Review: uPro Golf GPS

[ITgolfHack]

It's starting to sound like this little unit will be my choice next year.

Again, thanks for taking the time to keep us updated.

[nitsua]

  ITgolfHack said:

It's starting to sound like this little unit will be my choice next year.

UPro says that they will be updating the software to also keep score. Looking forward to that.

[Norm3333]

I would hope they could add the stats I keep for the SCORECARD program (GIR, FIR, etc...)

Almost every thread concerning Skycaddie vs Laser, is full of complaints about Skycaddie's battery, customer service, and so on. Haven'T read any similar complaints about upro.
Has anyone else?

If I do not unearth any serious complaints, I too will be buying this next year.

[mruseless]

  Norm3333 said:

I would hope they could add the stats I keep for the SCORECARD program (GIR, FIR, etc...)

So far their customer service has been top notch. I had a charging problem, and after calling customer service they immediately sent me a new USB cable and wall charger. I have emailed customer support a couple times about issues with the maps (strange points being mapped), and they have taken care of them quickly. Although the most recent one they have not re-posted yet after about a week.

[Fourputt]

One thing that I've always kept in the back of my mind about SkyCaddie. The hardware is made by Magellan, and they have the worst reputation in the GPS industry for customer service. Even Magellan devotees will confirm that although they may like the GPS, the company itself is pretty bad. There are horror stories allover the GPS forums about Magellan's service. So pray that you never have to deal with them.

Just a word to the wise....


This uPro sounds interesting though....

[Guest]

  mruseless said:

So far their customer service has been top notch. I had a charging problem, and after calling customer service they immediately sent me a new USB cable and wall charger. I have emailed customer support a couple times about issues with the maps (strange points being mapped), and they have taken care of them quickly. Although the most recent one they have not re-posted yet after about a week.

You have discussed the uPro mapping "weird" points on a course? Can you elaborate a bit, did it mark weird things in addition to the hazards, or are they missing hazards completely that are obvious? Also, did you have to pay again once they reposted the course? Did they email you to let you know they reposted the course? Thanks, any further experiences would be great, my birthday is coming up in the next few weeks and I am thinking about buying the uPro.

[mruseless]

  JJT11 said:

You have discussed the uPro mapping "weird" points on a course? Can you elaborate a bit, did it mark weird things in addition to the hazards, or are they missing hazards completely that are obvious?

Well, in one case there was a fairway to the right of a lake, and the second part of the fairway was beyond the lake. The small fairway section to the right also has a bunker. No points were marked on the small fairway, and the far point of the lake was marked (it would take a 305 yard carry to go over the lake). It was clear that they had overlooked the small part of the fairway. Other things that I think should be marked but often are not include common layup pointslike the end of fairways and gulleys that go across the fairway.

However, in all these cases you can use the Measure feature to get a distance, and it only takes a few seconds. It would be more convenient if they marked some of these for you, however.

  JJT11 said:

Also, did you have to pay again once they reposted the course? Did they email you to let you know they reposted the course?

No, you don't have to pay a second time. Once you buy a course, its yours, no matter how many times its updated.

When you log onto the uPro website, and go to your user home page, they list right at the top whether or not your courses are up to date, your software is up to date (on the uPro), and if your Home Course is available. I attached a screenshot.

[Guest]

  mruseless said:

Well, in one case there was a fairway to the right of a lake, and the second part of the fairway was beyond the lake. The small fairway section to the right also has a bunker. No points were marked on the small fairway, and the far point of the lake was marked (it would take a 305 yard carry to go over the lake). It was clear that they had overlooked the small part of the fairway. Other things that I think should be marked but often are not include common layup pointslike the end of fairways and gulleys that go across the fairway.

Thanks for the feedback. Sounds like the measure feature is huge. In your experience, once they "repost" the course, is the mapping correct (i.e. they map to the end of fairways, gulleys etc.)?

Good to know customer service is good.

[mruseless]

  JJT11 said:

Thanks for the feedback. Sounds like the measure feature is huge. In your experience, once they "repost" the course, is the mapping correct (i.e. they map to the end of fairways, gulleys etc.)?

The measure feature is critical. Without it, you might as well buy a different GPS. Satellite views are cool, but a satellite view would be worthless without the ability to measure to any point on the image.

