IZZO Swami 4000 Golf GPS
I bought this because the negative reviews did not question the products reliability. The complaints were mainly about unavailable golf courses. I was able to check on the Izzo web site that the courses I needed were on the unit.
The unit can take a few minutes to find the course but that is not a problem. The unit has been reliable and the battery should last for a couple of 18 hole rounds. The charger is a simple USB unit and chargers for other products work.
I think the belt clip is a clumsy design but I just put it in my pocket.
Some units give more information such as a map showing bunkers and water. This unit shows only the distance from where you are to the front, center and rear of the green. The unit has a shot distance feature that I find useful. It has a feature called "scorecard" which is either useless or I don't know how to use it. I did not think the instructions were very good and no information was given on how to attach the (useless) belt clip.
This product is amazing in every way. I don't have to mention anything because all the other reviews stated everything.
ReplyDeleteI bought this because the negative reviews did not question the products reliability. The complaints were mainly about unavailable golf courses. I was able to check on the Izzo web site that the courses I needed were on the unit.
ReplyDeleteThe unit can take a few minutes to find the course but that is not a problem. The unit has been reliable and the battery should last for a couple of 18 hole rounds. The charger is a simple USB unit and chargers for other products work.
I think the belt clip is a clumsy design but I just put it in my pocket.
Some units give more information such as a map showing bunkers and water. This unit shows only the distance from where you are to the front, center and rear of the green. The unit has a shot distance feature that I find useful. It has a feature called "scorecard" which is either useless or I don't know how to use it. I did not think the instructions were very good and no information was given on how to attach the (useless) belt clip.
Works so easy. I used it right out of the box and it seemed to work perfectly except all yardages were 10yds short. I updated the software and the yardages are now right on. One negative is that you have to manually advance the holes unless you carry it to the green with you; not a big deal, though.
ReplyDeleteA great little no-nonsense GPS. No subscriptions, courses are pre-loaded, and you get all the distance measurements you'd expect.
ReplyDeleteAlso, because this seems to be a problem with some of my older GPS devices, I have had ZERO issues with satellite detection. It's faster than my Garmin :)
I get about 10 hours of constant-use for each charge.
The IZZO Swami 4000 is an update to the Swami that my husband has been using for years. He is more than pleased with the new version and says this is well worth every penny. Here are the reasons he says he loves it:
ReplyDelete1. The preloaded courses include our small town country club, and every other course he has entered so far, and there is no need for a subscription or download. The course map is easily edited, if necessary.
2. Has a bright, easy to read display and shows the front, center and back of the green.
3. It is accurate to about 3 yards as tested at the course, and as long as it is with you it advances to the next hole as you walk (auto-hole advance feature).
4. One charge holds a long time, so that a whole weekend of play is possible before recharging.
5. The bright yellow sides help locate it quickly and easily so it doesn't get lost on the green during play.
There are a few minor adjustments that he would have liked, but he says this does not detract from the fact that this is a very well-priced GPS. The minor flaws:
-Does require a long charge time when down (he plugs his in overnight for the next day).
-Could use a better display when charging so that you could see what charge is left before heading to the course. As it is, you do not see the amount of charge available until logging on at the location.
-The buttons are a nice, big size, but very sensitive, so it can be accidentally activated when in a pants pocket. It does come with a clip to place on the belt, but, as with many golfers, he does not like to have something clipped to his waist while swinging, so he generally carries it in his pocket.
Overall, this is the best GPS he has tried and he won't head to the course without it...so it gets a definite thumbs up recommendation!
Bought the Swami 4000 after going through two defective Swami 3000. Updated model thought I would give them one more try. Pretty neat features. Went to the course after receiving it and it picked up five courses immediately. Unfortunately none of them were the one I was standing on. It worked as a shot measure fine other than that worthless. I got home and checked to make sure the course was on their list and it was. Talked with tech support and said the would look into it. Tried it again the next weekend and dd exactly the same thing on another well established course in my hometown. I had even checked to make sure the course was on the list and it was. Sent it back. Nice ideas. So far I have had nothing but failure with three different Izzo Swami GPS units.
ReplyDeleteUPDATE!! 10/21/2012
Received a different Swami 4000 from Izzo customer service and difference was night and day. Software was updated to include about 4000 new courses over the 4000 I previously had.
Success at last. It picked up the course immediately and it was the first one on the list. Compared to the scorecard the Swami was within a couple of yards, but that was probably because of the tee box changes, and in the fairway it was pretty consistent with the yardage markers. The shot distance feature was very helpful to let me figure out the distance I can hit my shots and helped very much with club selection. Izzo tech support and customer service are top notch and really came through. (Thanks David Witkoski)
I would reccommend this unit for anybody wanting a golf GPS unit. It may not have all the bells and whistles of some of the other brands, but for it's price range it can't be beat. I add 3 stars to my previous review to make this a 5
There are basically two kinds of Golf GPS units, the full service ones, embodied by the SkyCaddie line and others that give you distance to the green, front and back, as well as distances to obstacles and carries needed to clear them. Then there is the kind I call GPS lite, the only give you the distance to the green, front and back. This limits their usefulness but they are also much simpler to use and often less expensive.
