Smokeless Range® Shooting Simulator & Marksmanship Training Software | Portable Indoor Practice System with 10 Built-in Drills for Accuracy, Speed & Skill Development

As a Mac user, my concern was having to buy a new Win laptop just to use this software. If you meet the min recommended specs for processor speed and RAM, even old hardware and OS will do. I'm running Win 7 (Service Pack 1) on a 10 year old Thinkpad, and the program works great. No lag. The only update I had to do was for my video driver - the software, not the card. (With the old driver, the program was not showing at all, but appeared upon the simple update.) Also you can run this software on a Mac with Parallels desktop. A good projector makes all the difference. I'm using a 3200 lumen Epson, no background screen, on a lightly colored wall. My projection size is 70" diagonal, less than their recommended 8 feet. The cam sits on my projector. Detection of hits is 99%. You can use LA's own cartridge. I've found bright red 3rd parties' also work. If you have a green laser sight, that works without any conflict. Red will clash though. The base program is excellent practice and fun. There are moving targets, which you're not going to get elsewhere. It doesn't feel like a video game, because you're using your own pistol and building actual skills and discipline with it. I've upped my investment, and gotten Open Range and Tactical Targets. OR expands the range to much more targets, transitions, and backgrounds. It's like the Disneyland of shooting. TT is very much a simulator, where you move through a 3D course, and face shoot/no shoot decisions. I don't know where you'd get that, other than situation you hope to avert. All-in, this is a great system for teaching effective and responsible firearm control. Great job, Laser Ammo!

The program uploaded on the computer easily. The tutorial on how to start up (youtube) was very helpful. I still have settings to explore, but it was easily set into action the first time. The camera calibrated itself despite some natural light in the room. My wife and I had fun exploring the shooting exercises included. I think the system was a little generous on accuracy. It seemed to give me more credit than I think my shooting deserved. That might just be a setting I need to find. However, the shot placement on the practice targets was more than good enough for me to adjust the point of impact of the laser. So far, we are very happy with the system. Just ordered another pistol replica so we can have fun with the simultaneous two-shooter versions of the games. Email to LaserAmmo asking questions about the suitability of the projector and computer I picked out were answered quickly and professionally. So, customer service seems good.

Great training aid. Easy download and setup. I first tried the setup with a large flat screen (70") Sharp Aquos TV. It would not calibrate the camera and did not register hits at all until I put the suggested plastic overlay on the screen. Even with the overlay it was manual calibration and "hit and miss" (pun intended) as to the hits registering on the camera. So, I bit the bullet and ordered the recommended Viewsonic projector. It works almost flawlessly with the Viewsonic and the display is twice the size of the 70" TV. I have the IR training pistol and I am guessing that the red laser version would be absolutely flawless as to registering shots, both hits and misses. I am going to use the initial 10 training options for a while before adding on the more advanced software packages. Overall a 9 1/2 out of 10. Probably a 10 out of 10 with the red laser pistol.

We didn't HOURS attempting to calibrate this system, from the TV to a projector. We returned the product, it wasted too much of our time to continue trying

