BELL+HOWELL “TacVisor” ~
A Hit, Or A Miss???
©
2018 BOB SKIDMORE ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
BOB SKIDMORE
CORRESPONDENT
There’s nothing more
irritating than driving in bright sunlight, or at night with on-coming
headlight glare. While one might think of this as a problem more prone with
aging, let’s face it, we all experience the negative effects under such
conditions. A workable solution would be most welcome, wouldn’t it?
BELL+HOWELL has introduced the TacVisor, a sun-visor and upgradable night-vision visor that
attaches to your automobile’s, driver’s side, pull-down visor.
Installed TacVisor sun-visor with upgraded amber night-vision visor
You’ve seen this item
heavily advertised on the web, in print and on TV. It touts claims as a
military-inspired device used by fighter pilots, but does it really work? I put
the 2-in-1 to the test in the Florida heat and sunlight. After just a few days
the sun-visor shield soon revealed that a thin plastic film affixed to a gray tinted
hard plastic shield began to dislodge and peel off. At first glance I thought
it was simply a protective coating used for shipping purposes that was intended
to be removed. Upon a second glance it was quick to see that it actually was a part
of the process to darken the daytime shield from the sun. Certainly not
designed for prolonged exposure to the sun, or interior heat of a parked car. It
appears that this problem is not a fluke as I also saw this same issue occur on
both visors that one of our readers recently showed me.
Further testing revealed several factors. The dimensions
of the shade, 12˝ x 5¾˝, simply provides too small of a filtered area causing confusion,
or becoming a visual distraction to the driver. To put it bluntly, an
annoyance! The screened area offers little to no more filtration than what your
sunglasses provide during daytime driving. The night-vision amber colored visor
exhibits basically the same issues that really accomplish very little, if
anything, as a night-vision, anti-glare device. A good pair of prescription, or
custom optician’s sunglasses, and/or night-vision glasses fitted with amber
lenses would be a far better investment and probably be much more effective.
Furthermore, the dislodging of the stowed visor while using the other one can be
a real nuisance, something that definitely becomes a distraction while driving
not to mention the reflective glare that is inevitable, (See photo in the lead
of this column) by just having the visor mounted. So, in the GADGETEER’s estimation it’s definitely
a miss!
(TIP: The manufacturer does offer a lifetime guarantee. They were quick to replace
my defective visors at no cost, however, I’ve elected not to continue to use it.)
MSRP: $19.95 (Sun-visor) + $7.95 (Night-Vision option at time of
original purchase). Costs shown based on
B+H on-line purchase. Retail sales in-store and web based offers may vary.
Brand names may differ for same, or similar product.
GADGETEER’s RATING: ★★★★★
Graphic credits: Manufacturer & THE GADGETEER
Bob Skidmore is a freelance
writer, who may be contacted at bob.thegadgeteer.skidmore@gmail.com, or
followed at twitter.com/bskidmore for the
latest gadget industry news. He does not represent, or endorse any of the
products he reviews and his opinions are solely his points of view and not
those of the manufacturer, or any legal resource. The manufacturer generally
supplies products and press releases at no cost for the articles and no other
compensation is received. THE GADGETEER is highly selective as to products he
feels worthy of review so as not to waste the reader’s time, thus the reason
for many superior ratings.
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