Night Vision IRay RH25 Micro video/picture thread

[French1966]

Posting for anyone trying to do something similar. Haven’t seen many RH25 magnifier setups.

So far it seems to work just fine with a 3x magnifier red dot setup. Haven’t shot or zeroed with it yet, just trying to get familiar with the settings. It does what I expected it to do so I am very happy. Image would probably be better with a LPVO that is close to the RH25 ocular, but for my short range hunting needs it is perfect.

Incredibly difficult to photograph with an iPhone. Better in person.

 

[jbuck88]

Anyone know where I could find the picatinny shoe and quick attach thingamajigger. The ac36 and ac52?

 

[French1966]

Anyone know where I could find the picatinny shoe and quick attach thingamajigger. The ac36 and ac52?

Legacy outdoor gear, Iray USA, Eurooptics. Not sure about what is currently in stock, but those are 3 places that carry them.


Can anyone comment as to wether or not the software update fixed their Jello image in helmet mode?
Mine has it REALLY bad. Attempted to use the software update but the update file shows as corrupted and the provided URL http://192.168.11.123/ does nothing to access my thermal to attempt the update (I’m computer literate and followed all the proper steps leading up to it).

 

[Joeymac]

Kosher Surplus is a member here… they carry the MQD and Pictail mounts.

 

[TheHorta]

Legacy outdoor gear, Iray USA, Eurooptics. Not sure about what is currently in stock, but those are 3 places that carry them.


Can anyone comment as to wether or not the software update fixed their Jello image in helmet mode?
Mine has it REALLY bad. Attempted to use the software update but the update file shows as corrupted and the provided URL http://192.168.11.123/ does nothing to access my thermal to attempt the update (I’m computer literate and followed all the proper steps leading up to it).

It helped considerably, making the inverted “Jell-O” behave like it does when held upright in handheld or weapon mode. That said, it’s not perfect and FAR from being as stable and nice as a SkeetIR-x.

Still a marvel for $6K, but remains a bit nauseating when used on a helmet.

Skeet is still the reigning King of helmet-mounted thermals. The UTM-X and Voodoo-S are better overall than the Choodoo/RH25, but at an insane premium.

 

[avidflyer]

It helped considerably, making the inverted “Jell-O” behave like it does when held upright in handheld or weapon mode. That said, it’s not perfect and FAR from being as stable and nice as a SkeetIR-x.

Still a marvel for $6K, but remains a bit nauseating when used on a helmet.

Skeet is still the reigning King of helmet-mounted thermals. The UTM-X and Voodoo-S are better overall than the Choodoo/RH25, but at an insane premium.

Never noticed the MH25 doing this running as a goggle

 

[TheHorta]

Never noticed the MH25 doing this running as a goggle

Neither did I. I went back a few months ago to check and it’s there, but very subtle where I had to look for it to notice it.

The RH25 has it in spades, unfortunately, but the new software is significantly improved.

 

[CrazyDoc]

Neither did I. I went back a few months ago to check and it’s there, but very subtle where I had to look for it to notice it.

The RH25 has it in spades, unfortunately, but the new software is significantly improved.

Any other improvements the software update does?

 

[CrazyDoc]

Legacy outdoor gear, Iray USA, Eurooptics. Not sure about what is currently in stock, but those are 3 places that carry them.


Can anyone comment as to wether or not the software update fixed their Jello image in helmet mode?
Mine has it REALLY bad. Attempted to use the software update but the update file shows as corrupted and the provided URL http://192.168.11.123/ does nothing to access my thermal to attempt the update (I’m computer literate and followed all the proper steps leading up to it).

Same issue when trying this.

 

[TheHorta]

Any other improvements the software update does?

Not that I can see. It’s a “funky” fix in that all menus disappear when in helmet mode too (which is OK with me)

 

[French1966]

Same issue when trying this.

While I’m not happy that you had issues, I’m a slightly relieved that it’s not me doing something wrong.

Iray USA doesn’t have a DIY fix. They want me to send my unit in.

