Garmin Approach R10 Portable Golf Launch Monitor

[PowderedToastMan]

Edit: These were my original thoughts. After tinkering for a few more hours, I got it working to near Mevo+ levels of accuracy indoors as indicated in a later post. 
 

Got mine today. I’m a former pro, still a decent enough player. Spent an hour or two on my indoor setup. 
 

Pros: ball speed and launch angle are very accurate. Home tee hero is fun; my kids love it. Software is so easy to use. Ball flight is pretty close with short and mid irons. 
 

Cons: Ball flights with woods are so off it’s hilarious. R10 had me hitting Bubba cuts on every shot and I was hitting straight balls. A 15 yard draw would produce a 25 yard fade or more on the r10. Maybe this device doesn’t like lefties. Also, attack angle had me hitting down on the ball with driver when I’m +3 to 5 on premium units. 
 

I have a mevo + as well and it’s so much better with data and shot shape, not even in the same league. That being said, the R10 is night and day easier at connecting to my devices and the software functions much better than flightscope products. 
 

Most of the data right now that R10 produces is unreliable but I’m hopeful it will improve with software updates. I’ll keep it and keep trying it. Mevo + is far superior but I’m actually sending it back because it’s such a hassle just to connect to the unit. Getting simulator software to work with Mevo + makes me want to smash my head through a wall. 
 

Summary: I think the R10 will be awesome in about 6 months. Right now it’s not worth the MSRP though.  

Edited August 21, 2021 by PowderedToastMan

[Oh Hi Carl]

49 minutes ago, PowderedToastMan said:

Got mine today. I’m a former pro, still a decent enough player. Spent an hour or two on my indoor setup. 
 

Pros: ball speed and launch angle are very accurate. Home tee hero is fun; my kids love it. Software is so easy to use. Ball flight is pretty close with short and mid irons. 
 

Cons: Ball flights with woods are so off it’s hilarious. R10 had me hitting Bubba cuts on every shot and I was hitting straight balls. A 15 yard draw would produce a 25 yard fade or more on the r10. Maybe this device doesn’t like lefties. Also, attack angle had me hitting down on the ball with driver when I’m +3 to 5 on premium units. 
 

I have a mevo + as well and it’s so much better with data and shot shape, not even in the same league. That being said, the R10 is night and day easier at connecting to my devices and the software functions much better than flightscope products. 
 

Most of the data right now that R10 produces is unreliable but I’m hopeful it will improve with software updates. I’ll keep it and keep trying it. Mevo + is far superior but I’m actually sending it back because it’s such a hassle just to connect to the unit. Getting simulator software to work with Mevo + makes me want to smash my head through a wall. 
 

Summary: I think the R10 will be awesome in about 6 months. Right now it’s not worth the MSRP though.  

I ordered it mainly for the fun of the sim.  I'm glad you think HTH is fun, but I wonder how much fun I'm going to have with it if I hit a 15 yard draw and watch the ball end up 40 yards right of where I hit it.  

[psu517]

54 minutes ago, PowderedToastMan said:

Got mine today. I’m a former pro, still a decent enough player. Spent an hour or two on my indoor setup. 
 

Pros: ball speed and launch angle are very accurate. Home tee hero is fun; my kids love it. Software is so easy to use. Ball flight is pretty close with short and mid irons. 
 

Cons: Ball flights with woods are so off it’s hilarious. R10 had me hitting Bubba cuts on every shot and I was hitting straight balls. A 15 yard draw would produce a 25 yard fade or more on the r10. Maybe this device doesn’t like lefties. Also, attack angle had me hitting down on the ball with driver when I’m +3 to 5 on premium units. 
 

I have a mevo + as well and it’s so much better with data and shot shape, not even in the same league. That being said, the R10 is night and day easier at connecting to my devices and the software functions much better than flightscope products. 
 

Most of the data right now that R10 produces is unreliable but I’m hopeful it will improve with software updates. I’ll keep it and keep trying it. Mevo + is far superior but I’m actually sending it back because it’s such a hassle just to connect to the unit. Getting simulator software to work with Mevo + makes me want to smash my head through a wall. 
 

Summary: I think the R10 will be awesome in about 6 months. Right now it’s not worth the MSRP though.  

