Cobalt Q6 Laser Rangefinder Review

Used the Cobalt today and really am pleased with most every aspect of it. This unit really excels in clarity, speed and accuracy. It is a really well put together product that has lived up to my expectations when I purchased it after researching and going back an forth on whether I should or not and am so glad I did. Lens clarity is a biggie for me as I wear glasses and sometimes also struggle picking up things in the distance or background and the unit performs really well in that aspect of it, and one of my favorite features is the ability to adjust the brightness of the display so there is really no scenario where the read outs cannot be maximized for each user’s preference. The only aspects of this unit where it might not be above and beyond on others is the ergonomics and weight of this unit but when you are talking about rangefinders it is not like it is lifting a dumbbell by any means but it weighs slightly more than others I have used but this is never a spec I’m looking into when looking at rangefinders but wanted to mention it if others might prioritize it. The ergonomics comes down to this feels like a taller unit in the hand by no means too large but like the weight is something that I have noticed versus other rangefinders, and for reference I wear a M/L glove in most cases and like the weight was by no means a concern or deal breaker for me.
 
Played another round with the Cobalt and I continue to enjoy it. It's freeing to not mess with my phone for an app, etc. The unit continued to perform well, although I did have another flag that it just didn't want to lock on, where there was a large tree behind the field of view. Besides that one, it worked great.
Next week I'm going to play with a friend and let him use it for the round and get his feedback to share.
 
I’ve now made about 20-25 people use mine, AFTER they use theirs.

Three things happen every time:

1) The clarity comparatively breaks their minds. They cannot get over the magnification and crystal clear nature of it compared to even their top line Bushnell’s.

2) It’s fast.

3) The knob and switch combo are ingenious.

I agree on all three. This is the best rangefinder I’ve ever worked with. Truly.
 
I’ve now made about 20-25 people use mine, AFTER they use theirs.

Three things happen every time:

1) The clarity comparatively breaks their minds. They cannot get over the magnification and crystal clear nature of it compared to even their top line Bushnell’s.

2) It’s fast.

3) The knob and switch combo are ingenious.

I agree on all three. This is the best rangefinder I’ve ever worked with. Truly.
Geez, that's a strong statement!
 
Geez, that's a strong statement!
And it’s so so so so so true. This is the most excited I’ve been about something in a long while. It’s just obscenely good.
 
@Golfers Anonymous, as I'm sure you're already going to, please bring yours to California. Thank you ahead of time :D
 
I’ll add, to any of the Morgan Cup guys next week that want to look at this one, feel free!!
 
I’ve now made about 20-25 people use mine, AFTER they use theirs.

Three things happen every time:

1) The clarity comparatively breaks their minds. They cannot get over the magnification and crystal clear nature of it compared to even their top line Bushnell’s.

2) It’s fast.

3) The knob and switch combo are ingenious.

I agree on all three. This is the best rangefinder I’ve ever worked with. Truly.
It’s so so true. There hasn’t been a round yet where the entire group isnt waiting on this thing pre shot.
 
It’s so so true. There hasn’t been a round yet where the entire group isnt waiting on this thing pre shot.
My HS kids have been the worst. It’s hilarious.
 
@JB thanks for the nudge. Have been swamped with the end of the fiscal year closeout. Hoping to get it back out on the course Monday during a much needed day off.
 
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I’ve now made about 20-25 people use mine, AFTER they use theirs.

Three things happen every time:

1) The clarity comparatively breaks their minds. They cannot get over the magnification and crystal clear nature of it compared to even their top line Bushnell’s.

2) It’s fast.

3) The knob and switch combo are ingenious.

I agree on all three. This is the best rangefinder I’ve ever worked with. Truly.

In regards to #1 the optics are amazing. They are just as good as my nice set of binoculars.
 
And it’s so so so so so true. This is the most excited I’ve been about something in a long while. It’s just obscenely good.
Out of curiosity, any other's you're specifically comparing it to? I've been torn between having a unit that has both GPS and Laser or just going with a laser. GPS helps when you ("I") find the trees and can't see the pin, but it seems like most of those units are focused on doing so much that they don't do some critical things as well. Also, Cobalt's lifetime warranty is insane. Looking forward to more feedback from you and the others.
 
I’ve now made about 20-25 people use mine, AFTER they use theirs.

Three things happen every time:

1) The clarity comparatively breaks their minds. They cannot get over the magnification and crystal clear nature of it compared to even their top line Bushnell’s.

2) It’s fast.

3) The knob and switch combo are ingenious.

I agree on all three. This is the best rangefinder I’ve ever worked with. Truly.

My round for this week got cancelled due to weather, but I'm going to continue asking others for feedback whenever possible.
 
Out of curiosity, any other's you're specifically comparing it to? I've been torn between having a unit that has both GPS and Laser or just going with a laser. GPS helps when you ("I") find the trees and can't see the pin, but it seems like most of those units are focused on doing so much that they don't do some critical things as well. Also, Cobalt's lifetime warranty is insane. Looking forward to more feedback from you and the others.
Every one I’ve reviewed as well as the Bushnell V2, V3, and Pro XE
 
My round for this week got cancelled due to weather, but I'm going to continue asking others for feedback whenever possible.
Love it!
 
Every one I’ve reviewed as well as the Bushnell V2, V3, and Pro XE
Wow.....like I said...high praise. That's awesome.
 