 

[Namekagon]

It helped considerably, making the inverted “Jell-O” behave like it does when held upright in handheld or weapon mode. That said, it’s not perfect and FAR from being as stable and nice as a SkeetIR-x.

Still a marvel for $6K, but remains a bit nauseating when used on a helmet.

Skeet is still the reigning King of helmet-mounted thermals. The UTM-X and Voodoo-S are better overall than the Choodoo/RH25, but at an insane premium.

For someone using this almost exclusively on a helmet for predators, it seems to me the RH-25 is superior to the MH25 in only the following ways:

1. Durability
2. LED screen instead of LCD (better in the cold weather, I'm in Wisconsin)
3. Larger battery capacity without doing external packs.

I'd be up for paying the extra $1500 for the first two and getting weapon mounting options to boot, but losing image quality in the process makes me second guess that, especially when weapon mounting isn't likely. For strictly HMT, how would @TheHorta discern between the image awesomeness of MH25 vs the listed-above extra features of RH25? Would you choose MH25 first for strictly HMT because the image is that much better?

This question is assuming, of course, that all the UTMs, Skeets, Patrols, and GPNVGs with quadruple COTI have water damage and are broken.

 

[Namekagon]

Does the "like" mean you'd go MH25?

 

[TheHorta]

Does the "like" mean you'd go MH25?

I like that you can buy a used / like new MH25 with PVS14 eyepiece for under $4K. I like that they’re super light too. If I were never going to take them out of bino mode and would never want to run them on a gun, then I could see myself going MH instead of RH in that particular case. Maybe.

 

[Thermal L. Jackson]

I feel like I'm the kind of guy who would be super sensitive to the JELLO issue, and I have not seen it once on either of my units. I have lots of little gripes about the RH25, but that isn't one of them.

 

[TheHorta]

I feel like I'm the kind of guy who would be super sensitive to the JELLO issue, and I have not seen it once on either of my units. I have lots of little gripes about the RH25, but that isn't one of them.

It’s in all of them. Do you wear your RHs on a helmet? It’s clearly noticeable.

 

[Thermal L. Jackson]

Do you wear your RHs on a helmet?

Almost exclusively. And I walk, stalk, drive, and ride a bike with them. Never once have I seent it.

 

[TheHorta]

Almost exclusively. And I walk, stalk, drive, and ride a bike with them. Never once have I seent it.

You are a unicorn. Sell Horta your Choodoos!

 

[Thermal L. Jackson]

You are a unicorn. Sell Horta your Choodoos!

Meet me on Lake Martin?

 

[TheHorta]

Meet me on Lake Martin?

Let’s do it!

 

[French1966]

It’s in all of them. Do you wear your RHs on a helmet? It’s clearly noticeable.

I agree that it’s seemingly on every single unit. Some people seem to be unbothered by it, but it’s definitely bothersome to me.

Long post of my RMA situation:

August 2nd (updated at bottom of post)
Mine is at Iray USA right now for the following issues:

1: "Rolling Shutter"/"Jell-O Picture" whenever used in helmet mode. Firmware update unsuccessful per instructions found here... https://irayusa.com/firmware-update-with-pc-instructions/. https://www.dropbox.com/s/mksbks2jyp7lkmw/1019900136_RH25_20220418_0108LowDelay.img?dl=1 (update download) shows as a corrupted file. Unable to save download.
Step four http://192.168.11.123/ URL will not access the firmware update screen. Ping of unit IP address shows successful WiFi connection during this process. WiFi connection is usable on the mobile app as part of the troubleshooting process. Attempted Firmware update via the App but was unsuccessful (unit would turn off but not restart).

2: Unit failed to connect to computer using the supplied USB cable. The unit would never show up on the recognized device list. Unable to download photo and video due to this issue. Photo and video are accessible however through the Mobile App.

