I agree. The Gen1 Viper PST was basically the same scope as the HS-T, as far as tubes, glass, reticles, etc... The main differences being FFP vs. SFP and illuminated reticle. I have a bunch of HS-T's I bought 10 years ago, because they were the best bang for your buck the longest time. It was nearly impossible to beat the value you got with them, at a time when most quality scopes with target turrets and zero stops were fetching $1,000+. They're still great scopes, but the technology is a bit dated in them now, since things seem to be moving along at warp-speed in the optics world.
And after comparing my Arken SH4 Gen2 6-24x50's and my Strike Eagle 5-25x56, to my old Vortex HS-T 6-24x50 scopes ($950 MSRP), the Arken and the SE are hands-down better scopes. There's no way in hell I would buy an HS-T today, after discovering the new SE and the Arkens. I could literally outfit/upgrade 2 rifles with Arkens for the cost of one new HS-T scope.