I would say the reposting is mostly correct. What I plan to do in the future is to download the images of the course from Google Maps, then use a simple graphics program to place points on it and notes. Then I'll send this to the company and hopefully they will use my advice. I'll post here whether or not they actually take my advice

[gmc1950s]

"Mr Usefull"
Your review of the upro was extreamlly usefull. I've been scratching my head
trying to figure out which gps unit to buy. As far as the base unit is concerned the upro looks to be by far the best.............buuuuut the cost of the accessories is outrageous $25.00 for a carrying case or plastic holder,
way to much, and the proprietary battery I think that was $25.00 too. When
you start adding everything up it's gonna be in the neighborhood of $650. or
$700.
OK the rant is over, and with all that being said I'm gonna buy it anyway. I
only need a couple of courses and I can make due with a $3. wal mart
phone carrying case and some Velcro strips. My SS check ( that you paid into) only goes so far, and I have to spend it wisely. I'm a newbie so please excuse any breach of protocol. Thanks again Mr Usefull for a well written review.

[nitsua]

  gmc1950s said:

"Mr Usefull"

You only need the battery that comes with the unit, so no need to buy a second. You can get a belt clip, but I just put it in my packet. I have been thinking of getting one of those cell phone swivel clips from Best Buy. It should work very well.

[mruseless]

  gmc1950s said:

"Mr Usefull"

I would look into what nitsua recommended, one of those swivel clips you can buy at Walmart or Radio Shack. Typically they come with a little swivel part that has an adhesive back, and a clip-in part that hooks to your belt. I'm pretty sure one of these would work. Most of the time I use my cell phone holster, which is a pouch-type for my Treo. The uPro fits in there just fine.

I did end up buying one of the silicone protective covers, since it is custom fit. With shipping it cost $31!! Ridiculous, but what can you do? I won't buy any of the other accessories unless they come down in price. One more update: I recently played a course that had three 9-hole courses, and one of the courses was completely wrong (it turned out, after some investigation, that 1 of the 9-hole courses was listed twice under two different names.). I emailed them immediately, and I'll let you know how long it takes for them to correct the error.

[xdriller]

A shout out to all on this thread for helping me decide on which GPS to purchase. Due to great luck in picking partners in recent tournaments, I had enough shop credit to enter the 21st century in golf measurement.

My choices were down to Sonocaddie v300, Golf Buddy Tour, and Skycaddie sg5. The uPro was not on my radar until I read this thread. There are some issues with this unit that have been brought out here, and these problems do bother me, but there is not a golf GPS that had all of the features I wanted that was 100% reliable for all users. (Has anything ever been?)

Factors that pushed the uPro to the top:

1. Customer support. The reports here from Useless and others on different forums discussed the respect by the support given to the client. I can deal with the problems when someone will listen to me and respond. Skycaddie is, apparently, across the board, awful, in this respect.

2. The ability to measure to any point on the golf hole. This is huge – especially measuring to a point on the green. Angle of entry to the green and pin position can render front middle and back measurements as much a full club off on a large irregular green. Water and other hazards abound on my course where point-to-point golf is required. Distances to and over water can be evaluated to any point or All points as the hazard crosses the fairway.

3. The ability in pro mode to zoom and pan the image. I am old (well, not that old) and need reading glasses that I cannot use while playing golf. By enlarging the small numbers on the pro mode images, the uPro becomes more functional for me.

4. Course purchase rather than yearly renewal. I do not play over 10 courses but in three or more states even on a semi-regular basis. I play 90% on my home course. This policy makes financial sense to me decreasing the total cost over time by not paying up to $50 extra a year.

5. The clincher. Yesterday I checked my home course here in the Seattle area It was scheduled to be added August 22. This morning the download was available. A coincidence? No, fate!

I think that is enough time spouting off about my reasons for purchasing the uPro. The next weeks will determine if it was a sound decision.

Again, thank you all.

[mruseless]

I'm looking forward to hearing about your experience with the uPro. Hopefully you will like yours as much as I like mine. One comment I will make is that if you do experience any issues, call them rather than email or go through the website. I think the customer support is better over the phone, although I've had decent support both ways.

[mruseless]

  mruseless said:

One more update: I recently played a course that had three 9-hole courses, and one of the courses was completely wrong (it turned out, after some investigation, that 1 of the 9-hole courses was listed twice under two different names.). I emailed them immediately, and I'll let you know how long it takes for them to correct the error.

I emailed the support department at uPlay about this on Wed or Thurs, I think. By this morning, a fix was posted! I had also complained that the name of the course was too long to read on the uPro, which truncates course names at about 25 letters. (the name read "Fox Hollow at Lakewood - The Links" and "Fox Hollow at Lakewood - The Canyon"). They shortened the name at the same time as making the other fix.

Good customer support!

