New Golf Guru 4

[phil75070]

Phil, I certainly hope they continue to offer the G002. Were you told they aren't offering the 002 or 003 anymore? I have sent a request to customer service about "new" G002 availability because I have a few friends interested. I'd be disappointed to hear if they were to discontinue the 002, because that device is simply outstanding.

 

I have no specific knowledge that they will discontinue the G002 and I think it would be a mistake to do so. I can see not continuing the G003 color unit - two color units so close in price makes no sense although at this time I am no big fan of touch screens. I want as little interaction with the uniot as is necessary and I question juts how accurate touch screen technology is when it comes to the yardages, even using a stylus. I often had to recalibrate my old PDA. I don't know if anybody has tried to buy a "new" G002 recently as everyone only seems interested in the less expensive, refurbished units.

[Rickochet]

Hi all!!

 

Has anyone heard from GG since recieving the G4? I still haven't heard a peep and it's been 5 days. They are usually very quick to responed. They must be overwhelmed but I would think they could send out a general email to all G4 users to let them know what is going on. Time is running out on all of us that took the leap of faith. I don't mind being a beta tester but at least keep me in the loop.

 

I sent them an email a few days ago and no reply yet. I did order a cup holder mount for the G4 a few days ago and it was delivered this morning so sales is still on top of things. BTW the clip on the cup holder holds the G4 verly nicely. It could easily be modified to attach to a RAM systems cart rail mount also.

[phil75070]

I don't mind being a beta tester but at least keep me in the loop.

 

That is exactly the point I made with them with the original G002 and its initial problems. The key features I had bought it for did not work or weren't available and it seemed like they were using the early buyers as their beta test team. Wrong approach in my estimation! You need to have a dedicated team of beta testers who are fully aware of what it means to be a beta tester ( actually TEST all of the features, not just sign up to get early access to a new device!) and what they can expect or not expect with regard to functionality. You damage your company's reputation if you introduce products with glaring issues. For some reason, Mr. Cornish has ignored any emails I have sent to him for several months now. :)

[samuraisjl]

I returned my Guru 4 yesterday as the unit was not as user friendly as the Guru 3 I own.

I played a 3 hr 20 min round yesterday and the battery was down to 2 bars, no way could you play 2 rounds. I charged the previous day and night with the external charger and had the backlight setting selected for 30 seconds.

 

The interface for scoring and stats was not easy to navigate through or use. I also could not get the unit to scroll using the down arrow in the stats. I gave up trying to use these features as it was taking too much time. The Guru 3 is simplistic compared to the Guru 4. The unit is not comfortable carrying in your pocket too big as I did not receive the case I ordered yet. Customer support told me when I returned that the case can be used for the Guru 3 which I plan on trying.

 

Hopefully Guru will correct all these and others people are finding and slim down the unit.

 

Guru support and mapping are still top notch as I requested 8 AerVu maps and they were completed within 24 hrs or so. Rumor has it that they are working on a slimmer model.

 

I did find a good use for the screen protector I received with the Guru 4. I cut down to size and use on my Guru 3.

 

cheers,

 

Steve

[dmartin1976]

I finally used it and have mixed feelings, it's bulky for my pocket and walking with it wasn't great, but hopefully the case i ordered (which should arrive tomorrow) will help with that. The stats are not easy to navigate like everyone here seems to agree. I don't understand why they made it so hard, the screen is huge and yet they make the smallest arrows to navigate. they need to take advantage of the whole screen, I think it would be easier if they set it up like the applications restaurants use, create large boxes for each imput, ex. Clubs used D for driver etc, you could easily fit 20 large virtual buttons on the screen and pressing the one you want would be easy and quicker, then have it go to the next stat, for score why not use large button DE = double eagle all the way up, I mean cramming all that onto one screen isn't pretty, and if they want to do that at least make the forward and

back buttons large enough to easily navigate with a golf glove on. I love multi use devices and the nav option is exciting, but they need to rework the interface quickly or they're going to lose a lot of loyal customers. On the plus side I was very happy with the yardages, and didn't find the mark feature too cumbersome, although I was sad to see that what I thought were killer drives were not too impressive, I was happier being a little more disillusioned.

