Anyone seen or heard about this upcoming rangefinder from Precision Pro?

[cardinal22]

Got mine today.  Paired with no issue at all on iPhone.  Have a round scheduled tomorrow morning and will post review after.

[Tupperwolf]

Updates?

[sethdavidsdad]

On 7/23/2021 at 3:43 PM, cardinal22 said:

Got mine today.  Paired with no issue at all on iPhone.  Have a round scheduled tomorrow morning and will post review after.

interested to hear your thoughts

[cardinal22]

On 8/6/2021 at 12:19 PM, sethdavidsdad said:

interested to hear your thoughts

Unfortunately it didn't go so well.  First round out, the rangefinder died on hole #2 despite being charged all night.  Second round out, died on hole #13, again despite being charged to 100% overnight.  When it worked, it worked fine, and having the GPS yardages to front/middle/center on the laser display while shooting the flag was great.  The wind speed feature was not reliable.  It never got above a 1-2mph wind speed, despite definitely playing in a 10-15mph breeze.  Wind direction was also off too.  I have a separate weather/wind speed app that utilizes the compass so it knows which way you're holding the phone that pretty much lined up with on course conditions, whereas the precision pro wind direction and speed wasn't even close to the other app or what I was experiencing on the course.  In the end, I returned the unit for a refund.  I think they need to work out some software and potentially firmware issues before this is ready for prime time because the idea is great.

Edited August 9, 2021 by cardinal22

[dkoeller88]

Bought mine from a member here. Got it yesterday. Fully charged before my round. Was excited and it worked very well…for 9 holes, then died. Hope precision decides to correct this 

[MountainKing]

17 hours ago, cardinal22 said:

Unfortunately it didn't go so well.  First round out, the rangefinder died on hole #2 despite being charged all night.  Second round out, died on hole #13, again despite being charged to 100% overnight.  When it worked, it worked fine, and having the GPS yardages to front/middle/center on the laser display while shooting the flag was great.  The wind speed feature was not reliable.  It never got above a 1-2mph wind speed, despite definitely playing in a 10-15mph breeze.  Wind direction was also off too.  I have a separate weather/wind speed app that utilizes the compass so it knows which way you're holding the phone that pretty much lined up with on course conditions, whereas the precision pro wind direction and speed wasn't even close to the other app or what I was experiencing on the course.  In the end, I returned the unit for a refund.  I think they need to work out some software and potentially firmware issues before this is ready for prime time because the idea is great.

 

I was curious about the wind measurements on this and I think the Bushnell as well.   I know you probably don't know but where are they pulling the wind data from?  In Chicago if it's being pulled from O'hare (where most of the Chicago weather is reported from) I could be 40 miles from there in very different conditions.  Sucks to hear about the battery issues on these.  

[Tupperwolf]

Think I gotta skip this one until a better version, or something better comes out.

[cardinal22]

5 hours ago, MountainKing said:

 

I was curious about the wind measurements on this and I think the Bushnell as well.   I know you probably don't know but where are they pulling the wind data from?  In Chicago if it's being pulled from O'hare (where most of the Chicago weather is reported from) I could be 40 miles from there in very different conditions.  Sucks to hear about the battery issues on these.  

 

Unfortunately I don't know.  The wind speed on the device comes via the bluetooth connection with your phone, which in turn, has the app open.  I don't know where the app is pulling wind speed from.

[62@Oakmont]

On 5/20/2021 at 2:19 PM, BirdieBob said:

Just check with one of the WRX Forum sponsors and you too will be delighted!

 

Which one?

[dkoeller88]

On 8/10/2021 at 9:07 AM, dkoeller88 said:

Bought mine from a member here. Got it yesterday. Fully charged before my round. Was excited and it worked very well…for 9 holes, then died. Hope precision decides to correct this 

So I reached out to precision about the battery issue.  they said it needs to cycle 4 times for it work at full capacity.  so thats what i did and so far ive noticed the battery life has drastically improved.  need to do a couple more things and will report back with more. but i will say its very quick to lock onto the target and gets it almost every time.  even if i dont turn on the blutooth stuff and get the data from my phone, it still functions as a very good rangefinder with slope and a cart magnet for the price. 

[LongStaff]

I was going to purchase this rangefinder soon. But after hearing about the battery issues, I’m second guessing buying one. 

