Night vision seems to be on everyone's want list. Really, who doesn't want to see in the dark. The cost is usually what keeps most of us from getting into it. Welcome to the SiOnyx Aurora Sport day and night vision camera. We have discussed the Aurora's on the podcast. I now have had actual hands on with the Sport version and co-host Rob has the Aurora Explorer edition.

The SiOnyx Aurora Sport, sports a lot of features. It's touted as an action camera. So you get 720p video at 60fps. This allows for okay videos. The actual camera megapixel rating is 0.9MP's. This doesn't allow for great snapshots, but is that really why we're discussing the camera. What really matters is the 3 different camera modes, day, twilight, and night. More on that later. The Sport also has some water resistance to it. It has an IP67 rating: so under 1 meter of water for 30 minutes. It uses a standard micro-sd card that is not included in the Sport version. One rechargeable battery is also included.

Extreme low light - black & white, No IR

The real question is, how about the "night vision". To start things off, it's not normal night vision. SiOnyx uses a really large sensor in their digital camera. This allows way more light into the camera. By doing this, you get a really good low light camera. Plus it is in color, or way more colors than normal night vision! For all you die hards out there, there's an option for green monochrome or black & white. If it is real dark, you will need some sort of extra illumination, like an infrared flashlight. When using IR, the colors will change slightly, but still essentially color! The IR light is a definite need on cloudy nights. Even with some ambient light, the picture would start to pixelate without IR.

I proceeded to take some photos with the Aurora. Because of the small camera sensor, the pictures aren't great. For instance, you can tell my dogs are dogs with the night mode turned on. Daylight picture are far better. As far as video goes, it's better than the pictures when in night mode. But it is also far better in daylight. Like I mentioned before, it really needs an InfraRed illuminator for really dark pictures and video. At night, I think it would best be used for target identification.

Since the Aurora Sport is sold as an all around sporting night vision camera, I had to try it on a rifle. Especially since they show the other Aurora model on a rifle in their advertising. To make things short, the sport flat out sucks on a rifle. When mounting behind an optic (the optic in front of the camera), the parallax is so bad that shot impacts were 3 feet low at 30-50 yards. Rob also had this problem with his Aurora Explorer. This was with a 1-6x scope and a red dot. I then proceeded to mount it in front of a red dot optic. It did at least get rid of the parallax, so shots hit where I was aiming. There was also a problem with this set up. Not enough light was projected on the camera’s sensor, so the night mode worked worse than without an optic. I was going to film, through the red dot, during the day, but the next problem happened. Every time I would shoot the rifle, an AR15 in 223, the battery compartment and eyepiece would unlatch and turn the camera off. This was with the camera mounted toward the front of a handguard. So, if you are looking at mounting this on a rifle, I would highly discourage the Sport model for this. The Explorer edition comes with a picatinny mount that, I am told, keeps the eyepiece from unlatching during recoil.

What would I use the Aurora Sport for? With an IR illuminator it can be used for viewing wildlife at night. Tactical use is pretty much out because the IR light can be seen with any form of night vision, including other Aurora’s. As a sport camera, it would work okay, but the lack of autofocus really kills it in this area too. It does however use the camera industries ¼-20 mounting threads and makes it hook to almost any tripod. The ability to see the picture through an app on your phone or tablet could come in handy, especially if you mounted it to some other radio controlled device.

The Aurora Sport is an okay nightish vision camera. I would really like to be able to use it on a rifle, but mount it on a helmet with an IR illuminator and have some fun. The price isn’t bad for what you get. SiOnyx keeps improving these camera’s, with a “pro” version out now. Maybe an autofocus is next.

Firearms Insider Reviews - 8 Key Points

Claim to Fame:

Night Vision Camera

Target Market:

Those wanting some sort of night vision capabilities

FNBs (Features & Benefits of this product):

Water resistant - IP67
Color or Mono display
1" optical sensor
Lenses - f/1.4 (Night), f/2 (Twilight), f/5.6 (Day) – 16mm
720p video
0.9 MP photos
Wi-Fi and USB connectivity
Micro SD card to 32 MB
Micro OLED display
Rechargeable battery pack
Approximately 8 ounces
Approximate size - 4.75” x 2.5” x 2.0”

What other aesthetic options or finishes are available?

