Prices for the new DNT Thermnight Optics

Other than the obvious improvement in thermal image quality due to using sensors with more pixels and larger objective lenses, the testing that @GPCBILL and I have done so far (and we still have a lot to do :) ) have shown the following:
a. The new body design has resulted in the overall size and weight of the scope increasing (weight is now approx 900g with battery)
b. It now uses a larger 21700 battery rather than an 18650. Without the use of IR, run time is around 3 1/2 hours from a 6000mah battery
c. That larger diameter battery has allowed the use of a larger lens on the IR illuminator which, combined with a different vcsel, has improved IR performance
d. The eye display is much larger and is now 1920x1080 with the aspect ratio changing depending on whether the main screen is displaying optical/NV or thermal
e. The screw on rubber eyecup has been replaced with a push on rubber eyecup just waiting to fall off
f. Video recording is now 1920x1080 at 60 frames/second and the onboard memory is now 64Gb
g. The small zoom wheel has been replaced with a large zoom ring with a lever making it feel very much like the zoom ring on a good quality glass scope.
h. The LRF module now sits at a 45° angle (so the laser flash is at 45°) and has an eye sensor at it's rear which, when switched on, will detect whether or not there is someone is looking at the display and if not. will switch the display off
i. Optical channel image quality has been improved slightly over the TNC225R. I had always rated the image quality on the 225R as about 90% as good as the Zulus 520 (partly because the Zulus has a more sophisticated objective lens assembly and partly because the sensor in the 225R was cropped)
The optical sensor in the 335/635 is now full HD (1920x1080 with no cropping) although the objective lens assembly looks identical to the 225R and my impression is that the optical channel is now about 95% as good as the Zulus
j. Field of view on the 335R is 7.6° x 5.7° (13.24m @100m)
k. Field of view on the 635R is 12.5° x 9.4° (21.8m @100m)
l. Minimum thermal focus distance is 3m on the 335R and 3.4m on the 635R
m. Minimum optical focus distance on both models is 5.25m
n. Minimum LRF distance is 4m on both models
o. Both models have feature called "thermal lock) which, when switched on, fixes the magnification of the thermal channel at either base magnification or x1.5 base magnification and does not change when the magnification on the optical channel is increased. This is useful for retaining the maximum FOV on the thermal channel for acquiring potential targets seen with a thermal spotter, while zooming in on the optical channel for a more detailed examination of a potential target.
AFAIK, the thermal lock feature will become available on the TNC225R in a soon to be released firmware update

Cheers

Bruce
 
Other than the obvious improvement in thermal image quality due to using sensors with more pixels and larger objective lenses, the testing that @GPCBILL and I have done so far (and we still have a lot to do :) ) have shown the following:
a. The new body design has resulted in the overall size and weight of the scope increasing (weight is now approx 900g with battery)
b. It now uses a larger 21700 battery rather than an 18650. Without the use of IR, run time is around 3 1/2 hours from a 6000mah battery
c. That larger diameter battery has allowed the use of a larger lens on the IR illuminator which, combined with a different vcsel, has improved IR performance
d. The eye display is much larger and is now 1920x1080 with the aspect ratio changing depending on whether the main screen is displaying optical/NV or thermal
e. The screw on rubber eyecup has been replaced with a push on rubber eyecup just waiting to fall off
f. Video recording is now 1920x1080 at 60 frames/second and the onboard memory is now 64Gb
g. The small zoom wheel has been replaced with a large zoom ring with a lever making it feel very much like the zoom ring on a good quality glass scope.
h. The LRF module now sits at a 45° angle (so the laser flash is at 45°) and has an eye sensor at it's rear which, when switched on, will detect whether or not there is someone is looking at the display and if not. will switch the display off
i. Optical channel image quality has been improved slightly over the TNC225R. I had always rated the image quality on the 225R as about 90% as good as the Zulus 520 (partly because the Zulus has a more sophisticated objective lens assembly and partly because the sensor in the 225R was cropped)
The optical sensor in the 335/635 is now full HD (1920x1080 with no cropping) although the objective lens assembly looks identical to the 225R and my impression is that the optical channel is now about 95% as good as the Zulus
j. Field of view on the 335R is 7.6° x 5.7° (13.24m @100m)
k. Field of view on the 635R is 12.5° x 9.4° (21.8m @100m)
l. Minimum thermal focus distance is 3m on the 335R and 3.4m on the 635R
m. Minimum optical focus distance on both models is 5.25m
n. Minimum LRF distance is 4m on both models
o. Both models have feature called "thermal lock) which, when switched on, fixes the magnification of the thermal channel at either base magnification or x1.5 base magnification and does not change when the magnification on the optical channel is increased. This is useful for retaining the maximum FOV on the thermal channel for acquiring potential targets seen with a thermal spotter, while zooming in on the optical channel for a more detailed examination of a potential target.
AFAIK, the thermal lock feature will become available on the TNC225R in a soon to be released firmware update

Cheers

Bruce
Thermal wise what would you put 635 on par with please Bruce ?
 
