Review on Burris Spotting Scope 12x-24x-50mm

I really like spotting scope compared to binoculars since I watch the movie Sniper 1 & 2 starring Tom Beringer and also the Shooter starring Mark Wahlberg as Bob Lee Swagger. Coming back, spotting scope is commonly used by an army spotter accompanying a sniper in their mission. Besides that, there are numerous usage of spotting scope such as bird watching etc etc which I am quite familiar and also not interested to elaborate.

I’ve research quite a lot on spotting scope before I made my decision. I’ve went to a couple of shops in my area somewhere in Klang Valley and I noted that the price range of a spotting scope can be from RM200-RM400 for the 20X spec. I also kept my eyes open if there’s someone selling it at the local online auction sites ie www.lelong.com.my but there were none. Ebay.com has several offers as regards to spotting scope but it was quite difficult to get the particular spec that I like. I am looking for a basic spotting scope with not less that a 20X and with at least 40mm lens pricing below RM250. I finally spot one which is the BURRIS SPOTTING SCOPE 12X-24X50mm with the bidding price of around that which is really a bargain at that time. I think I’ve lost bid for two consecutive time before I am able to secure the scope at a price of RM229 including shipping to Malaysia.

The scope was sent from US of A. After waiting for more than a week, I’ve receive the scope at last with excited feeling. After careful inspection, there were no visible damage or anything of that sorts. The scope itself is quite compact looking and it has a rubbery feels. The design is nice. The lens I think is big enough but not too big and it is small enough to be kept inside the ‘hand rest compartment’ in my car which is good. I don’t think it is tough enough to withstand shock. There’s no scope tripod stand included although the scope can accept the standard camera tripod. I wouldn’t want to drop my spotting scope on the floor which will sure break the prism inside the scope.

As for the power of the lens, I really think that it is worth it. For the price of RM229, I am very satisfied. I saw one ground floor shop in Amcorp mall selling one spotting scope with spec 20×40mm with a price of RM340 which is totally absurd. I think the view from the lens is brilliant (BTW I am not comparing it to the high end scope which cost you arms and legs). I can see quite far..there was one instance where I can see a car using the scope but I failed to spot it using my naked eye..impressive. Maybe I can use this to spot incoming enemy snipers somewhere in the nearby bushes or laying low behind curtains in the building across the street..hah!

But beware, using the scope without proper tripod stand or some kind of makeshift device to make sure the wobbling is minimize will result the user left with a sort of dizzy or mild headache. This usually happens after using the scope for about 15 minutes without proper tripod. I usually rest the scope on something to overcome this problem. This is indeed normal for scope users because of the high magnification power of the scope itself. Other than that, I think, I don’t see any negative points.

I really like this scope. I plan to bring it along in my next vacation which can be very very useful for sightseeing purpose. Skodeng purpose is also good but of course it is illegal and I don’t condone it..lol.

Testing my GPS Setup

By the way, what I meant by ‘my GPS setup’ is these:
1. Nokia 6120c
2. G-top BT GPS Receiver
3. Garmin Mobile XT + Malsingmaps (using the free version which is not so updated)

Test Number One
I was from One Utama Damansara heading towards Petaling Jaya. It was about 4pm and was raining very very heavily with visibility so poor I’m only able to see the range of 2 cars in front of me. I can’t even read most of the road signs and I was feeling like I am driving purely on my instinct or following THE FORCE like a Jedi in STARWARS.

Quickly turn on my GPS as backup and got it fixed or locked on with the satellites. Suddenly I was relying mostly on the GPS to help me stay on the right track ie sometimes you have to ‘keep left’ or ‘keep right’ so that you don’t end up with a wrong turn which you are force to make, right? So the GPS really help me with that. So I know when exactly to stay on which side of road on a highway so that I don’t miss the exit in heavy rain situation. As far as I can recall, my GPS unit maintained its lock all the time although it was real dark with the heavy and dark rain clouds and everything ie I bet there won’t be any Astro unit which can connect to the Measat satellite at that time…

I reached my destination with no problem at all.

Test Number Two
I was from Petaling Jaya and was heading to Gombak Setia. Last time I was quite familiar with the route to the said destination but it was many years back and I’ve forgotten most of the road there. So it’s another good opportunity to test my GPS unit. At beginning of the journey, the GPS was suggesting a different route a couple of times..but I was adamant that I follow my own route first and then I would rely on the GPS when there’s the ‘need for details’ or when I got lost. The need for details refers to when I think that I am near the destination but somehow could not find my way to the finish line because it involve the smaller smaller roads in the housing area which usually look the same and very confusing to drivers like me.

I kept to my plan..followed my chosen highways and all and kept ignoring the GPS’s suggestions. By the way, the GPS will re-calculate another route in real time every time I did not follow it’s suggestion. When I exit the highway and going into the smaller roads, I start following the GPS’s suggestion and suddenly I arrived exactly at the destination. I was very pleased because I was not really confident with the GPS at first. But for now, I think the GPS is doing a great job as a backup way finder. It is my opinion that it is always a good brain exercise to use the brain to plan the route to the destination..just to keep the brain active coz it will try to remember things/roads/places which strengthens the errr…you get the drift..whatever.

