The range finders in use for surveying tend to be a bit different from those that are used for hunting, golf, and other activities, but they do have similar features. They all have a viewing area so you can get a line of sight on the object you are using to measure distance. They also have some simple controls for sending out the laser beam. The readout is relatively simple with most of the devices as well. You will get a fast readout of the distance. Many of the range finders allow you to change the distance increments from feet to meters, etc.