We wrote about the new red dot sight from Olight the company introduced at NRAAM (see that post here). Yes, another red dot sight. But what was noteworthy, in addition to the Olight OSight being the first reflex sight from a company known for its flashlights and weapon lights, the OSight is a red (and green) dot with one significant difference. It’s rechargeable.
Unlike every other reflex sight ever made that runs on a coin-type battery, the OSight has an internal rechargeable batter that’s rated at 70,000 on low power, 50,000 on the third lowest setting and 17 days on high.
The OSight charges via a(n also) rechargeable hood you place over the sight. The hood has a gauge built into it that tells you the battery charge level of the hood itself (when not mounted on the OSight) or the charge of the sight when mounted over it. (See the video above for how this works.)
Like many reflex sights, to conserve battery power, the OSight shuts itself down after 10 minutes of non-use and turns back on as soon as it’s moved (Olight calls that Auto Wake).
Look closely at the photo above and you’ll see a small sensor under the OSight’s window in front. The OSight gives you the option of standard manual control over the brightness of its 3 MOA dot or having the sight auto-adjust based on ambient light conditions. There are 10 brightness settings, two of which are night vision compatible.
Lots of very good reflex sights have a fairly significant tint to them, usually blue. That’s never bothered me at all, but if it bothers you, you’ll be happy with the OSight. As you can see, there’s very minimal color shift when looking through its large window and excellent edge-to-edge clarity.
Brightness is adjusted with two rubberized buttons on the left side of the sight. The buttons are also used to program the sight for manual or auto brightness adjustment. There’s a lockout mode that you can enable so the sight will not come on (if you’re worried that it might come on accidentally and drain your battery). You can also use them to disable the Auto Wake function if you choose.
The OSight has another fairly unique feature. There’s a light between the + and – buttons (above) that tells you your power level. The light is green when the charge is between 50 and 100 percent. It’s yellow between 20 and 50 percent, and red between 10 and 20 percent. When the OSight has less than a 10 percent charge, it blinks red.
One of the most noticeable features of the OSight is its size. It’s noticeably larger than most pistol red dots on the market. It’s definitely large. You won’t be mounting and OSight on a P365, Hellcat or Slimline GLOCK.
The OSight is closest in size to the Leupold DeltaPoint Pro. That, of course, has pluses and minuses. That large size makes it easy to bring the sight up and find the dot quickly. It’s also slightly more bulky than, say, a SIG ROMEO-X Pro or a Holosun 507. Some will find that a problem when carrying, but I haven’t found it to be a problem and have carried it comfortably on a GLOCK 19 and an FN 509 Midsize Tactical.
The Osight is well built. Its housing is T6 aluminum and it’s substantial enough to protect it if dropped from a normal height. It’s also IPX7 rated so it won’t be bothered by water.
I’ve put almost 500 rounds through a couple of guns with the the OSight mounted. I’ve put in in the freezer and I’ve dunked it in water (IPX7 means you can immerse it). The coating shed the water easily and it hasn’t lost its zero during any of our testing.
Given its size, the Olight OSight would also be very much at home mounted on a long gun. Osight says Pic rail adapters will be available next month, but there are already plenty on the market now that will work just fine if you don’t want to wait.
While they haven’t said so yet, if you bet your life savings on Olight following the OSight with smaller versions of the OSight that will work with micro-compact carry guns, we can’t imagine you’d lose a penny.
In a very crowded market that’s full of very good options in reflex sights, Olight has succeeded in coming up with one that stands out. The OSight has an impressive rated runtime and its magnetic charging hood means you’ll never have to buy a 2032 battery for it. Given the amount of use most people have for their red (or green) dot sight, you can charge your OSight once a year and never have to worry about it running down.
Olight has come out with a worthy, competitive (and competitively priced) option that will get a lot of attention from pistol optics buyers. It’s a good first entrant in the market and will undoubtedly be followed by more — and smaller — options that will work even better with the smaller guns more people are carrying these days.
Specifications
Dot Size: 3 MOA
Mount footprint: RMR
Adjustments: 1 MOA per click
Adjustment Range: 45 MOA +/-
Battery: Built in rechargeable lithium polymer
Housing: T6 aluminum
Brightness settings: 10+2 night vision
Waterproof rating: IPX6
Window Size: .94 x .85 inch
Dimensions: 1.77 x 1.18 x 1.29
Weight: 2.12 oz.
Made in: China
MSRP: $199 (red dot), $229 (green dot)