Yukon NV Exelon 3x50 Night Vision

I haven't given this product five stars as I have nothing to compare it with, so am ignorant to the general quality of such devices. What I can say though is that I am pleased with my purchase and have enjoyed watching various wildlife in complete darkness. The scope does everything promised in the instructional manual and that I want it to. It feels solidly built and robust enough to give many years of use if looked after. I have no regrets buying this device.

I realy like this scope. It is very very sensitive to light and most of the time you dont need to use the IR source. It is fairly light and feels good and secure in the hand. BUT THERE IS NO MAGNIFICATION. Maybe there is a hidden way to achieve a magnified image that I do not know. If anybody knows this, please leave a message here. Also, while the case is strong and well padded, it is NOT MOLLE ready at all.

I've been thinking about buying one of these for quite a while, and am glad I did. Image is way better than I expected. My garden is only small, about 10m long so not a good test area, but everything in it was very clear - there's a large foxglove in the garden and I can even make out some of the marking on the flowers from about 20 feet away. Buildings in the near distance are very clear, looking at an electricity pylon a couple of hundred yards away I can make out the metal structure and the cables. Scope is very easy to use. Built-in IR torch seems very good, but can see pretty well without it just by the low available light from neighbouring windows etc. The tube must stay energised for quite a while after it is switched on, in fact I have found that you can still get good night vision for quite a while after the scope is switched off. On this basis I would not take off the lens cap in daylight - even if some reviews on other sites say it is OK (there is printing on the cap that says not to remove in daylight). Two minor niggles: (1) the IR torch is located in such a place that if you hold the scope in the right hand (the wrist strap is on the right) and use the left hand for focussing the main lens, the left hand gets in the way of the torch. It's not difficult to swap over, just feels odd! (2) it did not come with a battery, but they are not difficult to get - I got a couple of rechargeable ones and a charger from a local, well-known components store. Overall, well worth the money.

There is quite a range of night vision scopes, what made me decide on this one was a supplier's advert saying it was reviewed with 3 others by BBC Wildlife magazine and when the people spotted an animal they all wanted to have a go with this model rather than the others on trial.I have looked through a second generation scope and that could be very speckly on dark nights and it had quite a number of blemishes, this one didn't have any noticeable dots or marks, although I did notice a small one the other day than wasn't there before.Stars nearer the edge of the view were a bit distorted, whereas the 2nd gen' was a lot better. I don't really notice that usually though. Also the 2nd gen' scope didn't have a focus feature which is useful. There is a lot to see up in the sky, wow. Lots of satellites too.I saw a badger in the field behind me a couple of times and it would be possible to see someone walking beside a dark hedge on a typical night, but if it was very dark it would be more difficult. The illuminator would be good, but if there are leaves in the foreground they would shine up very brightly and there is some red visible light from the LED as well as the IR light which could alert ne'er-do-wells if out walking late.Once the power button is switched off the screen remains charged for some time, so I tend to use it like that to conserve the battery.

Good image quality

Good scope, but find you really do need a bit residual light though to amplify the image - not finding the focus and clarity too great in areas of total darkness, even with the IR.

A good entry level night vision scope. Gives a relatively clear image under even in total darkness, though at its best when there is some moonlight. I would recommend for leisure use such as on safari or for observing wildlife in the garden at night.

I obtained the Exelon 3x50 this week. I have an excellent Pulsar thermal imaging scope more than 10 times as expensive but the Exelon has a better price quality performance than the Pulsar. The Pulsar is surely better to recognize animals at distances of 300-700 meters or more but the Exelon works better at close range up to 100-150 meters. The Exelon is an excellent product. Easy to use and works perfect in dark conditions.Do noy use at daylight. Nothing to be gained at daylight but when dark perfect.