Carv Digital Ski Coach Ratings and Reviews

best sports gadget ever

Carv totally transformed my skiing. Had it for 4 years, and since I got it I did not ski one day without it. The drills and data are invaluable, an for the price of a ski instructor for a day, I had a ski monitor in our pocket for about 80 ski days since 2017. I started with mostly doing the drills in my first year using it, and once I got to a decent level on each of the drills I’ve started to challenge my ski iq score. Lately the app introduced monitors and challenges, I enjoy the monitor mode and that’s a very good way to improve the technique and experiment. Combine the data and tips you get from the app with some of the instructional videos that Carv has produced and you’ll never stop improving your skiing. Plus it’s really motivational, I am finally excited to go skiing even to the local hills, not only to the big mountains, because every day I want to get better in all areas: balance, edging, pressure. In four years I’ve moved from a low intermediate ski iq score to a ski iq close to the scores of experienced ski instructors , the leaderboard is adding that extra motivation for sure, having the ability to be ranked at global level country level or at mountain level. The support from the Carv team is also awesome, I’ve had a couple hardware problems over these 4 years and they were very helpful in sending replacements. Great idea, great app, great hardware, great development and support team!

Amazing!!!

I had hit a rut with my skiing progression, it didn’t matter what instructors told me it just didn’t make sense. I thought I was doing what they asked, but it never translated to the ski acting the way they wanted it to. I’m an intermediate level skier and I considered taking up snowboarding thinking that I would never be any better than I was because I just didn’t “get it.”

Enter Carv.

It is an ABSOLUTE game changer!! Getting real time feedback as it’s happening is amazing! In just two hours with Carv on my first day I progressed leaps and bounds above where I was the day before. Going further into the app and looking at the data after your runs and learning how much pressure you apply, at what point in the turn you apply it, and more is beyond helpful! I can’t praise Carv enough, and it’s less expensive than a private lesson at most of my local mountains. While human interaction is nice, nothing can compare to the data and feedback this provides. I absolutely love it, and you will too!

Confusing App

Update 12/5/2
The Carv subscription management is completely broken. The Carv app shows the subscription will auto renew in the end of January 2024 but gives me no way to either change the date, subscription type, credit card or even cancel the subscription. On the website there’s a page to request a magic link which never sends a magic link. Contacting support has been useless in getting the subscription management resolved.

Original review
The app has a lot of information and features but it is a confusing mess. There’s too much advertising and up sells that get in the way of basic functionality. It would be helpful if the app guided a user through analysis and training. i.e. start with a ski-iq run and then switch to a training mode based on the analysis focusing on weak spots. Instead, a user has pick what to measure and do next. The voices sound robotic and get annoying to listen to. The suggestions get repetitive. A good instructor explains things in multiple ways. While my ski iq improved during the day, it’s not clear the improvement came from Carv or the fact that I had warmed up and hence was skiing better.

Developer Response ,

Hi There!

We actually identified the issue causing these problems, and have emailed you trying to fix it! We're looking forward to hearing back from you and getting you back on track.

If you can't find the email, please drop us a line at support@getcarv.com

Great idea, inconsistent data and results

I love the idea of this technology. Setup was relatively easy. My issue is that the results it gives you back don’t seem to track with reality. I’ll do turns exactly the same way over and over and sometimes it says I did it right and other times it says the opposite. During active coach, it’ll say I didn’t do a turn correctly and then “ding” saying I did one right when I’m not actually turning at all but just skiing straight.

I wonder if the problem is that my boots and feet are very large and the sensor just isn’t big enough to cover my whole foot. I can’t think of any other reason why I would get wildly different scores while doing the exact same motions on the exact same run.

Also, it seems to want you to have ideal conditions on an impossibly long slope with no other humans around. But the reality of skiing is that there are other people constantly in your way, ski runs are pretty short before you have to stop or maneuver in some less than diserabke way, breaking your streaks.

Developer Response ,

Thank you for sharing your thoughts with us. We really appreciate your feedback and understand your concerns regarding the consistency of Carv's feedback. We're actively working on improving our terrain detection capabilities to ensure that Carv is compatible with various skiing conditions and terrains, allowing you to ski the whole mountain with confidence. I'll pass your feedback onto our team!

Great Technology

I love this app. It’s such an ingenious idea and product. I bought it during the initial Kickstarter phase. The creators are always developing new videos of how to use the device to get the most out of it. Between the really helpful drills and the more general ‘Freeskiing mode’, and sets can work on lots of techniques to better their skiing skills. Customer Service is excellent too. I had an issue with one tracker not functioning properly and they were very helpful in solving the problem. And even though a different rep followed up with me each time as we went through the troubleshooting steps, their response was well coordinated and I did not have to keep re-explaining the problem. I highly recommend this for any level skier, and have recommended it to many fellow ski mates. I consider myself an expert skier and there is plenty of great content and skill development ideas for me too.

