One half of two new Bushnell releases alongside the very impressive Tour Hybrid, Bushnell's A1-Slope is their smallest every laser rangefinder release and is perfect for those players who like to keep their rangefinder in their short, skirt or trouser pocket to keep that pace of play nice and steady. Did the lack of size lead to a lack of performance or is the A1-Slope one of the best Bushnell rangefinders? I took it for multiple test runs, primarily on Royal County Down's Championship Links to find out.
Of course, the headline here is the size of this device - she's tiny. Looking at it before I laid my hands on it, I feared it looked a bit plastic-y and thus would feel cheap in my hand but I was pleased to feel a sturdy, well-built device in my hands once I took it out of the box. It's not as sturdy or well built as the more premium rangefinders on the market like the Bushnell Pro X3+, for example, but it certainly doesn't feel cheap like some budget rangefinders can tend to.
It comes with the classic and, in my opinion, brilliant Bushnell carry case which clicks onto the side of your golf bag with ease, is easy to access and is sturdy enough to keep your device safe during rounds and transport. A smaller case to fit the size of the device would have been very cool and the A1-Slope does bounce around a little inside given the case is the roughly the same size of for all other Bushnells, but it remains the gold standard of a holster for your rangefinder. Those who ride on carts can utilize the BITE magnetic protective skin allowing you to easily mount the device right on the cart bar, a very handy feature.
In terms of performance, it's very similar to other Bushnell rangefinders. Yardage feedback is very fast whether slope is enabled or not, although I thought the display could have been a little clearer. When testing on the tree-less Royal County Down it was fine, but I noticed when I played courses that had dense trees or shrubbery directly behind the hole that it was harder to see the numbers, particularly on cloudy or lower light afternoons and evenings.
Despite this, it was reassuring to rely on the tactile feedback via JOLT vibrations to let me know when I'd successfully locked onto the flag. Some other rangefinders vibrate no matter what you've locked onto but the A1-Slope only vibrates once you've shot the flag which gave me peace of mind.
The slope feature was easy to turn on and off and a range of 350 yards also meant there was never a shot that was too far for me to measure. Another pleasing aspect was the performance in poor conditions - one of my rounds was in pretty substantial rain, but the A1-Slope held up against the elements thanks to its IPX6 rating which Bushnell claim can "can withstand pressurized water jets from any direction". I've never had to encounter this on the golf course and hope I never will, but it's good to know that my device will be safe if men or women armed with water jets make me their target out on the course.
I'll end with a comment on the battery life, which is superb. I've used this device over roughly 15 rounds of golf and I haven't even had to charge it yet. When I do, I'll simply plug it into the included USB-C charging cable and leave it to charge - Bushnell state a full charge lasts 50+ rounds and I believe them!
This is an excellent little rangefinder. I question if there are better devices out there at the $300 price tag but you can truly never go wrong with a Bushnell device. If you're after a smaller rangefinder that still packs a punch and delivers reliable yardages, the A1-Slope should be in your thinking.
