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Garmin Approach G80

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Lucutus

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I`ve read the product information on the new Garmin Approach G80 & totally hooked - I want one!
Before I pull the trigger, I want the "comfort blanket" of a good review - . I`ve cannot find anything more recent that the initial "press-release" information & one short review.
Is this normal?
 
I think it’s just still so early nothing is really out there on it. Plus I don’t know how receptive or willing Garmin really is to doing reviews.
 
My experience with Garmin is that their products are made with the very best materials and sensors, but they often release things with what I might call Beta software. They definitely let their early adopters work the kinks out of their software , but after 3-4 months on the market they have a great fully functional product that they continue to improve functionality on. I have had an X40 for 2-1/2 ears now and it is still getting new features. The last time I was playing I noticed they added green diagrams to the watch. Anyway Garmin makes great products, but if you buy in the 1st month expect some kinks.
 
Thanks,

As an aside, has anyone on the forum bought a G80 and received it?
 
Got mine yesterday. Ordered 2-20 from Playbetter.com


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
 
Thanks Pstmstr,
Keen to read how you get on with it.
For me, it looks almost too good to be true - I hope it is!
 
hey all. got my garmin G80 approach last friday and have been messing around with it. i'm comparing to the aboutgolf pga tour simulator that i have in my apartment building.

i'm planning on doing a more thorough review but i wanted to post early bc i've relied on all of the users here for numerous product purchases over the years and figured i owe it.

easiest set up ever and easiest to use. just place it a foot away from the ball and that's it. works great tee'd up or on the surface - didn't miss a shot.

gps: i haven't used this yet I'm in the northeast but as others have posted, i imagine that this is spot on.

launch monitor function: this is why i got this and i'm sure what is piques everyone's interest.

in my sampling - two sessions of about 70-100 shots each, i can confidently state the Garmin is SPOT on with ball speed. throughout the entire bag from 3/4 lob wedges to full swing drivers the ball speeds were not more than 3 mph off. i'd say roughly 70 percent were either spot on or 1mph off versus the aboutgolf simulator.

my testing was a bit limited bc club head speed wasn't working on the aboutgolf and it doesn't test smash factor so my only real metric i was paying attention to was ball speed.

distances were all long. as i moved through the bag it was about 5-7 yards long for wedges through about an 8I, and gradually increases in dispersion as i moved through the longer clubs.

for example, my dr SS ranges from about 111-115 with a 160-168 BS and the Garmin was consistently putting me at 305-320 when aboutgolf had me in the 275-290 range. it doesn't calculate spin and being it's early season my driver spin rate is a bit on the high side (2600-3100)-only viewable on the aboutgolf sim. i didn't expect this to be accurate with the distances. i do think it is very valuable for the BS metric alone. CHS seemed pretty accurate also. I've tested on GC2 and TM numerous times and have a SkyTrak so i'm pretty sure the CHS is pretty close. (note: i didn't need the SkyTrak this winter bc i luckily have a sim here so i let my cousin use it)

knowing that i could test the G80 against a sim setup i know is pretty good, i figured if the G80 was totally off i'd just return it. i will not be returning this and think it'll be fun to use once i'm able to get on the outdoor range.

i did mess around with the virtual round and it was pretty fun... i set it up for a course i played as a kid. again not accurate on distances but nostalgic nonetheless.
 
Thanks tapinbirdie11
Right - ready to pull the trigger.
Looking forward to playing with the game mode - hopefully make my range time more productive.
Was also hoping it would help with working out my distances with each club - the above would indicate that this would need validating on the course (best to check anyway!)
 
Bumping this thread because I'm hard pondering this unit. Anyone have any further reviews or thoughts on it? Anywhere to get one for a deal?
 
My Approach G80 arrived today. I haven't had a chance to actually use it yet but a few opening thoughts:
-It feels great in hand. Seems well made.
-I love that it includes the parts for both a carabineer hangar as well as a clip to attach to power cart posts or push cart handles.
-Backlight sucks even on the brightest setting. If I have trouble reading it in the sun I'll be pretty annoyed and may return it.
-Takes a long time to charge. It was at 83% when I plugged it in and an hour later it is at 95%. Probably no big deal in the grand scheme of things, but there will be no last minute charging if you forget.
 
ArmyGolf said:
My Approach G80 arrived today. I haven't had a chance to actually use it yet but a few opening thoughts:
-It feels great in hand. Seems well made.
-I love that it includes the parts for both a carabineer hangar as well as a clip to attach to power cart posts or push cart handles.
-Backlight sucks even on the brightest setting. If I have trouble reading it in the sun I'll be pretty annoyed and may return it.
-Takes a long time to charge. It was at 83% when I plugged it in and an hour later it is at 95%. Probably no big deal in the grand scheme of things, but there will be no last minute charging if you forget.
Click to expand...