3: Unit will sporadically switch to helmet mode and back to stand-alone/handheld mode (when starting from stand-alone/handheld mode). It flickers between modes within seconds without being prompted to (not due to menu selection or roll over positioning of unit)

4: Compass moves through then entire range of degrees even when the unit is kept in one position. Probably a minor issue, compass calibration needed. Figured I would mention it anyways. Probably not a big deal, just a calibration of the compass is needed.


Received new unit August 13th

Long story short, Iray USA sent me a brand new unit that exhibited the same exact issues I mentioned previously (Issues #1 & #3). When they shipped the new unit, they didn't tell me they were sending it nor did they provide tracking. I came back from a trip out of town to find the package sitting outside my house. Had it been stolen, I'm sure they wouldn't do anything to take care of me. They only insured it for $1K.

Again, the new unit did the same exact thing as far as the jello picture and update issues I listed previously.

To make matters worse, they kept my old unit that had the pictail adapter and my butler creek cap. They didn't bother returning those items. So now I am waiting for them to find my stuff and send it back.

My advice:
If your main reason for purchasing this unit is to helmet mount it, avoid it like the plague. It's not going to be fun looking around while your image is basically bending every time you scan left or right.
If your unit doesn't take the update correctly like both of mine, there is no other fix being offered at this time by Iray USA. Mind you, they had the opportunity to check my work and attempt an update themselves while my unit was in for warranty. They didn’t or couldn’t.


If you are buying this unit to rifle mount it in any way, it still looks like a promising option for the money. Because mine went in for warranty, I haven't even gotten in to live fire testing with it. So my experience in that use case isn't going to provide much valuable insight yet.

It’s a new product, and exhibits issues that I believe will take at least 1-2 months to correct if their software people actually start working on it today. Otherwise, expect to have issues and wait for additional software updates in the next 6mo-1yr

If you have one without the Jello/Rolling shutter issue then Rock on, you are lucky. But both units I received new in box have it really bad (as do many others).


This is not a slander post. Just an honest account of what occurred with Iray USA customer service. Cody at Iray USA has been very polite and has tried to help since day 1.

If anyone can confirm that they had a successful update and their unit completely restarted upon completion of the update, please post your results or feedback. Did it completely eliminate the Jello image? How did you do it (via phone or computer, etc…)?Any and all info might help.

Photo at bottom is a picture of what I saw on both units when I powered them on after the update powered them off. Clicking the check mark shut the units down again, and after powering them on a second time, I saw no improvement to the Jello image

 

[TF626]

If anyone can confirm that they had a successful update and their unit completely restarted upon completion of the update, please post your results or feedback. Did it completely eliminate the Jello image? How did you do it (via phone or computer, etc…)?Any and all info might help.

Photo at bottom is a picture of what I saw on both units when I powered them on after the update powered them off. Clicking the check mark shut the units down again, and after powering them on a second time, I saw no improvement to the Jello image

i did the update tonite with an iPad, same DL naming convention which I was worried about as the “labelling” didn’t inspire confidence and the file had a question mark vs pdf or img. When I got the “up arrow“ I clicked the check mark it disappeared and then powered off. I waited for it to restart on its own but after 15 sec or so nothing so I powered it up manually. The iRay boot screen came on like before and everything works. Better than before? Not discernible to me yet. I took a video for comparison to what you see with yours but can’t upload it here. If your really interested i can email you a clip?

 

[French1966]

i did the update tonite with an iPad, same DL naming convention which I was worried about as the “labelling” didn’t inspire confidence and the file had a question mark vs pdf or img. When I got the “up arrow“ I clicked the check mark it disappeared and then powered off. I waited for it to restart on its own but after 15 sec or so nothing so I powered it up manually. The iRay boot screen came on like before and everything works. Better than before? Not discernible to me yet. I took a video for comparison to what you see with yours but can’t upload it here. If your really interested i can email you a clip?

No email with video needed but thanks for offering.
Your experience matches mine. No noticeable difference after the firmware update.

Cory at Iray USA ensured me that I was the only one he was aware of with this issue, but I was doubtful seeing as how I had the same results with two brand new units.

