23.12.2017

INFORMED REVIEW:Im calling this an "informed" review due to the number of reviews i have read on this monocular and similar products. Now that i have it and have used it, i can compare that to what ive read. From what ive read, alot of people want much more out of night vision, at this price point, than is realistic. Now, hold your horses on that thought, this little monocular is fantastic by any measure. For 95 dollars i am now able to see up to a hundred yards through my yard with great detail. And i asked myself the important question i think many of us on here wonder when looking for night vision devices. "Can I use this to see people or animals a solid distance in front of me, in complete darkness,

24.12.2020

I'll start with why I had to only give 4 stars. There is something in the lense, I actually think its a dead bug. Its very small and doesn't effect much, in fact I didn't notice it at first. But its there and it shouldn't be and its inside so I cant clean it.Otherwise this is amazing. Picture quality is like looking through a 90s black and white digital camera (except you can see in the dark), but that's a lot better than the 90s Russian surplus NV I had previously. There is no green tint which is great and the focus works well to keep the image sharp considering what it is. Also the infrared spotlight is impressively bright. Its not just a little led its a real emitter.

13.8.2013

Performs very well for such a small scope and at this price range. Sturdy design and nice rubberized outside for good grip. The image is very clear and works well at low light without the IR light and it works really well with the IR light on. It really shows nice detail on all the settings - not much difference I can tell between full power, 60% or 30%. As mentioned by some of the other reviewers, it is probably best for viewing wildlife and not ideal for stealth because you really need the IR light when it gets dark and while the red IR light is certainly not as bright as a flashlight, it is definitely visable and will probably give away your position.

5.5.2020

After all the hypes from many reviewers suggesting this mini NV is worth the buy, I can't hardly say I'm excited or amazed by it due to quality and price point. I've been waiting 11 days anxiously for its arrival and can say I'm a bit disappointed. The camera works well I suppose. Field of vision as many say is a joke and I concur. Imagine cutting a small 1" x 1.5" square out of the bottom of a cereal box then looking through from the top - Your FOV is this great, YAY for effort. The 3 IR intensity modes don't differ much from each other but they do the job to get the invisible light complete darkness. Most likely use will be default (100%) to off IR. With minimal lights around,

29.5.2015

This is a very cool little (and I mean little) device. You can completely hide it between your two hands. I have a generation-1 analog (green image) monocular (quite large), and this little digital unit is vastly superior. The image is sharper and clearer, and the black and white image has GREAT contrast, making it easier to see detail. While the listed range with the I. R. light source on the high setting is shown as 82 feet, Amazon sells an infrared flashlight called "EVOLVA T20" that extends the range of this unit to around 200 yards when the flashlight is set on "spot" beam. When adjusted to "wide-angle", the flashlight gives shorter distances, but with a MUCH WIDER field of view.

9.8.2019

This little guy is small. It isn't the most fantastic night vision, it doesn't have the longest range, but really im comparing it to devices costing hundreds to thousands... as it stands by itself I've used it to watch wildlife, catch people where they weren't supposed to be (although a powerful flashlight is just as effective, this thing is still fun), looked over the landscape on a crescent moon, etc.To be fair, the downside's are:-The range is limited without external light. as it is basically an invisible flashlight attached to a camera that sees it. But any ambient light is amplified, so it will surprise you sometimes.-With the illuminator is on the batteries drain in about 20 minutes.For real though,

6.12.2013

Smaller than a deck of cards and it gives a very bright, almost too bright, field of view when using the IR light at night (almost no moon). I didn't notice much difference between the 3 IR settings. They all gave a very bright and relatively clear field of view, although it is difficult to see at much distance if there is a lot of brush as it lights up so brightly in the foreground. There's no problem looking across my lawn to the woodshed though. I didn't notice any horrible distortion from the neighboring house lights. They are visible but are 100' or so distant from where I was standing. The IR light is visible to observers but is a dark red glow.

