Skytrak vs R Motion Part 1

Introduction/Disclaimer:
I did not purchase my R Motion unit, I was asked to use the device and provide feedback to Rapsodo. Getting injured greatly slowed this process down but I have now managed to capture some data and compare it to my Skytrak.

Accurate simulation golf is expensive with the ST marking the current entry point. The R Motion is significantly cheaper and does not measure the ball launch characteristics. It is a clip based system which is attached to the club before the ball is hit.

Can the very affordable R Motion provide sufficiently accurate data to TGC in order to dramatically lower the barrier to entry into simulation golf?
Can it provide additional data which could be used to supplement the highly accurate ball data provided by the ST?

Method:
Within the limitations of my setup I tested by capturing 5 solid shots (not blatant mishits) with multiple clubs. Shots were struck from a soft range mat. Using this mat I have noticed shots launch higher and travel less distance compared to a firmer mat or turf. Spin rates are also higher and less variable than those encountered playing 'real' golf.

R Motion version was 1.3.0
ST version was 2.6.5

The ball used was:
Callaway Chrome Soft

The clubs used were:
PW (45°)
7 Iron (31°)
5 Iron (24°)
3 Iron (19°)

The clip position was measured on each club and the actual lofts were also entered into the R Motion configuration to provide maximum accuracy.

Results and Analysis:

In order to accurately simulate the shot outcome the R Motion needs to capture/calculate the basic launch parameters and I think it does an excellent job.

Ball speed is calculated well. As previously noted fractional mishits reduce ball speed slightly and I think this  explains why the R Motion ballspeed is generally a little higher. Of additional interest are the three shots where I caught the mat first. It wasn't sufficient to drop ball speed drastically but the R Motion could not tell when strike occurred which led to a large difference.

Excellent correlation with ST.

The result of these measurements

The R Motion sets its target line at the start of the takeaway (where the clubface is pointing). Obviously this can vary from the ST target line but in general they show a good correlation.

An aggregated summary:

I think this is impressive. In terms of simulation golf you need to know where the ball would have gone. The R Motion is within 3 yards of the Skytrak for L/R and within 3% of the Skytrak for carry distance.

Source data can be found here.

Conclusion
"Can the very affordable R Motion provide sufficiently accurate data to TGC in order to dramatically lower the barrier to entry into simulation golf?"
I think the above proves it can. I dont think this is a game improvement tool like the Skytrak but it is a simple to use entry point into golf simulation.

"Can it provide additional data which could be used to supplement the highly accurate ball data provided by the ST?"
I hope so and this is what really interests me. In theory data from this (or a Skypro etc) could be merged with the Skytrak data to provide accurate ball and club data. At this point it could become a component of a hugely powerful game improvement tool.