SAR 18#6

Bullseye
of time to sight in several guns. The battery
pack has a micro USB port and can
be charged from the included charger or
from any USB port.
Once the camera is set up and the
system turned on, you position the camera
off to the side and back a few feet
from the target. It just needs to be far
enough away from the target that you
don’t risk hitting the unit with a stray bullet.
If you use a laser boresighter before
you head to the range your first round
should at least be on the paper. The
camera has a small red laser mounted
on its side to position it so you don’t
have to make another trip down range
after setting up your laptop, tablet or
phone. Just turn the laser on and center
the laser dot on your target. There are
also some other camera features that
are worth mentioning. The camera has
60 infrared LEDs that give it incredible
night vision for viewing from up to 30
meters from the target. Having this feature,
you can use it when zeroing in your
optic coupled with a night vision device.
The camera’s lens is hand focus-able
to give the sharpest view of the target
possible. It also has a sliding sunshade
to prevent unwanted glare. With this
done it is time to head back up range
and start shooting.
With your firearm set up at the
shooting bench you can then use your
laptop or other wireless device to connect
to the wireless Bullseye Camera
System. With a laptop you just plug in
the included thumb drive and the included
software takes over. You may have
to go to the wireless settings on the device
and connect but it usually connects
by itself. Once it connects you have a
live video view of your target. For iPhones,
iPods, iPads and Android devices,
you can download the software free
of charge from either the App Store or
Google Play. When using a Windows
based laptop you actually get a lot more
information on the screen. The software
allows you to add shooter profiles that
keep track of who is shooting, at what
distance, what firearm is being shot,
type of ammunition and even ballistic
information of loads associated with the
target groupings. The user can also add
notes to each individual shot. All this information
can be saved along with the
images of the target.
The unit beams live video back to
your device but once you fire a shot and
hit the space bar (on a laptop) or touch a
certain button on your touch screen (on
a phone or tablet) it is saved as a still image.
The software then takes over and
the last shot is shown FLASHING on
the image. You never have to remember
which hole in the target was your last
shot. Each image is saved and shown
as a row of photos across the bottom of
your screen. You can either click on or
touch previous images to review them.
This “flash shot” feature alone makes
the unit a must have accessory but the
shooter can also change the color of
the flashing bullet holes. So if there are
multiple shooters a different color can
be assigned to each shooter and all the
shooters can use the same target. In
fact, you can use one target all day long
and still see the last shot fired. This also
works with archery (a flashing image
of the arrow) and shotguns (where all
holes from the last shot flash). You know
instantly what difference your sight adjustment
made. You can also number
the bullet holes so you know in what
order they were fired. At any time you
can switch back to a live video view of
your target.
If all these features aren’t enough
the system can work with any target. It
doesn’t matter if it’s paper, cardboard
or steel. In fact the shots show on anything
you fire at. While testing, one of
the shooters missed the target and the
bullet struck a piece of concrete block
that was downrange. The bullet took a
chunk out of the block but there was still
a flashing image of where the bullet hit.
You would think that this system is
only for shooters that have a very deep
wallet - but that’s not the case. The Long
Range Edition unit such as the one that
was used in our test retails for just $549.
For less than the price of a case of most
center fire ammunition you can own one
of these state of the art units. It comes
with a 1 year warranty and the user can
purchase an innovative new warranty
that the company calls their Downrange
Protection Plan. For just $29.95 the Bullseye
Camera System owner can have a
warranty that will replace any part of the
system that is damaged during use for 2
years. This plan even covers the unit if it
is hit by a bullet.
In this author’s opinion, the Bullseye
Camera System is a must have for
any serious recreational shooter, hunter
or even tactical shooter. The system
makes sighting in firearms fun plus the
“cool factor” is off the charts.
www.smallarmsreview.com 39 SAR Vol. 18, No. 6