If no one calls in, they will continue thinking that this is an isolated issue. If they think it’s isolated to just me, they won’t come up with a DIY/User software fix for it that actually works . If it’s not too much to ask, please use the contact information below and at least let them know that you are having the same issues as Mr. French (return authorization number: 129377).
[email protected]
682-777-0973


I’m not sure about you guys, but I would like all of the product that I paid for. The more people who speak up, the more serious they will take the issue.

 

[French1966]

i did the update tonite with an iPad, same DL naming convention which I was worried about as the “labelling” didn’t inspire confidence and the file had a question mark vs pdf or img. When I got the “up arrow“ I clicked the check mark it disappeared and then powered off. I waited for it to restart on its own but after 15 sec or so nothing so I powered it up manually. The iRay boot screen came on like before and everything works. Better than before? Not discernible to me yet. I took a video for comparison to what you see with yours but can’t upload it here. If your really interested i can email you a clip?

Let me know if that update caused any issues with other settings.

I have reason to believe it disabled my reticle permanently, caused a freezing issue when accessing the reticle zero menu (disabling all settings and buttons), and also glitched my zoom feature.

I’ll try and post some videos.

Edit: this was the only video short enough to post here

 

[CrazyDoc]

Let me know if that update caused any issues with other settings.

I have reason to believe it disabled my reticle permanently, caused a freezing issue when accessing the reticle zero menu (disabling all settings and buttons), and also glitched my zoom feature.

I’ll try and post some videos.

Edit: this was the only video short enough to post here

Jesus thats some wild shit. Ive used mine ALOT (about 30 hunts as a scanner/ clipon) and never had issues.

 

[TF626]

“Let me know if that update caused any issues with other settings.

I have reason to believe it disabled my reticle permanently, caused a freezing issue when accessing the reticle zero menu (disabling all settings and buttons), and also glitched my zoom feature.”

I spent am hour last night using it in all the modes and everything is working like it was prior to the update. It may, emphasis there, may be slightly sharper in helmet mode but otherwise not much difference. It even retained the settings of the things that I had set prior to the update. FWIW.

 

[French1966]

“Let me know if that update caused any issues with other settings.

I have reason to believe it disabled my reticle permanently, caused a freezing issue when accessing the reticle zero menu (disabling all settings and buttons), and also glitched my zoom feature.”

I spent am hour last night using it in all the modes and everything is working like it was prior to the update. It may, emphasis there, may be slightly sharper in helmet mode but otherwise not much difference. It even retained the settings of the things that I had set prior to the update. FWIW.

Cool, sounds like the update wasn’t responsible for my issues then. I probably just got a bad unit (as a replacement to my first not as bad unit).

Thanks for taking time to respond

 

[French1966]

Quick update:

Iray USA thinks the update did in fact screw up my unit. They claim that only the very first batch of units (units 1-40) had the jello image and thus needed an update. The units made after January of this year come with the update installed already. They think doubling the update caused my issue with unit #2.

Fun fact: They told me that non of the newer units should have the jello image because they are already updated, even though they just sent me a replacement unit new in box from the newest batch (which has the same terrible jello image).

I’ve got some wild customer service stories to tell also… depending on how they handle the situation in the next 48hrs.
Edit: they seem to be handling the situation pretty well by sending unit #3

 

[Thermal L. Jackson]

Quick update:

Iray USA thinks the update did in fact screw up my unit. They claim that only the very first batch of units (units 1-40) had the jello image and thus needed an update. The units made after January of this year come with the update installed already. They think doubling the update caused my issue with unit #2.

Fun fact: They told me that non of the newer units should have the jello image because they are already updated, even though they just sent me a replacement unit new in box from the newest batch (which has the same terrible jello image).

I’ve got some wild customer service stories to tell also… depending on how they handle the situation in the next 48hrs

This makes zero sense. You can see straight from the filename on their website that the rolling shutter firmware fix is from April 18, 2022:
1019900136_RH25_20220418_0108LowDelay.img https://irayusa.com/firmware-update-with-pc-instructions/

When I got my units in mid April, Horta had just started complaining about the jello issue (it's in this thread at the beginning). I never saw it in my as-shipped units, but they had old firmware when they arrived, so I updated them anyway. No issues.