[Cons]

Can you even purchase it anymore? It's not listed on website w/ the other rangefinders despite being the flagship product.

 

The only way I can find it at this time is to click a link to precision pro's website that takes you directly to the R1 page... and I'm guessing thats because the google link is not updated.

 

Or maybe PP is updating the website and nothing is wrong?

 

Wonder if they pulled the product because of the battery issue or other inaccuracies w/ the new smart tech features.

[Frankensteins Monster]

19 hours ago, Cons said:

Can you even purchase it anymore? It's not listed on website w/ the other rangefinders despite being the flagship product.

 

The only way I can find it at this time is to click a link to precision pro's website that takes you directly to the R1 page... and I'm guessing thats because the google link is not updated.

 

Or maybe PP is updating the website and nothing is wrong?

 

Wonder if they pulled the product because of the battery issue or other inaccuracies w/ the new smart tech features.

It's hidden. You have to use the link from this thread. I think it's hidden so you don't try to use any of the discounts, which don't work on it anyway?

 

https://www.precisionprogolf.com/product/r1-smart-rangefinder/

Edited August 27, 2021 by Frankensteins Monster

[62@Oakmont]

Took the plunge on the R1 even after seeing the reports of battery life issues.  I figured if I found it to be an issue I would use the 90-day return option from PP.

 

Here's my thoughts after one round of use-  Had no issues pairing it with iPhone.  Charged the battery fully before my 18-hole round this past weekend, and at the end of the round was still showing 80% battery power remaining.  Overall I felt the functions worked exactly as advertised.  I have not set up (and doubt I will) the virtual caddy for the suggested club info. 

 

The only thing that annoyed me a little was that in order to keep the phone paired w/ the RF to get the GPS info in the RF window, I had to leave my phone awake at all times or it would lose the connection from the PP app to the RF.  I could use other apps (texting, music, etc) while paired w/ the RF, just couldn't shut off the screen or it would lose connection.  This could be quite the drain on the phone battery during the 4 or so hours of a round.

[Frankensteins Monster]

On 9/8/2021 at 2:23 PM, 62@Oakmont said:

The only thing that annoyed me a little was that in order to keep the phone paired w/ the RF to get the GPS info in the RF window, I had to leave my phone awake at all times or it would lose the connection from the PP app to the RF.  I could use other apps (texting, music, etc) while paired w/ the RF, just couldn't shut off the screen or it would lose connection.  This could be quite the drain on the phone battery during the 4 or so hours of a round.

If that's the case, the range finder is completely useless and nothing more than their range finder with slope.

[62@Oakmont]

Actually, that's not quite accurate.  I found it was settings on my phone that were causing my issues.  I found that I had my phone set to never auto-dim.  Now- after my selected time allotment, the phone will auto-dim and save battery life from not having the screen on.  I also had locations service setting on the phone for the PP app set to "only while using the app".  

 

Previously, I was using the side button to "sleep" the phone and turn off the screen.  That was also causing the phone to think I was no longer using the app and also discontinuing the location services that the app needs for the GPS functions.

 

It seems to be working fine now.  I'm playing this weekend and will report back on the phone battery life issue.

Edited September 10, 2021 by 62@Oakmont

[Frankensteins Monster]

9 hours ago, 62@Oakmont said:

Actually, that's not quite accurate.  I found it was settings on my phone that were causing my issues.  I found that I had my phone set to never auto-dim.  Now- after my selected time allotment, the phone will auto-dim and save battery life from not having the screen on.  I also had locations service setting on the phone for the PP app set to "only while using the app".  

 

Previously, I was using the side button to "sleep" the phone and turn off the screen.  That was also causing the phone to think I was no longer using the app and also discontinuing the location services that the app needs for the GPS functions.

 

It seems to be working fine now.  I'm playing this weekend and will report back on the phone battery life issue.

If the phone can’t be locked without losing the gps to the device, that’s a product breaking issue. The issue was most likely you had it set to ‘while using the app’ and when you were switching to other programs you broke the location connection. 

[62@Oakmont]

9 minutes ago, Frankensteins Monster said:

If the phone can’t be locked without losing the gps to the device, that’s a product breaking issue. The issue was most likely you had it set to ‘while using the app’ and when you were switching to other programs you broke the location connection. 

