I have to admit, I was skeptical when I found out I was being sent some golf-specific GPS earbuds, but I was determined to head into my testing with an open mind so let's see if the TecTecTec Team8E Golf GPS earbuds can rival some of the best golf GPS devices on the market.
The first thing that caught my attention was the multi-functional element on offer. Not only do you get a golf GPS, but you also get a fully functioning wireless earbud, and when you consider the price of these two items separately, the $129 that TecTecTec is asking for seems like incredible value. That is if they function well, however.
I’m pleased to report that they do. To start with, the packaging and branding are very premium-looking and the box is laid out nicely. No frills, just a nice, robust-feeling storage and charging case, a charging lead, and the instruction manual. Everything you require and nothing more. Nice start.
The setup process is pretty simple. You just need to download the app, sign up for an account, and pair your phone with the earbuds via Bluetooth. Once you’ve picked your audio source, you’re all set to listen to whatever you want. The audio isn’t as crystal clear as you might experience on say Apple Airpods, but it is certainly above average in my opinion.
In terms of the golf side, the set-up is equally as straightforward. Just open the TecTecTec App and hit the ‘Quick Play’ button. A menu of nearby golf courses will appear to select from. Once you’ve found your course, you can then pick your tees for the round and the app will take you straight to hole 1. The app screen shows you front, middle, and back yardages, but we aren’t here to talk about the app, are we? We want to know how the earbuds work…
Well, essentially, if you tap your right earbud once, you will hear the yardages to the green (you can preset whether you want front, middle, back, or all of the above in the app), and if you tap twice, you will get the distance to the nearest hazard. It will also detail what type of hazard it is and where it is situated on the hole.
A feature that I really liked was the shot measurement option. Here, you just press and hold your right earbud, and once you receive the instruction, you can walk to your ball, tap again on your right earbud and you will receive an exact yardage of your last shot. This is really handy for getting a feel for your yardages or even just boasting to your friends about how far you are driving the ball!
I wanted to test out the accuracy of the Team8E Golf GPS earbuds so I put them up against my ShotScope Pro ZR, and the results were good.
If you’re using a GPS device instead of a rangefinder, you should expect small amounts of error, but on the few occasions I cross-referenced, there was never more than 3 yards of difference between the two.
As you would expect, other functions that are generally available on wireless headphones, such as the ability to accept phone calls, are available with the Team8E Golf GPS earbuds.
This will be a subjective area, but I found the fit of the Team8E Golf GPS earbuds to be excellent and had no aches or soreness, even after the 9 holes I played wearing them.
I am still not sure about the social aspect of these earbuds as a golfing accessory. If I turned up on the 1st tee paired up with someone wearing earbuds, I think I might feel a little put out! Even worse, if they started without them, but put them on a few holes in, I think I would be even more offended! However, if you play a lot on your own and you enjoy listening to music or podcasts while you do so, then these will be great. One thing I would certainly want TecTecTec to improve would be the ability to find out distances to more than just the nearest hazard, if they could achieve this, I think they would have a much more rounded and comprehensive golf product.
The sound quality is more than palatable, the accuracy of yardage is there (albeit slightly limited in what they can measure), and they are super simple to set up. As I said, I wasn’t entirely convinced to start with, but I am starting to think that there really is a market for this product.
