Critical Golf: Unbiased Golf Equipment Reviews

A beautiful interface, the ability to determine distances to any point on the course, video flyover previews of each hole, and a new scoring/statistics module, all packaged into one of the lightest and smallest devices tested, make it tough to go wrong with the Callaway uPro. Add in a new aggressive price point, and the uPro is once again our undisputed leader of the pack for golf GPS devices.
Retail price: $199.00 plus per course fees and $20 for Scoring Plus module
Three year total cost: $269.00
Availability: Discontinued. Replaced by the Callaway upro mx

Feathery light and featuring a slender profile, the Mophie Juice Pack Air delivered a knockout combination of solid performance and a great form factor. The Juice Pack Air is the one battery extender that we would consider keeping on our iPhone all of the time.
Retail price: $79.95
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Our vote for best value in a golf GPS device, the Bushnell Neo (formerly iGolf Neo) provides simple functionality, but does it in a user-friendly design and at an extremely affordable price.
Retail price: $149.99
Three year total cost: $254.96
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Like its sister device, the GX-I, the Leupold GX-II is the smallest and lightest rangefinder tested and overall an exceptional device. It picks up flagsticks at a distance as well as any of the portable vertically-oriented rangefinders, and features respectable 6x viewfinder magnification, a scanning mode to continuously update distances while targeting objects, and even the option for the user to choose from a number of different crosshairs.

In addition to being both the smallest and lightest rangefinder tested, the Leupold GX-I is an exceptional device. It picks up flagsticks at a distance as well as any of the portable vertically-oriented rangefinders, and features respectable 6x viewfinder magnification, a scanning mode to continuously update distances while targeting objects, and even the option for the user to choose from a number of different crosshairs.

We definitely liked the sporty looks of the Clicgear 2.0 and its solid and stable feel on the course. Less appealing is the fact that when it’s folded up, it isn’t exactly small, which could be a problem if storage space is at a premium in your vehicle.
Retail price: $199
Availability: Discontinued; replaced by the Clicgear 3.0

OnPar wasn’t able to survive the ever-increasing competition in the golf GPS market, and the company went belly-up on July 31, 2011. For current owners, SkyCaddie had a trade-in offer to their SGX that was available until September 30, 2011. There is a lesson here (for which we paid $350): any time you buy a device from a startup there is the chance that the manufacturer won’t be around next season. At least in this case use of the devices wasn’t tied to an annual subscription, so owners can continue to use the device after the shutdown of the company.

Retail Price: $349.00
Three year total cost: $349.00
Availability: Company went out of business on July 31, 2011

Callaway’s LR1200 rangefinder is a great device, with rapid distance readings (in 1/2 yard increments no less), an industry best 7x magnification, and good performance in picking out flagsticks at all approach distances. It’s pricey, but worth a good long look
Retail price: $499.99
Availability: Discontinued; replaced by the Callaway iQ

A virtual twin to the Sun Mountain Superlight 3.5, the Titleist Lightweight Stand Bag provides top-notch quality at a fair price.
Retail price: $160
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The MiLi Power Pack was the workhorse among the iPhone battery extenders we tested, providing the most charging power. It’s not going to win too many beauty contests, but it’ll look a heckuva lot prettier when it saves you by having a reserve of juice available when you need it. Occasional charging bugs kept it from earning a higher grade.
Retail price: $99.95
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A comfortable device with bright color screen and excellent distance details around the green (with the optional $50 GoMode). A low price point makes the Go extremely competitive. Now about those scorecards and statistics…
Retail price: $149.00
Three year total cost: $198.99
Availability: Discontinued; replaced by the Callaway upro mx

The Golf Guru Color Guru is rich in features but the design of the hardware, user interface and packaging all could use a lot of polish. It ranks highly with respect to the amount of data that users can add to existing course maps, but the interface to add this data is challenging for those who are not gadget-oriented.
Retail price: $399.95
Three year total cost: $399.95
Availability: Discontinued; replaced by the Golf Guru 4

Courses come pre-loaded, so just charge the GolfBuddy and go. Simple to map out courses on your own or add targets to existing courses, which is a good thing as courses available often provide fewer marked obstacles than desired. Not compatible with Macs.
Retail price: $289.99
Three year total cost: $289.99
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While the Ping Hoofer Vantage provides solid performance, it doesn’t truly stand out in the crowded carry bag market. Ping traditionalists will still like the Hoofer Vantage, but the competition seems to have passed it by a bit. Better bags can be had at a lower price.
Availability: Discontinued; replaced by the Ping Hoofer C-1

The Nike SasQuatch Tour Carry Bag looks very cool, so if style is of paramount importance in your bag-purchasing decision, you will like it a lot. But it struggles trying to be both a carry bag and a cart bag at the same time, and ultimately succeeds at neither. Some odd design elements left us scratching our heads.
Retail price: $190
Availability: Discontinued. Replaced by the Nike Performance Carry

