I am quickly becoming somewhat of a binocular nut as they apply to Astronomy. I purchased these in hopes of being able to allow me to wander the Milky Way untethered by a tripod, or unburdened from the oppressive weight of other good binoculars that I own.
This binocular achieved both of these goals quite well.
I fully appreciated the lighter weight and how the binocular fit in my hands. The focus knob is very well placed and it only takes a feather touch with either index finger to make the slightest adjustment in focus for very clear, bright images. It took some minor retraining of my brain when it came to pointing the the binocular to a desired target in the night sky. With the optical path offset vertically in this design I found it necessary to aim a little lower than I have become accustomed to. What you may find amazing is just how much more detail comes to your eye when you engage the Image Stabilization feature. I would venture to say that you'll see up to 20% more stars than when you view trying to hand-hold a similar power binocular.
My only knock against this binocular was that I could not get the right eye to come to a complete, pinpoint focus using the diopter. As a result the overall crispness of the star images were not up to expectations. I believe that it was probably limited to the particular set used in my case, as they were received poorly wrapped for shipment and must have be knocked out of alignment.
You won't find another binocular that will show you this kind of detail, at these magnifications, in a handheld binocular like the Canon IS models. You'll have to be the judge on the "value" that the binocular delivers at today's prices. Me, I'm going back to the tripod
This binocular achieved both of these goals quite well.
I fully appreciated the lighter weight and how the binocular fit in my hands. The focus knob is very well placed and it only takes a feather touch with either index finger to make the slightest adjustment in focus for very clear, bright images. It took some minor retraining of my brain when it came to pointing the the binocular to a desired target in the night sky. With the optical path offset vertically in this design I found it necessary to aim a little lower than I have become accustomed to. What you may find amazing is just how much more detail comes to your eye when you engage the Image Stabilization feature. I would venture to say that you'll see up to 20% more stars than when you view trying to hand-hold a similar power binocular.
My only knock against this binocular was that I could not get the right eye to come to a complete, pinpoint focus using the diopter. As a result the overall crispness of the star images were not up to expectations. I believe that it was probably limited to the particular set used in my case, as they were received poorly wrapped for shipment and must have be knocked out of alignment.
You won't find another binocular that will show you this kind of detail, at these magnifications, in a handheld binocular like the Canon IS models. You'll have to be the judge on the "value" that the binocular delivers at today's prices. Me, I'm going back to the tripod
