DRONEZONE

INTELLIGENCE

Curated headlines, original analysis.

Every item is human-reviewed before publication: a headline, a short excerpt, a link to the source, and our own analysis.

AllUAVCounter-UASElectronic WarfareNight Vision / EO-IRDrone Munitions
Night Vision / EO-IRDesk originalLead story

The $300 Thermal Collapse

The sensor that used to cost more than a rifle now costs less than a red-dot sight. Uncooled thermal cores have fallen from thousands of dollars to under $300 in three years, and by 2027 every soldier, smuggler, and deer hunter will be able to see heat. Camouflage has not caught up.

DroneZone Desk
The 2026–2030 Thermal Price Collapse: When a $300 Core Matches Yesterday's $3,000Desk original
2027: The Year Digital Night Vision Passes the TubeDesk original
The Night Shift: 2027's Drone War Goes DarkDesk original
Perishable After Dark: The Training Ecosystem Hiding Inside Every Aviation NVG BuyDesk original
The Verification Gap: Chinese Tube Claims and the Global Price of Believing ThemDesk original
The Gimbal Ladder: Weight, Stabilization, and Price in the Small-UAS EO-IR MarketDesk original
The FOM You Are Allowed to Buy: Export Floors and the Diplomacy of DarknessDesk original
Two Philosophies of the Tube: Photonis 4G, US Gen 3, and Europe's Split TenderDesk original
The CMOS Insurgency: Where Digital Night Vision Wins and Where the Tube Still HoldsDesk original
Hiding from the Microbolometer: The Counter-Thermal Market Ukraine BuiltDesk original
The Boutique Band: Why SWIR Sees Through Glass and Still Cannot ScaleDesk original
Ninety-Seven Degrees for the Price of a Sedan: The Panoramic Goggle EconomyDesk original
The Phosphor War: How White Won the Tender Without Winning the LaboratoryDesk original
SWIR and the Laser-Designator Battlefield: Seeing the Beam, Owning the StrikeDesk original
Drone Thermal Payloads Democratize What Only Armies HadDesk original
Sage Technologies Leads Industry in Digitization of Military Night Vision Goggles
Twenty-Six Defense unveils new soldier-worn tech
AUSA 2026: IAI unveils POP 1000: New compact multi-sensor electro-optical payload for long-Rrange ISTAR missions
Leonardo DRS completes Australian Army thermal sight deliveries

Locked for guests

4 more analyses this week

Create a free account to unlock the full wire — every headline, every assessment.

Create free accountSign in