Digital Night Vision: SiOnyx Aurora Review
Вставка
- Опубліковано 21 жов 2024
- We're talking a break in our general exploration of digital night vision to talk about a specific product that is available today. The SiOnyx Aurora is a 720p camera with good visible and IR light sensitivity, a bunch of extra features not found on regular night vision devices, and pretty low price. Spoilers: We love this device for every application EXCEPT actual combat.
01:31 The SiOnyx Aurora
05:38 Use as a Camera
08:43 As a Night Vision Monocular
12:32 Helmet Mounting
16:22 Weapon Tests
20:38 Conclusion
This video also contains the SLOWEST shooting you will ever see on this channel.
Amazing video production!
Your passion for the subject really shines through
Agreed thank you for the work you do as well!
Lucas, you had better keep brother behind the camera and not in front, he’s going to take over. Lol..
Reviews such as this one are pure gold.
Well done sir, well done..
He’s pretty legit. -Lucas
@@TREXARMS 12:25 you showed an IR illuminator: Would you have the brand or link or that one? Thank you
Carolina Kelloniemi you can find them cheap everywhere. Look on amazon or eBay for “Ir Illuminator Flashlight.” 840nm for more clear light, 950nm for less clarity but no noticeable red glow
^ THIS
Now, when I get killed IRL, I can _still_ pull the "I have 60 ping-lag, bro!" card.
I legit laughed out loud at this
Lmao bruh, ping and frames are different
The funny thing is that literally every digital camera in existence is an IR camera by default. They have to put in filters to make them NOT be IR cameras
this is a FANTASTIC video; thank you
Mrgunsngear Channel Is “FANTASTIC” above “AWESOME”? I’m pretty sure it is above “GOOD”. I’m trying to get a picture of your video grading scale since I see you comment in all the videos I watch 😆
Great review but also of its time. The Pro has been released which is a significant improvement on the Aurora in terms of low light capability and there are multiple options for mounting both on long arms and helmets e.g. www.lionsgear.solutions/sionyx-aurora-accessories/37-1600-machos-2020.html#/11-color-black/57-compatible_helmet_mount-dovetail_mounts.
Agreed sir this was very informative!
I hope you guys realize that when you only blur the seconds of the GPS coordinates and leave degrees and minutes, you are giving a location within roughly a square mile.
Yeah, I thought that was enough obscuration.
UA-cam User lmao
Isaac Botkin thats it we’re all coming over for an uninvited beer now
Have fun grid laddering a square mile
50 Stitches Steel not hard heard of google maps?
Isaac is the “Q” of T.REX ARMS. Change my mind
Totally thought that
whats the Q mean
@@davidjd123james bond person
For a second I thought you were saying he’s the guy who has not made one correct prediction but nonetheless garnered a cult following of millions of gullible Americans.
@@taskforceandy2830 stfu it’s real
Digital NV may be on the rise. But people in the comments need to realize that Gen 3, high quality night vision IS indeed affordable for the average person. It's just a matter of priority. For $2,000 you can get yourself a decent setup. Most of my buddies have spent that much every year of the last several years doing bachelor parties, vacations, or on other hobbies. This is capitalist America in 2019, where even our poorest residents have smartphones and can get enough calories to be severely overweight. You can probably afford anything you want, not everything you want, if you try.
Absolutely. Cancel a few streaming subscriptions, eat out less, save a little longer, and then patiently look for good deals on used gear.
Totally agree; there's so much consumer spending. Personally, I think every man should set aside a few percent of his gross domestic income on military/defense/training. The USA spends about 3.5% of the GDP on defense; if a man set aside 3% of his income of, say, $50,000, that would be be $1,500 per year. First year gets a rifle and some practice ammo, next year more ammo, a class, and maybe a handgun, etc. But eventually there's money that can go into NVG.
And yes, you CAN do an NVG setup that is decent for $2,000.
