TFB Review: Meprolight MPO Pro-S vs MPO Pro-F

TFB Review: Meprolight MPO Pro-S vs MPO Pro-F – Which Enclosed Emitter is King?

Red dots have been all the rage in the last 5 – 10 years both from an optics manufacturing standpoint as well as firearm manufacturers. More and more firearm and optic companies have joined the optics-equipped bandwagon to make shooting handguns that much more enjoyable – and easy to see – with a red dot. Within this renaissance, we have seen a burst of popularity for “enclosed emitter” red dots, too: optics that are fully housed in a box to protect the red dot from outside elements. While they can appear boxy to some with the endearing moniker of “mailboxes,” it is difficult to doubt the advantages that they can afford you. So, today we are going to look at 2 enclosed emitter red dots from Meprolight: the MPO Pro-S (Shield footprint) and their MPO Pro-F (RMR footprint) to see which one might be best for you. Let’s dive in!

Meprolight @ TFB:

TFB Review: Meprolight MPO-S Micro Red Dot Sight TFB Review: The $300 Meprolight MMX3 Magnifier TFB Review: Meprolight MPO-F Red Dot Sight TFB Review: Meprolight M22 Self-Illuminated Reflex Sight

The Gauntlet: Meprolight MPO Pro-S vs MPO Pro-F

You have big versus small. Shield footprint versus RMR footprint. Both hailing from a reputable company in Meprolight, and both touting very similar stats. The question is simple: which is best?! With so many similarities and simultaneously numerous differences, it is not as simple as it seems. I brought both of these enclosed emitter red dots to the range, strapped them to pistols, and waited to see who would fail or falter, first.

Specifications – Meprolight MPO Pro-S

The Meprolight MPO PRO-S is an enclosed emitter pistol sight with an RMSc/JPoint® footprint. You have your choice of auto brightness as well as manual brightness settings plus protective measures like a fogproof and waterproof IP67 coating. The Meprolight MPO PRO-S has an MSRP of $279.99, and its full spec listing is displayed below:

Footprint: RMSc/JPoint®Objective Lens Diameter: Width 0.78” | Height 0.60”Reticle: 3-Segment (3 options) of 3 MOA Red Dot, 33 MOA Red Bullseye Ring, or Combination of BothBrightness Settings: 10 Daylight, 2 Night VisionBattery Type: 1x CR1632 BatteryBattery Life: 20,000+ HoursWindage/Elevation Adjustment: 1 MOAWindage/Elevation Travel: ± 30 MOA / ± 30 MOAWeight: 1.4 oz.

Like countless Meprolight products, the Meprolight MPO PRO-S is protected by the MeproGuard Warranty (Limited Lifetime Warranty). In the rare event that anything should happen to your enclosed emitter red dot, Meprolight will rectify the problem by either fixing your red dot, or getting a new one into your hands. Meprolight elaborates more about what makes the Meprolight MPO PRO-S so special in their press release statement below:

“Introducing the Mepro MPO Pro-S — a durable and rugged enclosed optic system built to meet the demands of military and law enforcement operations. The Mepro MPO Pro-S represents a significant advancement from Meprolight®, engineered to match the legendary durability of the Mepro M21, M22, and M5. It enhances precision and accuracy across multiple firearm styles and calibers. It automatically adapts to any environment.Built to endure direct impacts and operate in the harshest conditions, the MPO Pro-S provides heightened accuracy and an exceptional field of view. Featuring a user selectable 3 segment reticle system (3 MOA dot, 33MOA bullseye, and 33 MOA ring) allowing the shooter to choose how they interact with their optic.”

Specifications – Meprolight MPO Pro-F

The Meprolight MPO Pro-F is also an enclosed emitter pistol sight donning a larger RMR footprint. Similarly, you can engage auto and manual brightness settings with the same fogproof and waterproof protection as its little brother, the Meprolight MPO PRO-S. All of the specifications you can come to expect for the MPO Pro-F are listed below by Meprolight:

Footprint: RMRObjective Lens Diameter: Width 0.95” | Height 0.70”Reticle: 3-Segment (3 options) of 3 MOA Red Dot, 33 MOA Red Bullseye Ring, or Combination of BothBrightness Settings: 10 Daylight, 2 Night VisionBattery Type: 1x CR1632 BatteryBattery Life: 20,000+ HoursWindage/Elevation Adjustment: 1 MOAWindage/Elevation Travel: ± 30 MOA / ± 30 MOAWeight: 1.8 oz.