Thanks for the review.  I have 8’ ceilings in my garage, so only use up to 7 iron, so selfishly I guess this is good news for me.

 

Do you have similar issues when the Mevo + first came out? Or was that very accurate from the beginning?

 

thanks 

[jeg208]

12 hours ago, jeg208 said:

Very limited testing here, but I wanted to mention that I am pretty sure club selection is important.  I was so excited that I totally forgot to check this and was giving my PW everything I had and struggling to carry 105+ yards.  As soon as I changed the club from D to PW, the numbers were far more consistent and in a more realistic (for me) area of 120-125 carry.

 

After some further testing, this doesn't appear to be the issue.  The issue appears to be the launch angle issue others are seeing.  To be fair though, I've only tried it in deep grass below the mat height (not okay according to manual) and on the box on the grass (lol).  I should have some time to set this up in a permanent location this weekend, so withholding judgement until then.

 

Not sure about the club speed either, seems 5+mph low, which results in inflated smash numbers.

[whumber]

2 hours ago, PowderedToastMan said:

Got mine today. I’m a former pro, still a decent enough player. Spent an hour or two on my indoor setup. 
 

Pros: ball speed and launch angle are very accurate. Home tee hero is fun; my kids love it. Software is so easy to use. Ball flight is pretty close with short and mid irons. 
 

Cons: Ball flights with woods are so off it’s hilarious. R10 had me hitting Bubba cuts on every shot and I was hitting straight balls. A 15 yard draw would produce a 25 yard fade or more on the r10. Maybe this device doesn’t like lefties. Also, attack angle had me hitting down on the ball with driver when I’m +3 to 5 on premium units. 
 

I have a mevo + as well and it’s so much better with data and shot shape, not even in the same league. That being said, the R10 is night and day easier at connecting to my devices and the software functions much better than flightscope products. 
 

Most of the data right now that R10 produces is unreliable but I’m hopeful it will improve with software updates. I’ll keep it and keep trying it. Mevo + is far superior but I’m actually sending it back because it’s such a hassle just to connect to the unit. Getting simulator software to work with Mevo + makes me want to smash my head through a wall. 
 

Summary: I think the R10 will be awesome in about 6 months. Right now it’s not worth the MSRP though.  

This sounds like what I was seeing when there was a metal bag holder in the R10's FOV. I would be curious if you see the same thing in an outdoor setup.

[psu517]

22 hours ago, jvpark said:

Carry was usually within 3-4 yards and they always read the same draw and fade shots.  Deviation of shot was also within the same 3-4 yards. 
 

outliers were only with the total distance.  
 

Didn’t hit wedges but my understanding is that shorter irons were more accurate although driver carry was within 5 yards (under).  There were a few drivers where the difference was 10 yards difference.  
 

I trust the Mevo Plus more and love the Spin Loft number that the R10 does not have. 
 

if I was a teaching Pro I would use the Mevo Plus with my students. 

Thanks for the reply! Makes sense. 

[PowderedToastMan]

5 hours ago, PowderedToastMan said:

Got mine today. I’m a former pro, still a decent enough player. Spent an hour or two on my indoor setup. 
 

Pros: ball speed and launch angle are very accurate. Home tee hero is fun; my kids love it. Software is so easy to use. Ball flight is pretty close with short and mid irons. 
 

Cons: Ball flights with woods are so off it’s hilarious. R10 had me hitting Bubba cuts on every shot and I was hitting straight balls. A 15 yard draw would produce a 25 yard fade or more on the r10. Maybe this device doesn’t like lefties. Also, attack angle had me hitting down on the ball with driver when I’m +3 to 5 on premium units. 
 

I have a mevo + as well and it’s so much better with data and shot shape, not even in the same league. That being said, the R10 is night and day easier at connecting to my devices and the software functions much better than flightscope products. 
 

Most of the data right now that R10 produces is unreliable but I’m hopeful it will improve with software updates. I’ll keep it and keep trying it. Mevo + is far superior but I’m actually sending it back because it’s such a hassle just to connect to the unit. Getting simulator software to work with Mevo + makes me want to smash my head through a wall. 
 

Summary: I think the R10 will be awesome in about 6 months. Right now it’s not worth the MSRP though.  