A little frugality goes a long way. People whine about how expensive guns and NVG are and then buy new cars costing tens and tens of thousands of dollars without batting an eye because they can "finance" the purchase (costing them even more).
Agreed. Moreso now than ever before in history do we have such and equally of consumption despite the unequal income. I find it hard to listen to anyone in this great nation complain about anything.
They want instant gratification
WesternHaikus1
I saved and got a good deal on a new opmod pvs-14 for $2,500 if I knew what I know now I would have got a used pvs-7 for half the price.
Dude, you do great work. Well done vid. Production, Post, Info... Muy Bueno, appreciate the time and effort.
Night vision is not currently meant for the working class. Maybe this device will change that. At the very least it could be useful for scouting unknown or unfriendly areas.
..word.
LOL. if you can afford a house, car payment, college degree.... You can afford night vision. Its about priorities.
Dylan Loomis
That can be said about anything. That doesn’t make quality night vision affordable.
@@johnwicksfoknpencil You can get a gen 3 PVS 14 for under $2500.... Most house payments are around $500 a month.... With that said if you just budget to save $500 a month you'll have a monocular in 5 months.... Using your logic nobody should be able to afford a high end firearm like a DD rifle.
@@dylanloomis6197 Not sure what house you are living in there
As a UA-camr/PewTuber myself I really appreciate the time it took to set up, record, and edit this review. This took some serious time to do. Thanks again for the great review and effort.
This is one of the highest quality review presentations I've ever watched, well done
Just saw there is a new Pro version that is an update from this one. Has some really cool new features. The biggest I think is they have the lag down to 16ms.
This was an incredibly detailed and informative video. It's easily the best review I've seen on digital night vision. Thank you for the time you guys put into making this impressive content.
"Here at T.Rex Arms, we specialize in small arms."
Well played
Sweet I was looking into getting one of these, thank you for the review!! I'll admit I was a little overly excited for a Splinter Cell NVG sound when you flipped it to night XD I'll wait for a later version to come out though, see if they come out with any other updates.
that "night vision sound" is actually a foley'd up sound of a tube warming up. the Sionix Aurora is a 100% digital solution. No tube to warm up
Check out nightfox for some budget digital NV
This is some high quality production.
With how much I laughed at the "small arms" joke, it's impressive that you didn't at least chuckle at it yourself.
Well, I've had a few years to get over how great it is.
@@isaacbotkintrex I came here to post this comment.
I peed in my work pants
@Warfighter1_1 You are correct sir. In all honesty I missed that one as well.
@@oo7kamikaze Ugh! I missed it too! That there's some rapier wit!
Im so glad digital night vision is becoming a thing. I can't wait till good v3 equivalents are under 800 bucks!
200 bucks walmart
LOVE the reenactment!
Thank you for answering the many questions I had about this device. Thank you as well for all you guys do for the 2A community!!
Awesome info and gets the common guy excited about the affordable NV. Simultaneously educating and building the customer base to support such an industry. Sneaky sneak, love it. Keep it up!
The quality of these videos is outstanding!
“That’s not just a joke”......... perfect
The reviews from this channel are like nothing else on the internet! True testing and evaluation is diffrent from just playing with it for a few hours, thanks for the information that trex arms provides
Fantastic stuff. I think that most of us are looking for functional equipment that will not break the bank. I respect the fact that you say not to use a device like this when lives are on the line. Something for a bug out bag? Almost for sure it would be. Keep it up you guys are motivated and breaking new ground. I very much respect the focus, drive, intelligence and delivery. All of it takes hard work!
This would be perfect for a bug out bag, or for traveling. It's like a cheap Chinese radio; not good for duty use, but fantastic for storage, backup, emergencies, etc.
Yeah, as a pure night observation device (yuk yuk yuk) with the option to capture video/photos of what you see, this is a pretty solid choice for a bug-out or get-home bag, imho. Moreso in a semi-urban setting where the power might go out but some residual lighting might still exist. Probably a little less obtrusive to carry than a helmet/NOD setup, too... :D
@@scootle74 As long as you have a way of charging it back up, I agree.
