How far could the night vision device see at night?

How far the night vision device can see depends on the environment in which it is viewed, or the performance of the night vision device.

Generally, the Gen1 night vision device can distinguish portraits at about 100 meters in total darkness.

The most important parameter of the night vision device is the generations of image intensifier tubes. Theoretically, the higher the generation number, the farther the viewing distance and the clearer the image, but the price of Gen2 will be much higher than that of Gen1.

The objective lens is also very important. For night vision devices with the same magnification, the larger the objective lens, the higher the brightness and the farther you can see.

In terms of the performance of the night vision device, the higher the magnification of the same distance, the farther the night vision device can see, but the higher the magnification, the lower the brightness. This also affects the brightness of the night vision device.

How far a night vision device can see is sometimes a contradiction in terms.

- The viewing distance of the night vision device
The observation distance specified by the night vision device manufacturer is much larger than the observation distance of the actual night vision device. They were tested under very good conditions. The observation distance mainly need to understand two concepts, one is the total black mode, and the other is the low-light mode

low-light mode: it does not need infrared in the outdoor environment of starlight and moonlight, the weak light is amplified directly through the image intensifier tube, and the observation object can be seen. The distance seen in the low-light mode mainly depends on the image intensifier tube and the aperture. In an environment with sufficient light, the higher the magnification, the farther you can see.

When we explain how far the night vision device can see, we also need to look at the environment in which the night vision device is used. Full black mode: The full black mode is an outdoor environment where you can't see your fingers. The Gen1 night vision device must rely on infrared light, and then use the image intensifier tube to amplify the brightness for observation. Therefore, the observation distance in the dark mode will be affected by the distance of the infrared light. The distance that the night vision device can see in the dark mode is only 90-150 meters, even for Gen2+ or Gen3 products, the maximum distance is 200-400 meters.

Many people have misunderstandings when buying night vision devices. They think that night vision devices can see very far. In fact, the distance that night vision devices can see is very limited. If you want to buy a night vision device that can see 500 meters away, it should be Gen4 or above night vision goggles.