[Rickochet]

I don't understand Golf Guru's marketing strategy. Bailing out on two successful products with a unit that has yet to prove its functioanality or marketability. If would seem they are putting all of their "golfing eggs" in one basket.

 

I guess I need to do some research for a replacement if my G4 doesn't pan out.

[phil75070]

I don't understand Golf Guru's marketing strategy. Bailing out on two successful products with a unit that has yet to prove its functioanality or marketability. If would seem they are putting all of their "golfing eggs" in one basket.

 

I guess I need to do some research for a replacement if my G4 doesn't pan out.

 

If Golf Guru were to stop supporting the G002/003, I hate to say it, but I think the only thing I would consider at this time would be to go back to the SkyGolf product, the SG5. Touch screen, hole layout, extended stats and score are no big thing for me. Ideally, I want accuracy, the Intelligreen-like feature, and editing/mapping capability, but would have to sacrifice the latter to go back to SkyGolf. When it works like it does on the 002/003, there is no better device for editing/mapping than the Golf Guru.

[cmegolf]

Has anyone else heard from support? Finally talked with someone yesterday (after not responding to any of my emails. phone calls) and the only info he gave was they have everyone working on it

 

AereVu is going to take a while to get up and i agree with one post that said that was the main selling point

 

I have my return #RMA just wanted him to tell me please be patient DO NOT WORRY ABOUT THE 30 DAY TRIAL since we have non of your courses in aereVu to try and that right now we cant exchange it back for the GG2 you returned but they were more than willing to just take the GG4 back and return my money

leaving me to seek something better

 

Its funny they responded in everyway when i orderd the GG4 even when it was delayed calling and even giving some accessor. but its like this has taken a toll on them their just saying This is to much we did ask for this

Still as friendly as ever but not able toresolve these issues quick enough

 

will be using the UPro today and the GG4 along with GPS in the carts

to see which direction i go

[ChoppingBrocolli]

Okay.....I used the G4 on an AerVu mapped course today. Having used a G002 for 8 months I am familiar with the Golf Guru menu.

 

Battery: I set the backlight on 85% and dimming after 30 seconds. After a normal round of 18, I finished with One Battery Bar. Maybe I will use the sleep button next round.

 

Vision: I could see fine, but sometimes I couldn't tell if it was dimmed or it was too sunny to see. So, I kept tapping the screen with my finger/fingernail. Harder and harder.

 

TouchScreen Sensivity: The fingernail just doesn't work. You gotta get out a stylus or a Tee and hit the screen with a solid tap. It was frustrating to try to change the stoke count with my finger, and I needed to reach in and get a tee outta my pocket. That seemed to work okay.

 

Size: I have used the G002 in my pants pocket and want desparately for the G4 to be used the same way. It is awkward getting it outta your pants pocket before every stroke. It hangs up on the lining and today on the fourth hole while pulling it out of my pocket, the ON/OFF switch got activated and I lost the data for the first 4 holes.

 

AerVu Mapping Feature: This is the reason I upgraded to the G4. The maps are not that detailed. Unless there is a huge lake, the water features do not show up on the map. To rely on the AerVu map on a new strange golf course would be unwise. Use the map on the course scorecard. I wasn't impressed with this feature. I really hoped it would do a lot more than it did. It really didn't do anything. I didn't really use it or need it. So, I don't think I would use it.

 

BTW Golf Guru just uploaded the new G4 Manual. Don't get excited. It doesn't really say much more than you have already figured out on your own.

 

What is path of Navigation software..autorun at Power on. What is all this stuff? Manual doesn't mention it.

 

To sum up: The jury is still out on the G4.