@@raphaelbeinhauer9242 it has a standard micro USB port for power, so it's easy to keep it charged via an external battery pack (depending on your planned duration off-grid). The NP-50 batteries are cheeeeeeeeeap on places like Amazon, so having a couple of spares should get you through any reasonable "evening out."
@@scootle74 Didn't realise the batteries were that cheap. I wonder how durable this thing is, being marketed as an actioncam it should take a little bit of abuse though.
This review was very well done. I would like to see a similar review of the Sionyx Opsin
after a year this is still the best review of the aurora
Isaac, I enjoy your work and the depth of which you cover material.
I love the capability to have color night vision. This could help a ton with PID. Looking forward to this technology improving
Anyone else see Bigfoot at 21:45? Great video and discussion! Some of the K9 handlers I work with are using similar hand held night vision/thermal to scan the area prior to deploying their k9s or keeping track of them in dense environments
tactical veterinarian shadow
The Aurora PRO
was announced at Shot Show 2020. Supposed to be marketed towards combat and larping. Hope you guys do a review of that when it comes out.
Geeeeezus, I thought you did an amazing job explaining the pros and cons of this device. I really wanted to get one at first, but now I definitely want to see what they develop in the next generation of the device and then get one.
Enjoyed this departure from the normal TREX content (which I also). Very well done video.
I own the SiOnyx Aurora myself and I 110% agree with everything he said. Only thing I might argue is the lag, maybe because he's a lot bigger of a camera guy, I hardly notice it. Otherwise perfect review. I believe the Aurora is a better stepping off point for digital night vision than anything else.
It isn't bad? I'm thinking of picking one up for airsoft and shooting my guns in the dark.
@@troubleinbound no not at all and it will do it perfectly. Even with very little light out IR looks great. You can get a IR flashlight that helps a ton. For the price its awesome. People are starting to make helmet mounts for them. The small sight picture isn't the best but works. I really hope SiOnyx makes a new back cap for it like he mentioned!
Did you shoot a red dot weapon with it? seems to be a great test of lag.
@@ninja5672 It does, and I in no way am i comparing my reviewing to his. I have not yet. I work to much and its to cold to get out real late at the moment lol
@@Krzy_Kart totally understand that. If they can fix the lag, and maybe improve the viewfinder thing, I'm sold.
Wow! This video was a perfect review on a product I have ever watched on youtube before.
The production quality of these videos is top notch. Keep it up!
(Watching this in 720p) "I can't see a difference" lol 😝 great presentation, thanks for covering this.
Fantastic review! Incredibly thorough, and NO baloney. Love it. Keep up the great work!
Awesome video you guys go over complex technical stuff but made me understand it quite well
This is probably the best and most informative video on the subject. Thank you.
Very informative. W. E. the other comments say about what you are saying I think this is a well put together video and I thank you for it. You make many great points about the camera and I know you did your homework on the matter. Keep going 😎👍
Another great video,
I bet the way technology leaps, affordable NV is on the horizon
Maybe it's closer and we just can't see it yet....
Because it's dark.... XD
Still not affordable lol
@@ninja5672, affordable is subjective. Stop being a poor. Phyc... I'm just talking shit because I'm seriously considering dropping 10k on some.
2023 still ain't cheap. What we need are competitors. Just like the smartphone camera race to get to "DSLR quality" from tiny gadgets. This stuff ain't getting cheaper and digital night vision tech won't advance fast enough unless there are more mainstream competition
My primary need is to be able to mount it with a red dot and be able to hit targets at night. Please make something that will do this job.
Very good review. Thanks for pointing out the limitations. I'll wait and see what they make next.
Thanks for the vid. I've come back here a couple times to watch. I think for LP/OP duty may have it's place.
Absolutely loving these videos. The editing and quality is top notch.
