Binoculars & Optics
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results 1 - 20 of 965 reviews
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I'm a reef keeper / clownfish breeder. This microscope was mentioned at MACNA this year and looked like what I was looking for. As a bonus it takes nice pictures and videos. No more looking thru a tiny view finder. Your specimen is right there on the screen in front of your eyes. Anyone gathered around can see the clear image. You can also share it using the picture and vid capture. Nice product, nice quality, nice price!
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I got these to help me see detail in the model while portrait painting. I also considered butterfly-watching binoculars and opera glasses (La Scala Aida 3x25), but settled on these for the following reasons: First, all the butterfly-watching binoculars that I could find reviews for were at least three times more expensive, out of my price range. They were also bigger and heavier. Close focus distance on the Olympus is 7 feet. I'm usually sitting somewhere between 5 and 10 feet from the model. Opera glasses have a slight edge here with a larger field of view at the same distance, and a closer focusing distance of 6 feet. I noticed a little more distortion around the edges in the opera glasses. The Olympus has rubberized eye cups, so they don't scratch my glasses. The eye cups extend for use without eyeglasses. The opera glasses had smooth polished metal eyepieces. They didn't scratch my glasses the few times I tried them, but they made me a little nervous. The Olympus has an individual
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Love these binoculars! Very easy to use, great picture, easy to focus in and out! Have had several different brands/types of binoculars and this is by far the best one!
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This is a very good binocular, but not equal to those that cost 3X as much, as asserted by some reviewers. It is covered in a dark grayish green rubber-like material that should offer some protection against bumps and makes it easy to grip in wet weather. (The color is not the near black shown in the photo.) This is my first binocular with 'turn and slide' eyecups rather than the fold down style of eyecups. I much prefer this 'turn and slide' style over the older 'fold down' rubber eyecups. The long 19.6mm eye relief allows me to easily view the entire field when wearing my eyeglasses. During general use in daylight, I noticed some moderate chromatic aberration (CA) when viewing dark tree branches against the bright sky. It is not severe, but it is noticeable. There is a little pincushion distortion, but that is no big deal as optical designers introduce some pincushion distortion to alleviate the 'spinning globe' effect when panning. The field of view is about average. The
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A neighbor couple got this telescope, used it a couple of times, had trouble operating it, and it sat for 2 years collecting dust. They are novices with telescopes and recently asked me to look it over. I found some errors in assembly and fixed them, and also used Celestron's inexpensive collimator tool to find that it was out of collimation. The manual had a crude collimation method of using the reflection from your eye, and then mentioned that you can buy the tool if needed (it is needed). The optics produce excellent images with the 20mm eyepiece - no problem there, except for a poor finderscope mounted on a wobbly / hard-to adjust plastic mount. Some others report a wobbly equatorial mount, and I noticed the same thing. The shaft that goes in through the center of the RA setting circle has way too much play. To fix most of that, you will notice two nuts that connect the RA Slow motion control worm threads up against the gear behind the RA setting circle. Loosen the two nuts some
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I purchased this microscope to be able to examine coins a lot closer and take photos. It works just as advertised. Led's reflect in the picture if the coin is inside a reflective surface(plastic case, etc).
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Today was my first use of these binoculars along with the tripod I ordered from http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0017936R2. I used the free open source stellarium software (google it) to research and locate targets of interest. Jupiter with four of its moons was the easiest to spot with the binoculars and the most exciting view was the Orion's Nebula. A lot of detail is visible in the sky in general at the minimum maginificaiton. In terms of functionality, aesthetics and price, this is a great product, no complaints. Since this is the only product I have used so far, can't really say how it compares with other similar products. The instruction sheet that comes with the product seems a little outdated as the diagram shows a zoom lever whereas in the actual product, zoom works through rotation of lens with fingers. I recommend that you get a good sturdy tripod that can remain stable and smooth under the weight of this product, the tripod I bought does an OK job but is not the best option
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I bought these binoculars for an Alaska cruise. To my delight, we brought with us our older binoculars (another well known brand)and we were able to compare the two. With our well known American brand, we could see the shore when steaming along and see trees, etc. But with Nikon Monarch, we could not only see the trees, but the limbs, the birds in the trees, and the bears coming down to the water. In Glacier Bay, we could see inside the crags of the glaciers and spot glaciers high up mountains with detail. My wife and I have decided it's time to sell our older (only a few years) binoculars at our next garage sale. I don't have equal eye sight in each eye. With the Nikon Monarch I can see clearer than wearing glasses and much farther. I highly recommend these binoculars!
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When I moved next to a pond, I immediately decided I needed binoculars. I wanted small ones so that I could also use them to travel or put in my purse. These binoculars were just what I was looking for and are simple to use. They focus easily, work whether I have on my glasses or not, and adapt well to whoever wants to use them. I agree with another reviewer that it would be nice if the lens caps were attached somehow. But the case is convenient to use and the whole thing will hang easily from the door stop on the upper hinge on the door to my balcony.
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I wanted a good pair of binoculars but didn't want to spend big bucks for them; the Nikon 7430 turned out to be a great pair. I am not a bird watcher, but I do own a boat in Puget Sound Washington and wanted something that would give me close ups of marine life and scenery. I was amazed at the detail I could see using these. I would highly recommend them to anyone.