[GoToTheJoe]

I played today with the GG4 for the first time. As with other people, I really wanted to love this unit. I am just kind of neutral after using it for 18 holes though.

 

I mounted it on my Clicgear cart so I didn't have any issues with the size. I had the brightness up to about 85% with the 30 second dimmer set. No problems with the battery although it did get down to 1 bar. I am not sure about the accuracy of that though as another poster said. My round was about 5 hours so I think I had another hour at least. I rarely play 36 in one day so that isn't a huge concern.

 

Glare was not really a problem. The unit was mounted on the handle so I was standing in the way of the sun in most cases. When I tapped to brighten the screen, I could see just fine.

 

No issues with the standard scoring either. Kept score just fine. Couple extra taps to get the right score but that's about it. I didn't do the advanced scoring so I am not sure how difficult that would be to keep up with.

 

Couples of things though. The screen smudges pretty easily so you have to use the stylus or a tee. Actually touching the screen is going to make the screen a little difficult to read when the glare kicks up.

 

My biggest complaint is with the intelligreen though. Moving the pin around the green is easy but the yardage to the pin NEVER changes no matter where the pin is moved. That makes that feature completely useless. I tried this on multiple holes and multiple times at those holes. Never changed more than 1 yard.

 

I think I need to give it one more try but I am going to call for an RMA just in case. At the moment I don't think this is worth the extra $200. It seems like an ok product with some interesting features but do I need a music player when I can't play it on the course while I am walking? I have nav in my car so probably don't need the upgrade later. Picture and Video are on my Ipod Touch. Right now I am leaning towards the return though. Didn't blow me away like I was hoping it would.

[dmartin1976]

I used it again, played 18, it was a quick 18, I kept score and had 2 bars left at the end, the round lasted a little shy of 4hrs 20 min. strange thing is that when I exited out of the golf guru app the battery indicator showed 3 bars, also the time in the application view is in military time and in golf guru it's standard am/pm. I got the case that is on the website, it's a little tight, which is good, and after a while will probably loosen up a bit. The case itself is very rugged feeling and has some extra room for ID's and things with is nice. wearing it took a little getting use to but after a couple holes I didn't even know I had it on. The yardage was spot on at the course I played, and standard scoring and marking weren't bad even with my glove on, but they need to update the interface because the arrows are easy to move forward but going back is tricky. I basically gave up and decided just to cycle through the whole thing. going to charge and play again tomorrow, right now I'm leaning on keeping it though.

[dmartin1976]

I just got an email from GG because they ran out of the free hats. They emailed and gave option of waiting for a hat or 2 credits for aervu course, sweet!

 

of course it'll be even better once they have the courses mapped out

[gary6165]

Well I have been using the Guru 4 for over a week now, and I am not happy with it at all. I play everyday and have posted scores from it through the utility. When I go to the website like I did before with my gray scale model the scores posted are nothing like the ones I entered. All 10 scores are wrong. Not even close. Promises of fly by viewing are only promises. Yes, yu can put a memory card into it and get your favorite pictures or songs. Big deal. I don't need a MP3 player, I need a reliable golf tool. The yardage seems fine, but then all I am getting is it in color. I never thought that was important. The service when you call is excellent, but they have problems knowing what to do. It has not worked since I received it. I am either going to have some satisfaction on Monday, or I will return it to them. I may then get the Callaway. I have called and e mailed them all week, but they have not come up with a fix.

[PlaneMaker]

I have got to admit that I am bit concerned about Golf Guru based on poor reviews of the new unit. In this economy if they bet the farm on this new unit they might not be able to survive.

 

So, those of us have G002 and G003 could loose support for their units. Not a huge deal for me since I have most of my courses downloaded but, when I travel I might not be able to get additional courses.

