Bushnell Wingman HD Review: Is This the New Best Golf Speaker?

Whether you love it or hate it, it’s Bushnell who we have to thank for most of the music we hear on the golf course.

They’re the ones, with their Wingman models, that created the Bluetooth golf GPS speaker category that allows golfers to listen to tunes and get yardages at the same time.

And they just released their biggest, boldest edition so far, the new Wingman HD.

There’s a lot about it that’s impressive, no question. The screen, the size, the magnet, the no-subscription model, and some of the other interesting features definitely make it a compelling option at $199.

But the question is, is it the best? How does it compare to previous Wingman models, and how does it stack up against my all-time favorite golf Bluetooth speaker, the Blue Tees Player+?

Well, I’ve had it out on the course twice now, and while I can confirm that some of the marketing hype is legit, I gotta say, I’ve also run into some frustrations. Some of them are significant enough to make me question whether the Wingman HD really is the golf speaker to buy in 2026.

Let’s find out.

Bushnell Wingman HD First Impressions

The Wingman HD is the biggest speaker in Bushnell’s Wingman line.

I mean, it’s substantial. At 8.25 inches tall, 3.5 inches wide, and almost 2.75 inches deep, I’d say it’s a good 20% bigger than the original Wingman and maybe 15% bigger than the old Wingman View.

And it weighs right around 2 pounds, which makes it one of the heavier golf speakers on the market.

The next thing I noticed on the Wingman HD was the screen, which looks awesome. 

This is a much bigger and better screen than what was on the old Wingman View. It’s a real touchscreen. And it looks really good, even in direct sunlight.

That display takes up most of the front of the speaker. Above it, you’ve got play and volume buttons, and at the bottom of the speaker is a power button.

I also like how they’ve changed from the triangular shape of the View, which is their only other model with a built-in display. With that speaker, when I stick it magnetically to a cart post, the angle at which the screen faces just never really seems to be convenient.

With the Wingman HD, the screen faces directly forward, and it really is the star of the show.

The packaging for the HD is classic Bushnell. You get the familiar orange, white, and black color scheme, and everything in the box is neatly organized. The speaker comes with a USB-C charging cable, a lanyard with a carabiner clip, a cleaning cloth, and a quick start guide with a QR code to the full manual.

About that carabiner clip. The Wingman HD includes a little hook on the back of the speaker where you can attach a cord or carabiner, and I’m really glad to see it. They had this on the Original Wingman, but for some reason, they ditched it with the Wingman 2 and View.

So, even though this is a heavy speaker that I’m not sure is going to be a great choice for walking, it’s nice to have the versatility to be able to clip the speaker to your bag or whatever else if you wanted to.

The speaker itself is black with orange trim, and I think it looks really good.

On the back, there’s the classic Bushnell BITE magnet, and it’s incredibly strong. There is no way this speaker is going to fall off a cart post, no matter what you drive over.

The water and dust proofing is rated at IPX67, so it can basically handle anything you’re ever going to encounter playing golf.

And the overall build quality is total Bushnell. It’s the same with all their stuff. They build their products to be almost indestructible.

Setting Up and Using the Wingman HD

At this point, I don’t really have to tell you how to set up a Bluetooth speaker. It’s simple, and the Wingman HD is no different.

But you do need to download the Bushnell Golf app and create an account. That takes just a couple of minutes.

Once you pair your speaker to your phone and open the Bushnell app, the speaker immediately syncs up and displays all your GPS data, like front, center, and back yardages, hole layouts, and hazard locations on the screen.

I was very impressed with how easily I could see all of the information and how well the colors contrast on the hole maps. I think that the screen from an aesthetics standpoint, is the best of any of the golf speakers out there.

But, and I’ll talk about this more as we go, the problem I’ve run into is that while that screen looks really good, using it has led to some frustrations.

You also have the option to get your yardages audibly, as you do with most golf GPS speakers.

The app itself is kind of the same colors and layouts. It’s pretty straightforward and very easy to navigate. I think they’ve done a good job of keeping things relatively simple, which I think makes sense for most golf speaker users.

The app also gives you some nice customization options so that you can choose what you want to see on the speaker screen. 