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I think the optics are good, although I have noticed some color aberrations -- color tinges that shouldn't be present on the edges of things. Weight is an issue, and they're bigger than other glasses people use. Backpackers won't like them for those reasons. I don't even take them on day hikes. I often go out with birdwatchers; they comment that the optics are good, although not equal to glasses in the $500+ category. But they wouldn't buy glasses that heavy because your arms start to shake when you hold that much weight up to your eyes for minutes at a time, as birdwatchers do. On the other hand, they look durable. I think that if you want good optics, not necessarily great optics, and can deal with the weight and size, these are a super value.
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Pros: - BAK4 prism provides crisp and clear images - tripod adaptable - huge objectives - does what is it supposed to do - water-resistant Cons: - Heavy, but this isn't one of the binoculars you'd bring to a stadium or for hiking - Needs tripod for image stability; comes with tripod adapter, so this issue is null - Neck strap is pretty much non-usable since the weight of binoculars actually put pressure on the back of your neck. You would use a tripod most of the time, so this is also null - Crappy carrying bag with strap, but nonetheless a bag The relative: - If you get this make sure you have a sturdy tripod Note- I was able to make out the shape of Jupiter and see several of its moon with no difficulty.
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I wanted binoculars that are clear, easy to carry and use but had the capability of increased magnification when needed. My Nikon 8 to 24 zoom binos are just what I hoped for. They weigh less than 14 Oz and are convenient to carry in a belly pack on hikes or when vacationing. They are clear and easy to operate. The maximum magnification will not be used every time and it requires a steady hold but it is available if desired. Just knowing that the power is there gives me confidence that I am going to get more out of my travels. The view is sharp out to the edges in all magnifications. In late evening this product does not gather as much light as some 8 x 50 or 10 x 50 glasses will do but the Nikon zoom still allows me to see subjects very well. My binoculars have an ease of use, with or without eye glasses. I rated this product at five stars because it was compared with what I required and NOT against some $ 2000 pair of fixed magnification binoculars. How many times have you wanted
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Great pair of binoculars. The magnification is awesome. Not a cheap pair of binoculars. They are pretty heavy, and a tripod would be a very good idea. I use them too look out my high-rise windows, so I lean the binoculars against the window. This steadies them pretty well. For the price, these cannot be beat. Have had no problems with them. I would definitely recommend. They come with a cheap case, so you may want to invest in more solid protection for them.
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As another reviewer noted these are way better than the inexpensive Bushnell's that I've owned in the past. I always seemed to select binoculars that I was comfortable either dropping off the side of the boat or leaving at the stadium. That said, these are the nicest binoculars I've ever owned. Now before you go off thinking I don't know what I'm talking about in a binocular review - I have not owned but have used extensively all the high end binoculars. Swarovski, Leica, Steiner, etc. I've used them all. These binoculars are not as good as those. These are about 60% as good as those. HOWEVER they cost about 1/5 of those other ones so based on that they are a pretty good deal. They are waterproof; they are a nice size in your hands and not too big to carry. The image is bright and clear to me. All that stuff about edge distortion and color shift doesn't make a lot of sense to me - I don't have the patience to figure out what that means and, let's face it, most people don't really notice
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This range finder works as promised.I took it to the rifle range and checked it on the 100 yd target. It told me when I was 1/2yard short,then I moved back 6ft and it registered 102 yds. Can't wait to use it hunting.
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I wanted binocs for astronomical use. The "Whitetails" name clued me in that these were intended for birding (daytime). But the "Pentax" name is famous for optical quality, so I took a chance. The "Pentax" name does not appear anywhere on these binocs. The quality of the optics & mechanism is good, as is balance, and weight is decent. They have a large central focus wheel, better for fine focusing when one doesn't have to change focus (eg astronomy), rather than a focus paddle as I expected on binocs intended for birding. They also feel rubber-clad; I haven't drop-tested them (in water or otherwise), but that provides a more comfortable feel, not least because they don't get as cold at night. For the price (at the time, I paid less than US$40), they are a good value for astronomical binocs. I've not used them in daytime, nor in a sandy or dirty environment.
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These are the best Binoculars for the money. I compared them to the Vortex Diamondback and Steiner 8x36 military marine. By far the Nikon's are extremely bright and clear. The last pair of Nikon's I owned were the 8x36 monarch's. Unfortunately they were stolen at the beach. They were great but if I had to choose I would still pick the 8x42 Monarch's
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These are great binos for astronomical use! On a clear night, I was able to see three of the four Jupiter moons! I am only begining to star-gaze, but my 20x80 skymasters make everything clearer than I ever imagined possible! A tripod is a must, as they are a little heavy. I also purchased the book, (Binocular Highlights) from Amazon. This informative guide goes hand in hand my binos! Overall, I am extremely happy!
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With scopes a buyer has to approach with patience and the right expectations. There are plenty of articles out there describing what you can expect and what types of scope you can use for different types of viewing and it's well worth reading up on this before buying any scope. I bought this scope because of the LightSwitch feature. This means the onboard computer uses a combination of GPS, digital compass and pattern recognition to figure out where the scope is and to align it so it can find objects stored in it's Go-To database and so it can track objects as they move across the sky. Go-To scopes without LightSwitch require some knowledge of the location of different stars and manual alignment steps before you can use them to locate and track objects. The advantage of LightSwitch is that instead of slewing the scope to the vicinity of the object you choose to view, leaving you to do final adjustments, it will put the object in the eyepiece every time. The other attractive features
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