yes i did believe after watching a youtube video uploaded by coolicool .. its a 23 min video and at the end of the last 2mins .. he switches of the light in the room and switches on the night mode.. which worked in that video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wyX_0mY2qG8 --> Check the last 3mins
No, that was not a perfectly dark environment, only the camera shows that. Night vision cameras records monochrome picture, color pictures need reflecting light.
No, that's a very different technology. Night vision cameras/goggles are sensitive to IR rays and thermal radiation and the result is a monochrome picture, not a monochrome output makes it possible to get a visible image in total darkness.
Studies: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Night_vision_device