Try doging that bullet....

[Devonian]

[Skean Dhude]

Civilians would never get this technology. It would make assassinations a breeze for any fanatic.

Won't be long before it is on sale on the black market.

Still sounds an improvement from a cruise missile from a collateral point of view.

[Straight Shooter]

Maybe its time to retire all armies ...fit this stuff to a few unmanned drones and kill anyone we like from the comfort of a deck chair in Tenby while eating a bag of fish n chips supplied free of charge...homes...jobs..in leisure can be created.... people in Africa can have all they can eat...fresh clean water to drink...banish zero hours...pensions can be paid...then we could shoot all at Monsanto , all corrupt governments...and all live happily ever after.... anyone refusing this new paradigm would be obviously shot.

[Mortblanc]

The media loves to pull these test demos out of the hat as if they were already in production and thousands were in the hands of the troops. This device will probably never reach the lines and if it does the numbers will be so limited the average soldier will never see one. We were testing technology in the 1980s that has never made it to the front lines. Too inefficient, too delicate, too expensive.

Over here anything 50 caliber or over, other than a black powder gun, is considered a "destructive device" and kept in the hands of the military. This thing would never make it into the hands of hunters or normal civilians.

The cost per round on this device is probably astronomical too. Probably several thousand pounds per shot. A standard 50 caliber BMG round, such as used in the Barrett .50, sells for about 2 pounds each in your money and that is 150 year old technology.

[Devonian]

The media loves to pull these test demos out of the hat as if they were already in production and thousands were in the hands of the troops. This device will probably never reach the lines and if it does the numbers will be so limited the average soldier will never see one. We were testing technology in the 1980s that has never made it to the front lines. Too inefficient, too delicate, too expensive.

Over here anything 50 caliber or over, other than a black powder gun, is considered a "destructive device" and kept in the hands of the military. This thing would never make it into the hands of hunters or normal civilians.

The cost per round on this device is probably astronomical too. Probably several thousand pounds per shot. A standard 50 caliber BMG round, such as used in the Barrett .50, sells for about 2 pounds each in your money and that is 150 year old technology.

Yep all valid points until the Chinese copy it ......

Yes it may take another 25 years, but surely this is what every military and law enforcement authority on the planet would want!

[Mortblanc]

To be honest with you, in 25 years I will be over 90 and well past giving a crap!

If you do not have SHTF on the schedule for two more decades there is plenty of time to wrap myself in tin foil and swallow a bunch of magnets and mess this thing's tracking system up.

[CharlesHarris]

Most of the serious R&D has been with larger projectiles 20mm and up. The Cal. .50BMG round only for SpecOps in very limited application, not for gener isssye for troops. I have some direct experience with this, but not appropriate to discuss here...

[Steve]

Whilst this is an interesting concept, it has no relevance to your average man. I find the microwave crowd control devices more sinister.

[bigpaul]

I'd be a lot more concerned about armed drones.