For 500 bucks, i did not feel bad purchasing mine. That is a drop in the bucket for any night vision capability. As someone who ran early night vision during desert storm, i think the tech is amazing. There are videos out there of guys with nicer IR painters hunting hogs out to 400 yards without issue while recording the video of their kills and then uploading it to youtube. You don't have to guess what it looks like. You can do stare and compares with different levels of tech and decide yourself.
There is always going to be a point of diminishing returns. People talking it down because they are trying to justify a 5000 dollar night optic are acting like royalty. Comparing the two is like comparing a mustang with a 400,000 dollar supercar and you are left with the same question - is what you are looking to do with it worth the price difference? Can you get the job done with the cheaper equipment or do you actually need the 5000 dollar night optic? It seems like a few people are getting it done with the cheaper optic. I will admit i lean towards the middle of the road on most optics. I get by with Sig, Burris, and a lot of Phillippino glass, so take that as a baseline.
There is always going to be a point of diminishing returns. People talking it down because they are trying to justify a 5000 dollar night optic are acting like royalty. Comparing the two is like comparing a mustang with a 400,000 dollar supercar and you are left with the same question - is what you are looking to do with it worth the price difference? Can you get the job done with the cheaper equipment or do you actually need the 5000 dollar night optic? It seems like a few people are getting it done with the cheaper optic. I will admit i lean towards the middle of the road on most optics. I get by with Sig, Burris, and a lot of Phillippino glass, so take that as a baseline.