 

[French1966]

This makes zero sense. You can see straight from the filename on their website that the rolling shutter firmware fix is from April 18, 2022:
1019900136_RH25_20220418_0108LowDelay.img https://irayusa.com/firmware-update-with-pc-instructions/

When I got my units in mid April, Horta had just started complaining about the jello issue (it's in this thread at the beginning). I never saw it in my as-shipped units, but they had old firmware when they arrived, so I updated them anyway. No issues.

I agree.

Non of the things they explained to me made any sense, due to timelines not matching up and also with the fact that both the units I received are newer units that should have came with the newest software, yet both had the same exact jello image/rolling shutter issue.

I just shipped back unit #2 and will be receiving #3 later in the week. I am certain it will exhibit the same rolling shutter issues as the other two, but at this point I’m willing to deal with it until they come up with a real fix. I haven’t been able to actually field any of these apart from testing due to the RMA process which started in early August.

While their customer service was questionable at a few times, ultimately they appear to be taking care of me (so long as they don’t forget to return my pictail adapter for a third time and I actually receive unit #3)

 

[dzhitshard]

An actual clip of a Real world run using the rh helmet mounted

I have no real exceptional skill but contrary to a lot of internet posts I haven’t had any trouble clocking up a couple hundred + miles on an ebike under a bridged RH25/-14.

Id be willing to go out on a limb and say that if some of the posters complaining about perceived difficulties actually went out and put it to use for a few miles they’d probably do fine with it too.

PSA
When your rh25 isn’t recognized on your device it isn’t always going to be an issue with the Iray unit or cable. I have 2 Mac books and the RH is only is recognized by one. On a likely related note I also had a windows work machine that never recognized my IrayUSA MK1.

There are probably a thousand combos of operating systems, versions and security softwares that could effect that.
As a guess, Isolated incidents of some individuals not being able to successfully update their firmware seem like they could possibly be related to this as well.

 

[French1966]

An actual clip of a Real world run using the rh helmet mounted

I have no real exceptional skill but contrary to a lot of internet posts I haven’t had any trouble clocking up a couple hundred + miles on an ebike under a bridged RH25/-14.

Id be willing to go out on a limb and say that if some of the posters complaining about perceived difficulties actually went out and put it to use for a few miles they’d probably do fine with it too.

PSA
When your rh25 isn’t recognized on your device it isn’t always going to be an issue with the Iray unit or cable. I have 2 Mac books and the RH is only is recognized by one. On a likely related note I also had a windows work machine that never recognized my IrayUSA MK1.

There are probably a thousand combos of operating systems, versions and security softwares that could effect that.
As a guess, Isolated incidents of some individuals not being able to successfully update their firmware seem like they could possibly be related to this as well.

Based on your video, you definitely don’t have any rolling shutter issues. You were panning your head very quickly throughout and I never saw any bending of the image. Especially around 8:35 of the video. Glad to see footage finally of someone who doesn’t have that issue (maybe there is hope for me yet, fingers crossed for unit #3).

 

[tyxler33]

Couple quick question for y'all:
I'm about to pull the trigger on buying the RH25 but I was curious if any of y'all have ran it successfully as a clip-on with a 1.73 riser on your LPVO. I have a COMM 1.73 and love the height and was curious if i could make it work or if i would have to move down to the 1.5.

Also, do y'all have recommendations on vendors, I am new to the thermal/NV world and want to make sure I purchase from a reputable vendor. I've heard good things about Nocturnality, Goonin and Sureshot. Just curious on your recommendations.

 

[dzhitshard]

Couple quick question for y'all:
I'm about to pull the trigger on buying the RH25 but I was curious if any of y'all have ran it successfully as a clip-on with a 1.73 riser on your LPVO. I have a COMM 1.73 and love the height and was curious if i could make it work or if i would have to move down to the 1.5.

