- 11 hours ago
Dan Parker talks through the very best golf laser rangefinders on the market to help you choose the right model for your game.
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00:00Best lasers 2025, thank you. Here's one of them. I'm breaking it down into five categories.
00:04The best value, the best compact, the best hybrid, the best graphics and the best features. I've been
00:09testing loads this year. We've got nine or ten to talk about. If you'd like to look at any of
00:13the lasers I've mentioned today, I've put some very clever links down in the description that
00:16will give you the best price in your area for one of those lasers. So if you like getting a
00:20look at
00:20them go check them out. All right first category is best hybrid lasers. These are lasers that also
00:34have GPS built into them. It's a fairly new category. I've tested two this year. First one is the Myles
00:39C Gene Pro G1. What makes this unique is it's got a touchscreen GPS built into the side of the
00:44device.
00:45First time I've tested a device like this and it's a tale of two halves, right?
00:49The laser, brilliant, fine. It's got slope, graphics are really clear,
00:53picked up the pin quickly and on its own is a very good laser. The inbuilt GPS is really useful
01:00because you get your front, middle and back to the green yardages. Full hole mapping as well,
01:05so you're playing somewhere new, that's very useful to have and the concept is brilliant and I think
01:11this is a generation away from being perfect but at the minute for me the screen was a touch laggy
01:16when
01:16you touch it which gets a bit frustrating when you're trying to find numbers and the device
01:20doesn't always know when you've switched holes. So sometimes you look at it and you're on the hole
01:25behind or the hole ahead or it got a bit mixed up and that was a bit frustrating. But as
01:29a package,
01:30a very reasonably priced package for a GPS and the laser, feels premium, looks premium and it is a
01:36genuinely unique feature that touchscreen that I think a lot of golfers can benefit from. I just think
01:41it's a generation away from being perfect. So that's the Mile C but my winner in this category
01:45is in my back pocket here, it's this, it's the Bushnell Tor Hybrid. Now this is a superb device.
01:51It's got the GPS built into it and you get everything you need as opposed to on the screen
01:56on the Mile C through the viewfinder. So you get your lasered yardage as you normally do on picking up
02:01a
02:01pin or a tree or whatever it is and then the inbuilt GPS which just starts itself up automatically
02:06and finds wherever you're at automatically then gives you your front middle back yardages
02:11to the green. Simple and it's all in the viewfinder. I've just found this one of the most useful
02:16devices I've ever used on a golf course and being Bushnell, it's super, super accurate. It's super,
02:21super premium. So as hybrid lasers go, the Mile C is excellent if a little bit too complex for me
02:27and
02:27too many moving parts. This, the Bushnell, it's got everything built in, super easy to use and is
02:33incredibly accurate. So if you're after one of those hybrid lasers, I'd put you in the direction
02:36of the Bushnell. Right, next category is best value and at the risk of cannibalizing a video
02:42I did a few months ago. I'm going to put the link up here somewhere so you can click on
02:46it where I
02:46test loads of value range finders. I'm going to give you the best two from that video. So spoiler
02:51alert, here they come. First one I don't have on me today is the PIN Prism Plus. Now you're going
02:56to
02:56see a lot of greys, blacks, plastics in this video and the PIN Prism Plus is a completely different look.
03:01So if you're sort of a bit more unique, a bit more stylish, that's your option.
03:05At £199, it's great value. It looks and feels like it's worth a lot more than that. It does all
03:10the basics great and looks fine as well. So it looks a bit different. I'd go for that. But the
03:14winner of this category and that video I just mentioned is this, the Golf Buddy Laser 2S Pro.
03:20Now, when I've not been testing all the range finds you can see today, this has been the one I've
03:24gone
03:24back to because it just has everything in a very premium, very small, neat package. So it's got your
03:30normal laser functionality with slope-adjusted distances that you can toggle on and off.
03:34It's got a scan mode, which is really useful if you're just trying to
03:38scan, I guess, and figure out parts of the fairway, where there's a bunker, where there's a tree,
03:41stuff like that. It's also got a triangulation mode, which would be great if you're a
03:46cart golfer in the States or in the UK and you're cart path golf only. You can ping your ball
03:52when you're
03:52not stood next to it, ping the pin, providing you can see it, and it will give you that distance
03:57while
03:57you're not stood next to the ball. So you can select your club before you even go there. Does
04:01that make sense? Good. And it's in a nice, neat package. At 149 quid in here in the UK,
04:05it's the cheapest on tests today by quite a way and means if you just don't want to spend a
04:11lot of
04:12money on a laser, but want everything there, that's the one to go for.
04:18Right, next category is the best compact laser. So if you want something little small like this for
04:23your tiny little hands or to put your pocket or tiny little pockets in your bag, then these are
04:27the ones for you, right? And despite their size, they pack quite a lot of features. So I've got two
04:30today. Marcy Ion Me 2 is the first one. Now this little boxy thing is tiny. If you look at
04:36the palm
04:36of my hand, it's really, really small, but has loads of features. Two unique ones that make it stand out.
04:41First is the carry case. It's this little thing. It's got nothing that goes all the way around it.
04:47And the idea, unfortunately, and I hate it, is that you can clip onto your belt like this
04:52and walk around like that. Now, if we're being truly honest with ourselves, nobody's going to
04:56do that. If you do, that's fine. But realistically, you're not. However, you can clip that onto your
05:00bag and it looks much better. And what I do like is how accessible it is. You can just pull
05:04it in and
05:05out of there when it's clipped to your bag or your pocket, if that's what you're into. And the reason
05:10they
05:10want it on your pocket is because this thing can read putts technically, not fully, but a little bit.
