Electronic dartboards are dartboards that include an electronic element… but then you probably guessed that much.
What you might not have realized is just how much more fun this can make a dartboard, or what a useful feature it can be.
Electronic dartboards can come with a range of different features and functionality, with the best options of course depending very much on how you like to play and what you’re looking to get out of your board.
The most obvious use or feature for an electronic dartboard is of course score keeping. This of course allows a player to keep track of how much they have scored without needing to take the time out to write down their scores. When playing multiplayer games, this can significantly speed up the game and ensure that you aren’t spending just as long writing down scores as you are actually playing!
But other dartboards will go beyond this. For instance, many dartboards will provide a single player function, allowing you to keep better tabs on your own score, or to try a range of different challenges and games. This can be a great way to learn a new game for one or two players, and some dartboards will come programmed with 30-40 games and hundreds of different variations on those games. This can in theory keep you entertained indefinitely, while honing your skills more and more.
For single players it’s also fun to see your progress tracked over time in some cases. While in other cases, you might enjoy being able to play against AI opponents – or even opponents located elsewhere!
Top Electronic Dartboards
Here are our picks for the top electronic dartboards:
One of the biggest problems with plastic electronic dartboards is the fact that they will often experience a lot of bounce – if the dart doesn’t land directly between the plastic protrusions, then it will rebound onto the floor. The Arachnid Cricket Pro 800 is designed with incredibly thin segment dividers to reduce this issue.
Not only that, but it also has multiple different play modes – 39 different games and 179 different variations. These together allow 8 players to enjoy the game at once. Regulation 15.5 inch target area also helps make the game as close to the real thing as possible.
One of the best options is the ability to play against an AI opponent – making target practice that much more engaging.
Pros
Cons
This is a great plastic electronic board with particularly tiny holes for minimal rebound. It’s well priced and has a very interactive quality with an announcer reading out the scores.
Bright LCD display provides the score for 1-8 players, and there are even 6 soft tip darts included. However, this is more of a fun device for families, rather than anything serious for pros due to the non-regulationo target area.
There is a smaller number of games as compared with some of the competition (just 21 different rules with 65 variations), though this is less of a problem than it might sound – that is still plenty!
Pros
Cons
This e-bristle dartboard bucks the trend as compared with other entries on this list. That’s because it is not a plastic-based dartboard, but instead utilizes fibres in order to create an experience that is far more similar to the authentic feeling of using a professional board during competition.
Unlike many others, this board will accept steel tip darts as well as soft tip, meaning that it is more appropriate for using to practice.
It also has a lot of game modes – 38 to be precise, with 211 variations.
Pros
Cons
How Electronic Dartboards Are Made
When it comes to electronic dartboards, there are two main construction methods. One is to make a plastic electronic dartboard. These dartboards are made using small plastic pieces that have gaps in between them. You then use a plastic soft tip dart and throw that into the board. The soft tip dart will then wedge itself in between the plastic pieces and that will in turn hold the dart in place for you to register the score.
These plastic dartboards allow a circuit to be completed once the dart sinks into place, which in time allows the information to be recorded digitally. The only downside is that by using plastic dartboards, you won’t be practicing with the exact same set up that you would be during competition – and the soft tip darts likewise will be different.
E-Bristle
E-bristle dartboards are made from tiny fibers that are closely located together. These allow a steel tip dart to be used and will hold it in place when they land. By doing this, they then allow a circuit to be completed once again but this time the effect is very much more similar to professional darts.
While this can be an even better system because it is more authentic to ‘real darts’, it’s important to shop around as some lack the necessary sensitivity for easy score-keeping.
Buying an Electronic Dartboard
While there are many different electronic dartboards out there, finding the right one is very much a matter of knowing what you’re looking for. Do you want a near-authentic experience? In which case an e-bristle board is a great choice.
Otherwise you might be looking for a board with the most games and modes. Whatever the case, one of these products should be a great starting point!
Dartsharp.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.