20.10.2019

Definitely not made for special forces but overall it's a good piece for the price. The main reason I got it was that I wanted to dip my toes in the water of night vision and figured if I update in the future this is still a cool piece due to the tiny size. It's the only night vision I know of that can fit in jean pockets. It also doesn't require any strange batteries which is a plus. Depends on what you prefer but I happen to like that it has no zoom. The only down side is that it is a pretty narrow field of view and no depth perspective so looking in close quarters is somewhat difficult. Also something I didn't think of but I'm sure is true of all night vision that uses a source of infrared

28.7.2020

I wanted a night scope to be able to see at least 100 meters away at night. This one does that. I like that the 2 focus wheels allow fine focus adjustment (not using both of those focus wheels may be why other reviewers are not getting good results). At night I can see people, animals, birds, and flying insects clearly. Also, walking around wild places at night is crystal clear, instead of stumbling over vines, rocks, tree roots, and bears. Bears really glow a long way off, as they are huge and warm (infrared you know), even when they're standing still. I have used way more expensive night scopes without getting good results. I recommend this Carson MiniAura Digital Night Vision Monocular (NV-200).

7.9.2020

WOW!!! What a pleasant surprise.At a price point under $100 you really get a lot for your money.This thing is tiny, sturdy and comfortable in the hand as well as user friendly. The controls are intuitive and the performance is quite impressive for what it is. I live on 5 acres with a good distance in several directions to the tree lines. This little dynamo reaches out a good piece with enough resolution to identify the difference between man or beast. The illuminator on mine does a good job out farther than advertised. I can easily scan the fenced In dog run before lettin out our Furbabies to make sure no toothy critters are lurking about. I will be acquiring some more units as gifts.

24.4.2020

Before you knock it, this little guy is amazing for the price. And I've had and used more bulky and way more expensive night vision and this holds its own. Wish it had a better dimmer for the eyepiece. Kinda blinds you in total dark and it took me a while to get the two wheels and what they do down. Goes plenty far and yes you can see the i.r. But you aren't in covert operations so why be stealth creeper. Field of view is ample for the size. Damn thing is front of your jeans pocket friendly. And I like that the front where the things are is covered with the protective glass so you don't have to worry about your lens getting scuffed up or it's easy to wipe off and clean.

1.1.2020

These genuinely are an amazing value and definitely functional. I have purchased a few of these now to keep in each of my vehicles, leave near door, and give as gifts. That being said at less than a hundred bucks these obviously aren't top of the line. It's very narrow field of view and eye relief are probably the worst features (kinda like looking through a straw). They're also not water resistant so keep in a Ziploc bag and don't submerge.When you can't see in the dark and don't want to light up the night with a flashlight these really do work nicely. Similar in image quality to many of the popular inexpensive home security camera pictures for a bit of a comparison.

31.7.2015

Not too bad for the price! As stated before it's different than other "Green" NV devices, this little guy uses an LCD inside to display a black and white picture. It's not zoomed as other ones usually are and that's what I was looking for, if you had both eyes open using one to look through it's the same focal distance in the View Finder.On the plus side it also takes 3 AAA's and I have been using it with the IR on quite a bit without needing to replace them.One thing I'd improve is the wavelength of the IR Emitter in it, get an invisible one, or you could buy a separate IR Flashlight and use the Carson without it's emitter on.

20.10.2013

This little night vision monocular really impressed me in comparison to my old gen 1 scope. The black and white image quality is very clear and pronounced with a decent field of vision. The image quality of this unit compared to any gen 1 scopes green image is profound, far superior. This unit is also small, very small. It is only slightly larger then a pack of playing cards. If you're on the fence between units in this price range I strongly suggest you pick this little unit. I'm sure glad I did. I'd take this over almost any standard gen 1 monocular at any price range, I think it's simply better technology.

17.12.2017

I am really enjoying this. Compared to the price I thought I was going to have to pay looking around at other equipment with decent reviews, this was a surprise find. Still, I was concerned it was going to be something I'd have to use once and return in disappointment. Turns out, not at all. Watch the video in the gallery. It really is an exact representation of what you'll get using this. I also got a reasonably priced IR flashlight to extend the range (make sure it's 850nm) and that works out well, though I don't need it as often as I thought I would. It's a great toy. Well done.

Carson Optical NV Aura - Reviews

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