Reviews
Call it a camera
This is more of a camera than goggles, a camera like your cell phone, but with infrared capability. That said, it is a very good digital camera, with excellent night vision, and at a fabulous price. When I received mine, it was missing the user's manual. I contacted the seller, and they responded immediately. The next day I was emailed the user manual in pdf format. Meanwhile, I experimented with it and figured out how to use most of the features on my own. In fact, it will do more than the instructions address, although most of those features are only for experienced photographers. The device has three modes: video, still photo, and playback. Either of the first two can be used like binoculars by pointing the device at the object and looking at the screen. Either mode can also be used in standard (color) view, or in infrared (black and white). You can digitally zoom up to 5X in either standard or IR, and in IR you can adjust the brightness of the IR illuminator from 1 to 6. The menus allow you to make expert adjustments like over and under exposure, wide dynamic range, resolution from 4K to VGA, ISO, white balance, sharpness, and image quality. It has anti-shake, notion detection, and loop recording, but while all these features are listed in the user manual, there is no explanation of how they work or when you might want to use them. Most users, like me, will simply go with the default settings. The lens of the device, in the left barrel, must be manually adjusted to get the proper focus, which changes with distance and zoooming.
In standard mode, you see the same picture you would in a cell phone camera, but it allows digital zoom, and it has very good low-light amplification. In semi-darkness, the screen image was about twice as bright as it looked to my naked eye. It's the IR I was interested in, and it works extremely well. In full darkness, you get a clear B&W picture that is sharp and has good depth. I haven't taken the device to the country yet, where the distances are greater, but I believe the IR will easily illuminate an object at over 200 yards.
The device comes with a mini-SD card of 36MP, so you can record still photos or video simply by pressing a button. You can review the images on the device and delete those you don't want. You can transfer the images to a computer using the including USB cord, or take the mini-SD card out and plug it into a reader connected to your computer or printer.
This device is not really practical for nighttime surveillance, if that is your objective. You must hold it away from your face to see the image, which will illuminate your face, and the IR illuminator is a visible red light on the front. It would be great, however, for observing wildlife at night, or just inspecting your back yard.
The device has a tripod socket on the bottom, so you can mount it for greater stability if you're taking photos or video. There is probably a connector that would let you mount the device on a rifle, but I don't see how you could properly zero it and use it as a night sight.
It takes a while to learn the various functions of the buttons, and they're not easy to identify at night, but at this price point, you can't have everything. One of the main selling points for me is that it is rechargeable with a standard USB connector, and the per cent of charge is shown on the screen. You can even use it with an auxiliary power pack or a long USB cord plugged into a charger.
Considering all this device does, its price is just ridiculously low. The higher priced units I looked at don't really do any more than this one, and they often require six to eight AA batteries that have to be replaced often. I am very pleased with this purchase, as it does more than I expected, and better than I expected.
In standard mode, you see the same picture you would in a cell phone camera, but it allows digital zoom, and it has very good low-light amplification. In semi-darkness, the screen image was about twice as bright as it looked to my naked eye. It's the IR I was interested in, and it works extremely well. In full darkness, you get a clear B&W picture that is sharp and has good depth. I haven't taken the device to the country yet, where the distances are greater, but I believe the IR will easily illuminate an object at over 200 yards.
The device comes with a mini-SD card of 36MP, so you can record still photos or video simply by pressing a button. You can review the images on the device and delete those you don't want. You can transfer the images to a computer using the including USB cord, or take the mini-SD card out and plug it into a reader connected to your computer or printer.
This device is not really practical for nighttime surveillance, if that is your objective. You must hold it away from your face to see the image, which will illuminate your face, and the IR illuminator is a visible red light on the front. It would be great, however, for observing wildlife at night, or just inspecting your back yard.
The device has a tripod socket on the bottom, so you can mount it for greater stability if you're taking photos or video. There is probably a connector that would let you mount the device on a rifle, but I don't see how you could properly zero it and use it as a night sight.
It takes a while to learn the various functions of the buttons, and they're not easy to identify at night, but at this price point, you can't have everything. One of the main selling points for me is that it is rechargeable with a standard USB connector, and the per cent of charge is shown on the screen. You can even use it with an auxiliary power pack or a long USB cord plugged into a charger.
Considering all this device does, its price is just ridiculously low. The higher priced units I looked at don't really do any more than this one, and they often require six to eight AA batteries that have to be replaced often. I am very pleased with this purchase, as it does more than I expected, and better than I expected.
21/03/2023