Affordable Launch Monitors: Flightscope Mevo more than impresses
09 Nov 2020
by Kyle Rector of AmateurGolf.com
see also: Equipment Reviews
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The portable launch monitor category under $500 is an area that I am always watching for innovation. As radar technology has progressed, launch monitors are getting smaller and more affordable. Launch monitors are showing up in the bags of top amateur players. Golfers who can capture swing data are able to quantify swing and equipment changes much more efficiently than a player making changes blindly. Walk up and down the practice tee at any major amateur tournament, and you will spot more than a few launch monitors in use.
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The most important thing to understand about personal launch monitors at or near the $500 price point is that these are not meant to be used for precise fitting sessions. Personal launch monitors like the Flightscope Mevo are meant to collect data on your shots to help you with gapping, distance control, and swing changes. Flightscope (and Bryson DeChambeau) preach about practicing with a purpose, and the Mevo is aimed at helping you to achieve that.
Mevo is a 3D Doppler radar-based launch monitor that can be used indoors and outdoors to help golfers improve their performance. Mevo provides carry distance, ball and club speed, spin rate, smash factor, vertical launch angle, apex height and flight time.
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The Mevo is extremely compact and portable. At less than 4 inches wide and 3 inches tall, the Mevo is meant to be tossed into your golf bag and carried onto the golf course. Along with the Mevo, you get a quick start guide, a charging cable, a carrying pouch, and metallic stickers. It has a rechargeable internal battery that can be fully charged in around two hours and lasts for about four hours when fully charged.
Setup is very easy with the Mevo. After it was fully charged, I downloaded the Mevo Mobile App on IOS and created an account. Once I was signed in, I hit ‘Start’ and it took less than 10 seconds for the Mevo to connect with my phone. The Mevo should be set 4-7 feet behind the golf ball, level with the playing surface and pointed down the target line. I tested the Mevo on the driving range, and I was able to place it on the very back of the mat. One thing to note is that, like many of the launch monitors at this price level, you also have to select the club you are hitting to get accurate readings.
The Mevo interface on the app is, hands down, one of the best and easiest to use in the category. I really loved being able to customize the different shot displays. Although the Mevo is small and unassuming, seeing carry, swing speed, ball speed, and spin immediately after impact in big and bold numbers on my phone feels like a premium launch monitor experience. In all fairness, the performance gap between a $10,000 Flightscope X3 and the $500 Mevo is probably significant, but the data you can gather with Mevo will tell you the same story for much less money.
When it comes to this price point for a launch monitor, the first thing that anyone one asks is how accurate it is. I found that that the accuracy of the readings were nearly spot on when I made good contact with a mid-iron. I tested the Mevo on a relatively flat fairway with a 7 iron and recorded 5 shots with the Mevo. I then had a spotter mark the golf ball and we used a range finder to compare the distances. All things considered, the Mevo averaged less than 3 yards off on the carry distance on my 7 iron.
Although the Mevo can help all golfers in some way, it was really designed for a golfer looking to improve how they practice. Don’t get me wrong, it is great for just seeing how far you bombed your new driver or measuring swing speed changes, but if you really want to benefit from Mevo, you will have to build it into your practice.
To learn more about Mevo visit Flightscope's website.
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