Again, the MeproGuard Warranty (Limited Lifetime Warranty) applies to the Meprolight MPO Pro-F should you ever need assistance. Meprolight again shares their thoughts on the larger MPO Pro-F via their press release statement below:

“Introducing the Mepro MPO Pro-F — an incredibly tough and durable enclosed optic system built to meet the rigorous demands of military and law enforcement operations. The Mepro MPO Pro-F represents a significant advancement from Meprolight®, engineered to match the legendary durability of the Mepro M21, M22, and M5. It enhances precision and accuracy across various firearm styles and calibers, adapting seamlessly to any environment.Built to endure direct impacts and operate in the harshest conditions, the MPO Pro-F provides heightened accuracy and an exceptional field of view. Featuring a user selectable 3 segment reticle system (3 MOA dot, 33MOA bullseye, and 33 MOA ring) allowing the shooter to choose how they interact with their optic. it effortlessly integrates with existing industry standard RMR footprints.”

What’s the Upsell to the Meprolight MPO Pro-S?

For the Meprolight MPO PRO-S, there are several attributes worth mentioning of “why you should buy this enclosed emitter red dot” versus other ones made by manufacturers not named Meprolight.

RMSc/JPoint® Footprint (Common Footprint)User selectable 3 segment reticle (Multiple Reticles)10 Day / 2 NV Settings (Night Vision Boys, Rejoice!)CR1632 – 20,000+ hours battery life (Long Battery Life)Automatic and Manual Brightness Control (Like BK, “You Can Have It Your Way”)Power Saving Sleep Mode (Saves on Battery)IP67 Waterproof rating (Sheds Water like a Raincoat)

What’s the Upsell to the Meprolight MPO Pro-F?

With the Meprolight MPO Pro-F, you have the exact same “upsell” mentionables, but they are still worth mentioning for the reading audience. The only departure from its little brother’s stats is the RMR footprint versus the Shield footprint.

RMR Footprint (Common Footprint)User selectable 3 segment reticle (Multiple Reticles)10 Day / 2 NV Settings (Night Vision Boys, Rejoice!)CR1632 – 20,000+ hours battery life (Long Battery Life)Automatic and Manual Brightness Control (Like BK, “You Can Have It Your Way”)Power Saving Sleep Mode (Saves on Battery)IP67 Waterproof rating (Sheds Water like a Raincoat)

What’s in the Box? Meprolight MPO Pro-S

One of the most important questions that I ask myself when I am about to buy something new is, “what’s in the box?” This lets me know if I also need to purchase more accessories to get something up-and-running, or if I will have everything I need with a single purchase.

Adaptor Plate for RMSc(2) #6-32×6 Nylock patch screws(2) M4x6 Nylock patch screws2-in-1 Screwdriver & Torx Wrench T10Cleaning ClothCR1632 BatteryUser Manual

What’s in the Box? Meprolight MPO Pro-F

If you are contemplating the larger Meprolight MPO Pro-F, this is everything you can come to expect when you crack the seal on a new package.

Adaptor Plate for RMR2-in-1 Screwdriver & Torx Wrench T10(2) #6-32×8 Nylock patch screws(2) #6-40×8 Nylock patch screws(2) #6-32×4.6 Nylock patch screwsCleaning ClothCR1632 BatteryUser Manual

Range Experience

Mounting

So, let’s talk about mounting these bad boys. For the Meprolight MPO PRO-S, I placed it on my Springfield Armory Hellcat Pro Comp OSP as the slide is milled for a Shield footprint. Meprolight provides the adapter plate that you need to get the MPO PRO-S mounted up right and it went onto my Hellcat Pro Comp OSP without an issue.

The Meprolight MPO Pro-F I tried to mount onto my “Gucci Glock” – a generic Gen4 G17 that I’ve customized so much it’s barely recognizable – but the provided RMR adapter plate did not fit. My Frankenstein’d “Gucci Glock” has had an actual Trijicon RMR on it for close to a decade. So, something was out-of-spec on the factory adapter plate that Meprolight provided with the MPO Pro-F. I then pivoted to a Springfield Armory Echelon 4.0C with their VIS Mounting System, and I was able to successfully mount the MPO Pro-F to it. Also, while using the provided plastic wrench to mount the MPO Pro-F, the plastic wrench cracked in half.

