Customer Reviews

SkyGolf GPS SG2 Digital Caddies

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

Just got an SG2 and used it today for the first time on one of the professional SkyCourses that you can download from their web site. Yardages to front, center and back of greens as well as key markers along a hole were all available. The Intelligreen feature allowed me to move the cursor to the exact postion on a green by pressing the four-way toggle switch on the unit.

On the whole the product worked without flaw - distance readouts were clear and easy to read and even the detailed, more esoteric descriptions for fairway bunkers, distance to water etc... were intuitive. I was using the SG2 for the first time on a course I had not played before, so having detailed yardage information was definately a plus. The unit did take a while to acquire the necessary satellte signals when I first turned it on but this was something that was mentioned in the manual. Once acquired, I had extremely good coverage for the entire round.

However, for $350 plus $19.95 a year for a basic subscription which gets you 5 professioanl courses in your area (and the ability to store additional courses that you create) the package seems just too pricey. It's useful, to be sure, but what price do you put on additional yardage information?

This is almost a good unit BUT:

· It is difficult to switch between displaying distance & recording positions
· The display is difficult to read under golf course conditions. You can display the distance to the center of the green only in large numbers which are readable.
· You must pay yearly to save you data. You cannot transfer coordinates to the unit or save them on your computer.
· Poor Warranty - Only a thirty day warranty but you can spend more for an extended warranty
· Compared with other GPS units it is costly.
· The display on my unit became cloudy after 30 days! It was only exposed to stuff encountered on the golf course like perhaps sweat, sun screen, bug repellent & Golf course chemicals.
· The unit would be a good buy if larger characters displayed, the Cloudy display fixed, ease of use improved, 1 year warranty and the ability to transfer data to & from the users computer
· For comparison, I took a $100 Magellan to the golf course & found it much easier to use & could display four items in large characters. The unit only displays in feet up to 512 so it is not acceptable for this use. I entered a route which included the center of each green but the unit often switched to the wrong green. This would be a great range finder if it were to be programmed to display in yards and if the algorithm for advancing to the next point in a route would be adapted to golf courses. It already incorporates the ability to transfer between it & a computer.

From their Web Site

"Accept or decline the option to purchase the Extended Warranty
during the registration process. If you decline this option during the registration process, you will have 30 days from the date of registration to purchase the Extended Warranty for your SG2."

" Online SkyVaults provide easy access and safe storage of as many SkyCourses as you need through our website. Forget the hassle of managing files on your home or office computer... with the SG2, everything is managed and stored online on our servers for you. Away from your computer? You can use any computer in the world that has an Internet connection to access your personal SkyVault via SG2 DirectConnect. This gives you the flexibility you need, when you need it, wherever you are!

I have read several of the reviews written about this product and do not agree that this device is only good to about 5 yards. I play numerous golf courses and find that on a well marked course, this device is right on the money. It will not give you exact yardage to the pin but instead gives you center, front, and back of the green. With a pin sheet or flag colors to tell you approximate location of the pin, you can get a very accurate distance for your shot. The real value is when you need distance and are not in the fairway (without yardage marked by the golf staff). If you cannot see the pin, standard laser range finders are useless. The skycaddie uses gps and does not need line of sight. Like most rangefinders, the real value is for distances outside of 100 yards. Inside of that, most of us have to use some amount of feel anyway. Plus close up, you can see where the pin is anyway. I love this thing. Especially if you play lots of different courses around your area.

Think twice before you buy a SkyCaddie! Their customer service is horrendous, there are problems with getting it to connect to your PC and their website is not functioning properly. I bought a SkyCaddie a couple weeks ago and I regret it. At first, I couldn't get it to connect to the SkyCaddie servers because of a known issue in which users who are on Microsoft XP Service Pack 2 can't get through the firewall to connect. It takes some doing to correct that issue. Then I tried to register on their website for a membership. What a nightmare! Nothing is working and my registration still hasn't been processed. And then they claim you can upgrade to add a state to a Birdie membership for $5 but instead their website only allows you to upgrade for $10. I've spend countless hours on hold trying to reach them by phone and they're deluged with calls from customers having the same problem. I'm returning my device and going elsewhere. This company has BIG problems!

I was at the golf show a few years ago when this first came out, and I thought, what a wonderful idea. I was going to buy one, then I got a chance to play with a guy who had one, and I had my rangefinder. The skycaddy, was always off 5-10 yards, didn't even lock in until the 5th hole, and was a complete waste of time. My friend is so PO'd about it, he was a babbling idiot, he can't get hold of the service people, can't get it to operate, etc, etc....I hear that several pro shops around the country are dropping them, because their members are so upset after buying one from them...I just bought a new Nikon 500, and its a dream, small and extremely accurate....too bad skycaddy blew this product, I'm sure someone will come out with a better mouse trap, color, etc, but the reputation of gps because of skycaddy will hurt them.

The SkyCaddie GPS rangefinder works well as advertised on the golf course. The only fault so far is with their system for activating the device and downloading course data from their web site. Their instructions for activation were somewhat ambiguous and caused me to waste about an hour going around in circles trying to follow their directions.

I have owned this product for over a year and find it to be the best thing I take with me to the course. If you will spend 15 minutes reading the well written user's guide and follow what it says, I promise it will be the most enjoyable and useful product you will use. Accurate to within one yard with instantaneous readings, it will improve your play by providing you with accurate distances and allow you to select your shots by knowing distances to various key locations on each hole. Not only does it allow you to pinpoint flag locations to within one yard on each hole, but of equal importance it provides you with yardage information on distances to sand traps, water and any other point you so choose. It also allows you to track the distances of each shot to build a profile of your yardages for each club hit. I can't imagine playing without it. And for only $349, I would definitely purchase this powerful tool before I would spend my money on a more expensive driver or set of clubs. I am a strong supporter of this product. What an advantage you have over others in your foursome.

The SkyGolf Caddie was easy to set-up thru the internet. I was able to download several courses after signing up for a one year membership. The unit works as advertised and is a great time saver on the golf course. Not having to look for a sprinkler head yardage marker that sometimes aren't there.

I purchased an SG1 as a Christmas gift for my husband, and we both are sorely disappointed. A GPS rangefinder for golf seems like such a great idea, but, alas, after 7 days of trying for numerous hours on the computer, we were never able to activate the SkyCaddie nor to subscribe to the $50 membership you need to get access to the database of golf courses. We even had a computer tech. come to our house and try, and he gave up after a couple of hours. What we have concluded is that the company's website is essentially non-functional, but you have to learn this the hard way. There is no phone number you can call for technical help. The Help menu says you can request a Help number by email, but we did not receive one. With no ability to activate the SkyCaddie, and no way to communicate with any technical support, either on the internet or by phone, we had no choice but to return the unit to Golf Galaxy where it was purchased. I hate to bash a company that has come up with such an excellent concept, but I would not recommend buying this product--at least not at this time. Buyer beware....

I was an early purchaser of the SkyCaddie. I thought it worked just "okay" until my buddie bought one (after playing a round with mine)and, standing side by side with our two SkyCaddies, his satelite reception was 4 bars vs my 1 bar, and his yardages was always 5 or 6 yards different then mine. Upon calling Skygolf, they said it must be my firmware that needed updating. Well, it's been two weeks after they received my unit and still no status on when I'm getting it back.
Save your money, buy a Bushnell laser yardage finder. It's simpler, more reliable and more accurate.
UPDATE: The good news: I got my unit back. The bad news: It does not work any better. I'm sticking w/my Bushnell laser finder.