Cigman CT-1000 Rangefinder Review: the best value Rangefinder in Golf?

When it comes to golf equipment, it’s never been harder to find genuine value for money. 

Single clubs now cost what a full set once did and very few golfers ever really feel like they are getting a fantastic deal. But, and there’s always a but, if you’re willing to look, it is still possible to find golf equipment which offers genuine value. 

In the modern game, the rangefinder has become a truly essential piece of kit. The growing importance of accurate data is a staple not only for the tour pros, these days, but increasingly for amateurs too and knowing your distances and the distance to the flag is right at the heart of that.

With that in mind, we were invited to review the Cigman CT-1000 Rangefinder to see whether it deserved to be in the conversation for the best inexpensive golf range finder

Now, when it comes to rangefinders, clearly Cigman is not a brand that is as well-known as the likes of Bushnell, Garmin, Nikon or Shotscope. But we felt it was time to put those preconceptions to one side, embrace a new and cost-effective product to see whether it could genuinely compete with those premium brands when it came to accuracy, precision and reliability.

Here’s our verdict. 

BEST INEXPENSIVE GOLF RANGE FINDER?

We have reviewed some excellent products over the years, but when it comes to a rangefinder the requirements are definitive. It has to be accurate; it has to be easy to use, it has to feel right when cradled in your hand and you need to be able to rely on and trust in it. That was the criteria we were looking to satisfy as we put the Cigman CT-1000 in our bag for a month. How would it measure up?

The unboxing experience is very good. The case is good quality and when you first hold the product you grip onto the rubberised grips on top and bottom and it immediately feels like you are grasping something solid and substantial, rather than something cheap or likely to fall apart. You will find a magnet on the side, where you can attach it to a trolley, or a cart and the slope button is there and easy to access too. Does it have the weight or the substance of a Bushnell or a Garmin? Possibly not, but the build quality is excellent and it’s certainly a confidence building start straight out of the box. 

SPECIFICATIONS FOR CIGMAN CT-1000

Now, when it comes to specifications for the best inexpensive golf range finder, the Cigman CT-1000 has everything you would want. It comes with slope, it has target lock vibration, it is accurate to 1 yard up to a distance of more than 1km and it is chargeable via a USB cable, which means you don’t need to keep buying batteries and it comes complete with a 3-year warranty, which actually puts it ahead of most other rangefinders in golf. That’s a pretty comprehensive list and certainly puts it on a par with some of golf’s most celebrated rangefinders, but at a fraction of the price. Perhaps most impressive is the 7x magnification you get with the Cigman CT-1000, which puts it on a par with the Bushnell Pro X3. 

How did it perform on the golf course? Well, the display is crystal clear and the lock onto the flag was surprisingly quick, which made the whole process very straightforward and easy. There was the odd occasion when it picked out the trees behind a green, rather than the pin itself but generally the speed with which the Cigman CT-1000 gave me the yardage was hugely impressive. This is the only golf rangefinder I have ever used, which gives you a yardage to the flag with a decimal point. So, it isn’t just 101 yards. It’s 101.2 yards. And that can mean that it takes a little time to settle on the final number. 

But the yardages this candidate for the best inexpensive golf range finder, gave us were consistently accurate – we also had a GPS watch – and tallied with our club choices. It didn’t take long for our confidence in this product to grow and grow. 

SHOULD YOU BUY THE CIGMAN CT-1000?

After using this product for the best part of a month, we would definitely put the Cigman CT-1000 in the mix as the best inexpensive golf range finder. Across the course of a month, it didn’t let us down, it delivered precision and accuracy when it came to yardages and the speed with which it locked onto the pins was extremely impressive. This is a rangefinder which fires a laser at the flag and when it bounces back it gives you that number. 

The Cigman CT-1000 surprised us. To be completely honest, we didn’t expect to like this rangefinder as much as we did. We hadn’t heard a huge amount about the brand before we began the trial, we didn’t really know what to expect, but what we found was a product which has some really impressive features, is easy to use, is accurate and, above all else, is cost effective. For the price, this has to be in the conversation when it comes to the best inexpensive golf range finder.