@Golfers Anonymous, as I'm sure you're already going to, please bring yours to California. Thank you ahead of time :D
Absolutely! Really am impressed by how well this performs. Have 4 days straight of golf coming up plus next weekend so I’ll get some good use out of it.
 
It’s blown me away
Obviously the optics are spectacular. Is it more so the navigation and UI or its ability to find a pin in difficult backdrops?
 
Slope Review: The slope feature on this unit feels spot on for my yardages. Played multiple par 3’s today with considerable elevation change from the tee box down to the green. What the unit displayed with and without slope sometimes varied by 3 clubs between the two yardages and every time my shot wound up where it should have in comparison to the sloped yardages. Even throughout the round when shooting hazards and carries over water the Cobalt was spot on when I hit clubs to manage those yardages.
 
The set up:
Cobalt Q6 rangefinder
My buddies do it all gps watch
The scene:
My local 9 home executive course
The results:
I had a rare Saturday morning chance to hit a local course for a quick nine yesterday.
We both walked. I went cartless and carried. My ping stand bag with 7 clubs.
I clipped on the Q6 rangefinder to my bag. If you’ve read any prior reviews, one of my favorite things is that it sits horizontal thanks to the O shaped quick clip. That’s Still super important and needed a remention. Even better, it already has a home on my bag.
But anyways, my buddy was synching his gps watch and getting ready for the round. It was absolutely perfect sunny cool weather. It took quite a few minutes for it to load. Finally it did and we teed off. The gps watch is nice. It gives overview of the entire hole and a few taps and really close looking gives you yardage to any point. Does lots of neat things.
the cobalt Q6 does one thing.
Because it’s a short course and easy to see everything we thought it would be fun to compare the two rangefinder devices.
The gps watch has the ability to give a tiny overview of the hole sight unseen so you can look ahead. It does a lot of things. But the loading information screen was an annoyance throughout. It took my mind off the task at hand because of it.
We were treating the Q6 like a gps. It of course only can read what it sees. But it sees everything. Crystal clear one handed view. The clearness can’t be overstated. It’s clear. We tested front of bunker, back of bunker, ponds, gulleys, front of greens, back of greens etc. it was much quicker to do all of that from the tee box than it was to use the gps watch. Plus I could hold my beverage and not lose any time. But mostly the crisp image it gave on every hole from the tee box was like having my own private yardage book without all of the synching up that multi use devices have to do. It will never need updating. Not reliant on technology. Was very helpful on the verrrrry slow round. But we got to play around with it a lot just picking spots and firing.
Off topic:
The battery life was a question but so far it’s only down a little after these last 6 rounds. I like that it’s a real battery and not a usb style charger. Something that will be ready available 10 years from now. Built for the long haul.
Like a hammer or a micrometer it only does one thing. But it does that one thing incredibly well.
There will be 2 rounds played next week. One on a long very difficult course. The other on a course I know very well. I can’t wait to see how having this affects my game there. More to come...
 
Finally got out to play another round. Glad I'm writing on the Cobalt and not our play :LOL:

I let my friend use the Cobalt Q6 throughout the round. I was surprised to hear he has never owned or even used a laser rangefinder as he has played for over 40 years. He remarked about how clear the optics were and how easy to see everything was. He liked how it felt in his hand, the fire button had good feedback and appreciated the vibration for confirmation when the unit locked on.

I probably sound like a broken record, but I can't stress enough the freedom of using this unit as compared to using an app on my phone. Also, it's so much faster to pull out the Cobalt and measure distances to hazards. It has completely changed how I feel on the course and the relief of being able to unplug from calls/texts instead of being tempted to look because I'm using an app.

Battery still shows an almost full charge after multiple rounds of use!

As I mentioned previously, I still do see an occasional flag that the Cobalt may miss the distance on due to a tree/fence/etc behind it. But when that happens, it's obvious as it's such a glaring distance differential. Usually trying again will give me the correct reading. Trying the same object or flag multiple times will almost always come back with the exact same figure, or with just a differences in inches. It gives me complete confidence that I'm getting the correct distance, and having the slop available has been very helpful on the courses I have played with it.
 
Finally got out to play another round. Glad I'm writing on the Cobalt and not our play :LOL:

I let my friend use the Cobalt Q6 throughout the round. I was surprised to hear he has never owned or even used a laser rangefinder as he has played for over 40 years. He remarked about how clear the optics were and how easy to see everything was. He liked how it felt in his hand, the fire button had good feedback and appreciated the vibration for confirmation when the unit locked on.

I probably sound like a broken record, but I can't stress enough the freedom of using this unit as compared to using an app on my phone. Also, it's so much faster to pull out the Cobalt and measure distances to hazards. It has completely changed how I feel on the course and the relief of being able to unplug from calls/texts instead of being tempted to look because I'm using an app.

Battery still shows an almost full charge after multiple rounds of use!

As I mentioned previously, I still do see an occasional flag that the Cobalt may miss the distance on due to a tree/fence/etc behind it. But when that happens, it's obvious as it's such a glaring distance differential. Usually trying again will give me the correct reading. Trying the same object or flag multiple times will almost always come back with the exact same figure, or with just a differences in inches. It gives me complete confidence that I'm getting the correct distance, and having the slop available has been very helpful on the courses I have played with it.
Great feedback again. Thanks and keep it coming! Much appreciated.
 
And it’s so so so so so true. This is the most excited I’ve been about something in a long while. It’s just obscenely good.
The more I read, the more I think I want one. But do I need one.....? Please convince me...
 
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