Yan's recent review of the Nipon 10x42 waterproof binoculars prompted me to look for alternative offers of 10x42 bins suitable for birdwatching and with a good value for money. Unlike him, however, I stipulated that my new bins should not only be water- / fogproof but should provide HD quality as well, as I know from personal experience that this is crucial if you want to ensure that you get top image quality.
I found several interesting offers and drew up a shortlist comprising the Leupold Golden Ring HD, the Bauer HD, the Carson XM HD, the Bushnell Legend Ultra HD, and the Omegon Ultra HD, all of them providing 10 x magnification and an objective lense diameter of 42mm.
I tested them all more or less provisonally in the street, i.e. in front of my local dealer's shop. In a short time, my favourite emerged: the Omegon 10x42 Ultra HD which was not only the cheapest pair on my list (which was definitely not the clincher for me), but it provided a sharp and clear image as well, with excellent true-to life, undistorted colours and only the faintest colour rims at the picture margins under extreme backlight conditions. Even tiny details like pine cone structures were clearly visible at a distance of about 100 yds.
By then, I was already quite confident that the Omegon would be my personal hero. Subsequent tests in the field confirmed that it was most satisfying, not only in bright sunshine but in overcast and rainy weather conditions as well. It has a close focus of less than 3 meters which I like to make use of once and again when I come across an interesting insect or other small item. It is absolutely waterproof and with a weight of 785 g easy enough to carry about during long walks. I got the impression that the optical achievement is really not far away from that of the really expensive leading brands, such as Swarovski, Zeiss, Leupold etc. As opposed to these bins, however, the Omegon is absolutely affordable. I can recommend it honestly to birders.
I found several interesting offers and drew up a shortlist comprising the Leupold Golden Ring HD, the Bauer HD, the Carson XM HD, the Bushnell Legend Ultra HD, and the Omegon Ultra HD, all of them providing 10 x magnification and an objective lense diameter of 42mm.
I tested them all more or less provisonally in the street, i.e. in front of my local dealer's shop. In a short time, my favourite emerged: the Omegon 10x42 Ultra HD which was not only the cheapest pair on my list (which was definitely not the clincher for me), but it provided a sharp and clear image as well, with excellent true-to life, undistorted colours and only the faintest colour rims at the picture margins under extreme backlight conditions. Even tiny details like pine cone structures were clearly visible at a distance of about 100 yds.
By then, I was already quite confident that the Omegon would be my personal hero. Subsequent tests in the field confirmed that it was most satisfying, not only in bright sunshine but in overcast and rainy weather conditions as well. It has a close focus of less than 3 meters which I like to make use of once and again when I come across an interesting insect or other small item. It is absolutely waterproof and with a weight of 785 g easy enough to carry about during long walks. I got the impression that the optical achievement is really not far away from that of the really expensive leading brands, such as Swarovski, Zeiss, Leupold etc. As opposed to these bins, however, the Omegon is absolutely affordable. I can recommend it honestly to birders.