I really like this launcher.  It works really well, but I'm thinking of someday buying the longer one.  I opted on this one as the long one indicated it threw farther.  I didn't want to launch it so far I'd lose the ball or end up chasing my dog to get him to come back, so for the length of the throw is perfect and it's very easy to snatch the ball up for continued throwing.  My significant other is 6'1" so he has to do some bending to pick up the balls which is okay for him, but the intention had been to make it easier for him.  One thing I've noticed is that this does not put the stress on my shoulder that thowing by hand thowing does.  This makes our dog, Diego, very happy because he can play and play and play.