Rifle Shooter editor Paul Austin fires up the very latest in thermal and LRF hunting tech from ATN.
ATN are far from newbies when it comes to thermal, with the Mars range of scopes, the Odin collection of spotters, and their Binox thermal binos, but now there’s a new kid on the block in the form of the all-new BlazeHunter range.
Looking to cash in on the lucrative handheld thermal LRF market, they’ve come up with an affordable 640 thermal with a built-in LRF, priced to challenge the likes of the HikMicro Condor and InfiRay Finder FH35R V2.
Small is beautiful
In terms of build, the BlazeHunter seems well-suited to the UK with an IP67 rating. It’s robust enough, courtesy of a metal frame encased in tough plastic panels, and all backed up by a solid IP rating and a 3-year warranty. Driving the unit is mostly a one-handed operation, apart from focusing, which will need an extra hand. It’s not heavy, weighing in at 320g minus the accompanying 18650 battery, two of which ship with the spotter. It’s also pocket-sized, so great as a thermal backup for a deer stalker, while providing the ideal base mag of 2.5 up to 20.
Thermal imaging
There’s the typical mix of sensor options in the range, but I’ve been testing the 640 variant with a 12µm pixel pitch – keeping ATN in step with the latest array of sensors on the market by delivering <18mK NETD performance. The display offers all the classics in terms of colour palettes: white-hot and black-hot remain my go-to choices, but there’s also sepia – certainly worth a try, and it may save a little of your night vision if you’re out and about after hours. There’s also the more familiar red-hot and predator/rainbow styles, all shown on a large, full-colour OLED display at 1440×1080.
Design & ergonomics
There’s nothing particularly revolutionary in terms of the overall design, but that’s not a bad thing. The fairly predictable layout of the BlazeHunter just makes sense and works well. There’s no point reinventing the wheel when there’s nothing broken. It’s a standard and well-proven layout with the LRF sitting below the objective while the buttons reside up top.
The buttons are big, chunky and indeed colourful. Again, not a bad thing for anyone shooting after hours. It’s very comfortable in the hand, with all the buttons falling nicely beneath the fingers. The menu and navigation system are simple enough, although I would prefer a solid colour background rather than the transparent layout currently employed, simply to make them slightly easier to read when combined with certain colour palettes.
The adoption of swappable 18650 batteries (two of which ship with the device) is another good thing. Nothing revolutionary, but it’s a tried and tested system that works, and works well. ATN also throw in a charger – in the unlikely event you don’t already own one.
Star of the show
For many, the integrated Laser Range Finder is the star feature. The recent proliferation of LRF-equipped thermal and IR scopes perhaps makes LRF slightly less of a ‘must-have’ in a spotter than it was a while back. However, there’s still something to be said for on-board LRF.
A lot of the time you’re not simply ranging specific targets. I often find myself creating a mental range card when I’m out foxing. I’ll ping trees, rocks and anything else within the environment, just so I know in advance if shots are likely to be a simple point-and-click opportunity if Charlie pops up out of the blue.
With any thermal, you often spot targets way beyond a realistic shooting distance and a hand-held LRF can be very handy when planning your next move, helping you decide if the distance and direction of travel of any potential target require a walk back to the truck for relocation. All of this is much easier with a hand-held LRF, rather than shouldering the rifle every time something sparks your interest.
As for the actual ranging, there are no complaints. It pings quickly and reliably well over 1000m on occasion, slightly further than the advertised 1000 yards noted in the accompanying marketing bumf.
Connectivity & recording
The BlazeHunter series features Wi-Fi, allowing you to connect to a smartphone or tablet app for remote viewing, handy if you’re working with a spotter and a shooter in tandem. Onboard still image and video recording (with audio) means you can also review footage later, perhaps to confirm a shot or share a noteworthy observation with your shooting buddies or a syndicate.
Final thoughts
I’d rate the overall image quality as good, perhaps not quite on a par with high-end 640 units, but remember your customers are not paying a high-end price! Let’s not forget, a 640 spotter with LRF and a low NETD would have come at twice the price not that long ago.
Any other minor niggles? The depth of field is a little shallow, so you may find yourself refocusing more regularly than you’d like, especially when scanning over large areas at varied distances.
The automatic exposure adjustment could also do with a slight tweak. For example, currently when a large close-range heat source is detected the system re-exposes quite dramatically, which reduces detail in the environment. I’m sure this is a relatively easy fix via firmware – ATN are famous, some would say infamous, for their firmware updates, so I’m sure we’ll see tweaks to the system further down the line.
Overall, you’re getting a lot of tech for your money. Its big competitor is the InfiRay FH35R V2, a device that has a better-balanced image at the moment but is less intuitive in terms of the menu and navigation system, so a case of swings and roundabouts. I’d advise anyone to check them out side-by-side.
The InfiRay also has a slight edge in terms of price at the moment, but I’m reviewing the BlazeHunter based on the current RRP – I’m sure there’ll be discounts to be had once it hits the shops. Overall, a very tech-rich device for the money, that I’m sure (like most ATN products) will continue to develop and improve via firmware updates.
Price: £1599
Get in touch
ATN Europe
W: www.atneu.uk
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