[Rickochet]

I had my second round with the G4 today. I had the backlight up full and 30 sec. delay. I had the G4 mounted in the cup mount. It came with some extra foam pieces to increase the size of the cup holder side grippers but thay only made the unit wobble in the small drink holder I had on the cart. I took them off and it fit fine with the installed grippers. The cup holder mount snaps together but I would recommend glueing the parts together as they tend to come apart easily (say fall off), particularly the unit mount to the stem.

 

My first round was with dim turned off and I got a low battery indication on the 17th hole. Using 30 sec dim and having to tap the screen was not as big of a PITA as I thought it would be. I am not sure if it would be any different in a rail mount. After a 4 hour round I had one battery bar. This was not using anything other than changing view occasionally. It was a partly cloudy day and I was in a covered cart but seeing the screen was not a problem. The course I played had lots of creeks criss crossing the course and using distances to clear the hazards was very nice.

 

I was basically looking for a unit with a big screen with big fonts. The only other feature I might use is the navigation program when it becomes available. I wish GG had an idea on cost of the nav feature as that might weigh in as to whether I keep the unit or not.

 

Third round with it today. I put it on an overnight charge. I am not sure if an overnight charge does any better than just charging it until the green light comes on. If the unit terminates the charge when then green light comes on leaving it on may accomplish nothing unless it changes to a "trickle" charge.

[GTakacs]

I was basically looking for a unit with a big screen with big fonts. The only other feature I might use is the navigation program when it becomes available. I wish GG had an idea on cost of the nav feature as that might weigh in as to whether I keep the unit or not.

 

I think I've read the navigation package will be around $70 including a suction cup mount. If you're in Minnesota or California you might want to reconsider this mounting system (http://www.gpsreview.net/windshield-gps-in...in-some-states/)

 

Third round with it today. I put it on an overnight charge. I am not sure if an overnight charge does any better than just charging it until the green light comes on. If the unit terminates the charge when then green light comes on leaving it on may accomplish nothing unless it changes to a "trickle" charge.

 

There is no trickle charge per se. Li-Ion chargers are voltage supplies with a current limiter. It will keep the cell voltage at the fully charged 4.2V constant as long as it is plugged in.

[Rickochet]

If it is a one time charge of $70 that would seem reasonable if there are no monthly reoccurring charges.

 

I had my third round with G4 today. It was a very bright sun shine day and I had no trouble seeing the screen at full brightness in a covered cart cup holder mount. Battery after a 4 1/2 hour round had one battery bar left using a 30 second dimmer off.

 

I am leaning toward keeping this bugger. It does the basic things I am looking for and one round per day is enough for me. YMMV

[GoToTheJoe]

It would just be nice to hear something from GG about the issues and they are addressing them. That is usually their strength and now since the GG4 has come out, there seems to be nothing but crickets chirping.

 

All I need to keep the unit is assurances that it is going to be worked on and improved like the G002 was. That needs to happen this week or I am sending it back and keeping my G002.

[dmartin1976]

I played again todya, yardages were spot on, it was the longest round ever over 5.5 hours I used it for distance, score and some marking and by the end of it I had one battery bar left, but no loss in performance, when I was done and exited the gg program the battery indicator went up to two bars, so it seems that there is some difference in how the unit reads the battery level and how GG app does.

 

As far as price of nav, I heard between 70-80 and that comes with a car mount and the SD card with the maps on it, no ongoing fees for using it just as with most navs, although I'm not sure if map updates will cost anything or not, however you wouldn't need that for a while anyways, by then the GG 6 will be out :-)

 

the case was nice, although since I use a cart most of the time I haven't played with it on for a full round yet, but I don't think it would be too hard getting used to it.

[m4michigan]

Hey all. I finally got a response from GG today at 3pm about the mapping issue. Wanted to share. See below:

 

"There is a bug in the mapping feature of the released version of the Guru4 software. WE are testing a fix to this issue currently and should have a beta version available for download shortly.

 

Thank you for your patience, "

 

They must be hard at work on this issue if they are at work on a Sunday afternoon.

