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Voice Caddie SC300i Launch Monitor Review


Fongle

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Voice Caddie SC300i Launch Monitor  – MGS Forum Member Review by Fongle

20230501_172730(1)(1).jpg.950ca65c6d4eb51dbaa256ecde71ca14.jpg

Intro 

G’day all!

After making a snap decision 6 months ago to purchase a launch monitor, I figured I might offer some insights, and thoughts about the model I picked up, the Voice Caddie SC300i.

I’m a single handicap player, from South East QLD, Australia, trying to ease back into the game after a near decade break due to a severe knee issue. Finally had surgery and got it sorted, and I’ve been playing again for the last 17 months or so now, and WOW, there is a lot of new golf tech out there. Rangefinders, shot sensors, GPS watches, and launch monitors are everywhere now, and honestly, I think they’re brilliant. Long gone are the days of looking for a fairway marker and trying to figure out if it means 100 or 150 left in, or looking at the map on the hole sign and trying to guess what distance the hazards are at.

I’d decided my swing was getting consistent enough to try dialling my numbers in, and was tossing up getting a membership at a local Toptracer range, and then I saw a clearance deal on the Voice Caddie SC300i and from the limited information I could see about it online, it looked like a great option.

It promised to use “High Performance Doppler Radar Technology” to be able to give all the stats I was looking for, total and carry distance, swing speed, ball speed, launch angle, apex, smash factor, as well as giving spin numbers through the connected app, and would allow me to record matching swing videos with the swing numbers linked to them.

I’ve used it pretty steadily over the last 6 months, and while it has been good, it’s also been needlessly frustrating when it doesn’t need to be.

First Impressions (3 out of 5)

The first thing that jumped out at me when I’d ordered the SC300i was that it didn’t come with a case included, and the official case sold as an optional extra was obscenely overpriced for what it is ($89 AUD). Thankfully it fits fine into an AmazonBasics case, but it definitely started me off on the wrong foot with that. The actual unit came with almost nothing, just the remote, basic instructions, and a too-small-to-be-useful USB charging cable. The instructions were pretty easy to follow, and it included a QR code to easily scan and find the connected app, and setting that up and linking it were thankfully very easy to do.

The screen is very easy to read at a glance, and the units of measurement for distance, speed and height can be changed between yards/metres, mph/metres/s, and feet/metres respectively. Finding the data per club in the app is easy enough, but not being able to make the swing data full page, or switch it to landscape mode is frustrating, with it being stuck in a small table you need to swipe through to see all the information.

When entering my club data into the app, which then loads onto the unit when connected, I started running into some strange issues. I wasn’t able to enter a 2 iron as an option (it’s currently under Utility 3), and not being able to set the proper lie angle of some clubs, with loft being able to be entered by 0.5° increments, and lie angle locked to whole numbers only. Certainly not massive issues, but bizarre nonetheless.

Screenshot_20230501_223305_MySwingCaddie.jpg.c740b733ccb2d8e1879674ac31435c73.jpgScreenshot_20230501_223829_MySwingCaddie.jpg.4f6d3f60f67733e3428794ee97922b6a.jpgScreenshot_20230501_224038_MySwingCaddie.jpg.f90fa587a4371a2015886f7494c44b29.jpg

Aesthetics (3 out of 5) 

The SC300i is a very compact little unit, about 6.5”x4.7”x1.1” and weighing just 15.4oz, with a very orange screen, and good contrast which helps in reading the swing numbers. I just don’t like orange that much. Sue me, I’m not Rickie Fowler.

Capture(1).jpg.e553a33869c021203ee7b41680fcd9c6.jpgCapture1(1).jpg.9a58facd57403bd7c0f7e13fc77bdd5b.jpg

The Numbers (3 out of 5 points)

As mentioned previously, the SC300i captures data for total and carry distance, swing speed, ball speed, launch angle, apex, smash factor, and spin data separately through the app.

When it captures strikes, the actual data provided seems to be quite accurate, with distance, ball speed and spin numbers being extremely similar to higher end launch monitors. I had an opportunity to set the unit up behind me while hitting with a GCQuad a few months ago, and for the most part the data was within about a +/- 2% margin, and the spin data within a couple hundred RPM. 

The issue is when it either randomly just doesn’t pick up strikes at all, which can sometimes mean some adjusting to make sure it’s on level with a tall tee peg coming through a range mat, and more frustratingly, when it just won’t register high spin numbers at all. Before I bought the unit I didn’t see any mention of this at all, but it seems for me the SC300i just won’t reliably register spin numbers on anything from my 9i up, with the highest recorded RPM it’s recorded being 8670.

Actually reviewing the data has recently become harder too. Previously, within a set of data, which could be sorted by a date range, year, or total, there was options to view all clubs at a time with multiple options to get details at a glance, like average carry, average total, highest carry, average spin etc, but as of the most recent app update when viewing all clubs together it just shows average carry, and you now need to click into each clubs data to see the rest of the data.

