synch up with the satellites no matter how long I waited. I sent the unit back, they fixed whatever the probelm was and I never had another problem with it except for the occasional need to "reset" the GPS after turning it on and waiting for it to lock on to the satellites for a long time until I stopped using it earlier this year.

 

I have used both the grayscale and color Golf Guru units and there were advertised features (self-mapping and editing of downloaded courses) that there were problems with. Fortunately, those were software issues which never required the units to be returned. Of course, I have only had those units less than a year.

 

I can't recall ever losing signal with any unit, SG2 or GG, once the satellites were found and locked onto. It is an unfair comparison to mention how long the SG2 takes to acquire a position fix (lock onto the satellites) after being turned on as it does not use the newer, high sensitivity and faster acquiring GPS receivers. that newer SkyGolf products use.

[Dave Player]

Jay,

 

I own an SG2 and used it for about 3 years. In the first year of use I lost the signal now and then but it was fairly rare. On one particular course on Oahu it always lost the signal on a particular corner of the course (near Honolulu airport) but I chalked that up to radio interference and didn't blame the unit (bad, bad skycaddie!) However in the last year or so I started experiencing frequent lock-ups where I would have to power the unit off and back on. It would display a message telling me to "reset the skycaddie" or something like that. It was very annoying as it always seemed to happen during a particularly crucial shot where I needed the yardage and it took far too long to power back up and resynch on the satellite signal to wait for it. I was very reluctant to plop down another $50 for the annual subscription, especially with all the new feature-rich color graphic devices available. After reading several of the threads on this forum and some other sites, I just ordered a Golf Guru color. The customer service reputation of the company was a key factor in my decision. I'm very excited and can't wait to use it. I'll let you know how it goes.

 

Carpe Diem!

 

Dave Player

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Index: 6

Taylormade R7 Superquad

Mizuno F-60

Ping G5 hybrid 21 deg

Mizuno MP-57 4-P w/ Rifle X-factor 5.5

Cleveland CG-14 wedges (51, 56, & 60 deg)

Odyssey Sabertooth

GOLF GURU COLOR!

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[ken11011]

I have Sonocaddie X2 an have nevre lost a signal it takes 3 AAA batteries and lasts several rounds. Great unit for the money.

[cristphoto]

"I would like to gather information on the GPS that you find the most reliable out of the recent units - I know that there will be divergence of opinions on this... I'm just looking for general information here... for aspects that are out of the user control..."

This months Golf Digest has a test report on all the latest GPS units. I had a SkyCaddie 2.5 that never failed to turn on or get a signal. Thus it was "reliable". My problem (and the reason I got rid of it) was the accuracy. I bought mine because a friend got the same unit. When we would play golf together we would be in the cart and the two units would often give different readings (sometimes as much as 10-15 yards). We both had updated our units firmware by going on line. I ultimately sold mine and got a laser rangefinder. The few times I've played with someone that also had a rangefinder, we would compare units and they were either dead on or off by a yard or two at most.

 

FYI the Golf Digest test report says the best unit was accurate to 3 yards 90% of the time. In itself that's all I would need, but the report didn't name any names. The report didn't state the accuracy of the other units - not reassuring in my opinion. A somewhat incomplete and useless report.