Admittedly I would love to own a night vision monocular for Amateur Astronomy!? However as the technology is not necessarily a new one I just cannot justify the price tags these devices are perhaps a few years down the line the price will drop hopefully and make it easier accessible to the more working mans pockets!? Just like plasma screen,LCD,LED the market was demanding enough it was the next best thing from sliced bread so obviously more units are manufactured and produced so the prices drop so let’s hope NV follows the trend.as for now the next best thing would be a highly sensitive imaging rig which not every one wants to do.
Yes it's an old technology, but it keeps improving. GEN3 thinfilm tubes FOM2600 are available since september 2020.
99% of the intensifier tubes are made for the military market. So even if all astronomers in the world use NV, prices won't dropped. Demand is already very high and in the US you often have to wait 3 to 6 months to get a good tube.
Unfortunately, in the coming years, militaries will tend to use less intensifier tubes, and more digital devices (not good for visual observation in astronomy).
As a comparison let's consider cars technology using fuel, it's an old technology, there are more and more cars, but i don't think cars are much less expensive now than 20 or 50 years ago.
Last but not least, it's really not expensive if you compare between buying NVD + 12" (for example) or buying a 40" telescope.
Edited by Joko, 27 March 2021 - 05:31 AM.