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Pulsar Trail 3 LRF XR50 — 640×480 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.

Pulsar quotes 2,300 m, 2.2× our figure, because makers usually measure against a person’s full height rather than their width. Why the numbers differ

PulsarRiflescope · 640-class · Laser rangefinder

Pulsar Trail 3 LRF XR50

Approx. price
~$4,500
Sensor
640×480 · 12 µm
Lens
50 mm · 3×
Weight
28.9 oz
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Best for

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

01Specifications

As published by Pulsar. Sources: pulsarnv.com, pulsarvision.com, midwestgunworks.com.

Sensor
640×480
NETD
<30 mK
Lens
50 mm
Digital zoom
up to 24×
Field of view
8.8° horizontal
Display
1920x1080 AMOLED
Battery type
Removable pack
Weight
28.9 oz
Length
10.7″
Records video
Yes
Wi-Fi
Yes
Warranty
3 years (5 with registration)
Approx. price
~$4,500

02Pros and cons

From the published specs, not owner reports.

For it
  • 640×480 sensor, 2.8× the detail of an entry-level 384
  • Built-in laser rangefinder that feeds the ballistic calculator
  • Swappable battery pack, so a spare doubles the run time
  • 11 h of battery, 21st-longest of 344 here
  • Waterproof (IP67), survives a dunking
  • Records video and connects to a phone app
Against it
  • ~$4,500, well above the ~$3,000 typical for riflescopes here
  • Zoom past 3× is digital and gets blurry

03Compare the XR50

04Related units

Pulsar Thermion 2 LRF XP50 Pro — 640×480 thermal riflescope
PulsarRiflescope

Pulsar Thermion 2 LRF XP50 Pro

Est. detection
735 m
Maker’s claim
1,800 m
Sensor
640×480
Pitch · Hz
17 µm · 50
Lens
50 mm
LRF · 37 oz~$4,000
Pulsar · Thermion 2 LRF XG50
PulsarRiflescope

Pulsar Thermion 2 LRF XG50

Est. detection
1,042 m
Maker’s claim
2,300 m
Sensor
640×480
Pitch · Hz
12 µm · 50
Lens
50 mm
LRF · 34.2 oz~$5,500
Pulsar · Thermion 2 XP50 Pro
PulsarRiflescope

Pulsar Thermion 2 XP50 Pro

Est. detection
735 m
Maker’s claim
1,800 m
Sensor
640×480
Pitch · Hz
17 µm · 50
Lens
50 mm
31.7 oz~$4,500