Can Anyone Suggest The Best Binocular For Me???

Question

I don't know a lot about BINOCULARS as much as I do about DIGI-CAMS. Some suggested BUSHNELL & some suggested NIKON & it just went on. According to them these two are best in manufacturing BINOCULARS. I visited their websites, but there are lots of models of BINOCULARS & each one is different that other. If one Binocular provides the best view, it doesn't provide the maximum zoom & if the second one provides max. zoom, it doesn't provide best view. Some of them don't even have water/fog proof. So it just confuses me a lot. I just wanna have a Binocular that's got best & clear view, max. zoom near about 90 - 100 mm, fog & water proof, popup eyecups etc. I just thought some of you might know a lot about it that could really help me choose the perfect one. Would you help me?

Answer 1

I am not particularly in favor of zoom binoculars.  You compromise a great deal for the zoom feature including steadiness of the image.  10 power is about the absolute maximum at which one can hand hold a pair of binoculars and not have the image giggling all over the place.  The magnification not only magnifies the image, it also magnifies the giggle.  I once tested a pair of 12x Nikon binoculars and the image was extremely giggly.  Some people even have difficulty with 10x binoculars.

If you really want the zoom feature, you want a spotting scope with a solid tripod instead of a pair of binos.  The tripod will cost as much as the spotting scope.

The most popular binos are 8x42 where 8 refers to the magnification power and 42 refers to the diameter in millimeters of the objective lens.  The wider the objective lense the brighter the image.  The 2nd most popular binos are 10x42.  For general purpose use,  all of the major brands are about compatible in quality.  The one feature that really drives up the price of binoculars is locking diopter adjustment.  You can not find that feature for less than about $500 which is too bad.   It is not that the feature costs that much to implement.  It is just that it is not included in less expensive binoculars.  

Waterproof and fogproof is not all that important if you are going to be using the binos during nice weather.  It does however come in very handy at the ocean where your binos can become salty and the best way to get the salt off is to hold them under the facet and rinse them off.  The salt can scratch the lenses worse than about anything.  

I have a pair of 10x42 and a pair of 8x42.  I use the 8x42 for serious birding.  I use the 10x42 for looking at birds around the yard.  However, I also use a spotting scope.  

One thing you did  not tell us is what your budget is.  I assume that you are not in the market for the more expensive pairs.  You can spend over $2000 on a pair of Nikons.  For general use and even for birding a pair of $200 binos will perform very well about 75% to 80% as well as the $2000 pair.

Bushnell.  A good pair of Bushnell is the Excursion EX 8x32.  These are somewhat smaller than the 8x42 but for general use will do admirably.  They are waterproof, fogproof,  have a very wide field of view, extremely close focus, and cost about $150.  They also come in 10 power for $10 more.

http://www.eagleoptics.com/index.asp?pid...

Nikon

The 8x42 Trailblazer are of compatible quality.

http://www.eagleoptics.com/index.asp?pid...

Here is a pair that you may not have heard of, Vortex Diamondback.  They are of somewhat higher quality than the previous 2 pair in that the lenses are of a better quality.  

http://www.eagleoptics.com/index.asp?pid...

Spotting scopes for zoom view.

You do not really want a spotting scope unless it has a 45% tilted eyepiece because a straight through eyepiece is too dificult to look through standing up.  

For some odd reason Bushnell does not make a spotting scope with a tilt eyepiece in a less expensive model.  

Here is a compact spotting scope that is of good quality for the price.  15x-45x power zoom with 65mm objective lense.

http://www.astronomics.com/main/product....

The tripod that comes with the scope requires discarding.  A decent tripod is a must.  Here is one that might be adequate.

http://www.opticsplanet.net/burris-tripo...

Answer 2

seems no binoculars has 90-100mm power.  most of them are range from 25mm to 50mm only.

I was shock that Bushnell's elite model (12.5x 50mm) sale for $999.95 EACH!  that's a bit too extreme.

Legacy WP (10-22x 50mm) seems fit your need, it's weatherproof and in reasonable price of $180.  Just an advice, don't go too crazy on magnify power, the higher power u have the image will shake more even with very minor movement.

btw, if u want some fun, try "Image View™ 10x25 Binocular w/VGA" model, it as digital camera build-in for just $75, not a bad choice.