ReplyDeleteThe Izzo Swami GPS 4000 is among the GPS lite group. You get the distances to the green, shot distance that allows you to accurately measure your shot distance, you also get an electronic score card and can edit the front and back distances to the greens, and the unit will remember them for the future.
There is no subscription needed and more than 25,000 courses are preloaded.
I compared it to the SkyCaddie SGX during a round of golf at Fossil Trace in Golden Colorado. It detected the satellites even when indoors as fast as the SGX. Once it did, it showed the closest courses and selecting the one I was on was a snap. The operating manual states that it will detect them in less than a minute after a hot start, (less than one hour off) and three for a warm start (less than 4 hours)
The distances were accurate to within one yard when compared to the SGX, sprinkler heads and cart mounted GPS. The distance display stabilized a little faster than the SGX. It was also easier to use than the GPS, unless, of course, you want distances to obstacles.
The unit is water resistant which is useful for a machine meant to be used outdoors in all kinds of weather.
My unit came shrink-wrapped with a wall charger and a USB cable. It can be charged from the wall or a computer USB port. It also came with a nice little neoprene bag to carry it, a sprocket knob with two Phillips screws to screw it on the back of the unit (you only need one) and a belt clip. The belt clip slides easily on the belt clip, and there is a key that you can press on the top of the clip that allows it to slide out for storage. Both belt clip and unit fit in the neoprene bag easily.
The clip seemed a bit flimsy to me but worked fine on the course. One clever thing I noticed was that the sprocket knob allows the unit to hang from the clip vertically, like all others, but you can also fix it at any desired angle. This is important because, when I showed it to my wife who liked its simplicity and ease of use, she said that women players don't wear belts and that she could clip it on to her pocket where it could easily fall off. Well, she can just turn the clip 90 degrees and clip it on to the belt loops in the slacks or skirt and there she goes. A very clever design.
After eighteen hoes (about 4 1/2) hours the battery charge was down to 2 bars, which per the manual represents eight hours. If playing at a non crowded course where 18 holes can be done in 4 hrs, the unit should work for three rounds of golf or a total of 12 hrs for a fully charged unit.
All and all a most impressive gadget.
There is not much to add that hasn't been covered in the other reviews here. This is by far one of the cheapest options for a stand-alone GPS unit. In my area, it picked up all the local courses (that I know of). Out of the box, I had a GPS fix in 30 seconds, which is quite impressive for a cold fix. The unit is relatively complete, and comes with an AC charger, unlike some devices that make you charge on your PC.
ReplyDeleteThe main downside of the purchase is the lousy packaging - despite positioning as a high(ish) end golf GPS, it comes in a horrid clamshell package that requires a knife to cut into. In doing so, you risk damaging the case and/or cable.
The screen is tough to see in direct sunlight, but that can be remedied with your hands... The features all performed as they should - distance measurements appear to be very precise. My main concern is that everything in this unit can be done by free apps on a mobile phone. Of course, not everyone carries a smartphone, but I'm guessing that 90% of the people I see on the course have an iPhone or Android device. There are plenty of free apps that include a similar database, scoring and even course maps.
If you really need a standalone unit, then you can't go wrong with the Swami 4000, but if you need more (like maps), you'll want to invest in one of the higher end units like an Approach G6 (by Garmin). The Swami 4000 gets the job done, as long as "the job" involves the bare minimum - but I'd still recommend looking into a smartphone based option instead of this. Even a basic Android device with a paid app and a waterproof case will cost less and do more. Totally up to you...
I gave this Swami 4000 five stars after initially wanting to give it one star and return it. We have two golf courses in our gated community and after charging with the supplied cord, I took it out for a try. It would only come up with one course, not the other one. I was going to send it back, but I sent an email to them and had a reply within a day. They said they are constantly updating courses and if I would give it a couple days, he would put it on the list and the next time I updated the software (which is a very simple process and not needed frequently unless you are looking for a new course) it would be there. It updates from a small program it downloads on your computer. I waited about 4 days, updated it, and there it was! I now have over 30,000 courses. This is a super duper GPS for those of you that don't need to know the exact yardage to every bunker and pond. It gives front, back and center, the hole number, time of day, and uses either yards or meters. I golf about 4 times a week, mostly on the same two courses, so this is perfect for me. I especially like the large, almost two inch display, which I can read from my cupholder. My husband has a Garmin, and while it shows a lot more detail if you need it (which is seldom) there is so much junk on the small screen that you have to get close to it to see what it says and the screen is dark and hard to read. This one has a white background and is great in the sun. For the price, you can't go wrong with this little guy!
ReplyDelete