This new Wingman version does not come with a remote control, which was something that was included with the last model, the Wingman 2. But you can control the speaker via the app if you want to. And, like I said, you’ve got the nice physical buttons front and center on the speaker itself.

Battery life is about 8 hours, and as I mentioned, charging is through USB-C. You can also use this USB-C port to charge your phone while you’re on the course, which is a big plus to using something like this. 

The Wingman HD on the Course

So, this is where I start to have some issues with the Bushnell Wingman HD. My overall experience has been a bit of a mixed bag.

Let me explain.

As I said, that screen looks really nice.

And I also think this is Bushnell’s best-sounding Wingman so far, as you might expect considering it’s their largest. This is the first model that gives us a visible subwoofer on each end, and it definitely gives you as much volume as you’ll ever need on a golf course.

One feature that’s new and actually really cool is what Bushnell calls Dynamic Audio Adjustment. Basically, as you drive in your cart, the speaker gains in volume the faster you’re moving. And then the opposite as you slow down.

The idea is to maintain a constant volume relative to the surrounding noise, and it totally works. So that’s a somewhat subtle but very practical new feature that, as far as I know, is exclusive to this golf speaker.

I found the yardages to be accurate and exactly what I’d expect from Bushnell. I don’t have any reason not to trust the quality of the GPS data.

But…

My Biggest Issues with the Bushnell Wingman HD

The three biggest complaints I have about this speaker are that connectivity, for me, has been a problem, the screen is often laggy or downright non-responsive, and some of the features on the screen that I thought would be really cool I find to actually not be that useful.

So let me start with those features.

Hole Maps Aren’t as Useful as I’d Expected

With this bright, awesome-to-look-at screen, you get hole overview maps and also green closeup maps. That’s really nice in theory. But in reality, I just haven’t found them to provide much value. There’s just not enough detail on the maps to really make them that helpful.

I thought I was really going to find these hole maps to be a big differentiating win for the Wingman HD compared to the Blue Tees Player+, but that’s just not been my experience.

You can also scroll to a third screen, which shows you all of the hazards on the hole and the accompanying distances. And this screen I really do like. It’s well laid out and genuinely helpful.

The Wingman HD Loses Connectivity Too Often

Another issue I’ve had with the Wingman HD is with consistent connectivity. To get all of this data, the speaker needs to stay connected to the app. And out on the golf course, I found that to be a problem.

Because I love to use Arccos when I play, I also like to keep my phone in my pocket so that I can easily access all of the insights that the Arccos app provides for me.

The problem I had when playing is that, usually, as soon as I got even like 20 feet away from the cart, the speaker would drop connection with the app. The music part of that Bluetooth connection didn’t have any trouble, but the golf features routinely dropped off.

It was a consistent annoyance to the point that it really did negatively affect my experience with this speaker.

I know that any Bluetooth device is going to lose connection after a certain distance, but with the Wingman HD, the range seemed to be really limited. I haven’t had that same limitation in using the Blue Tees Player+.

I will say that if you leave your phone in the cart where the speaker is, you shouldn’t have any issues. But for my use case, maintaining connectivity was a problem with the Wingman HD. And a serious frustration.

Screen Responsiveness is Inconsistent

I also found the responsiveness of the different screens to be a bit laggy at times. Nothing too major, but just a bit slow to load.

And worse than that, I had several instances where the screen just became unresponsive. Like, I’d click a button to scroll to another hole or feature, and it just wouldn’t do it. I’d have to click like seven times for it to finally engage. That became super frustrating.

So, as I said, it’s definitely been a mixed bag. Yes, the speaker sounds great. Yes, the screen looks awesome. Yes the GPS yardages are accurate. But these connection and occasional unresponsive issues are enough to give me real pause.

My hope is that all of these things can be addressed via a firmware update, so I’ll keep an eye out for those and revisit this review. Because of these things are addressed, then I think this is absolutely one of the best speakers on the market.

No Subscriptions a Definite Wingman HD Win

Beyond all of the GPS data and in-app options, the Wingman HD includes a few other nice features.

You can use the speaker to measure shot distances. It’s manual, but it works well. After your shot, you hit the button, then you go to your shot, hit the button again, and it will tell you the total distance between those two points. Kind of nice to have right on the speaker itself if you’re ever curious how far you hit one.

