The 640×512 core is now a standard option across the ULTRA and INTERCEPTOR families. Side-by-side at 800 m it resolves individual figures where the 384 core shows only warm blobs.
In head-to-head testing over a marked range, operator identification of person versus vehicle versus decoy hit 92% at 800 m with the 640 core, compared to 61% with the 384. Past 1000 m the gap widens sharply — the 384 becomes a heat-source detector, not an ID sensor.
Upgrading from 384×288 to a 640×512 core more than doubles the pixel count on target and pushes reliable identification range from 400 m to well over a kilometer.
The real gain is decision time. Identification happens at cruise altitude, so the strike run starts sooner, the terminal dive is shorter and exposure to small-arms fire drops. Operators consistently report a 3–5 second head start on the engagement window.
Power draw is 2.1 W on the same gimbal mount as the 384 core — a 10-minute field swap with no changes to the flight controller or video pipeline.
Weather envelope is the same as the 384: usable through light rain and dust, degraded by heavy fog past 500 m. Cold air actually helps — thermal contrast rises as ambient drops, so December through February have consistently produced our sharpest imagery.
Every ULTRA-10 and ULTRA-13 built from this month onward is 640-ready — the harness and gimbal mount are identical, so a unit that starts on the 384 can upgrade in the field without a return to depot.