Screenshot_20230502_005301_MySwingCaddie.jpg.0df21a3649406a29dad71e044e76046b.jpgScreenshot_20230502_012917_MySwingCaddie.jpg.a3ab1a8379f9f777bfdb13f6a1336682.jpgScreenshot_20230502_012929_MySwingCaddie.jpg.720f31f3835dc7f3860e1dbb8f224fd8.jpg

On The Course (4 out of 5 points)

Setting up and using the unit is very straightforward, and thankfully pretty simple. I typically just take the unit out, set it up on top of the case about 5 feet away, and open and connect the app, which takes roughly 10 seconds.

Using the video recording function is also pretty easy to do, I use a small basic tripod, and I just sit this behind the unit with it lined up to capture all of me in the frame. The only issue I have here is that when I’m hitting through balls pretty fast, it will sometimes capture the swing data, but won’t capture the accompanying video.

Switching between different clubs is super easy as well, with the included remote able to do this virtually instantly. 

 Screenshot_20230501_224216_MySwingCaddie(1).jpg.503f95482be8a777c6954781164e1206.jpg

 

 

The Good, the bad, the inbetween (2 out of 5 points)

Getting instant feedback on trying something new with a swing, or even just seeing big club or ball speeds when going hell for leather on a speed training session is fantastic, and the positive reinforcement of seeing actual tangible evidence cannot be understated.

My single biggest issue is actually accessing the numbers from the app. A big selling factor for me was the ability to export swing data as a CSV, which I could then plug into a custom spreadsheet and see my data and review different swing changes and trends in my swing, but actually doing this is a nightmare in poor design. Instead of being able to highlight all the data to export, you need to do this one at a time for Every. Single. Club. Oh, and it doesn’t like being exported directly to Google Drive or Sheets, as that can corrupt the data, you need to export to email, and then download the attachments one at a time. I have contacted Voice Caddie about this, and they’ve said they’ll pass the suggestion for a bulk export along, but as of the last update nothing has changed.

The video recording function is also good, but not great. It captures video in 30fps 720p, and there’s zero options for changing frame rate or resolution, which is a huge disappointment. Seeing a good swing in slow motion is nice, but watching it in 30fps HD video when my Note 20 can manage UHD 60fps is incredibly frustrating.
 

Play it or Trade it? (2 out of 5 points)

I do use the SC300i regularly, but less than I originally imagined I would. With the frustration of the software, and the strange choices Voice Caddie has made with recent software updates, I’ve been considering selling it and finding something a bit more user friendly. It’s nice to have, but there’s definitely better options out there.

Conclusion

The SC300i is a solid unit, let down by frustrating and confusing software. It seems like a huge missed opportunity, because the hardware works well, and gives good, accurate data, especially for a unit with such a small form factor, and for something that’s quite a bit cheaper than any other options I could see available. Ultimately the negative user experience overweighs the benefits to me as a golfer.
 

Final Score (17 out of 30 points)

SC300i_4.jpg

Edited by Fongle
Typo

Driver - :cobra-small: King SZ 1w 7.5° w/ Aldila Rogue Silver 110MSI 60x

Woods - :cobra-small:King SZ Big Tour 3w 13.5° w/ Fujikura Pro 65, King SZ 5w 20° w/ Tensei CK White 70

Driving Iron - :cobra-small: King Utility 2i 16° w/ Project X Hzrdus Black 85

Irons - :callaway-small: Apex '24 Combo set - 4i Pro, 5i-8i CB, 9i-10i MB w/ KBS Tour V 120 X-Stiff

Wedges - :callaway-small: MD5 Jaws 52° - S 10° grind, 56° - C 8° grind, 60° - C 8° grind w/ Dynamic Gold Spinner Tour Issue 115

Putter(s) - :odyssey-small: :callaway-small: :scotty-small: :titleist-small: :ping-small:  :nike-small: :wilson-small: O-Works 2 Ball Black, Big Bertha Warbird, Special Select Squareback 2.0, Red X2, Bullseye Original Flange SC, Bullseye Standard Flange SC, OG Bronze Anser, Method Midnight 007, R.Mendralla 8802

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Thanks - I was given one for Christmas.  Haven't used it much but did recently and was impressed by the unit itself. Interestingly I went for a driver fitting yesterday and the numbers were very similar with my driver to what I had on the Voice Caddy the day before. 

 

Like you I was extremely frustrated by the app - at least you got yours to download - I can't even access it on my phone - it says that there's already an account registered to my email, so I tried my work email and it said the same - that's impossible.  I'd love to have the spin rate data but honestly don't know how much good it would do as I'd be using range balls - I don't get enough chance to play on course where I could use it and capture enough data to be accurate with a good quality ball.

