Looking at adding some optics to an AR. Not all that familiar with what is available but have been doing a little searching. Not looking to spend a lot of $ ($200 or less) and whatever I get isn’t going to see extensive/hard use. Mostly just plinking or for when the zombie apocalypse happens. Below are the ones I am considering. I know they are different types so I am looking for solid input, pros/cons.
Vortex Sparc II
Vortex StrikeFire II
Vortex Venom or Viper Red Dot
Bushnell TRS-25
Sightmark Ultra Dual Shot Pro Spec NV QD
I am leaning towards the Vortex products as they have a Lifetime warranty and I can get deals on those products.
I have a strikefire. I also have a set of flip up BUS. If the optic batteries die, I can still use the BUS through the optic without having to remove it. The dot on the strikefire is pretty big, 5moa if I recall correctly. There are much better optics out there, but for the money it’s servicable.
'06 Mckee Craft
184 Marathon
DF140 Suzuki
Stay away from the Sightmark.
Don’t overlook Primary Arms micro dot. VERY affordable and extremely impressive for the cost. I own 4 of them 
and prefer them to my Eotech most times.
Wadmalaw native
16’ Bentz-Craft Flats Boat
Thanks for the input. Meant to include the PA Micro Dot.
“Apathy is the Glove into Which Evil Slips It’s Hand”, but really, who cares?
Sparc II (2 MOA “dot”) w/backup irons (or MBUS) and call it a day. The Venom and the Viper are both going to run around $300 (if I remember correctly). Plus, the Viper was designed more for pistols (6 MOA “dot”). The Venom (offered with 6 MOA and 3 MOA “dot”) can be used on pistols (typically the 6 MOA model) as well but it does offer other mounts that will make it work for AR platforms (3 MOA model) too. I prefer the Sparc II over the Strikefire II because of the mount. The mount on the Sparc II is far more versatile.
If you are willing to look in that $300+ market, check out the ROMEO series of optics from Sig Sauer. The EOTech 512 will be upper 3’s to $400.
I’m an EOTech guy myself, but Vortex has had an impact on the optics market as a whole with their products and warranty.
Stay FAR away from the Sightmark and the Bushnell.
No matter how much it hurts, how dark it gets, or how far you fall…you are never out of the fight.