Another really cool feature is that the Wingman HD is LINK-Enabled. Meaning, if you’ve got a Bushnell or Foresight launch monitor, you can get personalized club recommendations based on your shot data right on this speaker.

The best part about all of this is that there are no subscriptions with the Wingman HD. So, for a one-time $199 purchase price, you’re getting a pretty nice overall package.

As I’ll discuss in a minute, an option like the Blue Tees Player+ requires a subscription to access all of its features. So, this is a competitive win for the Bushnell.

There are Better Golf Speakers for Walkers

I said before that I don’t love this speaker for walkers, and that’s because at almost 2 pounds, it’s just too heavy. But you’ve always got something like the Wingman Mini.

Or, for like $60, you can get a JBL Clip speaker that sounds great and is super lightweight. They’re on the Clip model 5 now. It won’t include any of the GPS functions, but if you just want play tunes on your walking rounds, I think this is a solid choice.

Another option for walkers who just need simplicity is the Pinned Dart 2.0, which is available in multiple colors for $65 MSRP.

The point is that I don’t think consistent walking golfers are going to find the Wingman HD to be their best option. Yes, it does include the carabiner attachment post. And, yes, if you’re using a push cart, you may not mind the extra weight. But if you’re carrying, there are definitely better and lighter options.

Blue Tees Player+ vs. Wingman HD

First off, both of these speakers cost the same $199 MSRP – but the Blue Tees is on sale more often, and you can use the Blue Tees coupon code BREAKINGEIGHTY10 to knock another 10% off.

And the other big similarity is the touchscreen. I’ve loved the Player+ screen ever since it came out. It was far superior to the old Wingman View. But the larger Wingman HD screen is nicer than the Player+’s.

As I mentioned earlier, the other big win for the Wingman HD is that there are no subscriptions. With the Blue Tees, you have to pay a subscription to unlock everything, like hazard distances, driving distance measurement, score keeping on the speaker, and a few other features. It’s only about $99 for three years, so not too big of a spend, but still.

I’ll be honest, those things are not enough to dethrone the Player+ as the best golf GPS speaker in my opinion. I still prefer it over the Wingman HD.

Especially when you consider that you can still get basic front/middle/back distances on the Player+ without a subscription, I just find the overall usability experience to be better than on the Wingman HD.

Maybe Bushnell sorts out some of these connectivity and laggy issues with firmware updates, and maybe this overall market assessment will change in the future.

But as it stands now, the Player+ is still my favorite. I just don’t have the same frustrations as I do with the Wingman HD. The Player+ stays connected consistently, and doesn’t experience the same lagginess and non-responsive issues.

Final Thoughts on the Bushnell Wingman HD

The Bushnell Wingman HD is now the golf speaker with the best display. That’s what I see as its biggest selling point, and it’s a good one. This screen really does look nice.

And I think that if you keep your phone near the speaker and avoid some of the connection problems that I experienced, the Wingman HD story gets even more compelling.

For $199 and no subscriptions, I think this is now the best Bushnell golf speaker for most people, especially if you’re already in the Bushnell or Foresight Sports camp.

It’s too heavy for walkers. And some people are going to miss the remote control. But this is the newest Wingman evolution, and I think it’s going to be their best overall option. And hopefully they can fix some of these responsiveness issues I encountered.

But for me, for now, the Blue Tees Player+ still reigns supreme.

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On paper, this is the new king of golf speakers. But on the course? Well...

8.6 Solid

The Bushnell Wingman HD delivers everything you want in a GPS golf speaker, including excellent sound and full GPS features, with no subscription. But it's not without its issues. I had regular trouble with responsiveness and maintaining connection.

The Good

1. Stunning 3.5-inch touchscreen
2. No subscription for any features
3. Dynamic Audio Adjustment works great

The Bad

1. Too heavy for walking golfers
2. No remote included
3. Bushnell app connection drops when speaker and phone are separated by minimal distance
4. Can be laggy and at times unresponsive

• Presentation 10
• Performance 7
• Features 9
• Price 9
• Personal Affinity 8