[xdriller]

I picked up my Upro this afternoon from my pro shop - after my round. I have not taken it out on the course but have fired it up to download my home course and become familiar with it.

My first impression: WOW!

No other gps unit comes close to the feature package in this product.

I cannot express strongly enough how detailed the resolution of these actual hole photo images are. The ability to switch between a full hole image, a larger image for measuring and green image with a press of a button is intuitive and quick. If any image is not exactly what you want to see, a button press and zoom and/or a button press and pan gives total flexibility to view anything anywhere on the hole at any size.

The flyover is nice for a new course. I will play a new course this Saturday, Columbia Edgewater, in Portland, Oregon where the LPGA will be played on the following weekend. (Hey, I can watch television and look at the view of the hole in the Upro. Heck, I can even check and mark their driving distance possibly.) How nice to see the course and all hazards beforehand and where the 200, 150 and 100 yard lines are on the fairway in the flyover view. All this on a course I have never set foot on - instant familiarity.

On a cloudy day like today in the Seattle area at my house with 100+ foot firs and cedars everywhere, the gps locked on with full capability. Gaining satellites will not be a problem if I can catch them in our back yard.

Anypoint measuring is just flat out awesome. No other gps at this time has this feature. Any point on the hole can be marked and using the cursor moved in any direction. Measurements to any point or from the pin position or hazard to any distance back for a layup position can be simply found in real time as the cursor moves. This feature makes this the best gps golf system on the market bar none - IMHO. Just think, you are viewing and measuring on an actual picture of the hole you are playing!

For anyone who plays golf without reading glasses, as I do, I was worried about seeing the numbers. At least for me, with “large font” selected in pro view, I can see all numbers clearly because the display is so crisp and bright. In basic mode it is REALLY no problem. Another thing, the display is quite easy to see out in the sun. (This will be tested during the round Thursday if the sun shows itself.) Variable backlighting can be adjusted to personal preference. What Upro says about their screen viewing in the sun is correct so far. It works.

I have been discussing the pro view mode (actual pictures of the hole). The basic mode shows distance to hazards and front, back and middle of the green in clear crisp color in a graphic view (no green graphic, though, just numbers.) In addition, the greens numbers are HUGE – very easy to see. The hazards are pre-marked with no method of self-marking or editing. BUT there is no need to EVER mark distances to hazards not shown or edit those that were pre-marked since the Anypoint function is just too easy and exact. On a new course rarely played, editing usually won't be done but Upro measuring will always show exactly what you want to know.

More importantly, this unit is VERY thin and light. It can be slipped into the front pocket with no swing issues. I would rather keep a gps unit in my pocket than in or on the golf bag since I walk and carry. The Upro has no ability to hook onto anything. This might be an issue for anyone with no pockets (women?) who walk and carry.

I will post again after my round Thursday. Yes, I am retired and play a lot of golf.

[gmc1950s]

Well, after one email and one phone call (one week total) uPro
got back to me with "We can map your course in basic mode
in 4 days." End of message!!! Absolutely nothing about when they
will have pro mode available. On their website they say 2009 but does that mean I'll just get basic mode till then? Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't that
like offering me an ice cream cone without the ice cream.
Also, can anyone explain the negative comments customers
have been writing. When you read the reviews half of them seem like
they were written buy uPro and the other half were written by skycaddy.
What I mean is everybody either loved it and gave it a 5 or hated it
and gave it a 1 or 2.
This is for "useless"...in your opinion is it still worth the $400 or should I
wait until 2009 and pro mode is mapped and maybe they have worked out more of the bugs? Thanks, Bob

[mruseless]

  gmc1950s said:

Well, after one email and one phone call (one week total) uPro

Yeah, that seems pretty weak. Give them a call and ask about the course mapping guarantee. On their website they say if they can't map your course in 4 days, you get a free accessory. I would think that if they can't map Pro mode, what's the point?

  gmc1950s said:

Also, can anyone explain the negative comments customers

In my opinioin it depends on how well you deal with new technology. I've been using smartphones for many years and I've just learned to accept that most hi-tech hardware has a few bugs. I think the uPro has a lot fewer bugs than most of the smartphones I've had over the years.

I've read a lot of those negative reviews and most of them strike me as people who are either technophobes or expect a brand new device to be perfectly error free. I think they are pretty swamped right now with support requests and mapping requests, which can be good (lots of sales) and bad (overworked customer service people). I guess my advice would be to wait until your home course is mapped and they have some time to become more established. No point in spending $400 when you can't use it on the course you play the most.