I need to give an update. After fiddling with this all night, I got it working almost as good as Mevo + (you are right if you’re guessing I’m super pumped right now). For those of you who bought it, don’t give up because it’s unreal once you get it angled correctly. 
 

I’ve also found that for some reason the R10 seems to like E6 better. Ball flights are more accurate as well as distances. 
 

I’m so happy right now friends. It’s working like magic indoors!

[PowderedToastMan]

4 hours ago, psu517 said:

Thanks for the review.  I have 8’ ceilings in my garage, so only use up to 7 iron, so selfishly I guess this is good news for me.

 

Do you have similar issues when the Mevo + first came out? Or was that very accurate from the beginning?

 

thanks 

Mevo + was always accurate. Insanely easy to align and get reliable data. Problem is connectivity. It just disconnects randomly and is a hassle to connect every time you use it. 
 

see my follow up post on the R10. It takes time to get the proper conditions, but once you do, it’s fantastic. A clear winner over Mevo and nearing Mevo +. 

[dpvu]

TLDR: The R10 is VERY good with a 7 iron. The driver over-reports backspin resulting in about 10 yards shorter carry and the sidespin can be the wrong direction.

 

I just had the chance to test my R10 against a GC Hawk indoors at my local Golf Town. The setup was ~7 feet monitor to ball and ~10 feet ball to screen. The mat they had was elevated about 3” above the floor the R10 was on but the bottom was plenty above the mat as the manual says. The results were quite good.

7 iron (8 useable shots):

• Carry was an average of 2.5 yards longer on the R10. The biggest difference was 5 yards.
• Launch angle was an average of 2 degrees higher on the R10 (0.7-2.8 degree differences) which is probably okay.
• Launch direction was VERY GOOD. 2.6-3.1 degrees more left than the GC every time so I suspect I was just about 3 degrees off on alignment.
• Ball speed was VERY good with the R10 being 1-2 mph faster every shot
• Backspin was mixed with an average of 943 RPM more on the R10. It did also under-report backspin but the shots it was too low on it was less different (~400 RPM too low) than the shots it reported too much spin on (1500 RPM too high). I suspect this impacts the driver as you will see below.
• Side spin was decent with an average of 281 RPM different but I did not know how to get a spin axis out of the GC Hawk. More importantly, I hit both draws and fades and every single spin direction was correct.

Driver (15 useable shots):

 

• Carry was an average of 8.5 yards shorter with the R10. It was only longer on one shot and if I remove that the average is 10 yards short.
• The launch angle was close as an average but it was anywhere between 2 degrees too low or high.
• Launch direction was once again bang on 3 degrees different so it was alignment.
• Ball speed was again always 1-2 mph faster on the R10 but very good.
• Backspin was an average of 1789 RPM too high and every single shot was higher backspin than the GC. I suspect this is the main contribution to the carry difference as the ball speed and launch angles are reasonably close.
• Sidespin was much more problematic here. About half reported the wrong spin and the average was 941 RPM off. I was hooking nearly all my shots ~7 degrees left and my driver’s been a mess lately. The GC suggests most of my shots were truly fades but only by ~500 RPM and the R10 showed ~500 RPM of draw. Definitely improvements to be made here.

The R10 is getting the speed and launch conditions mostly accurate enough from what I can see. The real kicker here is spin and the Mevo+ needed the dots to do that on the ball and I believe the R10 is trying to use the club path data.

[Grig]

A Japanese site has published a review. Thanks to Google Translate I can at least understand a few things 😅. They've compared a few driver and 8 iron shots with a SkyTrack unit.

 

Source: here

 

Driver averages

 

And 8 Iron averages

[Sandhurst241069]

34 minutes ago, PowderedToastMan said:

Mevo + was always accurate. Insanely easy to align and get reliable data. Problem is connectivity. It just disconnects randomly and is a hassle to connect every time you use it. 
 

see my follow up post on the R10. It takes time to get the proper conditions, but once you do, it’s fantastic. A clear winner over Mevo and nearing Mevo +. 

OK… 😁… so what were the key tweaks and / or learnings?  I’ve just got notice that my stores batch of R10’s has been delayed due to Garmin supply issues .. so I have an extra month to wait anxiously lol .. your posts are helping!