This was an awesome video about night vision products. Keep em' coming sir!
Extremely well done video, very informative, educational, and enjoyable! Thanks!
If digital night vision improved, I can see it being an exceptional system in the near future.
Awesome and fair review, appreciate all the research ya’ll do!
God, the production quality of this video is off the roof! Now I understand who the genius is behind the awesome Lucas Botkin, it’s the big brother Botkin!
Awesome video Isaac, exciting stuff! Thanks for taking the time to be so thorough!
I love this Boogaloo Academy series!
Great comprehensive video. Would you guys ever consider doing a similar series on body armor?
Been waiting for this, thanks for making this video.
Great information! Thanks for taking the time to make this. I was operating completely in the dark when I had this "crazy" idea.
This is almost exactly what I found when I mounted mine behind a Romeo 5 on a homemade HD polyethylene riser with an IR illuminator! I have since found an aftermarket CNC nylon riser, which is much better, and may absorb some of the recoil.
It isn't a PVS-14 for sure. As mentioned, lag was a problem and range was somewhat limited , but the hogs are still gonna hate this thing! Being colorblind makes the (mostly washed out) color less of an issue for me. As underwhelming for use in a gunfight as it is, it is VERY detrimental to the health and well-being of feral pigs and the occasional nighttime steel target.
So, it wasn't what I was secretly hoping it was (the new standard in tactical nighvision...), but it is still an incredible leap forward in capability for a relatively small investment!
This video took me back to watching educational videos back in middle school science class, esp the ending lol. Amazing work, informative and laid out video sir. Thank you very much for sharing! You have me interested in this device now.
I think this unit is definitely better than having nothing for a SHTF situation. Personally, I live in an urban area with lots of light pollution. I've owned two GEN III PVS14's. I sold both of them mainly because I didn't use them that much, and being near the city, having a lot of light pollution, they were kind of a pain because of the blooming. Now, I bought the SiOnyx and I love this thing given my environment that I live in. I don't hunt, and I don't expect to use this with a helmet or on a weapon. Again, with all of the light pollution from my neighborhood and in the city, this thing works really well. I use this thing to look out the windows of my house to see what's going on when it's pitch black. I take it in my car to check out parking lots when they I have no light. It's just a good unit to have for numerous reasons around town and on the outskirts. I would almost actually rather have this than my PVS 14 - given the environment I live in...$ aside. $530 vs $2500, I have no issue using this for my application. Also, I disagree about the digital magnification being useless. I totally disagree. I have used the magnification with amazing results in different situations. Great review though. Thanks.
Absolutely, it's a fantastic tool, and I'm thinking about getting another.
Carlos G where did you find it for 530? Thanks in advance!
optics planet a while back. used there 10% off coupon they had.@@DAN-se8fl
What a great video! Nice job. I don't think I have ever come across a more well done presentation on UA-cam... or anywhere else for that matter. Five Stars *****, cause thumbs up just isn't enough.
This was an outstanding, very thorough, high caliber production.
Awesome explainatory video. One of the best unbiased reviews I've ever seen!!
Very helpful, once again o appreciate the time you take to share your knowledge to broaden ours. I literally knew nothing about nv, and I can honestly say I now know a little more than nothing thanks to you haha. 🤟🏼
Very professional best video I’ve seen yet on the subject thank you
You're knowledge is incredible
Issac, another minor issue is the weapon mount you used. My review will go live this Friday on TFB. Anyway the weapon mount SiOnyx sent is purpose built. According to them, the recoil from an AR can cause the EVF latch to come loose and the eyepiece come off during recoil. Their mount physically blocks the latch from moving.
For sure. If I was planning on using the device on helmets and weapons I would certainly get the Lion helmet mount and the SiOnyx rail adapter. I think what I had was good enough for testing, but definitely would need to be improved for long-term use.