Our editors either loved the Tekkeon MP1200 (myPower) or hated it. Black leatherette with white stitching will either strike you as elegant and refined or ridiculously hokie-looking. Quirky design that allows the Tekkeon to serve as an auxiliary power source for the iPhone (the Tekkeon will be drained before the iPhone’s battery), but prevents the Tekkeon from actually charging the iPhone battery left us puzzled.
Retail price: $79.95
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Once the top of the line in the SkyCaddie series, the SG5 shines with its easy-to-use interface and ability to customize how the map data is displayed. A new lower price makes the G5 affordable – but SkyCaddie lovers might want to check out the new SGX before purchasing. More…

Retail price: $299.95 plus yearly fees
Three year total cost: $419.80
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The OGIO Nexos has lots of gadgets and doodads, some of which are VERY cool. On the other hand, some of the inventions are ho-hum, and they all combine to make this the heaviest bag tested. Oh, and it’s the most expensive one as well.
Retail Price: $260
Availability: Discontinued; replaced by the
OGIO Edge Stand Bag

Not bad, but it doesn’t make your heart go pitter pat either. Good beat, easy to dance to, I give it an 85.
Retail price: $160
Availability: Discontinued; replaced by the Nike Extreme Sport Carry

myCaddie Pro provides satellite images, zooming ability, and distances to any point selected. Users can track score and statistics, though the app lacks hole handicap and par information. myCaddie lacks the polish of most paid apps, but it is still is easy to navigate. myCaddie largely relies on users to map courses, and while its course database is larger than most of the other free competitors, the coverage still has a long way to go to compete with the top paid apps. If you need a course yourself, you should set aside approximately 30 minutes to map a course on your computer, after which the course mapping is available for immediate use.
Download myCaddie Pro from iTunes

It may be good enough for Peter Costis and Gary McCord’s moustache, but it’s not quite good enough for us. Achieves its goal of simplicity, and just about any course is available. But with few features, the value just doesn’t seem to be there for this bulky device with a black and white screen. For those interested, Amazon is having a fire sale on these as GolfLogix has stopped production of the GPS-8 in favor of selling their new GolfLogix iPhone app.
Retail price: $199.95 plus yearly fees
Three year total cost: $289.80
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Swing by Swing is a very straightforward app that features satellite images, with the ability to determine distances to any point selected, and the distance from that point to the center of the green. Users can’t zoom or pan, and there is no scorecard or statistics tracking included (that functionality is available for purchase, however). Swing by Swing gets the job done with limited bugs and course coverage is reasonable, but the lack of features makes it difficult to recommend.
Price: Free for GPS use; $11.99 for scorecard functionality
Download Swing by Swing from iTunes

The combination of terrible course coverage, lack of ability to determine distances to any point on the hole, and a pricey yearly subscription fee drop FlyCaddie quickly to the bottom of our rankings.
Price: $34.99 per year
Availability: FlyCaddie is no longer available on the iTunes Store

The ad-supported iYardage possesses most of the functions a user would want in an app – full hole graphics, hole par and handicap, zooming ability, distances to any target and from the target to the center of the green, and radiating circles around the green at 50 yard intervals. A scorecard and stats tracking is included in this very complete package. To date, there are extremely few courses mapped (mostly Australian courses), and if you need to map a course yourself, it will take approximately an hour on your computer. However, we weren’t even able to get the file to iYardage staff for use.
Download iYardage from iTunes

Golf GPS is an ad-supported app that determines player position (be it on or off a course) and displays radiating circles on a satellite image at distances of 50-300 yards in 50 yard increments. Users can drop pins on their location that will then display distances to that point. The app has no knowledge of the course or any particular hole, which can be disconcerting during play, and there is no ability to record score or statistics. Limited in use, our bet is that most players want additional features included.
Download Golf GPS from iTunes

We enjoyed the satellite images and marked hazards of GolfGPS Pro, but only for its 30-day trial. The free app is limited to merely a scorecard and statistics tracking, though with charts and graphs for those who enjoy some nicely presented data. If you’re looking for more, you’ll need to upgrade to the GolfGPS Pro paid version.
Download Golf GPS Pro from iTunes

The good news is that New Trent quickly replaced our first unit, which was defective and we were unable to test. The bad news? Our replacement unit failed during testing as well. It seems that in this case, you get what you pay for.
Retail price: $69.95
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Plum Caddy features extremely rudimentary hole graphics, along with scoring (but only if you mark each shot location) and statistics. The app has limited course coverage (and when a course is available, there is often mapping of only one or just a few holes) and is riddled with bugs. And without a tool to map a course, players can’t even add to the sparse course coverage. Plum Caddy has been sold to a new owner by the developer (we know who got the short end of the stick in this deal!), and until our review of the next release, we recommend that players look elsewhere.
Availability: No longer available from the iTunes Store

Satellite images, distances to the center of the green and mapped targets, scoring and statistics. What’s not to like about TeeToGreen Lite? Well, an incredibly bizarre interface that makes it confusing to start a round. Oh, and the app is limited to only the first 5 holes of play. Want to play 6 through 18? You’ll have to pony up for TeeToGreen Pro. This app is good only if you are considering purchase of the full app, otherwise you’ll want to look elsewhere.
Download TeeToGreen Golf Lite from iTunes

Lightweight, but a bit underpowered, the Energizer AP1500 (iPower) doesn’t quite do enough to distinguish itself from the field. If you can find it at a sweet price point, it’s worth a look, but at MSRP there are better options.
Retail price: $79.99
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