 

I noticed that the app had under a 2 star rating BTW. 

Taylor Made Stealth 2 10.5 Diamana S plus 60  Aldila  R flex   - 42.25 inches 

SMT 4 wood bassara R flex, four wood head, 3 wood shaft

Ping G410 7, 9 wood  Alta 65 R flex

Srixon ZX5 MK II  5-GW - UST recoil Dart 65 R flex

India 52,56 (60 pending)  UST recoil 75's R flex  

Evon roll ER 5 32 inches

It's our offseason so auditioning candidates - looking for that right mix of low spin long, more spin around the greens - TBD   

 

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56 minutes ago, revkev said:

Haven't used it much but did recently and was impressed by the unit itself. Interestingly I went for a driver fitting yesterday and the numbers were very similar with my driver to what I had on the Voice Caddy the day before. 

 Yeah, that's what I found, the actual unit itself is good, and the numbers it gives are really accurate, especially for the cost and form factor, but the sheer unwieldiness of the software and actually extracting the data makes too frustrating to really want to use much any more.

Driver - :cobra-small: King SZ 1w 7.5° w/ Aldila Rogue Silver 110MSI 60x

Woods - :cobra-small:King SZ Big Tour 3w 13.5° w/ Fujikura Pro 65, King SZ 5w 20° w/ Tensei CK White 70

Driving Iron - :cobra-small: King Utility 2i 16° w/ Project X Hzrdus Black 85

Irons - :callaway-small: Apex '24 Combo set - 4i Pro, 5i-8i CB, 9i-10i MB w/ KBS Tour V 120 X-Stiff

Wedges - :callaway-small: MD5 Jaws 52° - S 10° grind, 56° - C 8° grind, 60° - C 8° grind w/ Dynamic Gold Spinner Tour Issue 115

Putter(s) - :odyssey-small: :callaway-small: :scotty-small: :titleist-small: :ping-small:  :nike-small: :wilson-small: O-Works 2 Ball Black, Big Bertha Warbird, Special Select Squareback 2.0, Red X2, Bullseye Original Flange SC, Bullseye Standard Flange SC, OG Bronze Anser, Method Midnight 007, R.Mendralla 8802

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  • 3 weeks later...
On 5/1/2023 at 8:32 AM, Fongle said:

Voice Caddie SC300i Launch Monitor  – MGS Forum Member Review by Fongle

20230501_172730(1)(1).jpg.950ca65c6d4eb51dbaa256ecde71ca14.jpg

Intro 

G’day all!

After making a snap decision 6 months ago to purchase a launch monitor, I figured I might offer some insights, and thoughts about the model I picked up, the Voice Caddie SC300i.

I’m a single handicap player, from South East QLD, Australia, trying to ease back into the game after a near decade break due to a severe knee issue. Finally had surgery and got it sorted, and I’ve been playing again for the last 17 months or so now, and WOW, there is a lot of new golf tech out there. Rangefinders, shot sensors, GPS watches, and launch monitors are everywhere now, and honestly, I think they’re brilliant. Long gone are the days of looking for a fairway marker and trying to figure out if it means 100 or 150 left in, or looking at the map on the hole sign and trying to guess what distance the hazards are at.

I’d decided my swing was getting consistent enough to try dialling my numbers in, and was tossing up getting a membership at a local Toptracer range, and then I saw a clearance deal on the Voice Caddie SC300i and from the limited information I could see about it online, it looked like a great option.

It promised to use “High Performance Doppler Radar Technology” to be able to give all the stats I was looking for, total and carry distance, swing speed, ball speed, launch angle, apex, smash factor, as well as giving spin numbers through the connected app, and would allow me to record matching swing videos with the swing numbers linked to them.

I’ve used it pretty steadily over the last 6 months, and while it has been good, it’s also been needlessly frustrating when it doesn’t need to be.

First Impressions (3 out of 5)

The first thing that jumped out at me when I’d ordered the SC300i was that it didn’t come with a case included, and the official case sold as an optional extra was obscenely overpriced for what it is ($89 AUD). Thankfully it fits fine into an AmazonBasics case, but it definitely started me off on the wrong foot with that. The actual unit came with almost nothing, just the remote, basic instructions, and a too-small-to-be-useful USB charging cable. The instructions were pretty easy to follow, and it included a QR code to easily scan and find the connected app, and setting that up and linking it were thankfully very easy to do.

The screen is very easy to read at a glance, and the units of measurement for distance, speed and height can be changed between yards/metres, mph/metres/s, and feet/metres respectively. Finding the data per club in the app is easy enough, but not being able to make the swing data full page, or switch it to landscape mode is frustrating, with it being stuck in a small table you need to swipe through to see all the information.