 

Also, I used the score and stats for the first time yesterday and was it very hard to navigate. Those tiny left and right arrow buttons are waaayyyy too small. Still ridding the fence. Just glad I didn't send back my G2 yet. :tease:

[GTakacs]

I only have two questions:

 

1) Why did I not get the e-mail from GG? I also asked them about a G002 related issue and I got nothing.

2) If the new one is a beta, what's the current one? An alpha?

[phil75070]

I wouldn't be too worried about the mapping/editing bug. They had problems with that when the first released the original unit and were able to eventually get everything working correctly.

 

I emailed them last night about something and had a response back early, I mean early this morning. It may just have been a case of "timing" with regard to when your email was received or it might depend on the nature of the issue that you emailed them about.

 

Heck, I never got the email announcing the new G4. Maybe it got flagged as spam by my ISP?

[GoToTheJoe]

I am a big fan of Golf Guru and went through the problems with the G002 to see it become what it is today. I am hoping the same dedication goes into the fixes with the GG4 but it would be nice to not have to beta test their products for free. Who knows, maybe that is what the $40 intro discount was for :)

[nomadtda]

Got my Guru 4 today and proceeded to add courses. I selected my home course as standard and pushed the AerVu button also and it requested the course for me. When I synced to download the courses my home course didn't load. Called support they said it was a glitch in the software and told me to select it again and sync again. Didn't work, and now my home course no longer has a button to select the standard course. Still waiting for support to return my call. Anyone have this problem. Help

[Rickochet]

Got my Guru 4 today and proceeded to add courses. I selected my home course as standard and pushed the AerVu button also and it requested the course for me. When I synced to download the courses my home course didn't load. Called support they said it was a glitch in the software and told me to select it again and sync again. Didn't work, and now my home course no longer has a button to select the standard course. Still waiting for support to return my call. Anyone have this problem. Help

 

When I first downloaded a bunch of standard courses it would not load two of them. I went back 10 minutes later and retried it and they downloaded just fine. Try it again.

[dmartin1976]

Got my Guru 4 today and proceeded to add courses. I selected my home course as standard and pushed the AerVu button also and it requested the course for me. When I synced to download the courses my home course didn't load. Called support they said it was a glitch in the software and told me to select it again and sync again. Didn't work, and now my home course no longer has a button to select the standard course. Still waiting for support to return my call. Anyone have this problem. Help

 

Once you select a course it adds it to "My Guru(s)" then when you run the software it syncs the GPS w/ the website, so you don't need ot reselect the course per se, goto MY guru(s) and make sure your home course is added to the list should also see the free ones like augusta, and make sure it is checked off, this will add the standard when you sync next time (much like syncing a pda or something to outlook contacts) once it syncs you should get all selected courses.

[nomadtda]

I heard from support, they have a glitch in the software on the Guru 4 and some of the courses don't download, my home course is one of them. They said they'll have it fixed in a week, doesn't help me for tomorrow, was so wanting to try it out tomorrow.

[dmartin1976]

so they finally got the course I play in a league mapped in aervu, I will get to actually try it out on Wed. but I scrolled through and the maps look pretty decent, i wish the red dots that show points of interest had yardages next to them, I think it's strange that the application doesn't take into account how large the screen is and how much info and ease a larger screen should and could provide, it's like the app is definatly not made for the gg 4 but rather just slightly modified to work, but was meant for a smaller screen, I would have hoped that even if the app was a modification or after thought that the aervu courses which only work on the gg4 were more thoughtful, I don't think it would take that much longer to provide the info...I will hold that there maybe once I actually get on the course the yardages will pop up,

[colonel]

dmartin,

 

I'm sorry, but the points of interest yardages do not pop up in AerVu. At least they did not come up for me while using it. This was one of my gripes with the AerVu application.

[bytehoven]

Any ideas would be appreciated. The stylus in the back of the G4 is just too hard to "whip" out.

 

Try using a TEE as a stylus.