Developer Response ,

Hi Mark, we're so happy to hear you continue to have a good experience with Carv and we wish you another great winter on the slopes!

Awesome for all levels

I got Carv for my husband as his Christmas present, he immediately fell in love with it and was constantly talking about his scores snd techniques to improve. So when he shushed me several times on the chairlift because Carv was talking to him (briefing him on the previous run and how/what to improve) I had enough and decided I should get one too. I was a mediocre skill (intermediate) with no desire to better myself in a rush, but after Carv installation, I have been so motivated by its coaching and scoring sheets, and at the same time so inspired by other high scoring Carv users on the leaderboard, I find myself stepping out of the comfort zone and pushing harder. My point is, Carv is not just for good skiers wanting to be even better, it’s also for meh skiers wanting to become good! I wish Carv would make junior size so my kids can benefit from this great gadget!

A Great Product for Improving my Skiing

I started using CARV in January, 2021. It has truly helped improve my skiing. Since I started using CARV I have been working on increasing my edge angle and increasing my early edging. If you asked me prior to using CARV I would have told you I create high edge angles, but the CARV data showed me I wasn’t even close to what really good skiers achieve. CARV also showed me my turns to the right were at a consistently higher edge angle compared to my turns to the left. What I was feeling and perceiving wasn’t even close to reality. I used the monitor modes and challenge modes to slowly, but steadily increase my edge angles and my early edging over a few weeks. Most importantly I could feel it in my skiing and my ski buddies could see the difference. I can’t tell you how much I am looking forward to using CARV in the 21 -22 ski season!!

Love the feedback!

I have been skiing for 48 year and have put 10 days on these in Winter Park CO and love them. The real time coaching in my airpods and tips and feedback after my run are invaluable. It’s very helpful to be corrected as you’re skiing so you can instantly make the adjustments on your next TURN rather than your next RUN. The turning on outside ski and balance training exercises has been great and they’re fun too. The # of turns in 30 seconds challenge is killer! My personal best is 42 turns! Then she says “great job let’s do it again” and counts down from 3-2-1 so you end up doing it maybe 3-4 times on these longer runs out west. Talk about legs on fire by the time I’m on the chairlift! :) Everyone can improve even a guy who started of as a kid 48 years ago! Highly recommended you will not be disappointed.

Developer Response ,

Thank you so much for your positive review - it really helps us out!

I am glad that you are enjoying Carv, and I know that feeling of the burning legs all too well! I hope that you continue to improve with Carv and that you have a great rest of the season.

Much more than an app

I’m really happy I bought the Carv inserts, even though I have to use my old phone to work with them (LG V60 has Bluetooth issues). It’s more than a gadget, more than an app. It comes with an entire team of professionals to help you hone your technique. Is Carv a replacement for in-person ski instruction? No. It is a fantastic compliment to it. And, this year when my local resort is repeatedly failing to get back to me when I attempt to book privates, I’m still progressing. Carv is based on carving technique, but the program is able to address moguls and powder as well. It just isn’t able to appropriately score your technique in those areas at this time. Carv is very well put together, and their customer service is great, even if in the “wrong” time zone.

Developer Response ,

Thanks for leaving such a positive review!

Messages like these are the reason Carv was created. We are so happy to see that you are not only improving your skiing ability, but also having fun!

Wishing you a terrific season.

Great device, app lacks some functionality

I love my Carv sensors. The real-time feedback is awesome. I really enjoy free ski mode and getting a report after each run, as well as the challenges and trainings. Having the videos right there is super handy. I really like the improvements in the way data is displayed, and the way I can track my Ski IQ over the course of the day as well as across different days. All in all, the tech is phenomenal and worth the price tag in my opinion.

Why only three stars? I was really excited about the leaderboard and being able to track my progress across different runs. However, the database that they pull the resort info from is not accurate. I ski at literally the biggest resort in the US, and it keeps reporting my training logs as taking place at a neighboring resort (Deer Valley instead of Park City). I’ve worked with support to confirm the GPS is accurate, and it’s the resort information that’s wrong. They can’t do anything about it, or at least haven’t yet. This limits the effectiveness of the training comparison day-to-day and run-to-run for me. It also means I can’t compete on the leaderboard since I’m not showing up as actually skiing at the resort I’m skiing at.

I track my runs separately with the Slopes app, (which I highly recommend), but I wish I didn’t have to do that.

If the GPS was accurate, this app would be 5 stars.