Isaac, while this is a complex topic, it is a pleasure listening to someone who has the intelllectual horsepower to understand and communicate so clearly. Are you sure you didn’t come from Raytheon? Physics PhD? Cheers 🇺🇸
I love the style of these videos. Please keep up the good work!
Awesome video Isaac, love when you dive into things like this.
Very nice videos. I was looking for a clear answer to just how good digital NV could be and how much. And you answered that question fantastically. There is so much to NV and it's dizzying but this one question was answered faster than the others. With a different mount available on a helmet that you could rotate more freely for adjustment you could take the oddly rotated angle out at least. Think I'm going to wait and see what pops up next.
I really enjoy your content. You guys have created an excellent company as well as share very useful and innovative ideas. Thank you.
Great detailed and fair review. I'll wait for Sionyx's next generation.
Excellent content. Very solid and well thought out review! Thank you
Wow, you're a very impressive reviewer. Congrats and thanks. Think I will wait for a next gen Aurora with at least 1080p, whenever that is.
Great review, very well explained where the subject matter is way over most of our heads but interesting, none the less!
Most comprehensive review out there. Cheers.
Been looking forward to this! I've got high hopes for SiOnyx, and I think that this has some amazing potential, but for helmet mounted night vision it seems analog is still king, and may be so for a while.
For non tactical applications the addition of an IR light would improve this camera significantly.
Thank you for shortening my shopping research.
T Rex: We specialize in small arms!
Can also mod a 1" or bigger sensor camera for full spectrum IR for better video features, similar or better image quality, for the same price of a Sionyx. You'd also lose the action cam capabilities but you could also mod a action cam too.
Thanks. I like the nerd and civil education videos you and your brothers put out.
I appreciated the opryland scene. From your neighbor I’m Columbia, thank you for the video!
hunter jones yup. Same but north of you by about 40 miles.
Thanks for the in-depth and informative review!
Who unliked the video? These guys are the best.
This is cold I was just looking at this the other day when it was on sale and thought about your previous night vision video and was wondering what you would think about this device.
Excellent review. I like the subjective comments combined with an objective review that gave real reasons to use and not use the Aurora. I just purchased the new Sport model (with a few less features) and the price point to function is incredible. I might not have purchased it if your review had not been so well presented.
I enjoyed this. Thank you for a great review!
1:12 had me laughing so hard! The "small arms" arms company
I think the Sionix is likely going to be the catalyst for a digital night vsion revolution. Technically digital night vision that surpasses pvs-14 and 31 does exist namely the x25 tube they are just ludicrously expensive but i foresee photocathode tubes going the way of the analog tv in 20 years time just because digital is evolving at such a rapid pace while photocathode remains standing still sort of stuck in time.
Great review. Very informative and fun to watch.
Excellent presentation, thank you. Very clear and fair.
Thanks! Great video, very straight to the point information yet still fun to watch!
Nearly 3 years later, do you have any updates on the SiOnyx gear concerning feasibility and such? What upgrades, if any, have they managed to incorporate into new designs?
Besides the opsin...sionyx probably saving the better stuff for it's military contracts
Great video.
I'm on the fence about gen3 phosphor vs. Sionix's and the video is exactly the kind of review that I'm looking for.
I'm thinking 10-15years and the tech could reach that 7-15ms refresh or better. Battery life would be great if they could get it to even 10yrs: enough time for for most of a single, long, night op.
I'm more an IT expert and look at something like a good monitor: high color contrast, high pixel rate (which kind of hurts low-light setups), and ultra low refresh (ideally
Well done, I purchased some higher-end binocular night vision style that depended on pretty strong IR LED output. Digital zoom all that good stuff it was better than nothing but very grainy.
Thanks for a thoughtful and informative review.
You definitely produced a well thought out, informative video!
Dude, I love your professionalism. Don't worry about the infinite trolls.
basic machine learning could be useful for digital night vision, since it could potentially pick up on patterns that would be difficult for a human to pick up on. It could use that to create a reconstructed image that could *potentially* compete with gen 3, or at least get close.