When news started to travel that Aimpoint had created a rifle-mounted, duty-ready optic with multi-reticle options and motion-activation technology, I instantly knew I wanted to put it to the test.
Aimpoint has clearly established itself as a trusted and battle-tested company, producing red dot optics that withstand the most extreme conditions to achieve the mission at hand. Founded in 1975, they invented the first red dot sight and pioneered its use among hunters and sport shooters. After U.S. Special Forces trusted Aimpoint sights to be carried into battle during Operation Desert Storm, the U.S. military formally adopted its sights.
In 2025, after hitting a historic milestone by producing sight number five million, Aimpoint created its first red dot optic featuring a selectable multi-reticle sighting system, the Aimpoint Duty RDS MR. I spent several weeks running that new Duty RDS MR in varied conditions to see how it performed in real-world situations.
Aimpoint’s track record set expectations for the Duty RDS MR, but what interested me most was how the selectable reticle system might support different operational contexts – from close-quarters work to longer-distance engagements – without adding unnecessary complexity.
Design and features
The Aimpoint Duty RDS MR is a rugged, professional-grade rifle- (or pistol-caliber carbine-) mounted red dot sight featuring multiple reticles and top-grade durability. Built for law enforcement and skilled civilians, the Duty RDS MR upholds Aimpoint’s legacy of rugged, reliable and versatile optics. The design features and multi-reticle system of this optic allow the user to be successful under any weather condition, whether they find themselves in CQB (close-quarters battle) situations, performing precise distance shots or engaging in fast-paced, dynamic environments.
The Aimpoint Duty RDS MR is built with a pressure-forged, high-strength aluminum housing that is thoroughly tested against shock, vibration and extreme temperatures and is waterproof up to 25 meters. Its multi-reticle sighting system allows the user to quickly toggle between a 65-MOA circle, a 2-MOA dot, or both simultaneously using the tactile buttons on the left side of the housing. The Aimpoint Duty RDS MR features motion-activation technology that turns the optic off after two hours of inactivity and instantly turns it back on the second motion is detected. With 12 total brightness settings (four NVD-compatible settings), this optic boasts a battery life of up to three years on a brightness setting of 7 (dot only) and a single CR2032 battery.
Optic performance across unpredictable environments
While serving two distinct markets, professional (law enforcement and military) and commercial (skilled civilians, competition shooters and protective details), Aimpoint has created a way to maximize user performance through the versatility of this product without compromising on its tradition of rugged, reliable and intuitive optics. Whether your intended target is within CQB, intermediate or long-range distances, the Aimpoint Duty RDS MR allows for incredibly fast target acquisition and reliable precision.
All too often, law enforcement officers don’t get to choose when or where they are called to rapidly deploy their firearm, and many times it’s at the mercy of unforgiving urban or rural environments and demanding weather conditions. The newly designed multi-reticle feature of the Duty RDS MR allows law enforcement officers to choose a sighting option to best match the environment in which they operate and are most likely to encounter a potentially lethal threat. The 2-MOA dot only features a crisp dot and allows for a full field of view within the 18-mm optic lens, perfect for fast-paced and dynamic CQB distances. The 65-MOA circle alone can be another great option with this optic, as it provides incredible information to law enforcement officers nearly instantly as they acquire their sight picture on their intended target. Officers can still utilize a full field of view while centering a larger, gross sight picture (center mass) within the entire circle, obtaining appropriately accurate rounds on the intended target; or, if a more refined sight picture is needed, they can quickly utilize the tic mark at the bottom edge of the 65-MOA circle to account for any holdovers (muzzle offset) to achieve incredible accuracy.
Using reticle selection to manage distance and offset
For intermediate to long-range distances, the 65-MOA circle and dot combination can be a great option for law enforcement officers to obtain valuable information. The 65-MOA circle is designed to resemble 65 inches from the bottom edge of the circle to the top edge of the circle at 100 yards, meaning an average size person’s entire body would fit inside the circle. As an added bonus to the already well-designed Aimpoint Duty RDS MR, it is designed to seamlessly pair with an Aimpoint 3X magnifier to increase the user’s accuracy at both intermediate and long-range distances.
Balancing speed and precision under pressure
Law enforcement officers and competition shooters alike understand that two things determine a successful outcome when deploying their firearm: speed and accuracy. Aimpoint has achieved both these fundamental aspects with their Duty RDS MR. The incredibly clear and operationally parallax-free lens in this optic allows users to immediately acquire their intended target under strict time constraints without having to worry about any over-confirmation in their accuracy. And the fully enclosed optic channel creates confidence that exposures to rain, mud, dust, dirt, blood or snow will not compromise the performance of this optic and emitter.
Final assessment
After a brief testing and evaluation period during late 2025 in Ohio, where we tend to experience all four seasons within a week, I put the new Aimpoint Duty RDS MR to the test, and it didn’t disappoint. Various weather conditions, environmental and lighting settings, and multiple range sessions totaling more than 1,500 rounds couldn’t slow down the performance of this optic. It checks all the boxes for a “duty-grade” optic ready to be put to work under the high demands of any law enforcement, military or competitive shooting capacity.