Bushnell Tour V6 vs Nikon COOLSHOT 50i GII

The Quick Verdict

These two are priced identically at $299.99, so this decision comes down to what you actually need. Get the Nikon COOLSHOT 50i GII. It has slope mode, a better display, a longer warranty, and it's lighter — and you're not paying extra for any of it. The Bushnell Tour V6 is the pick only if you play in tournaments where slope is prohibited and you want a single device that's permanently legal without fumbling with a switch.

What They Have in Common

Both rangefinders hit 6x magnification, claim ±1 yard accuracy, run on CR2 lithium batteries, and have a magnet mount for the cart rail. They're built for the same basic job: point it at the flag, get a number, hit your shot. At the same price point, neither one is a budget option. You're getting a real rangefinder either way.

Where They Differ

Slope Mode

This is the whole ballgame. The Nikon has slope; the Bushnell doesn't. Slope-adjusted yardage tells you what the hole plays like — a 150-yard uphill to an elevated green might play 160, and knowing that actually changes your club selection. The Nikon also has a physical slope switch so you can toggle it off for tournament rounds (USGA rules require slope to be disabled during competition). You'll probably forget to flip that switch. But the option is there.

The Bushnell Tour V6 has no slope whatsoever. That's a deliberate design choice — it's tournament-legal out of the box with nothing to toggle. If you play in regular club competitions or just don't want to think about it, that's a genuine selling point. For everyone else, you're leaving useful information on the table at no cost savings.

Display and Optics

The Nikon runs a red OLED display internally; the Bushnell uses an LCD. In practice, OLED tends to read cleaner in low-light conditions — early morning rounds, overcast days, when you're squinting into a gray October sky. LCD displays work fine in standard daylight but can wash out when conditions aren't ideal. Nobody reads a rangefinder in direct sunlight anyway; you're always shading the lens with your hand. But the Nikon's red OLED has a little more pop in those in-between lighting situations.

Bushnell's PinSeeker with Visual Jolt is their flag-lock feedback system — it vibrates when it acquires the pin. Nikon's equivalent is called Dual Locked-On with Hyper Read, which claims fast target acquisition on the flag even with obstructions behind it. Both systems work. Both are trying to solve the same problem of distinguishing the flag from the trees 80 yards behind it. I'd give Nikon a slight edge in marketing language that at least sounds like it was named by someone who golfs, but both get the job done in the field.

Water Resistance and Build

The Bushnell is rated IPX6; the Nikon is IPX4. IPX6 means it can handle sustained water jets — essentially, rain from any direction for a sustained period. IPX4 covers splashing from any direction. In real-world terms, both will survive a rainstorm. IPX6 is the more robust rating, and this is one area where the Bushnell has a genuine edge. If you regularly play in heavy rain or are just rough on gear, that's worth noting. The Bushnell also weighs 8.7 oz to the Nikon's 7.2 oz — not a massive difference, but the Nikon is noticeably lighter in hand.

Range and Warranty

The Bushnell reaches out to 1,300 yards; the Nikon tops at 1,200 yards. Neither number matters practically — you're not ranging anything over 500 yards, and their flag range specs (500+ for Bushnell, ~400 for Nikon) are closer to what you'll actually use. The Nikon comes with a five-year warranty, which is notably generous. Seems like Nikon is using that warranty to build confidence against Bushnell's stronger brand recognition in the rangefinder space — that's my read, anyway.

Who Should Buy Which

Get the Bushnell Tour V6 if:

• You play in club championships or tournaments with strict equipment rules and want a rangefinder that's always legal without flipping a switch
• You regularly play in heavy rain and want the stronger IPX6 water resistance rating
• You're already in the Bushnell ecosystem and trust the brand's tour-level track record

Get the Nikon COOLSHOT 50i GII if:

• You're the 14-handicap who plays weekend rounds at their home course and wants slope-adjusted yardages to actually dial in approach shots — and you don't want to pay extra for the privilege
• You play early morning rounds in fall and want a display that reads clearly when the light is flat and the dew is still on the green
• You want the five-year warranty as a genuine backstop on a $300 purchase
• You care about having the lightest possible unit in your bag

The Bottom Line

At the same price, the Nikon COOLSHOT 50i GII is the better rangefinder for most golfers. Slope mode alone justifies it, and the OLED display and five-year warranty are real bonuses. The Bushnell Tour V6 has better water resistance and a permanently tournament-legal setup — if those two things match your situation, it's not a bad call. But for the typical golfer who wants the most useful device for weekend and casual rounds, the Nikon wins this one cleanly.

Get the Nikon COOLSHOT 50i GII.