[Trickygolf]

Agreed, so things are looking good but for all of us without a second more reliable PLM it would be great to hear if there is a defineable set of rules to get the alignment correct in all three dimension

Keep up the good work

[jimmies78]

As it seems that the most important part is the directional alignment rather than being at the exact same height as your mat......maybe we could crowd fund someone who is good with a 3d printer to create a little clip that can go ontop of the r10 and hold a laser pointer at 90deg to the face of the r10....this would then give the user the perfect target dot to help align at the start of a session. Then just remove the laser and carry on hitting

 

thoughts ?

Edited August 21, 2021 by jimmies78

[games]

5 hours ago, PowderedToastMan said:

I need to give an update. After fiddling with this all night, I got it working almost as good as Mevo + (you are right if you’re guessing I’m super pumped right now). For those of you who bought it, don’t give up because it’s unreal once you get it angled correctly. 
 

I’ve also found that for some reason the R10 seems to like E6 better. Ball flights are more accurate as well as distances. 
 

I’m so happy right now friends. It’s working like magic indoors!

As a fellow MEVO+ user I'm pumped.  Not because of R10, but because if a $700 radar unit does well, FS will have to unlock club and path data on the MEVO+.  And, MEVO+ will always provide superior ball spin as a measurement.

 

I remember in early days of MEVO+ people were saying e6 performed better.  My understanding is they just use the system's measured values and plug them into their proprietary flight algorithms.  If true, Garmin is one app update away...

[jagmanjoe]

2 hours ago, jimmies78 said:

As it seems that the most important part is the directional alignment rather than being at the exact same height as your mat......maybe we could crowd fund someone who is good with a 3d printer to create a little clip that can go ontop of the r10 and hold a laser pointer at 90deg to the face of the r10....this would then give the user the perfect target dot to help align at the start of a session. Then just remove the laser and carry on hitting

 

thoughts ?

While that sounds good from an indoor perspective, I am afraid that pointing a laser for range use or even those with outdoor setups into nets will have issues seeing the laser during daylight hours.  If you take a good straight yardstick or piece of metal at least 4 ft long, it can be used to accurately place the front feet of the R10 for center.  Then go to a calculator online for triangles to see how far behind the ball you want the R10 to be and use the calculator for 2 lengths of string that are the exact same length for the sides you need for placement.  Attach one end of each piece of the string to the outer edges of the yardstick and perhaps have loops at the other ends that go through a golf tee.  Set the tee at the location of where you want to place the ball and pull the yardstick back so both strings are equally stretched.  Then place the R10 front legs centered on the yardstick.

 

My bigger concern is relative to just how sensitive the unit is for placement.  With it being that sensitive, can you really place the ball one foot to either side of the line or in reality do you have to be much more careful about the ball placement?

[Jungpro]

If the setup is that crucial for good readings than the outdoor use on the range will be challenging.  You might be able to figure out a way indoors (identical ball position, flat surface etc.) but what happens when you go the range where the points mentioned above are not a given fact…

[wolfyand1]

7 hours ago, PowderedToastMan said:

I need to give an update. After fiddling with this all night, I got it working almost as good as Mevo + (you are right if you’re guessing I’m super pumped right now). For those of you who bought it, don’t give up because it’s unreal once you get it angled correctly. 
 

I’ve also found that for some reason the R10 seems to like E6 better. Ball flights are more accurate as well as distances. 
 

I’m so happy right now friends. It’s working like magic indoors!

what did you do to make it work so well?

[psu517]

8 hours ago, PowderedToastMan said:

Mevo + was always accurate. Insanely easy to align and get reliable data. Problem is connectivity. It just disconnects randomly and is a hassle to connect every time you use it. 
 

see my follow up post on the R10. It takes time to get the proper conditions, but once you do, it’s fantastic. A clear winner over Mevo and nearing Mevo +. 

Great news. Thanks!