I’m sure you’re probably right. I’m not the most savvy or interested in the tech of phones.  By default, I set all of my apps to “only while using app” for location services.

[62@Oakmont]

On 9/10/2021 at 8:34 PM, Frankensteins Monster said:

If the phone can’t be locked without losing the gps to the device, that’s a product breaking issue. The issue was most likely you had it set to ‘while using the app’ and when you were switching to other programs you broke the location connection. 

So it was definitely my location services setting that was screwing things up. After setting the location service setting on my phone to “always” for the PP app, I was able to keep my phone locked and still maintain the connection between the RF and the app the entire time.  
 

Had zero problems the entire round.

[TomBomb51]

I am contemplating buying one as they are back in stock. Hopefully someone can chime in on a few questions I have.

 

All the numbers that you can get, like actual yardage, My Slope (assuming this is all the elements combined to output 1 yardage) and GPS, is it all on 1 screen in the rangefinder? Or does it take a click of a button to rotate thru multiple screens/numbers?

 

Also, do you have to manually switch holes to get the GPS to output properly or does it do it automatically?

Edited December 22, 2021 by TomBomb51

[Precision Pro Golf]

On 12/22/2021 at 10:44 AM, TomBomb51 said:

I am contemplating buying one as they are back in stock. Hopefully someone can chime in on a few questions I have.

 

All the numbers that you can get, like actual yardage, My Slope (assuming this is all the elements combined to output 1 yardage) and GPS, is it all on 1 screen in the rangefinder? Or does it take a click of a button to rotate thru multiple screens/numbers?

 

Also, do you have to manually switch holes to get the GPS to output properly or does it do it automatically?

Hi @TomBomb51, there are two screens that you can rotate between. Screen one will have actual distance, slope, and wind assist. While screen two will have your front, middle, and back GPS distances. As for switching holes, we have an auto-advance feature that uses your location to advance holes for you. 

[TomBomb51]

15 hours ago, Precision Pro Golf said:

Hi @TomBomb51, there are two screens that you can rotate between. Screen one will have actual distance, slope, and wind assist. While screen two will have your front, middle, and back GPS distances. As for switching holes, we have an auto-advance feature that uses your location to advance holes for you. 

Great, thanks! I get mine today but unfortunately, I am probably 4 months away from golfing. Looking forward to using it!

[TomBomb51]

On 9/12/2021 at 10:09 AM, 62@Oakmont said:

So it was definitely my location services setting that was screwing things up. After setting the location service setting on my phone to “always” for the PP app, I was able to keep my phone locked and still maintain the connection between the RF and the app the entire time.  
 

Had zero problems the entire round.

I have been able to use my R1 yet due to upstate NY weather, but this concerns me...

 

With newer Android phones, there is no option to set location to "always".

 

Am I going to have to always have my screen on to get accurate readings??

[62@Oakmont]

12 hours ago, TomBomb51 said:

I have been able to use my R1 yet due to upstate NY weather, but this concerns me...

 

With newer Android phones, there is no option to set location to "always".

 

Am I going to have to always have my screen on to get accurate readings??

Sorry, can’t help you on that one, I have an iPhone. You could try reaching out to PP or sending them a DM on here to see if they have any suggestions.

[Frankensteins Monster]

On 1/18/2022 at 8:21 AM, TomBomb51 said:

I have been able to use my R1 yet due to upstate NY weather, but this concerns me...

 

With newer Android phones, there is no option to set location to "always".

 

Am I going to have to always have my screen on to get accurate readings??

 

If it means the same as it is on the iPhone, yes, you'd need it to be on your screen. If it just means that it is active in foreground or background, which is the way Apple SHOULD treat 'Allow only while using the app,' then you're good. I believe Android does it the proper way, as long as the app is active, even in the background, it's considered "Active."

[TomBomb51]

I got to use my R1 for the first time yesterday. One of my prior questions still remains (even tho PP replied).

 

Switching holes is a real pain. I played 9 holes yesterday and on 7 of them, I had to manually open the app on my phone and switch the holes for the GPS to be corrected. Is this happening for anyone else? For comparison, Arccos never had this issues. It's almost like the PP app isn't as sensitive with switching holes as Arccos.