IWA 2026: NNPO & JSA Nightlux Redefine the Imagination of Infrared Sights, Reshaping the Hunting Experience

On February 26, 2026, NNPO & JSA Nightlux unveiled several new infrared thermal imaging clip-on sights and short sights at the IWA International Hunting and Fishing Exhibition. This annual event once again attracted countless outdoor hunting and fishing enthusiasts from around the world.

The “bellwether” of the global outdoor hunting field—the IWA Outdoor Classics in Nuremberg, Germany—has been held for over 50 years. According to public information, the scale of this year’s exhibition remains impressive. For industry observers, a clear signal is that more and more infrared thermal imaging equipment manufacturers are entering the outdoor hunting field, continuously raising the quality of products across the industry while significantly reducing manufacturing costs. So, what surprises did NNPO & JSA Nightlux bring to this joint exhibition? 

At this exhibition, which gathers the latest equipment from around the world, what is everyone focusing on? The answer might be more “hardcore” than you think. What manufacturers are competing over is no longer just the craftsmanship of firearms or traditional optical sights, but a deeper “perception capability”—who can help hunters see more clearly, farther, and more intelligently. Especially in low-light or completely dark environments, white-light sights combined with infrared thermal imaging technology have become the undeniable focus. 

Hoghunter Series

On the one hand, many hunting enthusiasts have already invested heavily in white-light sights of various magnifications, but these often prove limiting in actual hunting scenarios. For example, during night hunts or in dense snowy forests, insufficient light or the natural camouflage of prey can render white-light sights ineffective. Their high-definition lenses and continuous, distortion-free mechanical zoom become almost useless, necessitating the addition of infrared lenses to provide environmental awareness. 

On the other hand, to preserve the natural, high-definition view of white-light sights during the day while also conserving power for thermal imaging devices, the solution of adding infrared thermal imaging to existing white-light sights allows hunting tools to gain environmental awareness at a relatively low cost. This is arguably the most cost-effective option. At this exhibition, NNPO & JSA Nightlux jointly launched three new models in the high-definition Hoghunter family: Hoghunter , Hoghunter RS, and Hoghunter RSZ. 

At this year’s IWA exhibition, this series of clip-on sights covers clip-on sights, short sights, and zoom-capable short sights, catering to various aspects of the hunting environment. An experienced hunter who tried the products on-site told the author, “This thing (referring to infrared sights) has completely changed the way night hunting is done. Before, hunting at night was impossible, but now everything is clear on the screen—it's like giving your eyes a ‘hack’.” This highlights the most intuitive upgrade in experience that this series of products brings to hunters. 

Exceptionally Cost-effective

Of course, any new technology faces challenges from its emergence to widespread adoption. Price was once a significant barrier for ordinary enthusiasts. However, as technology matures and the supply chain improves, costs are rapidly decreasing. All three products in this series feature an ultra-high resolution of 640x512 and are equipped with 35mm and 50mm lenses. Compared to previous thermal imaging devices, they offer significant improvements in temperature detection and imaging quality without increasing the price. 

On the other hand, after a year of meticulous refinement of the entire Hoghunter product line, the ease of use and battery life of the products have also been continuously enhanced. Today, the entire series can operate continuously for over six hours on a single battery, and the weight is well-controlled, ensuring it doesn’t add much burden during long journeys. 

Powerful Software

Beyond hardware, software and algorithms are the core competitive barriers today. How to quickly identify and detect targets in complex environments? How to reduce interference from weather conditions like fog, rain, and snow? How to achieve smarter recognition and ranging? All of these require robust algorithmic support. As one exhibitor‘s technical lead mentioned during a discussion, “The competition today is half about lenses and detectors, and half about the ‘intelligence in the chip.’ Whoever processes faster and more accurately will win the favor of professional users.” This reveals the industry’s trend of evolving from “seeing” to “understanding,” which has been the focus of NNPO & JSA Nightlux‘s optimization and improvement of the Hoghunter series over the past year. 

As a top-tier industry event, IWA embodies the strongest centripetal force and is radiating new vitality empowered by technology. In the future, as infrared thermal imaging technology becomes more closely integrated with outdoor equipment, we may soon see products that deeply combine it with augmented reality (AR) displays, artificial intelligence target recognition, and even cloud-based data sharing. Hunting will no longer be just an activity reliant on experience and luck but will evolve into a comprehensive experience that blends traditional skills with modern technology. 

Finally, let’s look forward to the next breakthrough! Perhaps by next year at IWA, we will witness firsthand how today‘s cutting-edge concepts become tangible, accessible tools in the hands of hunters.