Bushnell Night Vision : Gen1 1x20 NVG Test

[kjun13]

The $100 pair of "Eyeclops" binoculars I got at wal-mart outperformed these.

Gen 1: you can see what's eating your garden at night

Gen 2: you can see clearly a couple hundred feet

Gen 3: no IR needed, you can clearly see across a large field

Gen 4: state of the art, Gen 3 on steroids

Gen 3 is the way to go, but we need that shit to go on sale.

[palonejr]

If your in a lighted area looking out to a dark area beyond, how well does this perform?

Bobby...

[lilham10809]

whats the range of these?

[nukedude]

This one is only about 250-300 feet. After that it just doesn't have any magnification....but if your eyes are better than mine, maybe further. The IR light source probably could extend range as well if it was better. I sometimes use Surefire lights with IR filters that go further,

[LoneWolf228]

so, would u recommend this for hiking through the woods? Is it nice and clear?

[nukedude]

If you use an IR flashlight then this would work in the woods. Otherwise I don't think it would have enough light to amplify. Gen 1 units need more light than current gear. But active mode with a good IR source would work well. I use a Surefire light with matching IR filter and it works well.

[LoneWolf228]

@nukedude i'm guessing it doesn't come with an IR light source?

[nukedude]

No this model does not.....but I have seen the exact same one with a different model number with a bolt on IR LED. I would just use a Surefire light and IR filter. Much brighter than a cheap IR LED. (Just don't use a visible spectrum LED if you go with an LED light source. Surefire makes both visible and IR. I use an old Ibis Tek IR headlight and another model imager with video output to a monitor for other uses. Fun stuff. (Government sanctioned safari.)

[videofan88]

can you see the stars with this

[nukedude]

Only really bright one's. You can sometimes see the three stars of Orion's belt with this, but the resolution is just not that great. Bushnell uses surplus Russian tubes and are not US mil spec. More for hobby use.

[nukedude]

The fish eye effect and the focus is due to me holding a camera to the night vision monocular.