Price overview of some Airsoft gadgets in Malaysian currency Ringgit Malaysia (RM)

Just for your general information purposes, I’ve sort of maintain a price list for Airsoft / BB / 6mm / Super Air (whatever you call it etc) products in Ringgit Malaysia RM. Why? Because ‘airsofting’ is illegal in Malaysia..and I think this the only way I am able to contribute to keep myself sane while waiting for this harmless sport to become legal like its small brother Mr ‘boyish’ paintball. So, please visit my pricelist website below

http://www.6mm.cjb.net

Using GPS in Malaysia via Nokia 6120 classic

I am really a newbie in GPS a month ago. My quest is to determine the best GPS setup for me ie the most economical and up to date maps. Being a total noob to GPS, it is very difficult for me to determine the best GPS setup on my own without discussing it with anyone else such as fellow gps users or retailers. After several days of extensive research by reading through forum threads and reviews on gps hardware & software, I finally succeed in my personal quest.

The fact is this. I am using a Nokia 6120 classic. Among the issues that I had to solve are these:

1. ‘the Hardware’ – What hardware/s to buy without making my Nokia 6120c redundant.

2. ‘the Software’ – What is the best navigator software available for Malaysian gps users?

Those are the 2 main issues. On the first issue, my initial choices, reasons of decisions & explanations are as follows:

A. The Hardware issue

There are a 2 choices here.

1. Buy a ‘real’ gps hardware with a BIG lcd screen which can be seen from 10 feet with a built in/pre-installed navigator software + local maps such as the Garmin Nuvi series. However, this choice does not seem economical as the cheapest Garmin Nuvi 200 cost about RM1000. And my Nokia 6120c will be redundant – this is a big no no for me. I want to use my Nokia in my quest.

2. Buy a Bluetooth GPS receiver that can be paired with my Nokia 6120c. This choice seems to be the better one. However, I encountered further sub issues. Compatibility issue arises here. What type/brand of BT GPS can be paired with my Nokia? How can I be sure that there will be no compatibility problem? I realize that have to take some calculated risk here in buying a BT GPS receiver because I can never be 100% sure because my research was based on forums and comments posted by the GPS community.

There are numerous types of GPS receivers out there. For GPS receiver, one has to decide on two things. What type of chipset it has? Moreover, what brand? What is the price range? Where to buy – online or real world? I have chosen the MTK chipset over the other one. And for brand of BT receivers, generally it should not be an issue. I have found out that MTK chipset has better spec, although most of the branded GPS receiver and the internal built-in receivers (such as in Nokia 6110 etc) are using the other chipset. But MTK chipset is gaining popularity.

However, the brand of BT receiver is also very significant. I have found out also that this issue relates to the software issue that I shall discuss later. Generally speaking, there certain navigator software that requires their own BT GPS receivers namely Garmin Mobile XT navigator software. Thus, this issue is actually most critical.

Finally, I bought a G-top BT GPS Receiver with the MediaTek 51 channel all-in-view tracking technology (aka MTK chipset). I bought this receiver from an ebay seller in USA for a total price of about RM200. This is considerably cheap because I notice local sellers in www.lelong.com.my selling MTK 51 based gps chipset for price exceeding RM270 (shipping included). Basically, one can only get the lower spec gps chipset with the budget of RM200 in lelong.com website. So, it is obvious that ebay seems to be the better choice here.

B. The Software issue

As for Malaysian GPS users with a Symbian OS s60 smart phone, I figure that I have only 3 choices. I reckon that majority of GPS users are using PDAs or PDA phone with Windows Mobile OS coupled with a BT GPS receiver or the pure GPS type like the Garmin Nuvi series. Symbian gps fan like me has the least number of followers based on my observation while reading through hundreds of forum threads.

I can stick with Nokia Map, or get Mapking or use Garmin Mobile XT. I’ve tried Mapking demo on my Nokia 6120c and it works…with voice navigation and everything. I also tried Nokia Map and it also works but without the voice navigation, which one has to pay for it. But I personally like Garmin Mobile XT because of its interface and good map supported by Malsing.com mappers community. I have issues with Mapking because I think their website is total failure. I can’t figure out have to buy their software online other than to personally go to their local retailers. They also don’t answer emails. Nokia Maps is free but the voice navigation is only available for a fee which is too expensive and ridiculous. I prefer a one-time payment. However, Nokia maps is sometimes better than the malsing community compiled ones as far as ‘remote areas’ are concerned but it lacks the excellent ‘Point of Interest’ supported by Malsing maps which feature I like the most. So I decide on getting a Garmin Mobile XT for my navigator software. It is also worth mentioning here that Garmin Mobile XT software REQUIRES a Garmin BT GPS receiver to enable it to work because it cannot pair with non-Garmin receivers. Thus, one has 2 options namely:

1. to buy a Garmin BT GPS receiver with the capability to download and use for free the Garmin Mobile XT navigator software; OR

2. to buy a non-Garmin receiver and also buy the navigator software Garmin Mobile XT. Only then, that the navigator software can be paired with the non-Garmin BT GPS receiver. I’ve chosen this option because I’ve already bid and got the non-Garmin BT receivers in ebay. (Another reason I like to buy in ebay is because I can pay via credit card coz I got no cash. In lelong.com, one has to have cash to bank into the sellers bank account). Generally, the price of the software is about RM100 and one can get through lelong.com or through Garmin authorized dealers. Garmin actually sells the software preinstalled in the memory cards. I’ve bought mine which is a microSD type pre-installed with the Garmin Mobile XT and I just need to use it instead of my old microSD phone memory card.

Conclusion

Well, that is basically it. I’m already enjoying my GPS supported journey which is very very convenient. I’ve spent not more than RM400 to enable my Nokia 6120c to become GPSed at par with the big bro Nokia N95 & E90 Communicator & Nokia 6110 Navigator. Yahooo!