Radar vs Camera Launch Monitors, Explained Like a Human

The launch monitor is the brain of your simulator — it's the little box that watches your shot and tells the software what your ball just did. And there are two main flavors: radar and camera (the fancy word is "photometric"). People agonize over this, so let me make it simple.

Radar monitors work like a tiny weather-radar for your golf ball. They sit behind you and track the ball as it flies away. Because they need to actually watch the ball travel a bit to do their magic, they love depth — room behind the golfer and enough distance to the screen. In a big garage or a deep room, they shine. In a shallow room, they get grumpy.

Camera monitors take super-fast photos of the ball right at impact and calculate everything from those images. A lot of them mount overhead, looking straight down, or sit off to the side near the ball. They tend to be happy in tighter spaces because they're reading the ball right off the tee instead of watching it fly. The tradeoff is they usually want good lighting conditions and proper placement to nail those impact photos.

So which is "better"? Neither — it's about your room and your budget:

Short, tight room? A camera-based unit is often your friend. Deep room or garage with space to spare? Radar can be a great value. Low ceilings? That nudges you toward certain placements too. This is exactly why I don't sell a one-size-fits-all answer — the right monitor for your buddy might be the wrong one for your room.

The units I work with span both types and every budget — from wallet-friendly options that are shockingly good, up to premium performers — so I can match you to the one that actually fits your space instead of the one with the biggest ad budget.

Confused about which monitor fits your room? That's my favorite thing to help with. Reach out and I'll point you to the right one.