Thermal wise what would you put 635 on par with please Bruce ?
The 335 has the same thermal spec as the Pulsar Thermion 2 XQ35 Pro (2200), Pulsar Talion XQ35 (RRP 1790), HIK Thunder 2.0 TH35 (RRP 2000), IRay Tube TL35SE (1345), PARD TS31-45F (1170), Nocpix Ace L35 (1673)
The 635 has the same thermal spec as the Pulsar Talion XG35 (RRP 2680), HIK Stellar SQ35L (2900)
The 335 is cheaper than some of it's thermal equivalents and more expensive than others, but we're not really comparing apples with apples since none of the others is multispectral
There are also thermally equivalent scopes from Sytong, Thermtec, Guide, Night Pearl, Conotech etc


Cheers

Bruce
 
Last edited:
The 335 has the same thermal spec as the Pulsar Thermion 2 XQ35 Pro (2200), Pulsar Talion XQ35 (RRP 1790), HIK Thunder 2.0 TH35 (RRP 2000), IRay Tube TL35SE (1345), PARD TS31-45F (1170), Nocpix Ace L35 (1673)
The 635 has the same thermal spec as the Pulsar Talion XG35 (RRP 2680), HIK Stellar SQ35L (2900)
The 335 is cheaper than some of it's thermal equivalents and more expensive than others, but we're not really comparing apples with apples since none of the others is multispectral
There are also thermally equivalent scopes from Sytong, Thermtec, Guide, Night Pearl, Conotech etc


Cheers

Bruce
This there any footage of the new thermal Bruce. I've the talion xq38 which is very good performance past 80-100 yards
 
Other than the obvious improvement in thermal image quality due to using sensors with more pixels and larger objective lenses, the testing that @GPCBILL and I have done so far (and we still have a lot to do :) ) have shown the following:
a. The new body design has resulted in the overall size and weight of the scope increasing (weight is now approx 900g with battery)
b. It now uses a larger 21700 battery rather than an 18650. Without the use of IR, run time is around 3 1/2 hours from a 6000mah battery
c. That larger diameter battery has allowed the use of a larger lens on the IR illuminator which, combined with a different vcsel, has improved IR performance
d. The eye display is much larger and is now 1920x1080 with the aspect ratio changing depending on whether the main screen is displaying optical/NV or thermal
e. The screw on rubber eyecup has been replaced with a push on rubber eyecup just waiting to fall off
f. Video recording is now 1920x1080 at 60 frames/second and the onboard memory is now 64Gb
g. The small zoom wheel has been replaced with a large zoom ring with a lever making it feel very much like the zoom ring on a good quality glass scope.
h. The LRF module now sits at a 45° angle (so the laser flash is at 45°) and has an eye sensor at it's rear which, when switched on, will detect whether or not there is someone is looking at the display and if not. will switch the display off
i. Optical channel image quality has been improved slightly over the TNC225R. I had always rated the image quality on the 225R as about 90% as good as the Zulus 520 (partly because the Zulus has a more sophisticated objective lens assembly and partly because the sensor in the 225R was cropped)
The optical sensor in the 335/635 is now full HD (1920x1080 with no cropping) although the objective lens assembly looks identical to the 225R and my impression is that the optical channel is now about 95% as good as the Zulus
j. Field of view on the 335R is 7.6° x 5.7° (13.24m @100m)
k. Field of view on the 635R is 12.5° x 9.4° (21.8m @100m)
l. Minimum thermal focus distance is 3m on the 335R and 3.4m on the 635R
m. Minimum optical focus distance on both models is 5.25m
n. Minimum LRF distance is 4m on both models
o. Both models have feature called "thermal lock) which, when switched on, fixes the magnification of the thermal channel at either base magnification or x1.5 base magnification and does not change when the magnification on the optical channel is increased. This is useful for retaining the maximum FOV on the thermal channel for acquiring potential targets seen with a thermal spotter, while zooming in on the optical channel for a more detailed examination of a potential target.
AFAIK, the thermal lock feature will become available on the TNC225R in a soon to be released firmware update

Cheers

Bruce

Bruce - I just wanted to add another parameter which may be important to some... The eye relief of the 225R is only 1.7" (45mm). That's really short for rifles with any significant recoil. I had it on my AR platform, and found getting my eye close enough to the eyepiece to get a full, clear image was challenging. My cheek had to be uncomfortably pressed against the stock to get proper alignment and distance. I wrote to DNT and they suggested raising the scope, but with it already 4" over bore, that seemed excessive. The DNT rep (Matthew) said that the 335R has a 2.5" (65mm) eye relief and I might find that more comfortable.