05:16So unique feature of this is if while you're on the green, you zap the top of the pin,
05:21it will tell you how many feet uphill or downhill that pin is away from you. Now,
05:25it obviously can't read side slope for you, but if you're really bad at reading putts and can't tell
05:30what's uphill or downhill, this will be very helpful for you. Most people can, but how uphill or how
05:35downhill it is, maybe not. So two unique features of this device as a laser on its own. Again,
05:41brilliant slope adjusted distances, feels really premium and is really compact if that's what you're into.
05:45And sorry, if you do wear on your belt, that's just my opinion. It doesn't look great. Let's get rid
05:50of that. My winner for this category though, is another Bushnell product and they kind of stand
05:53out for this sort of thing, but it's this little thing, the A1 slope. This is their most compact
05:58ever laser. And it's basically everything that's good about a Bushnell product in a really compact
06:02device. So the jolt technology that just puts a little vibration through it when you get the pin
06:07spot on, slope adjusted distances, looks great. It's really compact and super, super accurate.
06:12So yeah, if you're just after a nice compact laser, I'd keep it simple and go Bushnell.
06:21Right. Next category is best viewfinder or best display. Now, none of the lasers I've mentioned
06:25here have bad ones. It's just that these two models I'm going to mention really stand out.
06:29The first is the ShotScope Pro L5, their newest rangefinder, which has an OLED display. So really,
06:34really clear through that viewfinder. And on top of some bright red graphics,
06:38in changeable light conditions, you can really see lots very quickly through this. It's a neat package
06:43as well, really premium, built in magnet and just a very solid rangefinder ShotScope that they always
06:49make. And my other option in this category is the Blue Tees Series 4 Ultra. I'm a big Blue Tees
06:56guy.
06:56I love the Series 3, looks premium, performs well. And the Series 4 has been upgraded with an OLED display.
07:02You're seeing a lot more of these in rangefinders now. Really actually very identical to the L5,
07:07look through the viewfinder. Bright red graphics that you can change in red and black on this one.
07:12And the OLED display, as I looked through it there, it's just super, super clear. And with six times
07:16magnification on this, you really get a good idea of the hole ahead of you, whether you're just trying
07:20to strategize or see the pin or a bunker, whatever it is really clearly. So both of these, and you
07:25can
07:25see actually, they're built very, very similarly as well. So same sort of size, same sort of feel, both really
07:30clear. So if you're looking for something that really pops with a viewfinder, I'd recommend either
07:33of these. Right, next category is best features. And what I mean by this is I've got three devices
07:41here that have got very unique features that might fulfill a very specific purpose for you.
07:44First is the Garmin Approach Z30. In its own right, great laser, very premium, looks great, excellent.
07:50The main reason you'd want this is to link it if you already have a Garmin smartwatch. What this very
07:55cleverly does is link to it. And when you zap the pin, when it's linked to your watch,
08:00will put the pin yardage on your watch and give you a bird's eye view of the green with where
08:05the
08:05pin is, if that makes any sense. It's very, very user-friendly, pick up really quickly. And it
08:11just gives you that added bit of information alongside your watch and your front, middle,
08:15back distances, as well as your laser yardage. So if you're already in the Garmin ecosystem and
08:20are looking for a laser, I'd point in the direction of this because those two things talk to each other
08:23brilliantly. Right, next laser with a very unique feature is the Flightscope i4. Now link this to
08:28the Flightscope app, input your 7-iron pitching wedge and driver distance data. And it's a very
08:33clever algorithm that will work out how far you hit each club and recommend it through the viewfinder
08:38of the device when you're out on the course. It also links up to a weather app, which allows it
08:43to
08:43understand the wind direction you're playing in on the day and the speed, and will use all of that
08:46information to recommend clubs to you. So it's a very, very useful device if you're not very good at
08:50picking your own clubs and want a bit of extra help. Obviously you can't use that in competition
08:54mode, but if you don't play in a lot of competitions, this is a really cool device and
08:57no other device we've tested has any kind of functionality like that. So if that kind of
09:00thing appeals to you, I'd really consider checking this out. The final one in this category, the
09:05very unique feature, probably the most unique is the Canon PowerShot. Now Canon you'll know is a
09:09camera company and this laser comes with a built-in camera. Why would I want a camera out on course
09:15when I've always got my phone on me? I hear you ask or here's what Canon say about that. This
09:20can
09:21help you create a personal course diary complete with voice memos to record a breakdown of every
09:25shot. In the event of disputes or questions about rule compliance, golfers can use the camera to
09:30document their lie, the position of the ball or any obstacles in their path. This visual evidence can
09:35help settle disagreements and maintain the integrity of the game. Canon's words, not mine,
09:40and take that as you need to. It takes 11 megapixel photos, which I've been told by our videographers,
09:46fine, and HD video as well. So if you want to document your time on the course, as well as
09:51have
09:51your laser yardages done, there's the device for you. Why wouldn't you use your phone that you've
09:55always got with you that probably has a better camera on it? I don't know. Like I said, this is
09:59niche, but I wanted to highlight that it is available. But the overall winner was a very easy choice this
10:07year
10:07and it is the Bushnell Tour Hybrid. Having GPS built into a laser just gives you that added bit
10:12of information that I've really enjoyed having on the golf course with me. That it picks up the GPS
10:17instantly without you having to do anything. And the fact that it's a very premium, well-built
10:21Bushnell device makes it easily the best rangefinder of 2025.
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