When entering my club data into the app, which then loads onto the unit when connected, I started running into some strange issues. I wasn’t able to enter a 2 iron as an option (it’s currently under Utility 3), and not being able to set the proper lie angle of some clubs, with loft being able to be entered by 0.5° increments, and lie angle locked to whole numbers only. Certainly not massive issues, but bizarre nonetheless.

Screenshot_20230501_223305_MySwingCaddie.jpg.c740b733ccb2d8e1879674ac31435c73.jpgScreenshot_20230501_223829_MySwingCaddie.jpg.4f6d3f60f67733e3428794ee97922b6a.jpgScreenshot_20230501_224038_MySwingCaddie.jpg.f90fa587a4371a2015886f7494c44b29.jpg

Aesthetics (3 out of 5) 

The SC300i is a very compact little unit, about 6.5”x4.7”x1.1” and weighing just 15.4oz, with a very orange screen, and good contrast which helps in reading the swing numbers. I just don’t like orange that much. Sue me, I’m not Rickie Fowler.

Capture(1).jpg.e553a33869c021203ee7b41680fcd9c6.jpgCapture1(1).jpg.9a58facd57403bd7c0f7e13fc77bdd5b.jpg

The Numbers (3 out of 5 points)

As mentioned previously, the SC300i captures data for total and carry distance, swing speed, ball speed, launch angle, apex, smash factor, and spin data separately through the app.

When it captures strikes, the actual data provided seems to be quite accurate, with distance, ball speed and spin numbers being extremely similar to higher end launch monitors. I had an opportunity to set the unit up behind me while hitting with a GCQuad a few months ago, and for the most part the data was within about a +/- 2% margin, and the spin data within a couple hundred RPM. 

The issue is when it either randomly just doesn’t pick up strikes at all, which can sometimes mean some adjusting to make sure it’s on level with a tall tee peg coming through a range mat, and more frustratingly, when it just won’t register high spin numbers at all. Before I bought the unit I didn’t see any mention of this at all, but it seems for me the SC300i just won’t reliably register spin numbers on anything from my 9i up, with the highest recorded RPM it’s recorded being 8670.

Actually reviewing the data has recently become harder too. Previously, within a set of data, which could be sorted by a date range, year, or total, there was options to view all clubs at a time with multiple options to get details at a glance, like average carry, average total, highest carry, average spin etc, but as of the most recent app update when viewing all clubs together it just shows average carry, and you now need to click into each clubs data to see the rest of the data.

Screenshot_20230502_005301_MySwingCaddie.jpg.0df21a3649406a29dad71e044e76046b.jpgScreenshot_20230502_012917_MySwingCaddie.jpg.a3ab1a8379f9f777bfdb13f6a1336682.jpgScreenshot_20230502_012929_MySwingCaddie.jpg.720f31f3835dc7f3860e1dbb8f224fd8.jpg

On The Course (4 out of 5 points)

Setting up and using the unit is very straightforward, and thankfully pretty simple. I typically just take the unit out, set it up on top of the case about 5 feet away, and open and connect the app, which takes roughly 10 seconds.

Using the video recording function is also pretty easy to do, I use a small basic tripod, and I just sit this behind the unit with it lined up to capture all of me in the frame. The only issue I have here is that when I’m hitting through balls pretty fast, it will sometimes capture the swing data, but won’t capture the accompanying video.

Switching between different clubs is super easy as well, with the included remote able to do this virtually instantly. 

 

 Screenshot_20230501_224216_MySwingCaddie(1).jpg.503f95482be8a777c6954781164e1206.jpg

 

 

The Good, the bad, the inbetween (2 out of 5 points)

Getting instant feedback on trying something new with a swing, or even just seeing big club or ball speeds when going hell for leather on a speed training session is fantastic, and the positive reinforcement of seeing actual tangible evidence cannot be understated.

My single biggest issue is actually accessing the numbers from the app. A big selling factor for me was the ability to export swing data as a CSV, which I could then plug into a custom spreadsheet and see my data and review different swing changes and trends in my swing, but actually doing this is a nightmare in poor design. Instead of being able to highlight all the data to export, you need to do this one at a time for Every. Single. Club. Oh, and it doesn’t like being exported directly to Google Drive or Sheets, as that can corrupt the data, you need to export to email, and then download the attachments one at a time. I have contacted Voice Caddie about this, and they’ve said they’ll pass the suggestion for a bulk export along, but as of the last update nothing has changed.

The video recording function is also good, but not great. It captures video in 30fps 720p, and there’s zero options for changing frame rate or resolution, which is a huge disappointment. Seeing a good swing in slow motion is nice, but watching it in 30fps HD video when my Note 20 can manage UHD 60fps is incredibly frustrating.
 

Play it or Trade it? (2 out of 5 points)

I do use the SC300i regularly, but less than I originally imagined I would. With the frustration of the software, and the strange choices Voice Caddie has made with recent software updates, I’ve been considering selling it and finding something a bit more user friendly. It’s nice to have, but there’s definitely better options out there.

