Swiss Golf Simulators All venues Map By canton By city Open now Near me For business

27 September 2026 · 7 min read

Portable launch monitors: what a device under CHF 1,000 can do

For around CHF 600 there are devices that measure ball speed and club data. The catch is in the manual: space and special balls.

Portable launch monitors: what a device under CHF 1,000 can do — post image

A launch monitor for home use now costs about as much as a driver. The question is no longer whether the device can measure something, but which numbers it really measures and which it computes. Both manufacturers answer that in their own documents, and the answer is more honest than the advertising suggests.

Two devices, one price class

The Garmin Approach R10 costs CHF 599.90 in Switzerland (Golfers Paradise); the Rapsodo MLM2PRO is listed at USD 599.99 by its maker (Rapsodo). Side by side they look like this:

Garmin Approach R10Rapsodo MLM2PRO
TechnologyRadartwo cameras and radar
PriceCHF 599.90USD 599.99
Metricsmore than 15 ball and club metrics15, eight of them measured directly
Spin indoorsonly with Titleist RCT ballsonly with RPT balls
Space in frontat least 8 feet to the netat least 8 feet to the net
Space behind6 to 8 feet behind the tee6.5 to 8.5 feet behind the ball
Subscriptionnone needed for measurementpremium for simulation, 45-day trial

The most important difference is in the first row. The R10 works with radar, the MLM2PRO with two cameras plus radar, and the rest of the table follows from that.

Measured or computed

Rapsodo names eight directly measured values: ball speed, launch direction, club speed, launch angle, spin rate, spin axis, club path and angle of attack. Smash factor, total and carry distance, side carry, descent angle, apex and shot type are computed from them (Rapsodo).

Garmin describes more than 15 ball and club metrics for the R10 and says it measures club speed and path at the head, because that is where the strongest signal returns (Garmin). With spin it gets more precise and more important.

Spin is the catch

Outdoors a radar measures total spin and computes the spin axis from ball flight. Indoors the flight is missing: then it measures total spin only if you play Titleist RCT balls, and derives the spin axis from launch direction and club path (Garmin). Rapsodo puts it even more briefly: balls with RPT are required to show spin numbers.

Which means: anyone wanting spin indoors buys special balls too. Without them the spin figure is a model, and carry and flight height hang on exactly that. Why this is systematic is in Radar or camera.

The space nobody counts

Garmin's manual is unambiguous: indoors the tee must be at least 8 feet, that is 2.4 metres, from the net, and the device sits 6 to 8 feet, that is 1.8 to 2.4 metres, behind the tee (Garmin, owner's manual). Rapsodo states a little more than 14 feet of total depth, 8 feet to the net and 6.5 to 8.5 feet behind the ball.

Both therefore need around 4.3 metres of room depth before a single ball flies. Ceiling height and width come on top; the full dimensions are in Ceiling height, width, depth. Anyone without those numbers is buying a device for the driving range.

Where the device really shines

Outdoors. On a range a radar has the whole flight, and there it delivers spin and carry without special balls and without a net. A device for CHF 600 plus a basket of balls for CHF 5 is the cheapest way to build your own distance table.

But eleven of the sixteen Swiss ranges in the directory already show ball flight themselves, with Toptracer or TrackMan, and there you need no device of your own. Which ones they are and what a basket costs is in Driving ranges in Switzerland.

What the subscription adds

On the R10 the measurement needs no subscription. At Rapsodo, simulation with more than 30,000 courses is part of the premium membership, which comes with a 45-day trial on purchase. Anyone using the device only to measure pays nothing further afterwards.

So when comparing with a venue, do not count only the purchase price. A device, a net structure, a laptop and special balls come to more than CHF 1,000 together, and a bay hour costs CHF 39 to 79. That calculation is in Buy or rent.

What a computed number is worth

A computed number is not wrong, it is just dependent on another. Carry is computed from ball speed, launch angle and spin; if the spin is off, the carry is off, although both numbers sit neatly on the screen. That is why the list of directly measured values is a manufacturer's most important statement.

In practice: never compare absolute distances from such a device with a friend's, only your own series with each other. Then the computed number works consistently, and a difference between two sessions is a real difference.

The calibration both need

A radar has to sit exactly on the target line, or launch direction drifts. Garmin's manual gives a simple test: hit a short, straight shot with a high-lofted club and check which way the app places the ball; if the device faces too far left, launch direction appears further right (Garmin, owner's manual).

You also want to enter the exact distance between device and screen, because the software computes the rest of the flight from it. Both take five minutes per setup and decide whether the session's numbers are comparable at all.

The net is the dearer part

A device for CHF 600 needs a net that survives a driver and a room with the depth. Rapsodo asks for 8 feet from ball to net and 6.5 to 8.5 feet behind it, so a good 14 feet (Rapsodo); without that depth the device does not measure, or the ball comes back.

Height comes on top. Anyone without a room of a good three metres can only use such a device outdoors, and in Switzerland that is no offer from November to March. The full dimensions are in Ceiling height, width, depth.

The class above

A device with its own screen and cameras costs a multiple: the Garmin Approach R50 is CHF 4,999 in the same Swiss list. For that you get camera measurement, an integrated display and video recording, and you still need the space.

If you are unsure, measure in a bay first and decide afterwards. An hour costs less than one per cent of the purchase price and shows you whether you use the numbers at all. A venue near you is on the map.

Frequently asked questions

What can a CHF 600 launch monitor do?

Ball speed, launch direction, launch angle, club speed and, depending on the device, club path and angle of attack. Carry, total distance, smash factor and apex are computed from those. Rapsodo lists 8 of 15 values as directly measured.

Do I need special balls for spin indoors?

Yes, with both devices in this class. Garmin measures total spin indoors only with Titleist RCT balls; Rapsodo needs balls with RPT. Without them the spin figure is a model, and carry and flight height depend on it.

How much space does a portable launch monitor need?

Around 4.3 metres of room depth. Garmin requires at least 8 feet from tee to net indoors and places the device 6 to 8 feet behind the tee; Rapsodo states a little more than 14 feet of total depth. Ceiling height and width come on top.

Is a device or a bay the better buy?

A device, a net structure, a laptop and special balls cost more than CHF 1,000 together; a bay hour costs CHF 39 to 79. Anyone practising under twenty hours a year is better off with a bay and needs no room.

Does a radar device work better on a driving range?

Yes. Outdoors the radar has the whole flight and delivers spin and carry without special balls. Eleven of the sixteen Swiss ranges in the directory show ball flight themselves, though, with Toptracer or TrackMan, and there you need no device.

Sources