Best golf rangefinder for smartphone?

[deepbore]

Looking for an app that shows yardages to hazards and has good graphics. Looper looks good and is only 14 per year. Any other suggestions?

[518TitleistX]

golfshot with the premium pro upgrade. by far the best one ive used.

[jthoennes04]

I used golfshot (pro) for a couple of years before finally upgrading to a laser

[fombyjambox]

I haven't touched my Bushnell range finder since installing the golfshot beta a few years ago.

[mynameisroz]

[quote name='518TitleistX' timestamp='1435023219' post='11815160']
golfshot with the premium pro upgrade. by far the best one ive used.
[/quote]

Same here. Have used it off an on for a couple years. Accurate yardages (+/- 1 yard, if not the same) when compared with laser and standalone GPS rangefinders.

[calc61]

Just curious because I'm not to sure about this stuff.Do the smartphone apps use data and how much for an 18 hole round? I have ATT and share 3gb of data.

[phil75070]

FunGolf GPS - you can view the hole in 2D, 3D or satellite mode. You can also just view a list of distances to various targets.Keep score, stats, etc.

[chas521]

[quote name='calc61' timestamp='1436050210' post='11888502']
Just curious because I'm not to sure about this stuff.Do the smartphone apps use data and how much for an 18 hole round? I have ATT and share 3gb of data.
[/quote]

They only use data if you use the aerial view. Use only the yardage view and it uses the only the phone's internal GPS chip - no data.

[calc61]

Is golf logix ok for just gps

[chas521]

[quote name='calc61' timestamp='1436728533' post='11934568']
Is golf logix ok for just gps
[/quote]

If you JUST want GPS, then checkout freecaddie.com

[calc61]

Ok thanks.

[X_UsaF]

I have been using skydroid for a few years.

Great app!

[kevina001]

I've tried Golfshot, Skydroid, Swing by Swing, the Grint, and Hole 19. Hole 19 seems the best to me. I like the interface, and it gives you for free what the others charge for. It's also easy on the battery.

[ph00ny]

I'm liking skydroid quite a bit here specially with additional game tracking enabled to capture, shot shaping, and club selection etc. Aerial view is using google maps sat view

[Zephyr]

[quote name='kevina001' timestamp='1436880189' post='11945382']
I've tried Golfshot, Skydroid, Swing by Swing, the Grint, and Hole 19. Hole 19 seems the best to me. I like the interface, and it gives you for free what the others charge for. It's also easy on the battery.
[/quote]

I've been using Hole 19 as well and seems to work well enough for me. Its the first gps phone app that i've used so its hard for me to compare to others but at times, the distance is not as accurate as I'd like for it to be, at least in comparison to on course markings assuming they are accurate. I'm gonna try golfpad tomorrow and see how it works.

[Pstar1978]

I've used free caddie pro for about 3 years and it's a great app. The basic app is free but only give you the front, center and rear distances. If you want the aerial view with all the distances then the upgrade to pro is 6 bucks if I'm not mistaken. I've had it on 3 phones since I found it.

[Langdon3]

[quote name='chas521' timestamp='1436362240' post='11909256']
[quote name='calc61' timestamp='1436050210' post='11888502']
Just curious because I'm not to sure about this stuff.Do the smartphone apps use data and how much for an 18 hole round? I have ATT and share 3gb of data.
[/quote]

They only use data if you use the aerial view. Use only the yardage view and it uses the only the phone's internal GPS chip - no data.
[/quote]

Which app does that apply to?

I don't care so much about the amount of data used but rather the lack of signal that I have on a couple of the local courses I play. So ideally I would have to have an app that I could preload the course map and would operate on GPS thereafter since I get into a dead zone once out on the course.

[chas521]

[quote name='Langdon3' timestamp='1439297715' post='12115810']
[quote name='chas521' timestamp='1436362240' post='11909256']
[quote name='calc61' timestamp='1436050210' post='11888502']
Just curious because I'm not to sure about this stuff.Do the smartphone apps use data and how much for an 18 hole round? I have ATT and share 3gb of data.
[/quote]

They only use data if you use the aerial view. Use only the yardage view and it uses the only the phone's internal GPS chip - no data.
[/quote]

Which app does that apply to?

I don't care so much about the amount of data used but rather the lack of signal that I have on a couple of the local courses I play. So ideally I would have to have an app that I could preload the course map and would operate on GPS thereafter since I get into a dead zone once out on the course.
[/quote]

Most apps need to go to the internet to download the maps. Usually, that's the last time you need to go to the internet. BUT, when folks zoom in on the map for anything, the program must go to the internet again thus using data. If one only uses the yardage view and not the map, then the phone only uses its internal GPS chip and thus no data. Golfshot does this and so does Fungolf. You might want to look at the different program sites in FAQ and see what they say about their program.

[rpearlberg]

I used swing by swing the other day and it seemed pretty good for yardages...

[larrybud]

I've used SkyDroid for quite some time to complement the laser. The one thing SkyDroid has going for it (and maybe others, you'd have to check) is that you can map a course online yourself, and correct mappings if they are off, or add waypoints to map to if they are missing. I think this is a huge advantage, and you could do things such as map a course's driving range if they have target flags to hit to.

As others have said, it uses google maps for the aerial view, which sometimes can be pretty ugly.

Note that [b]ANY GPS [/b]is only going to be only as accurate as consumer GPS. [b]GPS AT BEST is accurate to +/- 3 yards[/b]. So if it says it's 150, at best it means the yardage could be 147-153 , and that's assuming a good signal to get that kind of accuracy, meaning you need to pick up about 8 satellites at any one time. If the mapping of the course is off (poor long/lat for certain waypoints) then that's a problem with the mapping data that the program is using, and not a fault of the GPS itself.

