Sonocaddie V300 Color GPS Unit

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Product Details

Customer Reviews

Makes Skycaddie users jealous!

I love it! The first time I took the Sonocaddie out I hit more greens than I ever have on the approach. The full-color, full hole layout makes golf a real pleasure to play, on any course you choose. Nice little tip for the beginner is to start out just using the basic features of the Sonocaddie, yardage and the normal scorecard. Did I mention the scorecard feature is AWESOME??! The thing lets you keep track of your total score while you play, and if you use the pro scorecard feature tracks your percentages and stats as you play. Very handy for tuning the parts of your round that need attention.

The only bummer I can see two: you can't keep track of your buddies' scores on this unit, and for courses that don't have all the information entered it might take a couple more steps to use (full course info includes hole layout, yardage, and scorecard par for all holes). But nonetheless, even the Skycaddie users I've played with love the flexibility and color feature of this unit (haven't run into an SG5 user yet though). $50/lifetime is also hard to beat for the membership fee (one time!).

Makes Golf Fun!

Sonocaddie V300 Color GPS Unit

We bought this for our son's birthday - he absolutely loves it! Does everything it says it does, now my husband wants one of his own!

Ultimate golf toy

Now this is the best toy a golfer can buy! Easy setup (Can't wait for them to get the software for Vista 64 so I can move it to my personal unit but for now it is on my laptop). Course description is perfect, yardages are spot on. The only thing I hate is that little golfer guys shows that I am in the rough a lot!

V300 NOT QUITE THERE YET

It is with disappointment that I am returning this unit. I have used it for about a month and on several courses trying to evaluate it.

First the pros: There are no annual fees associated with the Sonocaddie. I signed up for the one time "Birdie" level that allows me to download any course in the US so that is a real bargain. The setup and operation are very easy and I did not have any trouble downloading the software or understanding it. The graphics are quite good as well. The best thing I can say about the Sonocaddie V300 is that the customer service is TERRIFIC. If not for the customer service I would have rated the product even lower.

Now the Cons: It just did not work very well. On one course that I used it on it worked quite well compared to the yardages that were provided on sprinkler heads, yardage markers, etc. On the other 3 courses I used it on there was as much as 100 yards difference in what the V300 showed and what it actually was. Most of the time it was 20-30 yards off. I had excellent satellite reception (9-10 satellites). I contacted the manufacturer about this and was told to provide a course layout and they would re-evaluate it (again the response was within a very short period). The problem with this is, is that I bought the device to have someone tell me how far I am. I also believe that the inherrent problem is that they do not have any "people on the ground" so to speak doing the actual measuring. I think they are relying on maps and drawings instead.

I do believe this may become a useful tool in the future if they make some changes in how they acquire yardages. In the meantime (and at a little more expense) I think there are better products on the market.

Quality GPS Unit

This is something I can say certainly that delivers as promised. I have always struggled with my distances, especially in unmarked or poorly marked courses. Let's ignore the shots in the other fairway... This little gem really let me step up to the ball with confidence knowing I had the right club in hand, and that is truly valuable in a game as mental as golf. That said, I found the marked items within ~5yds at worst of the mapped spots on the downloaded courses. Rumors aside, they take your course request, use a satellite map and upload gps coordinates. 5yds is close enough for a cruise missle and frankly I'd like to meet an amateur golfer who lands their shots in less than +/- 5yds accuracy regularly. They take a couple weeks max but plan ahead if you are taking a trip or your home course isn't uploaded yet and get that email in! You can map it yourself too and if you are reallllly nice, you can upload it so others may use it. It won't have the right shapes to the holes but that's a minor point. That said once around the course and I had the coordinates updated making them less than 6ft off. Very nice but it didn't change anything as mentioned above. Side benefit- IT REALLY SPEEDS UP PLAY!! I wish everyone had one.

Other features-

I LOVE THE ADVANCED SCORECARD! I put in shots, sand hits, fairways hit, greens hit, and putts and not only do I have an accurate card but I get pro stats like fairway %, sand saves, ave putts per hole total putts, etc. It really makes your weak spots stand out and allows you to focus your practice time.

The driving distance feature is fun but a fairway drive on a marked course will do the same thing. Still.... it's fun to see 315yd on the screen!

Theres a tracker that shows you where you were on the hole. It maps a point at intervals you define (10 sec, 1 min, etc.) and draws a line. I don't know how useful this is but it's hilarious to go back and trace your path (amazing how many circles I made in the woods!). You can mark your shots with another feature that allow you to see your progression on a hole. I don't know how useful this is to an amateur.

Overall I found the customer service to be a 10/10. They are responsive, polite, and eager to make you happy. Bravo!!! No yearly fee (though a one time subscription I don't understand, just up the price a little). If I had to do it all over again, I would just as happily slap down the 400 bones for this little bad boy.