#QuadTubes

Two weeks ago Gregory Knowles posted some photos from what looks like an industry convention. They were photos from what appears to be a Thales booth showcasing their new QNVG (Quad Night Vision Goggles).

It is Friday night and you know what that means. Friday Night Lights is brought to you by ATN Corp, manufacturers of night vision and thermal optics like the THOR LT. As with all of our sponsored series, Friday Night Lights will continue to bring you unbiased news and reviews from a variety of companies. Today we boldly go where no one has gone before. We build our own quadtube ANVIS10.

There is a common trope in the night vision world: 1 < 2 < 4. These numbers refer to the quantity of tubes used in different sets of NODs (Night-vision Optical Devices). Monoculars like the PVS-14 or Photonis Vyper-14 are inherently more limited than binocular devices like DTNVGs, and “ panoramic” quad-tube NODs like GPNVGs are heralded by many as the holy grail of seeing in the dark – hence, one tube isn’t as good as two tubes, which aren’t as good as four. Although in practicality, the four vs. two debate is a bit more complex than this somewhat trite representation, with factors like weight entering the mix, the fact remains that quads are a big deal (and come with the big price tag to match). Doubtlessly, there is something to be said for panos’ offering of a wider field of view and resultant better situational awareness.

When trying to see in the dark with night vision, most people start off with a monocular like the PVS-14 or a split view device like the PVS-7. If you have more money to burn you go with dual tubes, one image intensifying tube for each eye giving you 3D stereoscopic vision. You can do pretty much everything with dual tubes. However, for the ultimate night vision experience and better field of view, there are quad tubes. We take a look at and through a set of ANVIS10 PNVG.