Conclusion

The SC300i is a solid unit, let down by frustrating and confusing software. It seems like a huge missed opportunity, because the hardware works well, and gives good, accurate data, especially for a unit with such a small form factor, and for something that’s quite a bit cheaper than any other options I could see available. Ultimately the negative user experience overweighs the benefits to me as a golfer.
 

Final Score (17 out of 30 points)

SC300i_4.jpg

Great review, thanks for doing this!  I have an SC200 that I purchased used on our B&S thread a few years ago.  It has worked quite well except on wedge shots where it tends to have some challenges capturing the ball and/or correct distance.  When the SC300 came out, I was curious about it and whether the price and few extra data points might be worth having.  Based on yours and other reviews, I thinking I'd more likely step up into the next tier of PLM's; maybe Rapsodo?  Before we moved to AZ, I was looking at a Mevo+ so I could use it in a DIY hitting bay and on the range.  Now living in a golf course community with 4 courses and 3 ranges, I've shelved that... for now. 

:ping-small: G410 Plus, 9 Degree Driver 

:ping-small: G400 SFT, 16 Degree 3w

:ping-small: G400 SFT, 19 Degree 5w

:srixon-small:  ZX5 Irons 4-AW 

:ping-small: Glide 2.0 56 Degree SW   (removed from double secret probation 😍)

:EVNROLL: ER5v Putter  (Evnroll ER5v Official Review)

:odyssey-small: AI-One Milled Seven T CH (Currently Under Product Test)

 

 

 

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On 5/2/2023 at 4:59 PM, revkev said:

Thanks - I was given one for Christmas.  Haven't used it much but did recently and was impressed by the unit itself. Interestingly I went for a driver fitting yesterday and the numbers were very similar with my driver to what I had on the Voice Caddy the day before. 

 

Like you I was extremely frustrated by the app - at least you got yours to download - I can't even access it on my phone - it says that there's already an account registered to my email, so I tried my work email and it said the same - that's impossible.  I'd love to have the spin rate data but honestly don't know how much good it would do as I'd be using range balls - I don't get enough chance to play on course where I could use it and capture enough data to be accurate with a good quality ball.

 

I noticed that the app had under a 2 star rating BTW. 

@revkev, weren't you one of our Rapsodo testers?  If so, do you still use it/like it?

:ping-small: G410 Plus, 9 Degree Driver 

:ping-small: G400 SFT, 16 Degree 3w

:ping-small: G400 SFT, 19 Degree 5w

:srixon-small:  ZX5 Irons 4-AW 

:ping-small: Glide 2.0 56 Degree SW   (removed from double secret probation 😍)

:EVNROLL: ER5v Putter  (Evnroll ER5v Official Review)

:odyssey-small: AI-One Milled Seven T CH (Currently Under Product Test)

 

 

 

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On 5/1/2023 at 11:32 AM, Fongle said:

Voice Caddie SC300i Launch Monitor  – MGS Forum Member Review by Fongle

20230501_172730(1)(1).jpg.950ca65c6d4eb51dbaa256ecde71ca14.jpg

 

 

Thanks for sharing your thoughts; I had the SC300 for a while and realized that I didn't use half of the stuff it captured and all I really cared about (and usually felt was reliable) was swing speed and carry distance.
I got rid of that and found a cheap used SC200 on e b a y and I use it at the range regularly to make sure my gapping is still good. 
I don't know much about the newer version but I experienced frustration similar to you when trying to collect and analyze the data and ultimately gave up.

It's great for basic stuff, is fun to use and easy to carry and the version I have is battery powered.  It's relatively cheap and the distances are pretty close to the expensive LM's but if you're looking for advanced data I wouldn't rely too much on it.

 

DriverCobra  Aerojet LS
Woods-
Cobra  LTD 3w 15*, 5W 19*,  F9 24* 
Irons- XXIO X (6-A)

Wedges- Callaway Jaws Raw (54/58)

Putter- Bettinardi BB56
Ball- Maxfli Tour X/Wilson Triad
Buggy- Clicgear 4.0
Bag- Callaway Org 14/Fairway C

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26 minutes ago, fixyurdivot said:

@revkev, weren't you one of our Rapsodo testers?  If so, do you still use it/like it?

I was not but I do have one. It’s accurate in regards to ball speed and distance, not so accurate in terms of SS and smash factor IMO. The tracer feature is really cool. My biggest issue though is that it relies on the phone which always overheats quickly in the summer months in Florida. It’s almost unusable from June to September. 

