Which is the best red dot style sight for a person with astigmatism?
First lets go over what an astigmatism condition is.
The eye has two structures with curved surfaces that bend (refract) light onto the retina, which makes the images:
- The cornea, the clear front surface of the eye along with the tear film
- The lens, a clear structure inside the eye that changes shape to help the eye focus on near objects
In a perfectly shaped eye, each of these elements has a round curvature, like the surface of a smooth ball. A cornea or lens with such curvature bends (refracts) all incoming light equally to make a sharply focused image directly on the retina at the back of the eye.
If either the cornea or the lens is egg-shaped with two mismatched curves, light rays aren’t bent the same, which means that two different images form. These two images overlap or combine and result in blurred vision. Astigmatism is a type of refractive error.
When a person has an astigmatism the red dot or holographic image can appear distorted. Instead of seeing a round dot it can look like an oval or starburst.
So which is the best red dot style sight for astigmatism? The holographic sights or red dots?
In general to everyone the holographic sights like the Eotech or Vortex uh-1 appear blurry when directly looking at them but when you focus on the target instead the picture clears up. For those with astigmatism the dot appears uniform.
With a red dot sight the image to most are crisp and clear when looking at the dot or through it. For those with astigmatism the red dots are generally distorted.
Benefits of the Holographic style sights:
- Friendly to those with astigmatism
- Less parallax than a red dot
- Best for inconvenient or unconventional shooting positions
- The two options the eotech and vortex uh-1 are super solid and reliable.
- When using a magnifier the reticle maintains the same size on target
- Dot size as small as 1 moa allowing for more precise shots
Disadvantages of Holographic style sights:
- Battery life is short measured in the hundreds of hours
- Heavier than most red dot sights sometimes 2 to 3 times heavier
- No shake awake functionality
- No option for always on
- No option for self adjusting illumination
So is the holographic sight the best red dot style for you? Lets take a look at the red dot pros and cons.
Benefits of red dot sight:
- The red dot options are priced to fit any budget from the backyard plinker to the pro
- Battery life is measured in the thousands of hours. Some over 50,000 hours
- Shake awake function to prolong battery life even longer
- Option for solar to use optic in daylight even without a battery prolonging life even longer
- Option for automatic reticle brightness adjustment
- Option for circle dot reticle which is kind to those with astigmatism like myself
- Lightweight options
Disadvantages of red dot sights:
- The cheaper and some of the more expensive sights don’t have the best parallax
- The more solid red dot sights can be even more expensive then a holographic sight
- Not as precise as the holographic sights due to the smallest dot being 2 moa in size
- When using a magnifier the reticle is magnified and therefore changes sizes
Conclusion
In the end the only one who can tell you which red dot style sight is best for you is you. I recommend looking through as many of the best red dots and holographic sights you can find. I didn’t even know that I had an astigmatism until I purchased an Aimpoint T2 which is a bombproof red dot that you can leave always on.
When I looked through the T2 the dot was distorted. I thought even though they have an amazing reputation that it was possible I purchased an exception. I had a friend look through it to confirm and he saw a perfect dot. I tried a magnifier behind it and the image cleared up. So I ended up selling the T2 at a loss. I then tried the eotech xps 3-0.
The xps3-0 was amazing. I was able to use it without distortion issues. It also worked great with a magnifier.
The problem was I wanted an optic that would always be ready. I wanted to just be able to pick it up and shoot without having to worry about if it was on or if I pressed the right button. I wanted to not worry about changing the batteries every couple months.
I tried out many different red dot sights, red many reviews and watched many reviews online. I tried Burris, Trijicon, Bushnell, Aimpoint, Sig Sauer, Vortex and Holosun. The first one I found that worked with my astigmatism was the Sig Sauer Romeo 5XDR. 
The Romeo 5XDR had the option for single dot or circle and dot. With the circle dot reticle it was clear and did not create a distorted image. After using the Sig I went and purchased one for one of my rifles and it still sits there today.
After the Sig I then purchased a Holosun 515ct for my next build. Both the Sig and the Holosun had very little parallax error. They definitely fit the bill for the best red dot style sights. When I compared them with my Eotech the parallax was indistinguishable past 25 yards.
The best red dot style sight for me ended up being the Holosun 515ct-rd with the Sig Sauer Romeo 5xdr a very close second. I have since sold the Eotech. Which is the best red dot style sight for you? Only you can choose the best red dot style sight for you!
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