iRayUSA RICO Mk2 RH50R — 640×512 thermal riflescope

How far you can see a person

160 m make out detail260 m tell what it is1,042 m spot it┆ maker’s claim

501002005001k2k5k m

Calculated from the sensor's pixel pitch and the lens focal length, for clear air.

iRayUSA quotes 2,190 m, 2.1× our figure, because makers usually measure against a person’s full height rather than their width. Why the numbers differ

iRayUSARiflescope · 640-class · Laser rangefinder

iRayUSA RICO Mk2 RH50R

Approx. price: ~$5,499
Sensor: 640×512 · 12 µm
Lens: 50 mm · 3×
Weight: 36.6 oz

Price and availability on iRayUSA’s site may differ.

Best for

Night shooting where ranging matters — hogs and coyotes past 150 yards

01Specifications

As published by iRayUSA. Sources: irayusa.com.

Sensor: 640×512
Pixel pitch: 12 µm
NETD: <20 mK
Refresh rate: 60 Hz
Lens: 50 mm
Base magnification: 3×
Digital zoom: up to 4×
Field of view: 8.8° horizontal
Display: 2560x2560 AMOLED
Claimed detection: 2,190 m
Claim basis: unspecified
Run time: 5 h
Battery type: Removable pack
Weight: 36.6 oz
Length: 9.5″
Laser rangefinder: Yes
Ballistic calculator: No
Records video: Yes
Wi-Fi: Yes
IP rating: IP67
Warranty: 5 years
Country of origin: China
Approx. price: ~$5,499

02Pros and cons

From the published specs. What owners report is in the next section.

For it

640×512 sensor, 3× the detail of an entry-level 384
Sensitive sensor that picks out small heat differences on humid or rainy nights (104th-best of 285 that publish it)
Smooth 60 Hz picture on a running animal
Built-in laser rangefinder
Swappable battery pack, so a spare doubles the run time
Waterproof (IP67), survives a dunking
Records video and connects to a phone app

Against it

Heavy at 36.6 oz, 38th-heaviest of the 194 riflescopes here
Rangefinder but no ballistic calculator, so holdover is up to you
~$5,499, well above the ~$3,000 typical for riflescopes here

03What owners say

owner discussions, 2024–2026

Summarised from 14 public owner discussions between 2024 and 2026. Owner experience, not a measurement.

Owners of the RH50R are an unusually unanimous group: 'barn burner' and 'blows the doors off the Rattler' are the phrases that come up, and nobody in these discussions regrets buying one. The praise centres on the display and image, the 3x base magnification for hog and coyote work, and the zoom lever, which moves in small increments rather than jumping between fixed steps. One owner who also runs an AGM TS35-640 and a Thermion 2 XP50 says the iRay has the best picture of the three and the finest zoom control.

It is a dedicated scope, not a clip-on, and it sits at the top of the mid-market price band: roughly $1,000 more than a Rattler V3 and about $5,500 list at launch, though demo units have appeared near $3,500 and used ones come up with four years of the five-year warranty left. The open question in the discussions is firmware. A prospective buyer was spooked by iRay owners complaining about updates in general, while RH50R owners who installed the update that unlocked 24x digital zoom report no trouble. Threads say RH50R and mean this Mk2 LRF unit throughout; the older non-LRF RH50 only appears as a cheaper alternative in buying lists.

What owners like

Image and display draw the strongest praise of any 640 in the price band; one owner calls it probably the best 640 on the market, and owners coming from a Rattler describe the gap as large.
Zoom lever adjusts in fine steps, which an owner with a Thermion 2 XP50 and an AGM TS35-640 in the same safe singles out as the thing the other two cannot do.
3x base magnification suits the shots owners post, from a sounder of pigs at 20 to 60 yards off a feeder to a running hog at 185 yards.
Built-in rangefinder means the scanner does not need one; an owner shopping for a monocular said LRF was no longer a requirement because the scope has it.
Battery life is described as not bad, about what one owner gets from an RH25 V1 on a fresh 18650.

Common complaints

About $1,000 more than a Rattler V3 with similar headline specs; a first-time buyer who planned to hunt a few nights a year was told to step down a tier and put the difference into a monocular and tripod.
Not a clip-on: it lives on one rifle, and an owner asking about eye relief on a lightweight bolt gun was told the ACE H50R form factor suits that better.
Small parts are hard to replace; one owner lost the eyecup and could not find another, and iRay's general reputation for troublesome firmware updates made at least one buyer hesitate even though RH50R owners report the 24x update went smoothly.

RH50R or AGM Rattler V3?

The owner vote in the threads went to the RH50R, including from people who like the Rattler. The buyer asking had heard the iRay holds up better in poor conditions and when zoomed in, and nobody who owned one argued. The counter-argument is money: the Rattler V3 is about $1,000 less, and someone who hunts a few nights a year was advised to buy the cheaper scope and a monocular rather than one premium optic. A dealer who had time behind a pre-release V3 also said its 3.5x base and thermal performance were very good if you could wait for it.

Can the RH50R be used as a clip-on?

No. Owners are clear that it is a dedicated thermal scope; iRay's Hybrid series is the clip-on line. If you want one unit that moves between a day scope and standalone duty, this is the wrong model.

What does the firmware update change?

The update owners discuss extends digital zoom to 24x, with picture-in-picture showing 48x at that setting. Owners who installed it report no problems, which is worth knowing because a general reputation for troublesome iRay updates had at least one buyer hesitating between this and a Thermion 2 LRF XP50 Pro.