Kestrel 5700 Elite (AB) or 5700x Elite?
- Thread starter 500grains
- Start date
I went through this same debate 2 years or so ago. My arm is usually easy to twist for stepping up in quality or performance but the closest I personally came to justifying the extra coin (a swing of $150 if I remember right) with the 5700x was the processor might help "future proof" it for later software upgrades. The bluetooth upgrade/configurability really didn't move the needle for me because I couldn't find any added perks for my preferences such as extended range so that was essentially a moot point.
If you go to Youtube or the like, there's a few videos out there showing the processing speed differences between the 5700x and 5700 Elite crunching the same data. The 'x' is ever so slightly faster, but you may be surprised to see how minimal the difference is between the models crunching real-life data.
For me, at the end of the day, I went with the 5700 Elite and put the money saved over the 'X' towards accessories such as a case & a bunch of lithium batteries. As of now- I feel like I made the right choice for me and don't regret not getting the 'x' one bit. I don't think you can go wrong either way and wish you the best of luck in your decision but that was my experience/decision and how I arrived at it.
On a side note- if you order directly from Kestrel Ballistics, regardless of which one you choose, they offer laser engraving for a very nominal fee ($15 or so) which I would HIGHLY recommend considering. I had my name engraved and would do it again 10/10 times.
Anyway good luck and let us know what you decide on.
-LD
If you go to Youtube or the like, there's a few videos out there showing the processing speed differences between the 5700x and 5700 Elite crunching the same data. The 'x' is ever so slightly faster, but you may be surprised to see how minimal the difference is between the models crunching real-life data.
For me, at the end of the day, I went with the 5700 Elite and put the money saved over the 'X' towards accessories such as a case & a bunch of lithium batteries. As of now- I feel like I made the right choice for me and don't regret not getting the 'x' one bit. I don't think you can go wrong either way and wish you the best of luck in your decision but that was my experience/decision and how I arrived at it.
On a side note- if you order directly from Kestrel Ballistics, regardless of which one you choose, they offer laser engraving for a very nominal fee ($15 or so) which I would HIGHLY recommend considering. I had my name engraved and would do it again 10/10 times.
Anyway good luck and let us know what you decide on.
-LD
Sorry but I don't think I can be of much help with the weather vane accessory as I never used it. That said, if you can hold out a little longer I'm sure there's folks here that will far better equipped to answer that question. If you look through, I think it's the optics area, there's a thread about showing one's tripod set up (Found it, I'll save you the time and post the link here: https://www.snipershide.com/shooting/threads/spotting-scope-setups-show-em.7117117/ ) and they've got portable weather stations that'd make their local meteorologist blush.
As I mentioned, I did some heavy research into Kestrels 2 years or so back and there were a number of accessories that at the time I assumed I could pick up later but for one reason or another just never got around to it/saw the need. On that list includes the weather vane & various tripods. Reason being is, at least for how I personally use my kestrel, I just don't do so in a manner that makes those products beneficial to me. I generally set up the match in the unit the night before and then pull it out before each stage and get my data on the fly. I could certainly see how using a different approach (such as load development, static time on the range) the tripods/mounts/weather vane accessories would be worthwhile, and maybe that's more aligned with your use case but just wanted to illustrate why I never pursued getting those products since my Kestrel purchase.
I'm still on the fence with their HUD option. I like my gizmo's & gear and haven't seen it used in my shooting circles but I keep inching closer to picking one up if for no other reason than I want to experiment with it and see how it would work (or alternatively not work) for my needs. But the price point keeps holding me back since it's more of a curiosity than a necessity/gap needing addressed. Time will tell.
I already mentioned the engraving option (I looked after my post and was off a little, it's actually $20 and not the $15 I quoted) which I still would recommend because if you find yourself in a match, chances are there are lots of Kestrels lying around in your squad and it's nice to have a relatively inexpensive insurance built in to make sure you pick up and go home with the correct unit, but I failed to mention that I did also spring for the screen protector (which is $8) and I'd also do that again. Not trying to insult you but when you're using the Kestrel by hand, you'll likely be spinning it of of the lanyard to collect ambient readings and I've seen a Kestrel go flying more than once and that's just another inexpensive way to keep it in good shape.
I did mention that I picked up a case for mine- I also feel like that was money well spent. I personally went with the Armageddon Gear option but there's no shortage of alternatives to fill that role but that's just the one I went with/can speak to.
Other than that, I hope you were able to find the videos I referenced showing the computing differences between the models and that helped form your opinion seeing it 'firsthand'. I don't get any kickbacks regardless of what you decide on either way, I just have pretty recent experience going down this road and wanted to share what I landed on and why. I just wanted to share and hopefully help someone out as it can get rather overwhelming going back and forth with the myriad of options. I don't get to say it often but I really haven't had any second guessing/doubts with any of the choices I made on this purchase.
Again, best of luck to you, please keep us posted.
-LD
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