For comparison, my ATN Thor 4 was 3.5" (90mm) - and apparently that was what I was accustomed to. Since I am still within my 30-day return window, I opted to purchase the 335R, and will return the 225R on Monday (if I haven't sold it to a neighbor by then). I'm just hoping that 2.5" will be substantially better. It's an $800 cost difference for little under an inch. That's an expensive inch.

So to recap...

Eye relief:

225R = 1.7"
335R = 2.5"
Most tubular scopes = 3" - 4"
 
I have a 335R and a 635R on my desk at this very moment and I've just measured the eye relief at 3 inches.
Very few digital scopes have the same eye relief as glass scopes, although ATN and the PARD DS35 do get close

Cheers

Bruce
 
That's good to know. I didn't actually measure the relief on the 225R - I was using the spec sheets from DNT and ATN directly. I suppose I became accustomed to the Thor 4 and 4K NV scopes. The recoil on my .223/5.56 ammo isn't severe enough for the 1.7" relief to cause scope bite, but it just feels "off". If the 335R is really 3", that will be so much better/more comfortable. Thanks for the confirmation.
 
Other than the obvious improvement in thermal image quality due to using sensors with more pixels and larger objective lenses, the testing that @GPCBILL and I have done so far (and we still have a lot to do :) ) have shown the following:
a. The new body design has resulted in the overall size and weight of the scope increasing (weight is now approx 900g with battery)
b. It now uses a larger 21700 battery rather than an 18650. Without the use of IR, run time is around 3 1/2 hours from a 6000mah battery
c. That larger diameter battery has allowed the use of a larger lens on the IR illuminator which, combined with a different vcsel, has improved IR performance
d. The eye display is much larger and is now 1920x1080 with the aspect ratio changing depending on whether the main screen is displaying optical/NV or thermal
e. The screw on rubber eyecup has been replaced with a push on rubber eyecup just waiting to fall off
f. Video recording is now 1920x1080 at 60 frames/second and the onboard memory is now 64Gb
g. The small zoom wheel has been replaced with a large zoom ring with a lever making it feel very much like the zoom ring on a good quality glass scope.
h. The LRF module now sits at a 45° angle (so the laser flash is at 45°) and has an eye sensor at it's rear which, when switched on, will detect whether or not there is someone is looking at the display and if not. will switch the display off
i. Optical channel image quality has been improved slightly over the TNC225R. I had always rated the image quality on the 225R as about 90% as good as the Zulus 520 (partly because the Zulus has a more sophisticated objective lens assembly and partly because the sensor in the 225R was cropped)
The optical sensor in the 335/635 is now full HD (1920x1080 with no cropping) although the objective lens assembly looks identical to the 225R and my impression is that the optical channel is now about 95% as good as the Zulus
j. Field of view on the 335R is 7.6° x 5.7° (13.24m @100m)
k. Field of view on the 635R is 12.5° x 9.4° (21.8m @100m)
l. Minimum thermal focus distance is 3m on the 335R and 3.4m on the 635R
m. Minimum optical focus distance on both models is 5.25m
n. Minimum LRF distance is 4m on both models
o. Both models have feature called "thermal lock) which, when switched on, fixes the magnification of the thermal channel at either base magnification or x1.5 base magnification and does not change when the magnification on the optical channel is increased. This is useful for retaining the maximum FOV on the thermal channel for acquiring potential targets seen with a thermal spotter, while zooming in on the optical channel for a more detailed examination of a potential target.
AFAIK, the thermal lock feature will become available on the TNC225R in a soon to be released firmware update

Cheers

Bruce
Fantastic info Bruce - as ever.
🦊🦊
 
Yes, believe multi devices will be the future. Not many brands so far but surely more to come. Pulsar Duo is not for me as their NNV is with fixed magnification (2,5X) and without focus adjustment. Pard has a predecessor to the Arken/DNT but probably their's has some issues because not really market available. The Arken line seems most promising but appears to be a bit complicated and 'over built'. Will see ..
 
As a largely woodland stalker, the most important feature to me is field of view. Don’t want to be swinging around as if looking through a telescope.
Cannot find details of FOV for the base 225 model - can anyone help please?
 
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