Kirsch
Active member
I posted a video a few months back of the Bering Optics Phenom. It was a 17 µm 640x480. When I placed my order for the Phenom, Bering recommended I wait because they were working on a 12 µm version. The wait is finally over. Last night was my first chance to drive around and test the image quality.
It was a great night for a test as the humidity was around 80%, so it was fairly tough thermal conditions. I had a Trijicon MKIII 60, my Super Hogster, and the Phenom with me. How did they compare? The MK3 definitely wins for long range detection. However, I can honestly say when animals were in hunting distances, the image of the Phenom was right there with the Trijicon. The Trijicon was a little more grainy at times, and maybe had just a slightly better PID, but it was very close. I felt the Phenom actually had a smoother look to it. As the MKIII doesn't have video recording, I couldn't record a video comparison. In my opinion, it is nothing short of remarkable the images were comparable in quality when one thermal is 3x more expensive.
As for how it compared to the Super Hogster, you all know how much I love my Super Hogster. The image quality difference is noticeable when switching back and forth. This is not to diminish the quality of the image of the SH. You can see the image of deer at the same time at :49. The SH is a little more shaky due to the increased mag, and I was free-handing it but you can see the Phenom has a better image.
The combination of the Phenom as my scanner and the Super Hogster on my gun is going to be incredible for coyote hunting. I believe Bering has another hit on their hands. We have some in-bound for Night Goggles as we speak.
It was a great night for a test as the humidity was around 80%, so it was fairly tough thermal conditions. I had a Trijicon MKIII 60, my Super Hogster, and the Phenom with me. How did they compare? The MK3 definitely wins for long range detection. However, I can honestly say when animals were in hunting distances, the image of the Phenom was right there with the Trijicon. The Trijicon was a little more grainy at times, and maybe had just a slightly better PID, but it was very close. I felt the Phenom actually had a smoother look to it. As the MKIII doesn't have video recording, I couldn't record a video comparison. In my opinion, it is nothing short of remarkable the images were comparable in quality when one thermal is 3x more expensive.
As for how it compared to the Super Hogster, you all know how much I love my Super Hogster. The image quality difference is noticeable when switching back and forth. This is not to diminish the quality of the image of the SH. You can see the image of deer at the same time at :49. The SH is a little more shaky due to the increased mag, and I was free-handing it but you can see the Phenom has a better image.
The combination of the Phenom as my scanner and the Super Hogster on my gun is going to be incredible for coyote hunting. I believe Bering has another hit on their hands. We have some in-bound for Night Goggles as we speak.