Its early in the year and golfers everywhere are looking for the latest gadget to help them shoot lower scores on the links. The latest gadget from SkyCaddie, ironically called the Linx, is built to bring reliable, accurate yardage information to your wrist with no fees required.
The Linx is the SkyCaddie's second-generation GPS watch succeeding the SkyCaddie Watch, launched early in 2013. As well as some new colours for 2014, the Linx is bluetooth-enabled allowing players to upload their scores and stats online.
The Linx features a high-definition, sunlight-readable display. The screen allows for both positive and negative polarity meaning it will be clearly legible at any time of day or conditions.
Play at any of the 34,000 preloaded courses in the SkyGolf database and the Linx automatically recognises which course and which hole you are playing. In large text, it displays accurate distance to the front, middle and back of the green, as well as precise layup targets from anywhere on the course dynamically from any angle of approach.
It can also track a host of different numbers during your round including individual shot distances, distance walked, calories burned, time of the round and of course, your score.
For the first time, SkyCaddie have made their 2014 products bluetooth-enabled. When paired with SkyCaddie's new, free mobile app, players can upload scores and stats to SkyGolf’s online community for fast and easy review of their rounds, without the need for a cable.
Bluetooth connectivity also makes it easy for the Linx to keep up-to-date with the latest error-corrected course updates thanks to SkyGolf's on-demand service, avoiding the need for preloads.
Another new feature on the Linx is SkyPin. If the course you are playing is part of the SkyPin scheme, the Linx will offer you precise yardages to where the pin is located on that day, as well as the front and back of the green.
Whilst no fee or subscription is required with the Linx, to get the full range of features, golfers will have to pay a small subscription fee. For that they get the benefits of SkyGolf's latest IntelliGreen technology, providing actual green shapes and pin targeting for precise distance to the hole, as well as a TrueGround Target List with up to 40 hazards, carries and layups per hole.
So why do SkyCaddie charge a fee? They believe it represents the time, effort and money they put in to gathering the information. Each SkyCaddie device is loaded with yardage information gathered from mappers who walk, and re-walk, each of the courses in the SkyGolf database, ensuring the accuracy of the numbers to within 1 yard.
Each Linx watch is fitted with a rechargeable, lithium-ion, polmer battery, that can be charged via USB. On a full charge, the Linx will last up to 8 hours when in GPS-mode and a further 45 days if used a watch only.
Where the original SkyCaddie Watch was only available in black or white, the Linx is available in seven different colours. Each of the colours is available in both a removable band and bezel, letting golfers personalize their watch.
