Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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280 of 280 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Fun but wildly impractical, September 15, 2008
Durability:5.0 out of 5 stars Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars Educational:5.0 out of 5 stars
I think my title is a pretty good description: fun but wildly impractical! But I saw night vision goggles for this price and thought that this is a toy I can't do without.
It's actually really, exceedingly cool provided you do not attempt to use them to navigate. For example, go get a toilet paper roll. Close your left eye. Hold the roll up to your right eye and start walking around. This is identical to the experience you will have with these goggles: VERY narrow field of vision in one eye.
That said, they do what they say and the construction seems pretty rugged and kid-friendly. You'll need a phillips head screwdriver to get the batteries in and out. The whole thing is basically made of rubber it looks like it could survive a bit of rough handling. If you look at the picture of the item, the big thing in the middle is the camera, surrounded by some high powered infra-red LEDs. Those can be switched on or off. When on, they visually glow a dull red but act as a floodlight for the camera. In front of the right eye you have another bank of lower powered LEDs which do not glow when on and act as a lower-powered light source for the camera. This lets you switch between "stealth" (no glow, lower visibility) mode and "observation" (slight glow, higher visibility) mode. The left eye is covered with a simple plastic cover which is on a hinge and can be opened for a source of "normal" vision.
The view itself, as mentioned, is very narrow, but quite good. You can certainly turn off all the lights and make out the interior of your house in great detail, although I have to say the narrow scope and false color sets you up for a real "Blair Witch" feeling. I was actually thinking you could get a great haunted house by making people wear these in a pitch black environment.
I think you'd have a hard time using it for anything practical (including, say, hide-and-go-seek) simply because it feels dangerous trying to move around while wearing them. You're asking to trip on or bump into something.
Still, I'm keeping em. Too cool not to have for this price.
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175 of 180 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
REAL nightvision for $80!, September 15, 2008
Durability:3.0 out of 5 stars Fun:3.0 out of 5 stars Educational:4.0 out of 5 stars
As the product details and other reviews state, this toy actually has REAL nightvision technology! And considering most low-end NV solutions start at around $500, the $80 pricetag is fantastic. However, the product isn't perfect. Most notably, despite its outward design, the goggles are NOT binocular. The single camera feeds to a monocular lens on the right eye. This causes serious disorientation and loss of depth perception.
PROS-
* $80 for REAL nightvision
* easily adjustable
* fairly lightweight
* 2 brightness modes (see near and far)
* B&W or green modes on monitor
CONS-
* MONOCULAR - only one screen inside, over the right eye.
* loss of depth perception
* centered camera displays to user's right eye, causing disorientation
* camera field of view is narrow (no peripheral vision)
* lens fogs up
While the product isn't perfect, it is a lot of fun, and very affordable when compared to other real NV solutions.
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112 of 116 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
EyeClops Night Vision Goggles - Surprising Performance With Some Warnings, November 25, 2008
Durability:2.0 out of 5 stars Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars Educational:4.0 out of 5 stars
The EyeClops Night Vision Infrared Stealth Goggles are being sold as a toy, and I'm not so sure this is a toy. Anybody who has seen the movie The Silence of the Lambs has probably wondered where somebody would get goggles like the kind used in one of the final scenes of that movie. These only show you one eye at a time but work just as good as those.
These performed much better than I expected. The box says it's made for ages 8 and up, but I think this is probably more suited to VERY mature kids or your older friends. An immature person could get into a lot of trouble playing pranks with a toy like this. Still, I could see this being a learning aid for kids studying nocturnal animals. I could also see this being a fun toy on a camping trip. However you use this, it's a great gift idea and a pretty good value.
PROS:
+ The performance in the dark is surprisingly good!
+ The price for this type of item is very reasonable
+ Nice adjustable power lets you see farther at night
+ Very good fit makes them relatively comfortable once you size them
+ Works well in both *green* or *black and white* modes
+ Easy installation (though time consuming! See below)
+ Nice portable unit that can be taken on camping or hiking trips
+ Allows you to wear glasses under the goggles
+ Left eye flips open so you can see a little before you turn them on
+ Included safety list is well thought out and should be read and followed
CONS:
- Plastic body and rubber straps do not feel durable; handle with care
- Somewhat large lens and sensor on the top makes this top heavy
- Only shows the image in one eye
- Your depth perception is way off while wearing these
- Takes 5 AA batteries and uses up juice fast!
- Really difficult and time consuming to remove from packaging
- You have to be careful who you give these to!
SETTING UP
While I normally would not quibble about this, taking this guy out of the packaging took me 30 minutes. This is a very poorly designed interconnected system of cardboard and plastic, held together by tape everywhere. When you are done you have a pile of cardboard and plastic that would be difficult if not impossible to put back together. The goggles come attached to a half face made of green plastic, but that is hardly adequate for storing them.
Then you have to slowly adjust the rubber bands holding the unit to the plastic in order to get enough room to fit your head inside. Finally, you have to unscrew the battery top to add in 5 AA batteries. So this was a long installation, about 45 minutes in all. Just be warned if you are giving this on Christmas. If your kids try to quickly tear through this package, they will have a surprise coming to them. So take your time when you're opening this on Christmas morning.
PERFORMANCE
Once you do get to the point of adjusting the rubber and putting this on, you will find that the inside of the right eye has a small screen, almost like a min-TV screen. When you turn them on, the screen comes to life just like a TV. The performance in darkness was absolutely better than I had hoped for. These things really do work.
The only thing that makes them less than ideal is that your depth perception is WAY OFF. It looks like things are closer than they are. This may be due to a delay in the image being processed to that screen. Whatever the reason, you should not be doing any obstacle courses with these on.
TIPS
= The left eye actually flips open, but you have to gently apply pressure till it opens. Make sure not to apply too much force, because once it opens it snaps back all the way and seems like something that would easily be broken.
= The small knob next to the right eye is supposed to adjust your sensor for distance between the *stealth mode* for close proximity or the *surveillance mode* for far away. In my opinion, the stealth mode works best and allows you to see far enough (20-25 feet). The surveillance mode also emits a little bit of light so others may be able to see you.
= Under the right eye, there's a small button to switch between green coloring (like the Silence of the Lambs) and black and white. The image seems equally visible in either, at least in my opinion. Perhaps this might matter more for somebody who is color blind.
= The included booklet has a list of "Stealth Safety" tips on the second to last page (page # 6 in my book). These tips are very sound and should be read carefully. The best tip among all of them is to make sure you have extra batteries (5 AA) and a small Phillips screwdriver, because the batteries are supposed to last 3 hours or so.
= While it says that you can fit glasses within the goggles, there is not too much room in there between the screen within the right eye and your eye. So if you have glasses that fit close to your face you should be fine. But curvy lenses that are far from your eye may be too big for use with these goggles. Plan to use contacts or a closer fitting pair of glasses if you can.
= Invest in rechargeable batteries! Nice sets with batteries, spacers and a charger can be had for $20 to $40. You will be glad you did.
CONCLUSION
When I saw this up close and started getting it ready, I thought I was in for a disappointment. When I put them on, I was blown away. These perform much better than they look. I wish they were more solidly constructed, but perhaps that's how they were able to keep the price so low. Give them a chance. Just be careful who you give these to!
Enjoy!
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