Also, do y'all have recommendations on vendors, I am new to the thermal/NV world and want to make sure I purchase from a reputable vendor. I've heard good things about Nocturnality, Goonin and Sureshot. Just curious on your recommendations.

Recommendation: if you're already buying a $6500 optic put the proper 1.54" height mount on your host LPVO unless you want headaches. You're already going to have a big learning curve to deal with. There's no reason to start class with a hangover.

 

[tyxler33]

Recommendation: if you're already buying a $6500 optic put the proper 1.54" height mount on your host LPVO unless you want headaches. You're already going to have a big learning curve to deal with. There's no reason to start class with a hangover.

Okay, you make a really good point there. They just out of stock everywhere rn so ig I’m going to just have to wait for them to make their way back in stock. Thx man

 

[mikefraz]

What’s the minimum practical magnification that you can run these with in clip on mode? I see someone said that running it in front of an Eotech by itself wasn’t practical, and another said that running it in front of his 1.5x ACOG worked well. Does the extra 0.5x magnification really make that big of a difference? One of my guns has a 1x prism sight on it (Primary Arms SLX microprism), would that be usable? Or should I stick to around 3x for best performance? This will be going on a gun that is a 200 yards and in gun, so I’m looking for what will give me the clearest picture with the biggest FOV.

 

[ZoneOne]

Cold Harbour Supply (Canada) has the RH25/PFN640+ in stock. RH25 international unit. Cross hairs are disabled by default and it lacks the laser pointer but it's significantly cheaper than USD priced tan RH25.

 

[French1966]

Cold Harbour Supply (Canada) has the RH25/PFN640+ in stock. RH25 international unit. Cross hairs are disabled by default and it lacks the laser pointer but it's significantly cheaper than USD priced tan RH25.

Crosshairs are disabled by default on all three US models I received (and I assume it’s that way on all of them). Long press all three buttons activates them I believe. No pointers on US models as well.

I believe it was about $4,600 for the Canadian model. I ended up getting my US one for $5,500 on eurooptics with a mil discount (+tax). I can not express enough how worth it it was for the extra money spent in my case to receive the warranty support I’ve already received.

 

[Chargerguy]

I think it’s actually disabled for us (Canadians) and our European units. I had to install the irayUSA firmware when I got my PFN640 to get the reticle.

 

[CrazyDoc]

Crosshairs are disabled by default on all three US models I received (and I assume it’s that way on all of them). Long press all three buttons activates them I believe. No pointers on US models as well.

I believe it was about $4,600 for the Canadian model. I ended up getting my US one for $5,500 on eurooptics with a mil discount (+tax). I can not express enough how worth it it was for the extra money spent in my case to receive the warranty support I’ve already received.

Yeah no laser on mine.

 

[mikefraz]

What’s the minimum practical magnification that you can run these with in clip on mode? I see someone said that running it in front of an Eotech by itself wasn’t practical, and another said that running it in front of his 1.5x ACOG worked well. Does the extra 0.5x magnification really make that big of a difference? One of my guns has a 1x prism sight on it (Primary Arms SLX microprism), would that be usable? Or should I stick to around 3x for best performance? This will be going on a gun that is a 200 yards and in gun, so I’m looking for what will give me the clearest picture with the biggest FOV.

Anyone?

 

[rlsmith1]

Having not owned one of these, it appears to do very well in front of an LPVO and can absolutely be used on 1x. However, I think one of the challenges with running an Eotech or similar RDS is you can’t really zoom in to PID a target.

FOV in degrees roughly equates to 5ft per 1 deg of FOV. That means the RH25 has about 88ft FOV; most LPVOs have 100+ ft FOV so you’re missing some potential FOV with a 1x scope

 

[Joeymac]

Anyone?

1X LPVO or prism is just fine because they put the Objective lens right up to the thermal so you get that full view of the display.

The problem with red dots and see-through sights is you have to put the thermals several inches in front of your own eye, so you need a Magnifier behind the red dot to actually look up into the display.