SkyDroid does have a feature in which it tells you the current accuracy of the GPS signal which it's receiving.

[BlackDiamondPar5]

[quote name='larrybud' timestamp='1439408695' post='12125124']
I've used SkyDroid for quite some time to complement the laser. The one thing SkyDroid has going for it (and maybe others, you'd have to check) is that you can map a course online yourself, and correct mappings if they are off, or add waypoints to map to if they are missing. I think this is a huge advantage, and you could do things such as map a course's driving range if they have target flags to hit to.

As others have said, it uses google maps for the aerial view, which sometimes can be pretty ugly.

Note that [b]ANY GPS [/b]is only going to be only as accurate as consumer GPS. [b]GPS AT BEST is accurate to +/- 3 yards[/b]. So if it says it's 150, at best it means the yardage could be 147-153 , and that's assuming a good signal to get that kind of accuracy, meaning you need to pick up about 8 satellites at any one time. If the mapping of the course is off (poor long/lat for certain waypoints) then that's a problem with the mapping data that the program is using, and not a fault of the GPS itself.

SkyDroid does have a feature in which it tells you the current accuracy of the GPS signal which it's receiving.
[/quote]

Used skydroid myself this week when playing a new course when I forgot my GPS watch. I don't think it can be beat given it only costs a couple bucks. Still missed the watch but was still better than only having my laser.

[ph00ny]

[quote name='Andy L' timestamp='1439469301' post='12128876']
[quote name='larrybud' timestamp='1439408695' post='12125124']
I've used SkyDroid for quite some time to complement the laser. The one thing SkyDroid has going for it (and maybe others, you'd have to check) is that you can map a course online yourself, and correct mappings if they are off, or add waypoints to map to if they are missing. I think this is a huge advantage, and you could do things such as map a course's driving range if they have target flags to hit to.

As others have said, it uses google maps for the aerial view, which sometimes can be pretty ugly.

Note that [b]ANY GPS [/b]is only going to be only as accurate as consumer GPS. [b]GPS AT BEST is accurate to +/- 3 yards[/b]. So if it says it's 150, at best it means the yardage could be 147-153 , and that's assuming a good signal to get that kind of accuracy, meaning you need to pick up about 8 satellites at any one time. If the mapping of the course is off (poor long/lat for certain waypoints) then that's a problem with the mapping data that the program is using, and not a fault of the GPS itself.

SkyDroid does have a feature in which it tells you the current accuracy of the GPS signal which it's receiving.
[/quote]

Used skydroid myself this week when playing a new course when I forgot my GPS watch. I don't think it can be beat given it only costs a couple bucks. Still missed the watch but was still better than only having my laser.
[/quote]

Skydroid running on the Note seem to perform better than my father-in-law's garmin GPS watch. It must be the glonass

[Jbardet]

Golf Pad GPS is feature rich and now has NFC tagging that pairs well with smartwatch, allowing you to keep your phone in your pocket the whole round.graphics / design are in the process of being updated to compete with the likes of Hole19. Golf Pad has the most flexible solution for quick scoring or shot by shot tracking.

They are also very active responding to user feedback.

[smith851]

ive been using SkyDroid for a couple years... as previously mentioned above, the ability to add points of note to update their system is a huge feature if you frequent the same courses, which i do often. and at a cost of about $3 you really cant beat it

using the laser is obviously preferred but in crunch time it give you front middle and back of green which can help you immensely

[OspreyCI]

What is the best app to help with distance to hazards?

[percymon]

I have Swing by Swing on my iphone 5 - found it very good, tap the screen where you want distances to, gives diatnce to that poin and distance to green from that point. It compensates for elevation and factors in wind speed too (although not sure how accurate the wind data is).

I've just bought a Garmin S3 watch too, purely because i have played a few courses where there was no data signal so i was a little lost without the phone app (better preparation would have seem me demo the course at home beforehand so the data was already there)

[ph00ny]

[quote name='OspreyCI' timestamp='1439974661' post='12167690']
What is the best app to help with distance to hazards?
[/quote]

When you click on zoom in skydroid it gives distance to the hazard and distance to clear the hazard

[OspreyCI]

[quote name='ph00ny' timestamp='1439979335' post='12167780']
[quote name='OspreyCI' timestamp='1439974661' post='12167690']
What is the best app to help with distance to hazards?
[/quote]

When you click on zoom in skydroid it gives distance to the hazard and distance to clear the hazard
[/quote]
Thanks. What about the end of the fairway? That possible to figure out?

[ph00ny]

[quote name='OspreyCI' timestamp='1439979748' post='12167794']
[quote name='ph00ny' timestamp='1439979335' post='12167780']
[quote name='OspreyCI' timestamp='1439974661' post='12167690']
What is the best app to help with distance to hazards?
[/quote]

When you click on zoom in skydroid it gives distance to the hazard and distance to clear the hazard
[/quote]
Thanks. What about the end of the fairway? That possible to figure out?
[/quote]

They've been pretty good at giving key stats for placing your shot. it doesn't usually limit it to hazards but end of fairway as well but on rare occasion, it was missing some key stats that would have been helpful for teeing off (2 out 90 holes)

[idunno09]

I have been using Looper all year and I find it to be very accurate. I quite often pull it out at markers on the course and find that it reads within a yard of the markers most of the time. It can start to act a little strange if the course has changed or what not, but I have been very happy so far with it and so have 4 of my golf buddies that I've recommended it to.