[Red4282]

2 hours ago, jagmanjoe said:

While that sounds good from an indoor perspective, I am afraid that pointing a laser for range use or even those with outdoor setups into nets will have issues seeing the laser during daylight hours.  If you take a good straight yardstick or piece of metal at least 4 ft long, it can be used to accurately place the front feet of the R10 for center.  Then go to a calculator online for triangles to see how far behind the ball you want the R10 to be and use the calculator for 2 lengths of string that are the exact same length for the sides you need for placement.  Attach one end of each piece of the string to the outer edges of the yardstick and perhaps have loops at the other ends that go through a golf tee.  Set the tee at the location of where you want to place the ball and pull the yardstick back so both strings are equally stretched.  Then place the R10 front legs centered on the yardstick.

 

My bigger concern is relative to just how sensitive the unit is for placement.  With it being that sensitive, can you really place the ball one foot to either side of the line or in reality do you have to be much more careful about the ball placement?

From what i gather, ball left or right of target by a few inches isnt too important, what seems to be most important is the degree of where the unit is pointing. Just like i explained lining up a putt. Our eyes are tricky, and what you see as straight isnt always true. Im sure its very easy for most of us to be off by 2-3 degrees just eyeballing it. A laser would be nice. The only other thing that could be an issue is the  factor of maybe the units dont want to be straight. Most common error seems to be fade biased which tells me some units will need to rotated a few degrees to the left. Wether this is user error or perhaps a quality control issue on the calibration of the units is TBD. Just my two cents.

[Murdock]

19 minutes ago, Red4282 said:

From what i gather, ball left or right of target by a few inches isnt too important, what seems to be most important is the degree of where the unit is pointing. Just like i explained lining up a putt. Our eyes are tricky, and what you see as straight isnt always true. Im sure its very easy for most of us to be off by 2-3 degrees just eyeballing it. A laser would be nice. The only other thing that could be an issue is the  factor of maybe the units dont want to be straight. Most common error seems to be fade biased which tells me some units will need to rotated a few degrees to the left. Wether this is user error or perhaps a quality control issue on the calibration of the units is TBD. Just my two cents.

 

That's a good point and makes sense, because the path should be relative to the unit.  Should be easy for an indoor setup, but outdoors might be more difficult due to changing range conditions.  

 

What I always did with my old Mevo was take a couple 48" alignment rods (i.e. driveway markers from Lowe's or HD), mark 12" increments (in case you need an intermediate measurement) and use those for unit alignment.  Better than a string/etc because it's rigid and can't be deflected/curved.  A laser sounds awesome for an indoor solution, but outdoors I don't think that would work.  Maybe someone could come up with some 3D printed mount?

 

Edited August 21, 2021 by Murdock

[vsabre]

Just an FYI to new owners.  There is a software update available. Version 3.30. I had to use a laptop, download Garmin Express, plug in R10 and add it to Garmin Express. Updated, unplugged then synced through devices section on the Garmin app while connected to the R10. Not difficult...

[dpvu]

2 hours ago, Jungpro said:

If the setup is that crucial for good readings than the outdoor use on the range will be challenging.  You might be able to figure out a way indoors (identical ball position, flat surface etc.) but what happens when you go the range where the points mentioned above are not a given fact…

 

I just eye-balled it and then took some chip shots and looked at the launch direction until it aligned best. Only really adjusted it once last time I was out. Maybe not 100% accurate given the human element but I had results I was more than happy with. People are already building contraptions for alignment so I'm sure we'll see some options soon.

[Lopes1984]

After playing around with my R10 for a few days, I’ve decided I’m going to return it to Dick’s. 
 

My first impressions of it were pretty positive. It’s a nice looking piece of hardware, the app is easy to use, and it takes less than 30 seconds to set up. First session with it, thought it seemed to perform pretty well overall except I was getting a bunch of no reads. Kind of chalked that up to user error or some issue with my garage set up. 
 

Second day used it for about an hour, and felt like for the most part shots looked how I would expect them to, but occasionally there would be one that showed something completely different than what I felt. Noticed that a lot of my shots had more of a draw than what I usually hit, but didn’t think too much of it. Still got the occasional no read, but not nearly as often as first day. 
 

Third day was pretty similar to the first, except I felt like there were even more shots that didn’t behave how I was expecting. Also the big draw tendency became noticeable, was definitely a trend and didn’t improve when I tried adjust the set up. (Which btw was about 9ft of ball flight and 6ft behind ball)

 

Today I was finally able to take it out to the range. It was very accurate on shots under about 130 yards, but beyond that it really seemed to struggle. Carry distances seemed spot on, but ball flight was not consistent. I’d say about 25% of the shots showed something different than what actually happened. I hit shots that had a big fade it which showed going straight, shots that were a slight push that it would show going left, small draws showing as 30+ yard hooks. Again, tried to adjust the alignment and no difference. 
 