Kicking around the idea of grabbing the Garmin or SX500. Reviews are good for both. Not sure I need the LM function but I also don’t love paying subscription.
 
I just searched for this in Australia. It is $749 aud. That is a LOT of coin for this device.
 
Mr Boof said:
I just searched for this in Australia. It is $749 aud. That is a LOT of coin for this device.
Click to expand...
I found one for $500 CAD with some aggressive coupon codes. Still a ton of $$ though so if I'm not extremely impressed I'll return it and grab a Pro XE instead.
 
A few quick follow up thoughts:
-The GPS is easy to use and accurate.
-The battery after 2 full rounds was still at 75%.
-The scorecard keeping interface is annoying and clunky. Won't be using that.
-So far the Launch Monitor has proven to be highly accurate, tons of fun, and no blatant misreads or missed shots yet.
-The backlight isn't as bright or colorful as I'd like, but I had no trouble viewing it in bright sun.
 
ArmyGolf said:
My Approach G80 arrived today. I haven't had a chance to actually use it yet but a few opening thoughts:
-It feels great in hand. Seems well made.
-I love that it includes the parts for both a carabineer hangar as well as a clip to attach to power cart posts or push cart handles.
-Backlight sucks even on the brightest setting. If I have trouble reading it in the sun I'll be pretty annoyed and may return it.
-Takes a long time to charge. It was at 83% when I plugged it in and an hour later it is at 95%. Probably no big deal in the grand scheme of things, but there will be no last minute charging if you forget.
Click to expand...

ArmyGolf said:
A few quick follow up thoughts:
-The GPS is easy to use and accurate.
-The battery after 2 full rounds was still at 75%.
-The scorecard keeping interface is annoying and clunky. Won't be using that.
-So far the Launch Monitor has proven to be highly accurate, tons of fun, and no blatant misreads or missed shots yet.
-The backlight isn't as bright or colorful as I'd like, but I had no trouble viewing it in bright sun.
Click to expand...

Thanks for this. I still have a G6 that I keep for days where I play more than 18 as my S60 watch is only good for about a round. I've been a big proponent of the S60, but a big part of me wants to go back to a handheld unit & the battery life you're seeing is huge for me. Looking forward to hearing more!
 
I really enjoy having this thing. I'm actually not sure how the heck I played golf for so long without something like this.

So nice knowing the exact yardages to every hazard, bunker, water etc.
 
ArmyGolf said:
I found one for $500 CAD with some aggressive coupon codes. Still a ton of $$ though so if I'm not extremely impressed I'll return it and grab a Pro XE instead.
Click to expand...

hook a brotha up with the deets
 
I stumbled across another feature that's pretty sweet.
This GPS has a "Plays Like" feature which uses topography to calculate adjusted uphill/downhill yardages just like slope on a rangefinder. It can be toggled on and off.
 
ArmyGolf said:
I stumbled across another feature that's pretty sweet.
This GPS has a "Plays Like" feature which uses topography to calculate adjusted uphill/downhill yardages just like slope on a rangefinder. It can be toggled on and off.
Click to expand...
How are you liking this so far? I'm really thinking about trying to drum up funds for this. I think I'm ready to go back to a GPS and really like the launch monitor like feature.

Does this have the ability to mark different points on the green to estimate flag location? Does it have any stat keeping functionality? My old Sky Caddie could keep some basic stats and I'd imagine the newer units have more options available.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
 
well make that 3 I'm interested in!
 
radiman said:
How are you liking this so far? I'm really thinking about trying to drum up funds for this. I think I'm ready to go back to a GPS and really like the launch monitor like feature.

Does this have the ability to mark different points on the green to estimate flag location? Does it have any stat keeping functionality? My old Sky Caddie could keep some basic stats and I'd imagine the newer units have more options available.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

You can move the flag anywhere on the green.
It can keep basic stats if you take the time to enter all the info. I find the scorekeeping function to be pointless since using a pencil is quicker and easier.
 
I'm interested in this too and the S60 watch. If the distances are that far off then I'm not. youTube reviewers say its pretty accurate.
 
pilot25 said:
I'm interested in this too and the S60 watch. If the distances are that far off then I'm not. youTube reviewers say its pretty accurate.
Click to expand...
I compared mine to a Trackman and it was very very close across the board.
 
ArmyGolf said:
You can move the flag anywhere on the green.
It can keep basic stats if you take the time to enter all the info. I find the scorekeeping function to be pointless since using a pencil is quicker and easier.
Click to expand...
I just liked the ability to dump the data into one source and track trends. Not that the Sky Caddie was very complex. Tracked fairways missed, average drive distance if measured, gir, and putts. I've tried tracking on a card and always get lazy when it comes to entering the data into a spreadsheet after a while.

Sounds like it has all the features that I liked about the Sky Caddie. Now I just need to think long and hard about investing that kind of dough when my range finder is still working just fine.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
 
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