Speed of Sight Acquisition

Something that is important to both concealed carry enthusiasts and competitive shooters is the speed at which you can acquire your sight. The limiting factors to this could be the shape of the housing, the clarity of the glass, the type of reticle, etc. As you can imagine, it can be a lot of things. With the MPO Pro-F and MPO Pro-S being so close in size and displaying the same reticle, the MPO Pro-F wins here by the narrowest of margins. “A big screen TV is always better to watch the game on,” or something like that.

Accuracy

When it comes to raw accuracy, I provided a low bar to hurdle for these enclosed emitter red dots. I attempted to see how fast and repeatedly I could hit steel at 10 yards. While I just declared that the Meprolight MPO Pro-F was faster to acquire a line of sight with, I actually was more accurate running the MPO Pro-S repeatedly. This says more about my comfort level with carry-sized optics as I train more with little guns and little red dots at the range than I do full-size pistols and dots. So, here my bias is absolutely showing, but we’ll give the edge to the MPO Pro-S here for accuracy.

Window Size

When it comes to window size, “size matters” (every woman reading this is now chuckling). So, in a contest where the MPO Pro-F and the MPO Pro-S are so gosh dang close, the MPO Pro-F has the larger window size. The MPO Pro-S window has a width of 0.78” and a height 0.60” making for a viewing area of 0.468 square inches. The MPO Pro-F has a width of 0.95” and a height of 0.70” for a window size of 0.665 square inches. So, the MPO Pro-F declares an easy victory in regards to window size.

Durability

I would be inclined to call this metric a “Draw,” but I believe the MPO Pro-S wins here for being smaller and I will explain. As someone who carries everyday as a gun store owner, a politician in his hometown, and a rancher/outdoor enthusiast, I know the limitations of my red dots bumping into things during an average day and printing under clothing. The MPO Pro-F is just that tiny bit bigger where it feels like a “bull in a China shop.” It prints more, bumps into things more, and as a result, its durability will be more often tested; thus, leaving it prone to something maybe happening to the red dot.

Co-Witness or Iron Sight Viewability

For both of these red dots, you have no chance of a co-witness or an ability to see your iron sights. I found that unfortunate, but with an adapter plate plus a thickly-housed red dot – which all enclosed emitters are – you have too much elevation to see your irons.

“X Factor”

The RMR used to be “King of the Hill” when it came to red dots, but it is slowly losing its grip on that crown. As a result, I own and find the Shield footprint to be a lot more common and popular in 2024. So, the Meprolight MPO Pro-S gets the slick “X Factor” award for simply having a more common footprint amongst the “common footprint” types.

And the Winner is…

Before I declare a winner, I have a couple housekeeping items to bring attention to. Both red dots walked or wiggled loose repeatedly during testing. The provided screws from Meprolight were pre-Loctited and my Fudd biceps squirmed with all of their strength tightening down the screws, but the provided plastic wrench from Meprolight simply isn’t enough (in fact, I broke one). You should really use a qualified Torque wrench when installing an enclosed emitter red dot (lesson learned).

Also, I’m dismayed that no one has figured out a clever architectural, work-around where you don’t need to have an adapter plate for an enclosed emitter red dot yet, so there is an undesirable amount of extra height when using enclosed emitter red dots, but that is currently the nature of the beast (not Meprolight’s fault).

So, without further ado, in my biased opinion the Meprolight MPO PRO-S is the winner in this slugfest of which enclosed emitter red dot is the best. Both of them are terribly similar in their presentation and what they have to offer, but if I could only have one, I am reaching for the Meprolight MPO PRO-S.

Meprolight MPO PRO-S – Wins in these Metrics

MountingAccuracyDurability“X Factor”

Meprolight MPO Pro-F – Wins in these Metrics

Speed of Sight AcquisitionWindow size

Draw

ReticleCo-Witness or Iron Sight Viewability

Departing Thoughts

The enclosed emitter red dots are still an acquired taste in 2024, but they are gaining a lot of momentum. While people who own enclosed emitters can brag they’ll never have an obstruction occluding their red dot that they can’t simply wipe away, they must also put up with “mailbox” jokes from all of their friends. So, it’s give-and-take.

As always, let us know all of your thoughts about the Meprolight MPO Pro-S versus the Meprolight MPO Pro-F in the Comments below! We always appreciate your feedback.