Geovid or Ultravid?

[Baroud45]

Hello B (: !
first of all, please excuse my poor english.....
So my issue is now to replace my old Optolyth Alpin 10x40. I like Leica's fame and look, so I would prefer them to Zeiss or Swaro's.
What I need is mainly a pair that performs in poor light conditions, after sunset for instance, and a magnification of x10 fits my usage perfectly.
Hence 10x50 Ultravids would be the best choice I think, but I look for something a bit smaller and lightweight.
So I have some questions for specialists that you seem to be :
- do you think I will be amazed by a huge difference in performance between 10x42 Ultravid and my old Optolyth 10x40 in low light?
- do the 10x42 Geovid perform as well as the Ultravid?
Thank you for your advices.
Cheers,
julien

[Robert Ellis]

I do think the Ultravids will outperform your Optolyth.

The Geovid is a specialized unit that has a range finding laser built in. Unless you are needing to find distances to what you are looking at you won't need them, they are much more expensive.

[Baroud45]

Yes, but the telemeter could be a useful tool for me, so if this option does not affect that much the optical performance...
Julien

[Otto McDiesel]

Yes, but the telemeter could be a useful tool for me, so if this option does not affect that much the optical performance...
Julien

The Ultravid is in a different league compared to the Optolyth Alpin 10x40. You will see much difference.

If you shoot at 300 m or more with a slow bullet that drops a lot on the trajectory, a rangefinding function such as that in the Geovid may help you by telling you the correct distance so that you could adjust for bullet drop. The Geovids are a heavy and expensive way to measure distances (i prefer the Swarovski 8X30 monocular), but they are of great quality. I know people who use them for bird work (distance sampling: find birds, identify, and measure distance to them).

[IanF]

If wanted for low light conditions then really I don't think the Zeiss FLs can be beaten. They are by far the brightest binos I have used.

However I much prefer the style and build of the Leicas as well. I prefer the Ultravid 8x32's for general birding mainly because of the size and weight to carry around. I'm sure the 10x42's will be just as good optically.

As is often said, it really is worth trying several different brands just to see how they feel in your hands - the high end binoculars are so good optically that I think it's more down to the differences in style as to which you prefer.

[Atomic Chicken]

Greetings!

If you can afford the Geovids, I would personally buy them instead of the Ultravids. The Geovids are heavier, and not as nice ergonomically, but the rangefinding function is VERY accurate and useful for a wide variety of things. You can use it for mapping, measuring distance AT a distance using simple trig formulas, and I've even used my Nikon handheld rangefinder to measure how high up flocks of birds are flying! All-in-all, the Geovid is a great instrument... although a bit expensive. I wish I could afford a pair... maybe next year! ;)

Best wishes,
Bawko

[xenophobe]

If you're going to be using a rangefinder a LOT, then the Geovids would be a decent choice. Otherwise, I'd be hard pressed to pass on a pair of Ultravids and just buy a compact rangefinder to pocket.


If wanted for low light conditions then really I don't think the Zeiss FLs can be beaten. They are by far the brightest binos I have used.

However I much prefer the style and build of the Leicas as well. I prefer the Ultravid 8x32's for general birding mainly because of the size and weight to carry around. I'm sure the 10x42's will be just as good optically.


I don't think the flouride in the Zeiss binoculars makes ANY difference at night, and where they supposedly shine is in their apparent lack of chromatic abberation. Many reviewers have said that the Ultravid is either as bright or in a few circumstances a little brighter than the FL... but daytime brightness doesn't necessarily translate into night-time clarity.

That being said... ANY of the upper-mid priced bins with 7-10x and 42mm objectives from any of the "big four", including older top end models, should be excellent for dawn/dusk applications, with the latest high-end offerings from all of the major manufacturers being the best currently available.



As is often said, it really is worth trying several different brands just to see how they feel in your hands - the high end binoculars are so good optically that I think it's more down to the differences in style as to which you prefer.


I would definitely agree with this. The more comfortable and relaxed you are physically holding the binoculars, the more you'll enjoy the view. All the top products offer spectacular optics.

[Baroud45]

Thanks to all for your personnal opinion, and general advices.
My point is that in France, I can get either the Geovids or the ultravids for roughly the same price. So if the optical performance is not affected by the telemeter, I would probably go for the Geovids.
But of course I have to try them to see how they feel in my hands, their weight, ergonomy, ...
Thank you,
julien

[josika]

Hello,
This is my first post. I recently had a look at an ultravid 8x42 and a Geovid. i much preferred the ultravid. The geovid had a very marked blue tinge to its view which I found off putting. The ultravid had typical Leica colour.
I have a Leica 8x32 BA and a Swarovski 10x42 El both of which are excellent.