Taylor Made Stealth 2 10.5 Diamana S plus 60  Aldila  R flex   - 42.25 inches 

SMT 4 wood bassara R flex, four wood head, 3 wood shaft

Ping G410 7, 9 wood  Alta 65 R flex

Srixon ZX5 MK II  5-GW - UST recoil Dart 65 R flex

India 52,56 (60 pending)  UST recoil 75's R flex  

Evon roll ER 5 32 inches

It's our offseason so auditioning candidates - looking for that right mix of low spin long, more spin around the greens - TBD   

 

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4 hours ago, revkev said:

I was not but I do have one. It’s accurate in regards to ball speed and distance, not so accurate in terms of SS and smash factor IMO. The tracer feature is really cool. My biggest issue though is that it relies on the phone which always overheats quickly in the summer months in Florida. It’s almost unusable from June to September. 

Hmm, good point. Last July I drove down from MT to AZ to meet the realtor and home inspector.  It was 108F when I pulled up out front.  Having a little time before they arrived and knowing the house was unoccupied, I took some short video clips of the yard to share with my wife back home.  Suddenly I get an icon at the top of the screen I'd never seen before... yup, phone overheat alert 😲.  I think I'll pass on the Rapsodo. 

:ping-small: G410 Plus, 9 Degree Driver 

:ping-small: G400 SFT, 16 Degree 3w

:ping-small: G400 SFT, 19 Degree 5w

:srixon-small:  ZX5 Irons 4-AW 

:ping-small: Glide 2.0 56 Degree SW   (removed from double secret probation 😍)

:EVNROLL: ER5v Putter  (Evnroll ER5v Official Review)

:odyssey-small: AI-One Milled Seven T CH (Currently Under Product Test)

 

 

 

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On 5/19/2023 at 7:47 PM, fixyurdivot said:

Hmm, good point. Last July I drove down from MT to AZ to meet the realtor and home inspector.  It was 108F when I pulled up out front.  Having a little time before they arrived and knowing the house was unoccupied, I took some short video clips of the yard to share with my wife back home.  Suddenly I get an icon at the top of the screen I'd never seen before... yup, phone overheat alert 😲.  I think I'll pass on the Rapsodo. 

I’ve not had that issue with the voice caddie. I have yet to try it on shots into the net. 

Taylor Made Stealth 2 10.5 Diamana S plus 60  Aldila  R flex   - 42.25 inches 

SMT 4 wood bassara R flex, four wood head, 3 wood shaft

Ping G410 7, 9 wood  Alta 65 R flex

Srixon ZX5 MK II  5-GW - UST recoil Dart 65 R flex

India 52,56 (60 pending)  UST recoil 75's R flex  

Evon roll ER 5 32 inches

It's our offseason so auditioning candidates - looking for that right mix of low spin long, more spin around the greens - TBD   

 

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1 hour ago, revkev said:

I’ve not had that issue with the voice caddie. I have yet to try it on shots into the net. 

Well, we're now at just about 100F for day highs, so I guess I'll see how the SC200 works in this environment.

:ping-small: G410 Plus, 9 Degree Driver 

:ping-small: G400 SFT, 16 Degree 3w

:ping-small: G400 SFT, 19 Degree 5w

:srixon-small:  ZX5 Irons 4-AW 

:ping-small: Glide 2.0 56 Degree SW   (removed from double secret probation 😍)

:EVNROLL: ER5v Putter  (Evnroll ER5v Official Review)

:odyssey-small: AI-One Milled Seven T CH (Currently Under Product Test)

 

 

 

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10 hours ago, fixyurdivot said:

Well, we're now at just about 100F for day highs, so I guess I'll see how the SC200 works in this environment.

Yeah but it's dry heat 🤣

Left Hand orientation

:taylormade-small:SIM 2 D Max with Fujikura Air Speeder Shaft 

Cobra  Radspeed 3W/RIptide Shaft
:ping-small:  410  Hybrids 22*, 26*

Cobra Speed Zone 6-GP/Recoil ESX 460 F3 Shafts 

:titelist-small: SM7 54* Wedge

:ping-small: Glide 3.0  60* Wedge

:odyssey-small: O Works putter

:ShotScope: V3
:918457628_PrecisionPro:NX9-HD

:CaddyTek: - 4 Wheel 

EZGO TXT 48v cart
:footjoy-small: - too many shoes to list and so many to buy

:1590477705_SunMountain: And  BAG Boy

Golf Balls: Vice Pro Plus 

2020 Official Teste:SuperSpeed: Beginning Driver Speed  - 78

2019 Official Tester :ping-small:  410 Driver

2018 Official Tester :wilson-small: C300

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On 5/1/2023 at 11:32 AM, Fongle said:

Voice Caddie SC300i Launch Monitor  – MGS Forum Member Review by Fongle

20230501_172730(1)(1).jpg.950ca65c6d4eb51dbaa256ecde71ca14.jpg

Intro 

G’day all!

