Review: Bushnell Tour V4 Laser Rangefinder w/Slope
Bushnell Dials in the Details on this Laser
Over the years, Bushnell has been the leader in golf laser rangefinders. They make a great product and year after year improve their products to make them even better. The Tour V4 is built off the success of their Tour V3 laser rangefinder. The new details make it even better. While some golfers might think that any approximate yardage is good enough, if you want to score better, dialing in to the exact yardage and knowing the slope calculations will only help. Bushnell dialed in the details on the Tour V4 laser rangefinder, so you can dial in your game.
I received the Bushnell Tour V4 Patriot Pack Laser Rangefinder with Slope. The cool think about this is not so much that you get the extra red silicone skin for the rangefinder, but that a portion of the sale goes to the Fold of Honor Foundation to help the families of fallen soldiers. From what I can find online, that is pretty much the only option for buying this rangefinder, which is just fine by me. It also has Bushnell’s standard case, which the best on the market, and a battery.
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Bushnell made 2 big upgrades to the Tour V4 over the V3. The first noticable one is the shape. The V4 has a better ergonomic shape, being just a little boxier, it sits better in you hand and certainly look better too. Yet it’s 30% smaller yet weighs the same which will help with the “hand shake” issues during use. It basically makes this smaller unit feel better in your hands, while making it easier to store and use on the course. Since moving to AZ, I’m learning how to golf while riding instead of walking and this new shape makes it much easier to put this in my pocket when walking from the cart to my ball. I’m used to keeping the laser in the glove box of my push cart. So the compact size of the Bushnell V4 has been very helpful. The move to white cases a couple years ago, was also a nice functional move so that it stands out if you set it on the ground, you won’t leave it behind.
The second big upgrade by Bushnell was the internal processor for calculating distances and acquiring pins. It is now faster and more likely to grab the pin even if you have a little shake. While the case design helps with that, the processor does most of the work. I found this to be as accurate as the higher end Bushnell models and just as easy to hold in my hand, yet much smaller. The biggest difference over the more expensive models is the magnification. The Tour V4 has 5x magnification, while the others do 6x and 7x.
Bushnell’s Jolt technology is also a simple feature that assures the golfer that they have acquired the pin. It comes standard now on all Bushnell Laser Rangefinders. The simple vibration is helpful when there is a question if you hit the desired target. The background “things” won’t cause it to vibrate so it means you won’t have to laser your target multiple times. If the pins have prisms you it is almost instantaneous that you get yardage.
The Slope function is still not legal most tournament play, but on the new Tour V4 it can be disabled without removing a face plate or anything complicated, other than turning the function off with the push of a button. Since it is not obvious as a different colored face plate, some may still not accept it in tournament play. But either way, the real benefit of slope is for non-tournament rounds anyways. The knowledge that can be gained to help dial in your clubs and yardages, even when there are hills involved. I liked having that additional knowledge when playing, even if it is only a few yards difference, it can really help ingrain good yardage management and club selection. The regular yardage comes up first in the middle and then the slope calculation comes up a second later underneath.
Laser Rangefinders are a staple in my bag. It doesn’t seem to matter how good a GPS unit is, it just can’t compete with the battery life of laser. I typically get 1 year out of battery in a laser rangefinder (about 75 rounds a year) compared to 3 rounds with a GPS. I always keep a Bushnell laser rangefinder in my bag. They have really stepped up their game with the recent models and I don’t ever play with out a Busnell in the bag. The new Tour V4 with slope has all the features you could ever want in a small, compact, lightweight, yet very functional unit. Bushnell really dialed in the features on the Tour V4 with Slope so that you can dial in your game.
For more information: www.bushnellgolf.com
Quick Hits:
+Compact size
+Ergonomic design
+Improved yardage processor
+Great battery life
+Slope can be turned off
+Patriot pack