Said otherwise, LPVO even 1X prisms are still magnified optics… They’re magnification just happens to be 1X. Non-magnified optics are just being looked through by your eye, so it’s literally like holding the thermal several inches from your eye. That’s not ideal.

 

[Zerodark300]

Well my rh25 arrived this week, coming from a helion xp50 I can say the image is close or better but the controls are way more complex than I prefer. So far I like it overall.

 

[thorium]

It appears the EU/Canadian “PFalcon 640“ (PF) is identical hardware to the RH25, and can be had around $4400 shipped from EU/Canadian dealers to USA, then easily upgraded with the firmware on the IRay USA site.

I‘m ordering one from a Canadian dealer and will report on how it goes.

Differences I found in my research:
- PF is black housing even in 640 res, RH is tan, thermal unit hardware is otherwise identical
- PF comes with slightly different firmware out of the box (easily changed to RH firmware)
- comes with slightly different accessories/mounts (neither comes with the two that most really want - the Pictail and ADM mount)
- mfg warranty might be the biggest difference, 5 years in US and I’ve been told by Canadian dealer it’s 2 hrs for PF but not sure I’d even be able to utilize it from the USA (maybe the dealer would help act as middleman but you’d have to assume your only warranty is whatever the dealer is going to offer outright)

 

[Joeymac]

Why would it need a firmware update?

Odd that an iRayUSA device is so much cheaper sold in another country (that has VAT taxes, to boot). Don’t forget the pictail and MQD mounts.

 

[thorium]

Why would it need a firmware update?

Odd that an iRayUSA device is so much cheaper sold in another country (that has VAT taxes, to boot). Don’t forget the pictail and MQD mounts.

IRayUSA has their own USA, RH25 specific firmware. The international PFalcon 640 comes with some other version that will vary slightly. My guess is the international model has the “base” China parent company made firmware, and IRayUSA arranged for some additional/different features for the US version.

That is just a guess, I‘m not familiar with exactly how they’re different. I’m not really interested in finding out. I’m interested in an RH25 for $1k cheaper, so I’ll be updating to the US firmware as soon as it arrives.

Rumor has it that you simply apply the IRayUSA RH25 firmware right onto a PFalcon 640 (ignoring the IRayUSA websites warning to only use the firmware on a US device). it works fine since the core unit is identical hardware (aside from black vs tan color). The warning is probably just to dissuade you from buying internationally for cheaper and then using their firmware (they might have had to invest some money in it).

I‘ll confirm it works for me next week when I receive mine, but at least one other person in this thread has already confirmed this worked for them.

 

[zinny]

There are comments on facebook of people being slapped with import fees which pretty much all but eats up the price difference. Can't confirm as I don't know of anyone who've personally had this happen to them.

 

[Joeymac]

I don’t think the warning has anything to do with pressuring buyers into making a decision.

I’m sure the firmware update warning is because iRayUSA releases firmware tested with their own spec’d builds and makes sure it’s compatible with all previous versions of their hardware. It’s just a basic caveat emptor situation.

iRayUSA probably has no say over the exact hardware builds and updates on the PFalcon 640 and if iRayChina decided to change something on it tomorrow, iRayUSA doesn’t want to be blamed for bricking something they don’t control or test for.

I think it’s pretty cool you can get a black 640 unit for 25% cheaper (provided you can dodge export taxes or whatever). I would have probably jumped on that if I’d known about it when I got my RH25 because I prefer black and I like money.

 

[thorium]

My experience purchasing a PFalcon 640 (international RH25)
- purchased from Canadian dealer for about $4,400 out the door
- arrived about 10 days later, more than half that time was in customs
- no issues with extra customs duty (your mileage may vary)
- successfully installed RH25 IRayUSA firmware.
- firmware process: I can add a post outlining the process later if people are interested Short version: on a mobile device, download IMG file from irayusa web site.Then use Infiray outdoor app to install that IMG file. Ignore the part on irayusa site that talks about doing it through s computer web browser to http://192.168.#.#.