The programming board on the optics limits the number of illumination levels you can have. When people comment about the lowest level being brighter than they would like, they are referring to the fact that they want to be able to see through the dot. That is a personal preference and not way you actually should be shooting a red dot optic. The dot does not starburst or bloom at low levels or even at high levels. The most common complaint of competition shooters is that dots are not bright enough under demanding sun conditions, the dot is too small and the dot sunbursts or is not circle when when turned up. We addressed all those issues in my opinion.