Thermal Monoculars Showdown

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Pulsar's New Axion XQ30 Pro vs. Telos LRF XL50

I’ve been using thermal scopes for both law enforcement and hunting for over 20 years and reviewing them for more than a decade. The biggest difficulty in writing about them is conveying the features in a meaningful way when the reader isn’t holding the scope in their hands. You can list the features and talk about how many pixels the screen has, but it is tough to grasp how well they work until you pick it up and take it for a test run. That is one reason I always recommend readers to try them out wherever they can and never buy one without “sleeping on it.” Then, when you do get your thermal scope or thermal monocular, you won’t be plagued with doubt and wondering if you got the right scope or the right price. If you are reading this, odds are, it is because you are at least thinking about getting a thermal scope. Let me help you out today by comparing and contrasting two new-to-the-market Pulsar thermal monoculars in hopes of narrowing down your pursuit.

Handheld Thermals

The two thermal monoculars tested here are the Axion XQ30 Pro and the Telos LRF XL50. Both excel at locating warm-blooded game while in the field, other boats on the water at night, and even where your house is allowing hot or cold air inside due to bad window seals or improper insulation. In a word, they demonstrate the magic of being at the top of the technological food chain.

Axion XQ30 Pro Rundown

Retailing at $1,600, the Axion XQ30 Pro is a little smaller than a dollar bill and weighs about as much as a 25-foot tape measure. It will fit in almost any pocket other than women’s pants (why are their pockets so small?). It has four buttons on top: Power/Standby + Calibration, Up/Zoom, Down/Record, and Menu. Big, fat, easy-to-use buttons are arguably the most important feature of thermal and night vision because you need to be able to learn them in 5-10 minutes and then remember the controls two hours later in pitch blackness.

Pulsar Axion XQ30 Pro — **In Axion thermal imagers, the standard smartphone connection frequency range via a 2.4 GHz WiFi channel is complimented with an effective 5 GHz range.**

The clarity is so good that not only can you see the studs in the walls of your house, but in the right conditions you can also see each screw holding the drywall to the stud. It connects to 2.4 and 5 GHz Wi-Fi. If you have recently tried to hook up your video doorbell or remote front door lock, you know they probably only go to 2.4 and that can be a huge problem. It isn’t a problem with the XQ30. It has three levels of sensitivity. Why not go on high all the time? That sucks battery life and that setting is usually only needed for long distances or inclement weather. Battery life is up to 7 hours per charge but less if you turn on every bell and whistle.

Magnification is 2-8x and adult-size, heat-signature detection range is over 800 yards. I won’t nerd out on the technical specifications, you can check the website if that is your gig. It can take pictures and movies and it has built-in memory plus WiFi. Color palettes include white hot, black hot, red hot, red monochrome, rainbow, ultramarine, and sepia.

SPECIFICATIONS: Axion XQ30 Pro Thermal Monocular

SKU PL77506

MSRP: $1,599.97

Sensor 384x288 pix. @ 17 µm (NETD <25 mK)
Objective lens F30/1.2
Magnification, x 2 - 8 (x4 zoom)
Field of view (HxV), degrees 13.3x10 / 23.3х17.5
Display Resolution 640x400 pix
16 GB memory
Video/photo resolution 528x400 pix
Video/photo format .mp4/jpg

Telos LRF XL50

Everything on the XQ30 Pro? Yeah, the Telos LRF XL50, with a retail price of $5,100, has all that and more. It’s about twice the size of the XQ30 and too big to fit in most pockets except maybe the inside liner pocket on a heavy jacket or coat. Magnification is now a whopping 2.5-20 and detection range is 2,500 yards. The big bonus is that the LRF XL50 has a built-in 1,100-yard laser rangefinder. Plus, it has every other bell and whistle and then some.

SPECIFICATIONS: Telos LRF XL50 Thermal Monocular

SKU PL77515

MSRP: $5,099.97

Sensor 1024x768 @ 12 µm (NETD <40 mK)
Objective lens F50 / 1.0
Magnification, x 2.5 – 20 (x8 digital zoom)
Field of view (HxV), degrees / m@100m 14x10.5 / 24.6х18.5
Display Resolution 1024x768 pix
64 GB memory
Video/photo resolution 1024x768 pix
Video/photo format .mp4/jpg
Max Measuring Range: 1,000m
Measurement Accuracy: ±1m

The Upshot

So, which one is right for you? That’s your call and is likely dependent upon price points and specific needs. Both units are high-quality thermal monoculars that, for most, field operations will be on an equal footing. If you want that laser-rangefinding capability and the extended range, then save up for the Telos LRF XL50.

thermal monocular — Note the heat signatures from around the author's home, clockwise from top left: metal sheetrock screws and studs, pets and recently made paw prints, heat coming from the top of a window, the kitty cat chilling on a summer afternoon.

The best advice here is to stick with a quality brand and a good warranty. We have all heard of Pulsar and there are many reasons why… fantastic quality, company longevity, excellent customer support, and great warranty. Pulsar has been at the forefront of product innovation for over 30 years and they will still be making them long after you and I are gone and our kids or grandkids are playing with the thermals they inherited.

For more information visit pulsarnv.com.

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