I've used both mil dots and the burris plex rangefinding version. both of these systems require you to know the height of the target in order to get the range. Lasers are certainly the most accurate, but if the batteries go it's nice to have a backup. I prefer mil dots to the burris system, but if I didn't know how to use mils the burris is probably easier to learn.

don't want to start a flame or anything, but contrary to a previous post mil dots were designed specifically for estimating range, not for holding over a certain amount on the target. burris based the ballistic plex off the same principle; you know the size of your target and you do the math from there:

(object height in inches x 27.776)/mill dot measure

if you've got a laser, use it. with a little practice you can be accurate enough with mil dots or ballistic plex for hunting standards.

hope this helps,

ac