After making a snap decision 6 months ago to purchase a launch monitor, I figured I might offer some insights, and thoughts about the model I picked up, the Voice Caddie SC300i.

I’m a single handicap player, from South East QLD, Australia, trying to ease back into the game after a near decade break due to a severe knee issue. Finally had surgery and got it sorted, and I’ve been playing again for the last 17 months or so now, and WOW, there is a lot of new golf tech out there. Rangefinders, shot sensors, GPS watches, and launch monitors are everywhere now, and honestly, I think they’re brilliant. Long gone are the days of looking for a fairway marker and trying to figure out if it means 100 or 150 left in, or looking at the map on the hole sign and trying to guess what distance the hazards are at.

I’d decided my swing was getting consistent enough to try dialling my numbers in, and was tossing up getting a membership at a local Toptracer range, and then I saw a clearance deal on the Voice Caddie SC300i and from the limited information I could see about it online, it looked like a great option.

It promised to use “High Performance Doppler Radar Technology” to be able to give all the stats I was looking for, total and carry distance, swing speed, ball speed, launch angle, apex, smash factor, as well as giving spin numbers through the connected app, and would allow me to record matching swing videos with the swing numbers linked to them.

I’ve used it pretty steadily over the last 6 months, and while it has been good, it’s also been needlessly frustrating when it doesn’t need to be.

First Impressions (3 out of 5)

The first thing that jumped out at me when I’d ordered the SC300i was that it didn’t come with a case included, and the official case sold as an optional extra was obscenely overpriced for what it is ($89 AUD). Thankfully it fits fine into an AmazonBasics case, but it definitely started me off on the wrong foot with that. The actual unit came with almost nothing, just the remote, basic instructions, and a too-small-to-be-useful USB charging cable. The instructions were pretty easy to follow, and it included a QR code to easily scan and find the connected app, and setting that up and linking it were thankfully very easy to do.

The screen is very easy to read at a glance, and the units of measurement for distance, speed and height can be changed between yards/metres, mph/metres/s, and feet/metres respectively. Finding the data per club in the app is easy enough, but not being able to make the swing data full page, or switch it to landscape mode is frustrating, with it being stuck in a small table you need to swipe through to see all the information.

When entering my club data into the app, which then loads onto the unit when connected, I started running into some strange issues. I wasn’t able to enter a 2 iron as an option (it’s currently under Utility 3), and not being able to set the proper lie angle of some clubs, with loft being able to be entered by 0.5° increments, and lie angle locked to whole numbers only. Certainly not massive issues, but bizarre nonetheless.

Screenshot_20230501_223305_MySwingCaddie.jpg.c740b733ccb2d8e1879674ac31435c73.jpgScreenshot_20230501_223829_MySwingCaddie.jpg.4f6d3f60f67733e3428794ee97922b6a.jpgScreenshot_20230501_224038_MySwingCaddie.jpg.f90fa587a4371a2015886f7494c44b29.jpg

Aesthetics (3 out of 5) 

The SC300i is a very compact little unit, about 6.5”x4.7”x1.1” and weighing just 15.4oz, with a very orange screen, and good contrast which helps in reading the swing numbers. I just don’t like orange that much. Sue me, I’m not Rickie Fowler.

Capture(1).jpg.e553a33869c021203ee7b41680fcd9c6.jpgCapture1(1).jpg.9a58facd57403bd7c0f7e13fc77bdd5b.jpg

The Numbers (3 out of 5 points)

As mentioned previously, the SC300i captures data for total and carry distance, swing speed, ball speed, launch angle, apex, smash factor, and spin data separately through the app.

When it captures strikes, the actual data provided seems to be quite accurate, with distance, ball speed and spin numbers being extremely similar to higher end launch monitors. I had an opportunity to set the unit up behind me while hitting with a GCQuad a few months ago, and for the most part the data was within about a +/- 2% margin, and the spin data within a couple hundred RPM. 

The issue is when it either randomly just doesn’t pick up strikes at all, which can sometimes mean some adjusting to make sure it’s on level with a tall tee peg coming through a range mat, and more frustratingly, when it just won’t register high spin numbers at all. Before I bought the unit I didn’t see any mention of this at all, but it seems for me the SC300i just won’t reliably register spin numbers on anything from my 9i up, with the highest recorded RPM it’s recorded being 8670.

Actually reviewing the data has recently become harder too. Previously, within a set of data, which could be sorted by a date range, year, or total, there was options to view all clubs at a time with multiple options to get details at a glance, like average carry, average total, highest carry, average spin etc, but as of the most recent app update when viewing all clubs together it just shows average carry, and you now need to click into each clubs data to see the rest of the data.

