Launch monitor

[Bassfisher]

Hi all, Having recently moved house I now want to build a practice net facility in the garden, looking for a lower priced launch monitor that I can use that also shows the ball flight?

 

[Oops!]

Define “low-priced”, please !

 

[kp17]

Low price you’re probably still looking at a few hundred quid for something that would do the job.
But you could vary between a few hundred quid and a few thousand pretty easy.

Garmin do a pretty good one about the £500 mark

 

[Oops!]

Low price you’re probably still looking at a few hundred quid for something that would do the job.
But you could vary between a few hundred quid and a few thousand pretty easy.

Garmin do a pretty good one about the £500 mark

… but AFAIK you need a subscription to take full advantage of it, right?

 

[Bassfisher]

Few hundred is ok

 

[Oops!]

Check out the Swing Caddie SC4 Pro. But be careful: Make sure it’s the “Pro” version! The hardware is largely identical to the previous model, but the “Pro” model has completely new software and an app - and, importantly, the app does NOT work with the previous model !

I looked into this topic very closely a few months ago, and in the end, the SC4 Pro seemed to me to be the best compromise between price and performance.

Sure, there are (always!) better options, but you have to pay for their extra features (e.g., cameras), and especially in this price range, the price jump to the next higher tier is enormous - 100% to be exact. And if it’s not the purchase price, it’s the subscriptions that make the device significantly more expensive in the long run than the initially seemingly low purchase price would suggest (Rapsodo, Garmin, etc.).

The SC4 Pro requires no subscriptions and works completely “stand-alone.”

I’m very happy with it.

 

[JayB]

The Rapsodo MLM2 Pro is a very nice bit of kit but while you can use it without additional costs, to get the most out of it you really do need to purchase the subscription.

Regretably, I'm selling mine, I just don't have the ability to set up at home, have barely used it and personally can't justify the subscription costs.

 

[Springveldt]

Depends what you mean by “shows the ball flight”. The MLM2Pro is probably the cheapest option for outdoors that actually measures the spin. The R10, MLM1 and Mevo all estimate the spin. Next option would be Mevo+ or Mevo Gen2.

The photometric units that work outdoors are all more expensive, maybe the original SkyTrak works outdoors but I remember people complaining it didn’t pick up shots in bright sunlight.

You can probably get a MLM2Pro off eBay for about £400 second hand, that would be my choice if spending under £500.

I’m considering buying the Square Omni for the back garden. Just waiting on some more reviews and then it becoming more available. So far it looks really good and is giving you data comparable to other photometric units at double the price.

 

[Barking_Mad]

Surprised no one has mentioned the new Shot Scope LM1. £200 and getting excellent reviews.

 

[nickjdavis]

Surprised no one has mentioned the new Shot Scope LM1. £200 and getting excellent reviews.

Fails the OP's requirement for an LM that shows ball flight.

 

[Bassfisher]

Thanks for the replies, essentially what I am after is to be able to see whether I have hit the ball straight when hitting into the net that I';m building. It does seem that MLM2Pro offers this and a lot more that I don't need , particularly the subscription! Anyone know if the subscription is required to watch the ball flight?

 

[Springveldt]

Thanks for the replies, essentially what I am after is to be able to see whether I have hit the ball straight when hitting into the net that I';m building. It does seem that MLM2Pro offers this and a lot more that I don't need , particularly the subscription! Anyone know if the subscription is required to watch the ball flight?

Unfortunately, I think the subscription is required for it to measure the spin. For measured spin without a subscription you are looking at Square Home Edition (indoor only), Square Omni (£1600 when released), FlightScope Mevo Plus (buy 2nd hand with the Pro Package and you get swing direction, face to path etc) and SkyTrak (original one can be had cheap but it's supposed to be temperamental when using outside).

If you don't want to pay the subscription for the MLM2Pro (think it's something like £160 a year or £500 for life) then either wait on one appearing on eBay with the lifetime already bought or get a 2nd hand Mevo Plus, these can be had for under £600 and under £1000 with the Pro Package.

SkyTrak has dropped the price of their monitors massively, probably because they see the writing on the wall with the Square Omni being released at £1600 but you need a subscription with them if you want anything more than just a basic range. The Square Omni looks ridiculous value for money considering all the metrics it gives, it's probably going to be the go to launch monitor for anyone building a sim that isn't buying a Trackman IO or GC Quad, it's that good.

 

[peld]

You do see ball flight on MLM2Pro without a subscription.
You dont get spin (but you need the special balls anyway, so thats indoor only), nor club stats
You dont get the impact camera without the subscription, nor do you get the courses, target range etc, basically just the normal practice range.