binoculars, goggles or monocular for wildlife viewing?

As an anniversay gift, I want to buy my husband night vision binoculars - or so I thought until I started reading this forum. Now not sure which would be the best type of device. He does not hunt but is an avid birdwatcher, outdoors person, camping, etc. Wide field of view and portability/convenience of use seems more important than ultramagnification. Also, I want manual controls not "SMART" features. Have viewed through military NV binoculars and am afraid nothing will measure up. I would like to spend less than $1000 but could consider a little more. Appreciative of all advice.

Well, it is purely a matter of preference, but one thing to consider is that a binocular is two of everything and consequently you are paying for it. The idea of a monocular for his use is probably best. These are two very different products that immediately come to mind depending on what he wants to do. First is the Pulsar which is digital and has 5.5X magnification. Next is the Armasight Sirius Gen 2+ traditional intensifier tube monocular. Both provide excellent value and quality.

[url]http://www.opticsplanet.com/pulsar-digital-recon-x550-digital-night-vision-monocular-5-5x50.html[/url]

[urlhttp://www.opticsplanet.com/armasight-sirius-gen-2-night-vision-monocular.html][/url]