Screenshot_20230502_005301_MySwingCaddie.jpg.0df21a3649406a29dad71e044e76046b.jpgScreenshot_20230502_012917_MySwingCaddie.jpg.a3ab1a8379f9f777bfdb13f6a1336682.jpgScreenshot_20230502_012929_MySwingCaddie.jpg.720f31f3835dc7f3860e1dbb8f224fd8.jpg

On The Course (4 out of 5 points)

Setting up and using the unit is very straightforward, and thankfully pretty simple. I typically just take the unit out, set it up on top of the case about 5 feet away, and open and connect the app, which takes roughly 10 seconds.

Using the video recording function is also pretty easy to do, I use a small basic tripod, and I just sit this behind the unit with it lined up to capture all of me in the frame. The only issue I have here is that when I’m hitting through balls pretty fast, it will sometimes capture the swing data, but won’t capture the accompanying video.

Switching between different clubs is super easy as well, with the included remote able to do this virtually instantly. 

 

 Screenshot_20230501_224216_MySwingCaddie(1).jpg.503f95482be8a777c6954781164e1206.jpg

 

 

The Good, the bad, the inbetween (2 out of 5 points)

Getting instant feedback on trying something new with a swing, or even just seeing big club or ball speeds when going hell for leather on a speed training session is fantastic, and the positive reinforcement of seeing actual tangible evidence cannot be understated.

My single biggest issue is actually accessing the numbers from the app. A big selling factor for me was the ability to export swing data as a CSV, which I could then plug into a custom spreadsheet and see my data and review different swing changes and trends in my swing, but actually doing this is a nightmare in poor design. Instead of being able to highlight all the data to export, you need to do this one at a time for Every. Single. Club. Oh, and it doesn’t like being exported directly to Google Drive or Sheets, as that can corrupt the data, you need to export to email, and then download the attachments one at a time. I have contacted Voice Caddie about this, and they’ve said they’ll pass the suggestion for a bulk export along, but as of the last update nothing has changed.

The video recording function is also good, but not great. It captures video in 30fps 720p, and there’s zero options for changing frame rate or resolution, which is a huge disappointment. Seeing a good swing in slow motion is nice, but watching it in 30fps HD video when my Note 20 can manage UHD 60fps is incredibly frustrating.
 

Play it or Trade it? (2 out of 5 points)

I do use the SC300i regularly, but less than I originally imagined I would. With the frustration of the software, and the strange choices Voice Caddie has made with recent software updates, I’ve been considering selling it and finding something a bit more user friendly. It’s nice to have, but there’s definitely better options out there.

Conclusion

The SC300i is a solid unit, let down by frustrating and confusing software. It seems like a huge missed opportunity, because the hardware works well, and gives good, accurate data, especially for a unit with such a small form factor, and for something that’s quite a bit cheaper than any other options I could see available. Ultimately the negative user experience overweighs the benefits to me as a golfer.
 

Final Score (17 out of 30 points)

SC300i_4.jpg

Great review! I still have my old SC200 which is a far more basic version of what you have. Ultimately I ended up being frustrated with that unit for 2 reasons; Wedge data was highly inaccurate, and the unit crashed a few times for me (with no support from customer service - not even a responding email). I do have a PRGR monitor which I used to show swing speed improvements. However, now instead of spending $$$$ for monitors I'd rather go to PGA Tour Superstore and rent one of their bays for $15./30 minutes. Then I just take a pic of the data for manual input into a spreadsheet. 

Left Hand orientation

:taylormade-small:SIM 2 D Max with Fujikura Air Speeder Shaft 

Cobra  Radspeed 3W/RIptide Shaft
:ping-small:  410  Hybrids 22*, 26*

Cobra Speed Zone 6-GP/Recoil ESX 460 F3 Shafts 

:titelist-small: SM7 54* Wedge

:ping-small: Glide 3.0  60* Wedge

:odyssey-small: O Works putter

:ShotScope: V3
:918457628_PrecisionPro:NX9-HD

:CaddyTek: - 4 Wheel 

EZGO TXT 48v cart
:footjoy-small: - too many shoes to list and so many to buy

:1590477705_SunMountain: And  BAG Boy

Golf Balls: Vice Pro Plus 

2020 Official Teste:SuperSpeed: Beginning Driver Speed  - 78

2019 Official Tester :ping-small:  410 Driver

2018 Official Tester :wilson-small: C300

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3 hours ago, tony@CIC said:

Yeah but it's dry heat 🤣

Arizona's Department of Tourism says the same thing 😊.  

:ping-small: G410 Plus, 9 Degree Driver 

:ping-small: G400 SFT, 16 Degree 3w

:ping-small: G400 SFT, 19 Degree 5w

:srixon-small:  ZX5 Irons 4-AW 

:ping-small: Glide 2.0 56 Degree SW   (removed from double secret probation 😍)

:EVNROLL: ER5v Putter  (Evnroll ER5v Official Review)

:odyssey-small: AI-One Milled Seven T CH (Currently Under Product Test)

 

 

 

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