Color night vision vs infrared: what your cameras actually see at night
3 min read
Not all "night vision" is the same, and the difference shows up exactly when footage matters most, in the dark, when you're trying to identify who was actually at your door.
Traditional infrared night vision
Most budget cameras use infrared LEDs, which light up a scene invisibly to the human eye but only in black and white. It works, and it's better than nothing, but details like clothing color or a vehicle's color are lost, and image quality drops noticeably at longer distances.
Color night vision
Newer cameras use a larger sensor and sometimes a built-in spotlight to capture usable color footage in low light, without needing a floodlight left on all night. It's a genuinely useful upgrade for entry points where identifying details actually matters, at a higher cost than basic infrared cameras.
What we recommend by location
For a front door or driveway, color night vision is worth the extra cost, since that's the footage most likely to matter. For a side gate or less critical area, standard infrared is usually a reasonable, more affordable choice.