Regular Aurora, Aurora Explorer Edition, PRO

What others are saying?:

⅘ stars on Amazon

A low resolution low light camera - not night vision

This is a decent low light camera. Sensitivity is primarily achieved by larger pixels and by removing the IR filter which takes full advantage of the spectral sensitivity into IR of modern sensors.

Here are the negatives: resolution is very low and on a moonless night it really struggles. This is definitely not comparable to gen 3 night vision as the video's on the manufacturer's website suggests. Those are very misleading. This camera / tech is probably more comparable to a Gen 2 night vision device.

But for the price it does a decent job. The connectivity to smartphones is very useful.

Link to other reviews:

Standard Aurora review

Price point:

MSRP = $399.00

Retail = $399.00 on Amazon

I need it now! Availability:

SiOnyx or Amazon

Our Rating:

Pros:

Color Night vision
Water resistant
Wi-Fi connectivity
Lightweight
Price

Cons:

Needs InfraRed Illuminator
Manual focus
Adds Parallax
Problems when mounting on a firearm

Score: 6.00 Okay

By Ryan Michad

Before I was able to buy my own guns, I was a camera junkie. I filmed hockey and football games all through high school, I created professionally edited accreditation videos for our neighboring towns and got the chance to work with many cameras. I quickly developed personal preferences for how I liked my cameras to work for me. The things I want in a camera are surprisingly simple, yet it seems like many manufacturers struggle to make a camera the way I want it. My perfect camera is simple; it is intuitive, and it doesn’t have many external controls. I want high-definition footage, and easy transferability between the camera and the computer. I want the ability to transfer videos on the SD card, or by connecting a cable directly from the camera to the computer. I want the files to be in a common format such as MPEG-4. I can say with complete confidence that the Midland XTC-300 is 99.999% of the way there to being my perfect camera. The Midland XTC-300 is an extremely portable, high definition camera that will suit the needs of any outdoorsman or other sport enthusiast that would like to capture their escapades. The XTC-300 allows the end user to mount the camera in many different ways. I have personally used the camera on an ATV helmet to do a shooting course that involved an ATV. Using the submersible case for protection, the XTC delivered beautiful video and captured the whole experience from my point of view. If you choose to use the XTC as a normal video camera on a tripod, it excels at that as well. All of the reviews I have done for the Firearms Insider have used the XTC-300 exclusively for all the video work. The XTC-300 never missed a beat, and captured every moment perfectly. There is a video included above that is a compilation of footage captured with the XTC-300, from many mounting positions. This video shows you the versatility of the XTC-300 in action. I am extremely impressed with the Midland XTC-300, and I have recommended the camera to several people personally who were interested in purchasing a sport-style camera. It is an EXCELLENT BUY!

Firearms Insider Reviews - 8 Key Points

Claim to Fame: A really compact High-Definition video camera that allows the user to mount it in many different ways to capture every moment of a given activity.

Target Market: Outdoors enthusiasts, shooters, hunters, bikers, skiers, people who need a reliable and simple high-definition camera.

FNBs (Features & Benefits of this product)

1080p HD Video Capture
16:9 Aspect Ratio
Records in MPEG-4 format (Compression H.264)
Records to a Micro SD card up to 32 GB
Up to five hours of recording time with a full charge
Comes with many accessories including a submersible waterproof case (submersible to 200 feet), a Goggle mount, Picatinny Rail mount, Helmet Mount, Handlebar mount, and all needed accessories to allow the camera to interface with the computer.

Price point:

MSRP = $199.00
Retail = $170 to $200

I need it now! Availability: These can be found on the Midland website as well as many online retailers such as Amazon.

Our Rating

+ It records extremely clearly. The camera easily refocuses and handles light and dark situations well. + It is extremely light. Even when the camera is attached to something on your body or that you are using, its weight is negligible. + The sound quality of the camera is superb. I have tested this camera for the sound, filming my musical endeavors, and I am very impressed with the microphone on the camera. + The supplied accessories allow you to mount the camera in many different ways to suit whatever situation you may find yourself in. + The waterproof mount allows you to film in inclement weather conditions without fear of damaging the camera.

- When using the waterproof mount the sound quality is greatly diminished. This is no fault of the camera itself, but is just a result of the waterproof case needing to be completely solid. - There is no viewfinder. Note that these sport-type cameras typically do not have a viewfinder for space reasons and for battery life reasons. This not really a negative or any fault of the camera, but it is nice to be able to make sure that you got what you wanted in the shot when you’re out in the field.

Score: 9.0 Amazing!!!