First, let me state that I did not buy this through Amazon, I purchased the Smokeless Range 2.0 and the Game Range Alpha 2 addon, directly from the Laserammo web site. Along with a SF30 BASIC GEN. 2 IR training pistol. I am also using a SIRT 110 red/red, pistol from NextLevelTraining. I purchased the following from amazon for this: glock 19 recoil IR laser pistol https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0CWPS9QHH/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Cart https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BQ42LLHF?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details Screen https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CQH46NM6?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details Projector https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0749NTSCD?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details Projector stand https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CGH7F57F?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details I have the range setup in my garage, using simple clips, I clipped the screen on the metal brackets of the garage door, this allows it to stay in a fixed location, and since it's soft material it has no problem flexing when the door opens or closes. You could use a standing/folding screen, if you choose. The cart, was easy to put together and has two locking wheels, to keep it in place. On the bottom shelf of the cart I have a small laptop shelf, with the projector sitting on it. The middle shelf is my laptop and the smokeless range camera. And the top shelf holds my training pistols, magazines etc. Now on with the review. I have been familiar with the smokeless range for over 6+ months, but didn't end up purchasing it till now. I downloaded their demo software, and experimented with it on my PC. You can't use it with a training pistol without the camera and projector, so it was really just a way to see it, and if it would load on my machine and just an overall feel for the software and the interface. Over all the 10 training games it comes with, and the 10 additional ones I purchased in the Game Range Alpha 2 addon, offer a good variety of shooting options. They do look quite simplistic, and remind me of some old-school style flash games from 15 years ago. But for basic shooting drills, you really don't need anything spectacular. In fact the simple graphics make it possible to run it on a less powerful system, there is no need for a gaming style laptop to get it up and running smoothly. The installation was simple, registering the software was quick and painless. The system has a few basic settings you can configure, but over all is quick to setup. Dialing in the projector, and screen may take a little effort the first time, but once you have it working it should be good to go. The camera calibration is a little trickier, room lighting makes a difference. Since I am in Florida, my garage can be quite warm, so I am using a portable AC unit (also from amazon) https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09T8YHMX3/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1 With the AC unit in place, I have to open the garage door a few inches to vent the exhaust, and using a few strips of paneling to block the light along the gap at the bottom of the door. Once you have your lighting under control, you can begin the calibration process. You simply move the camera to have full view of the screen, it does not need to be perfectly aligned, it just needs to be able to see the entire screen, so it can register the laser shots. If the calibration fails, make sure you do not have any light hitting the screen, and try again once you diffuse the lighting. You should use a screen with 1.0 - 1.3 gain, and it should be matte, not reflective, and should have a black backing so light does not penetrate through. The one I listed above that I am using, meets all this criteria. Once you get things all setup, camera/calibration, projector, laptop etc, the next thing to do is dial in your laser. This is much easier if you use a non-recoil pistol with a visible red beam, like the SIRT. This way you can see the exact location on screen, along with where you are aiming and how it is being registered. I find this process a little more challenging with my IR pistols, vs the pistols with a visible beam. You can dial in an IR laser pistol, without much of an issue, if you are ok with knowing how to aim/sight it properly, and how to adjust it if need be. If you always have the screen and projector at approximately the same distance each time you use it, then setting your sights, should be a one time thing, and you won't have to do it again. Now that things are dialed in, and ready to go, the fun begins. Over all, the games are pretty basic, but they do challenge a lot of different skills for shooters. Speed, accuracy, following moving targets, determining shoot/no shot targets with split second decision making etc. Each game offers some options you can configure, like the target size, shape, or number of targets, a timer for the game, distance or target size, choosing to include no-shoot targets and the like, depending on the specific game played. Many of them offer default easy, normal, hard options, or you can dial in more specific parameters to your liking. At the end of each game there is a high score table (this can be disabled, I chose to disable it on mine, since I generally shoot solo, so have no need to keep track of individual scores, after every single event) You can simply click past it, but I appreciate the option to just turn off the high score screen as a global option. The Game Range Alpha 2 addon is expensive, as are all the addons for this application. I choose it because it was very similar to the 10 starting games, basic target shooting with dynamic and moving targets. There is a new module coming out soon, "Competition Pro Shooter. this software allows you to build IPSC/ Steel / IDPA courses in a 3D Environment" But as of 3/24 it has not been released yet but is scheduled to be soon... according to Laser Ammo tech support. This will probably be my next purchase, as I like the idea of designing my own scenes. Overall the system works well, I do feel the quality of the graphics in the games is a little low, but that doesn't take away from the capabilities of what it offers, as a training system at home. If your used to playing next gen PC or Console games, these graphics will be quite shocking to you, but this is not designed to be a AAA level presentation, the magic is in the mechanics. Dryfire practice at home, with a large variety of dynamic games to choose from, with a little bit of customization to go with it. If you compare it to shooting at the range, plinking into a static silhouette or target, the only dynamic being the distance... This application offers of ton of cool shooting options, to keep you interested. It's also something you can play for fun, or even to begin the process of getting familiar with a firearm. All the same real-world disciplines can be applies. Gun safety procedures, how to hold, aim, the gun, even mag changes and holstering can be practiced while playing interactively. These are all real aspects of firearm ownership that can assist as a training tool, or just general reinforcement in your own home. I use mine generally once a week, but only visit my actual range twice a month, so between them both, I get to scratch my shooting itch all month long. Now lets talk about the company, LaserAmmo, there sales team has been great and their tech support, specifically Jason is fantastic. I had spoken to him on the phone many times, while I was gathering information on their products. He helped me pick out a screen and projector and answered all my questions. He is very responsive to emails and has always replied back in a timely manner. I also discovered that they build the application itself in house, and it is their own team of developers, not a 3rd party. So they are fully invested in making it the best they can, and are in it for the long term. Over All Opinion: Graphics/Sound 7/10 Ease of Use 9/10 Setup/Configuration 9/10 Fun Factor/Longevity 8/10 Cost 6/10 Company, Sales/Support 10/10 overall 8/10

This is a very good firearms training tool. The sytem is compatable with my Cool Fire recoil laser system providing the most benifits from both systems. The instruction and web video made setup quick and easy.

Fun to play with but very disappointing given what you get for the price. You could spend a small fortune to buy all the modules and equipment and end up with with a reasonably fun video game. At a third to half of what they charge, this would be a great product.

I use this system with my firearms students before I take them to the live fire portion of training. It's a great system for helping to build good habits and consistency. Perfectpracticetactical.com