I’m a big budget red dot guy; in fact, I dare to say I have expertise in the subject. As a young, broke gun owner, I quickly learned the ins and outs of budget red dots. For years, the king of budget red dots for me was the Bushnell TRS 25. It was an optic I couldn’t kill. Then I jumped on the SIG Romeo5 bandwagon, and now the new king is the Holosun ARO.
The ARO seeks to replace the Holosun HS403 series of red dots. I own a 403, and it’s a good little dot for the money. In fact, I’m sure plenty of people have the HS403 series and see them as the king of the budget red dot. The ARO is part of Holosun’s slow remodel of their lineup and the eventual ditching of numbered models.
Holosun ARO – The Features
I believe that firearms are getting better, and so are optics. The Holosun ARO is available for approximately $ 135, making it more affordable than the 403 series. It’s cheaper than the Romeo5 Gen 2 and five bucks more than the Gen 1 Romeo5. A low price doesn’t mean it’s a bargain. A bargain means you’re getting something good for a low price. Let’s take a long look at the ARO.
The ARO makes some notable upgrades from the 403 series. First, the mount is much better. It’s a quasi-Reptilia pillar-style mount. It’s thicker and stronger than a lot of cheap mounts used on other budget optics. The ARO comes with a low and high mount, and the ARO itself uses a T1/T2 footprint, so alternative mounts are available.
The mount uses a nice large bolt that can be easily torqued down on your rifle and kept torqued. Underneath the mount, we have two nice-sized recoil lugs that occupy a full Picatinny rail slot. This is a massive upgrade to budget optics.
Beyond the Mount
The Holosun ARO ditches the dial-type brightness adjustment that doubled as the battery compartment on optics like the 403. In its place, we have + and – buttons to adjust the brightness of the reticle. The battery is now housed in a compartment beneath the optic and between the mount.
A lot of people hate these Holosun battery trays. They tend to break easily, and Holosun seems to acknowledge this and includes an extra battery tray. I never had a problem with the ARO or my other Holosun optics, but it’s worth noting. To me, the biggest downside is that I need a tool to undo the screws to swap batteries.
The benefit of the bottom-loading compartment is a cleaner, sleeker optic. Everything about the optic is sleek. There are no large protrusions that take up part of your view. Holosun equipped the ARO with flush turrets that can be adjusted via a flat-head tool or a cartridge rim.
Since we are talking batteries, the ARO uses a CR2032, and that battery will last 50,000 hours at setting six, according to Holosun. In practicality, it’s probably half that. To help the battery last a little longer, there is a shake-awake system. The optic powers off when it sits still, but fires back up as soon as it detects motion.
To The Range
I tossed the ARO on an Anderson Dissipator. I used the high mount, which offers a total co-witness. My first view through the dot was on a bright day in the middle of summer in Florida. My background was a white sand berm, and the view was through a pair of polarized sunglasses.
Color me impressed. Unlike other optics, especially affordable optics, the notch filter is quite light. There is the slightest blue tint, but it’s fairly faint. The reticle gets super bright, and I have no problem seeing it in the bright, very reflective environment of the sand pits I shoot in.
Zeroing was quick and easy. The turrets are tactile and audible, and they are easy to adjust, and I got zeroed in with ease. I did a simple 50/200 zero, and at 50 yards, I used the headshot box of an IPSC target to confirm my zero. The ARO uses a 2 MOA reticle that is precise and perfect for rifles.
The 2 MOA reticle also delivers in the crisp and clear department. It’s a solid little dot that’s easy to see and doesn’t seem to have any bursting I can see. The ARO meets the industry standard for parallax-free. Meaning if you look for it hard enough, you’ll find it, but beyond 50 meters, it’s parallax-free.
Beating It Up
I gave it a few drops from chest height onto the range floor. Nothing crazy, but a quick test to see if the zero stays and the mount holds up. After two falls on each side and a couple of attempts for a top impact, I grabbed the rifle and started shooting.
It held zero, the mount held up, and it worked without a problem. I sprayed it with the hose to clean it up, and it resisted water and lived up to that IP67 rating.
The Holosun ARO delivered radical improvements to the budget red dot category. It’s remarkably affordable and comes with a number of small changes that are big improvements. I think it deserves the new spot of King of the Budget red dots.
Specifications
- Dimensions: (Not provided in the article, would be a good addition)
- Weight: (Not provided in the article, would be a good addition)
- Battery: CR2032
- Battery Life: 50,000 hours (at setting 6)
- Reticle: 2 MOA Dot
- MSRP: (Not provided, but you state it can be found for $135)
Star Ratings (Out of Five Stars)
Clarity – ****
A slight notch filter is visible, but only becomes evident under a magnifier.
Value – *****
For less than 150 dollars, the Holosun ARO is a true bargain in a sea of bargain red dots.
Overall – ****
The ARO delivers an excellent mount, good clarity, and a bright dot, and it all comes in at an affordable price point.
Where To Buy
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