The ATN ThOR 4 thermal scope is a great choice if you are looking for an affordable but capable thermal riflescope.
We love ATN optics because of their balance between affordability and performance. You get a lot of bang for your money.
The ThOR 4 starts at less than $2,000 but offers very good imaging performance a selection of cool features you won’t find even in pricier scopes.
Imaging basics include a 384x288 next-gen sensor, variable magnification, and a long detection range.
Beyond the basics, you also get built-in video recording with Livestream capability, a ballistic calculator, an integrated rangefinder, and 64GB of SD card memory.
But what caught our attention the most is the battery life. 18 hours!
No other scope comes close.
Read on to find out why ThOR 4 is one of the most popular new thermal riflescopes.
If it’s not what you are looking for, read our cheap thermal scopes buying guide for other great recommendations.
New Processor
ThOR 4 is a new series of smart thermal scopes from ATN. They offer many improvements from the ThOR HD series.
The biggest one is the new Obsidian IV Dual-core processor. It’s smarter and more powerful, allowing the ThOR 4 scope to offer better performance and more features.
It also greatly improves power efficiency and cooling performance, which is one of the reasons for the 18-hour battery life.
384x288 Thermal Sensor
There’s a higher resolution 640x480 version of the ThOR 4 available – for more money, of course – but we think this one with a 384x288 sensor is good enough for most hunters.
The new core extracts more from the sensor, ensuring a sharp image even when observing distant targets.
Combined with the 1280x720 HD display, image quality is surprisingly good.
Variable Magnification
The cheapest ThOR 4 scope has a magnification range between 1.25x and 5x. It offers a detection range of up to 750 yards for a human-sized target.
The higher you go in magnification, the longer the detection range, and the closer you can get to prey. Price also goes up.
The 7-28x magnification version offers a detection range of 3,000 yards and an identification range of 720 yards (distance at which you can make a positive identification of your target).
60Hz Refresh Rate
A high refresh rate makes for a smoother image, especially during movement.
With the 60Hz ThOR 4 scope, you can easily keep up with a moving target. It also allows you to swing the rifle to scan your surroundings without getting a blurry view.
90mm Eye Relief
That’s a huge improvement from the 65mm eye relief in ThOR HD scopes. It makes for more comfortable viewing and, if you wear glasses, allows you to keep your glasses on when hunting.
Ballistic Calculator and Range Finder
Similar to ThOR HD scopes, ThOR 4 thermal scopes come with a built-in range finder and ballistic calculator.
The ballistic calculator uses altitude and environmental conditions (windage, pressure, humidity, and temperature) and your gun’s profile to calculate an accurate bullet path.
Together with the range finder, it increases shot precision, so you don’t waste ammo on missed shots.
Built-In Video Recording with Dual Streaming
Another feature carried over from ThOR HD is video recording and live streaming. The ThOR 4 comes with a 64GB removable SD card to store videos.
But ATN has added another feature to enhance your media experience. With previous scopes, you could either live stream to your smartphone/tablet or record video on the SD card, not both at the same time.
With the new dual-core processor, you can now do both simultaneously. ATN calls it dual streaming.
If you are streaming live footage to your smartphone, you can also record to the SD card at the same time so you can relieve the best moments later.
ThOR 4 also offers RAV or recoil-activated video. It records video automatically when it senses a shot. You can adjust how long it records before and after the shot.
18-Hour Battery Life
Even with the new features and a more powerful processor, the ATN ThOR 4 scope has managed to more than double the battery life of the ThOR HD scope.
The new scope achieves the 18-hour battery life in three ways.
ATN has made an effort to provide good imaging performance, but you still can’t compare a 384X288 sensor to a 640x480 sensor.
The image is not quite as sharp, and you’ll experience greater deterioration at longer ranges and when you magnify too much.
The ATN ThOR 4 is a huge improvement in performance, ease of use, battery life, and, most importantly, value for your money.
Compared to other thermal scopes, the ATN ThOR 4 scope is a really good bargain.