I know it’s not the most scientific test of the product, but it was enough to have me question it’s reliability and enough reason to decide it’s not for me. I’ll patiently wait for more details on the Bushnell. 

[PowderedToastMan]

7 hours ago, wolfyand1 said:

what did you do to make it work so well?

I did quite a few things at once that led to a drastic improvement. 
-got slightly more than 8 feet of space from the ball to the net

-cleared out the area as much as possible

-added more light in my basement

-I actually angled the R10 slightly left of my target to my eye (I’m a lefty). Chances are my eyeing it was off initially, but for me to eye it out, I have to get the unit looking a hair left (I think this step was most important). I think improper alignment is what was causing my face to path issues making me Bubba-slice everything, even draws

-Lastly, I started using the e6 software which for some reason helped the ball flights even more. 
 

I think the last thing is to remember this is a $600 device. When you remember that, you realize it punches WAY above its weight. 

[Cactus Jack]

This thread is a perfect case study about the pitfalls of pushing a product to market before it’s ready. The brilliant engineers behind the R10 had to know with certainty it wasn’t ready. Absolutely, they knew the algorithm was half baked and not ready for prime time. It’s really too bad because those folks will surely be used as scapegoats. 
 

The bottom line is someone knew about the issues. Someone saw during testing ball flight could be polar opposite of reality. Someone knew about the alignment issues, about the impact of driving range dividers etc. None of these issues are a surprise to Garmin. 
 

As such, it appears their business model is to take your cash now, and figure out the details later. Sorry, firmware updates shouldn’t be needed after the sale for the product to meet the minimum selling features printed on the box. Firmware updates should be used to improve the product and enhance the end user experience. That’s not the case here. 
 

More than anything, first impression matter. As someone in Garmin’s target market, the R10 was a perfect opportunity to pull me into their ecosystem. Unfortunately, they made a terrible first impression, and even worse, I’m now more interested than ever in their competitors, one of which will receive my money. Hopefully, they can dial this in, but it’s too late to secure a sale from me. 
 

 

[whumber]

1 hour ago, Cactus Jack said:

This thread is a perfect case study about the pitfalls of pushing a product to market before it’s ready. The brilliant engineers behind the R10 had to know with certainty it wasn’t ready. Absolutely, they knew the algorithm was half baked and not ready for prime time. It’s really too bad because those folks will surely be used as scapegoats. 
 

The bottom line is someone knew about the issues. Someone saw during testing ball flight could be polar opposite of reality. Someone knew about the alignment issues, about the impact of driving range dividers etc. None of these issues are a surprise to Garmin. 
 

As such, it appears their business model is to take your cash now, and figure out the details later. Sorry, firmware updates shouldn’t be needed after the sale for the product to meet the minimum selling features printed on the box. Firmware updates should be used to improve the product and enhance the end user experience. That’s not the case here. 
 

More than anything, first impression matter. As someone in Garmin’s target market, the R10 was a perfect opportunity to pull me into their ecosystem. Unfortunately, they made a terrible first impression, and even worse, I’m now more interested than ever in their competitors, one of which will receive my money. Hopefully, they can dial this in, but it’s too late to secure a sale from me. 
 

 

This is an absolutely bizarre read of the situation. Sure, there's refinement that should be done, but overall this thing performs very well for the price point even with the current firmware.

Edited August 21, 2021 by whumber

[whumber]

7 hours ago, Murdock said:

A laser sounds awesome for an indoor solution, but outdoors I don't think that would work.  Maybe someone could come up with some 3D printed mount?

 

One of those green outdoor leveling lasers should work quite well and can be had pretty cheap online.

