50 Words or Less
The Cobalt Q-Z6 adds adjustable zoom to their excellent rangefinder. Slope compensation. Simple, unique controls. Strong cart magnet. Size and shape a bit unwieldy.
Introduction
In the history of the laser rangefinder, there have been several truly significant innovations, including slope compensation and red/black optics. Between those big leaps forward, there are a lot of nonsense features and solutions in search of problems. The Cobalt Q-Z6 rangefinder brings something genuinely new to the party: adjustable zoom. Will this prove to be one of those meaningful innovations? I tested it to find out.
Set Up & Ease of Use
Something that’s carried forward to the Cobalt Q-Z6 rangefinder is the brand’s unique set of controls. On the top of the rangefinder, there’s only one button. That button turns the unit on with the first push and gets your distance with the second.
On the left side of the rangefinder (above), you’ll find more controls. Slope compensation is turned on and off with its own switch – a feature I love. You can change from yards to meters with a long press of the round button. The blue wheel changes the brightness of the display. While not the single reason to buy the Cobalt Q-Z6, there’s nothing but upside to making this feature more accessible. Brightness is usually buried deep on the list of menus, if it’s adjustable at all, and being able to change it can prolong your battery life.
Turning back to the top of the unit, there are two controls for the optics. The blue slider near the power button controls the zoom. I’ll discuss the practicality of this below, but for now I’ll note that the slider works easily and intuitively. The textured blue ring nearer your eye controls the focus. This control is fairly stiff, which I strongly prefer. A loose focal adjustment ends up being a time waster because it won’t stay in the desired spot.
Finally, the Cobalt Q-Z6 is powered by a conventional battery. This sits behind a threaded door that takes about three full rotations to open. While I appreciate the efficiency of the quarter-turn doors, for as often as a rangefinder battery needs to be replaced, I’ll opt for the security of this approach.
Accuracy & Features
The zoom is what makes the Cobalt Q-Z6 rangefinder unique, so let’s start there. With a twist of that blue ring, the zoom on this device moves from 6X to 12X. That’s a big difference. One thing to consider is that this rangefinder is not stabilized, so if you have shaky hands, the zoom is not going to help you hit the flag. Where I do think it has value is in scouting ahead on a new course or simply getting a clearer picture of something in the distance such as the location of the flag on the green.
Turning to our normal criteria, the Cobalt Q-Z6 rangefinder has good speed and reliable accuracy. In my testing with several other rangefinders, the Q-Z6 was always plus or minus one yard and was internally consistent. The speed is very good but not elite. I want to underline here, as I have done before, that virtually every modern rangefinder is fast enough that the differences are irrelevant. When tested head-to-head, the differences can be evident, but on the course they’re all giving you distances in under a second.
Two other quality features are PinSense and Surge, features many golfers are familiar with, though perhaps under different names. PinSense helps the Q-Z6 filter out background objects and focus on the flag. Surge is a subtle vibration to let you know that you have locked on to the pin. Both work as expected and help to speed up the process of getting your number. The Cobalt Q-Z6 also has slope adjustment, which can be turned on or off to conform to tournament rules.
Like Cobalt’s Q-6SM, the Q-Z6 has a strong N48 neodymium cart magnet. As I noted in that review, you need to put a strong effort into dislodging this rangefinder from the cart. There’s almost no chance of it falling off from rough driving. If it does, you can trust the quality construction to keep it functioning. This is a full-sized rangefinder, similar to those from Bushnell, and it has the same quality feel. It’s also IPX7 waterproof, meaning it can be submerged in three feet of water for up to thirty minutes without sustaining damage.
Finally, the Cobalt Q-Z6 has a simple display with red optics. You’ll see the aiming reticle above the yardage. To the right, there’s a battery life indicator – a major plus in my book. If the slope function is turned on, the angle of the slope is displayed below the yardage. The Q-Z6 only displays one yardage – adjusted when slope is turned on, straight line when it’s turned off – which keeps the display from being too crowded.
Value
The Cobalt Q-Z6 rangefinder retails for $595. You can support Plugged In Golf by buying it HERE.
This price puts the Q-Z6 in the upper tier of rangefinders alongside the Bushnell Pro X3+ [review HERE] and the rangefinder/GPS hybrid Voice Caddie SL3 [review HERE].
Within the Cobalt family, the Q-6SM [review HERE] is $450, so you’re essentially paying $150 for the zoom feature and a much improved case. While I always applaud the attempt to innovate, the Q-6SM’s case (above, left) was not as good as the standard design which the Q-Z6 employs.
Conclusion
The Cobalt Q-Z6 rangefinder burnishes the company’s reputation for being one of the few innovators in the category. From their unique controls to the zoom feature that sets the Q-Z6 apart, Cobalt is unafraid to stand out from the rest. It’s ultimately up to you, the golfing public, to decide if these new offerings sink or swim, but I applaud Cobalt for diving in.
Buy the Cobalt Q-Z6 Rangefinder HERE
He founded Plugged In Golf in 2013 with the goal of helping all golfers play better and enjoy the game more.
Matt lives in the northwest suburbs of Chicago with his wife and two daughters.
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