The Loadout Blog

Gear & Optics|Optics

Two weeks ago Aimpoint introduced the Aimpoint RDS to the world. It was a new micro red dot joining Aimpoint’s successful lineup of red dot sights already on the market. Aimpoint is the holder of the most rugged and reliable red dots on the market with the Aimpoint T1, T2, Comp M5, and PRO. These are used by military, law enforcement, and civilians far and wide. This is because of the reliability and quality that these optics are made with. The new Aimpoint RDS looks to carry-on that pedigree into the future.

The Aimpoint RDS

The Aimpoint RDS has all the features you would expect from a micro red dot. The optic features a 2-MOA red dot, 6 brightness settings, 4 night vision settings, and 3 year battery life. The RDS red dot is housed in an a rugged aluminum body with recessed windage and elevation turrets. Along with push button brightness adjustments on the left side of the optic. The new RDS uses a T2 footprint which allows users to mount the optic to various mounts currently on the market. Which just adds value to the RDS by not needing to reinvest in a new mount for the optic.

The RDS At Shot Show

Last week, I had an opportunity to get hands on with the new optic at Shot Show. I was able to get a sense of what the new RDS has to offer, especially with its great price point of $499. Now, let’s take a closer look at the new Aimpoint RDS.

Initial Impressions

The initial impression of the RDS is that its a well built optic. What I am talking about is build quality. Everything on the optic looks tight and well fitted together. No, unseemly gaps or spaces that can catch the naked eye. Everything visible on the optic looks good and well built and pieced together well.

The glass on the RDS looks great. Great clarity and sharpness. Colors look natural and vibrant with no distortion. The red dot was clean and crisp. The RDS has a strong emitter that allows that red dot to be visible in darker conditions and lighter ones. I believe you will have no problem seeing this red dot in outdoor environments. Curious to see how the night vision settings pan out for the RDS. I believe it will right on par with the other red dots in Aimpoint’s lineup. Overall the Aimpoint RDS has impressed me. Yet, I do have a few of questions.

Questions

First, how does the turrets feel when making adjustments? As of right now, I don’t know. I wasn’t able to make any turns of the turrets to see if they have a good tactile feel with a good audible click. Which Aimpoint’s are known for. I assume the RDS does but I was unable to test it myself.

Also, how are those turrets going to hold up against drops? The turrets are recessed but exposed. I’m just curious who it would hold up and maintain zero. Yet, again it is an Aimpoint. It should be able to be battered and bruised and run like a champ.

Second, I have questions about the buttons for the brightness adjustments. I had a chance to play around with them. Initial impressions are the are easy to hit not a lot of force has to be used to push it in. The way it is angled slightly it made you wonder if you had to use deep presses to change brightness settings. The location of the brightness adjustments is towards the bottom of the optic and pushed foward. Which makes me wonder will there be any accidental adjustments of the brightness settings by gear or the environment. Only further testing and evaluation can answer that question for me.

Those are the main questions I have about the Aimpoint RDS. Questions that can easily be answered with time spent with the optic in training and normal usage. We will have to wait and see what owners of the RDS has to say about it’s ruggedness and reliability over time.

Overall, I believe that Aimpoint has hit another homerun with the RDS. The market is getting a well built and reliable optic from Aimpoint. The RDS is the spiritual successor to the bulky Aimpoint Pro. The PRO is a great red dot that ends up devouring so much rail real estate. Along with having much larger footprint compared to the RDS. The new Aimpoint RDS takes all that technology and lessons learned from the Aimpoint PRO and puts it in just in a smaller more precise package. Making the Aimpoint RDS a red dot for modern times.

Thanks For Reading

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