[golfexplorer]

1 hour ago, PowderedToastMan said:

I did quite a few things at once that led to a drastic improvement. 
-got slightly more than 8 feet of space from the ball to the net

-cleared out the area as much as possible

-added more light in my basement

-I actually angled the R10 slightly left of my target to my eye (I’m a lefty). Chances are my eyeing it was off initially, but for me to eye it out, I have to get the unit looking a hair left (I think this step was most important). I think improper alignment is what was causing my face to path issues making me Bubba-slice everything, even draws

 

This the exact I did as well but I angled the R10 slightly right (playing right) and have my net outdoors - changing the angle slightly definitely improved directions and ball flights. However I still have problems reaching my real world shot distances - it’s like I am one club short with the R10. However, just like you mentioned, my distances seems more accurate when using the E6 which is interesting.

 

Overall I must say I am positively surprised by R10. Maybe not so much when it comes to the accuracy, but more when it comes to simplicity, features and the joy of playing. Me and my 8 year old daughter spend 2 hours today playing a local course on the R10 and we had so much fun - normally she is not very interested in hitting in the our net (only playing on real courses) but she absolutely loved this. Also - I played some real golf on a tournament this morning on a course I had never played before - so last night I played it through a couple of times on the R10 just to get a little more feeling of distances off the tee and some strategy - I thought that was really cool.

 

Another feature I have not tried yet is the Weekly Tournaments where you seem to be playing on the current week’s PGA course. So tomorrow I am planning to join and play Liberty National Golf Course :)

 

And no - it’s not Trackman but I think it’s good enough for me to have a lot of fun - either playing myself or with family/friends.

[Simpsonia]

1 hour ago, PowderedToastMan said:

I did quite a few things at once that led to a drastic improvement. 
-got slightly more than 8 feet of space from the ball to the net

-cleared out the area as much as possible

-added more light in my basement

-I actually angled the R10 slightly left of my target to my eye (I’m a lefty). Chances are my eyeing it was off initially, but for me to eye it out, I have to get the unit looking a hair left (I think this step was most important). I think improper alignment is what was causing my face to path issues making me Bubba-slice everything, even draws

-Lastly, I started using the e6 software which for some reason helped the ball flights even more. 
 

I think the last thing is to remember this is a $600 device. When you remember that, you realize it punches WAY above its weight. 

 

This makes a lot of sense. The manual said fine-tuning should be done by taking a high-lofted club and hitting some perfectly straight little chips and adjust the angle until you're getting reasonably close to zeroed out Horizontal Launch. I was doing a little testing this morning hitting these little chip shots all hit the center-line of the rope I hung on my net as my vertical target line. As I had set it up, they were all showing a bit left on the R10, so I was going to angle the R10 to the right a tad (I'm a righty) to see how it started reading. Unfortunately, it's pretty warm here and in the sun my phone decided to pick that time to overheat and shut-down so I couldn't continue testing. But aligning ever so slightly away from whichever side you're on (right if you're a righty, left of the line if you're a lefty) might be doing something. I'll continue to test tomorrow. 

Edited August 21, 2021 by Simpsonia

[dpvu]

1 hour ago, Cactus Jack said:

This thread is a perfect case study about the pitfalls of pushing a product to market before it’s ready. The brilliant engineers behind the R10 had to know with certainty it wasn’t ready. Absolutely, they knew the algorithm was half baked and not ready for prime time. It’s really too bad because those folks will surely be used as scapegoats. 
 

The bottom line is someone knew about the issues. Someone saw during testing ball flight could be polar opposite of reality. Someone knew about the alignment issues, about the impact of driving range dividers etc. None of these issues are a surprise to Garmin. 
 

As such, it appears their business model is to take your cash now, and figure out the details later. Sorry, firmware updates shouldn’t be needed after the sale for the product to meet the minimum selling features printed on the box. Firmware updates should be used to improve the product and enhance the end user experience. That’s not the case here. 
 

More than anything, first impression matter. As someone in Garmin’s target market, the R10 was a perfect opportunity to pull me into their ecosystem. Unfortunately, they made a terrible first impression, and even worse, I’m now more interested than ever in their competitors, one of which will receive my money. Hopefully, they can dial this in, but it’s too late to secure a sale from me. 
 

 

 

This isn't some Cyberpunk 2077 disaster... It has its flaws but it's also by far the best option in its price point and I think Garmin hit it out of the park with their target consumer. This is the budget "sim" option for those not ready to spend $2k+ but want more than a Sky Caddie or PRGR etc.

Edited August 21, 2021 by dpvu