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Nikons - where would they rank? (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter comaderek
- Start date
WJC
Well-known member
Which Nikons? Those from their best OEMs or those from the companies that allow them to make the biggest profits? My Superior Es Will compete with the best from Leica, Swarovski, or Zeiss. But, they also sell binos to compete with Jason, Tasco, and Bushnell. :cat:
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Right now Nikon lists 74 "results," or binoculars, on their North American website and it is subject to change of course. Select the filter for size and you find 22 compact, 28 mid-size and 18 full size which totals 68 so it is doubtful if they really know how many they do have.
http://www.nikonsportoptics.com/en/nikon-products/binoculars/all-binoculars/index.page
Bob
http://www.nikonsportoptics.com/en/nikon-products/binoculars/all-binoculars/index.page
Bob
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The top Nikon's are the EDG II, E2, SE and now the new WX. These are the only Nikon's I would consider alpha's and they compete very well with any of the top alpha's from Zeiss, Swarovski or Leica and in the SE's and E2's case because they are porro's for way less money. The new WX will probably outperform Zeiss's for astro use with a 563 FOV in the 7x50's and a $6K price tag they should be like space walking but at 5.5 lbs. they will be tripod use only.
http://imaging.nikon.com/lineup/sportoptics/binoculars/wx/wx_x50/index.htm
http://imaging.nikon.com/lineup/sportoptics/binoculars/wx/wx_x50/index.htm
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Are you asking about the quality of their product? Or their performance in the market?
Nikon has product aimed at most parts of the market so delivers product at various levels of technical excellence as can be seen by the wide range of prices they sell at. Their EDG models are certainly in the same league as top Zeisses, Leicas and Swaros.
As to market share, Nikon regularly take 15-20% of the USA market which is huge. Vortex and Bushnell take similar shares and Leupold isn't far behind.
Lee
Hi,
as has been mentioned, the current EDG, brand new WX and discontinued SE series are certainly alphas, E2 series offers very nice views too for $500 or so but I wouldn't quite call them alpha.
They have models over the whole range and even the sub $100 made in china models are quite decent for the price.
Their marketing seems to follow a more volume driven approach though, so brand recognition in the premium segment is not so great. I like the fact that a wannabe thief will nick Zeiss Terras and leave my SE alone ;-)
Joachim, happy owner of an E2 8x30 and a SE 10x42
as has been mentioned, the current EDG, brand new WX and discontinued SE series are certainly alphas, E2 series offers very nice views too for $500 or so but I wouldn't quite call them alpha.
They have models over the whole range and even the sub $100 made in china models are quite decent for the price.
Their marketing seems to follow a more volume driven approach though, so brand recognition in the premium segment is not so great. I like the fact that a wannabe thief will nick Zeiss Terras and leave my SE alone ;-)
Joachim, happy owner of an E2 8x30 and a SE 10x42
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Alexis Powell
Natural history enthusiast
Or are you asking about brand prestige? In that case, it probably varies a bit from place to place, but in general they are somewhere behind Swarovski, Zeiss, and Leica when comes to top-end binoculars. Nikon is not unknown, especially to photographers and to others as a photography company. I imagine that many dedicated users of Nikon SLRs and other cameras (now a minority of the market) look to Nikon for binoculars. Nikon and the "Monarch" name also have a lot of brand recognition in the hunting-outdoor crowd in the USA. But most popular in that segment are utilitarian mid-range products that compete with e.g. Bushnell, Leupold.
--AP
Yes I have seen them growing in popularity in the hunting outdoor circles so I was wondering if they where in the birding circles and they have many options in each price range which makes sense for a company to offer product to all. So at the high end binos are they gaining popularity? In the hunting they seem to just have there prices slightly less than high end competition at each level.
You will get a larger variety of binoculars over a larger price range for both Birding and Hunting from Nikon than you will from any other binocular company. Many you may have to order directly from Nikon on their website because they will be hard to find otherwise.
Bob
Bob
Alexis Powell
Natural history enthusiast
I know nothing of their sales figures, but I'd guess that the answer is no. The SE premium porros are a very old design and thus not "hot" to buyers (provided they can even find them), and at this point the EDG II roofs have also been around for quite a while, so they won't be attracting the attention that the new or updated models from the competition gets. Nikon doesn't do much to promote its best bins. With the new Monarch HG, Nikon seems interested in enticing buyers up a notch within the mid-range bracket.
--AP
pbjosh
missing the neotropics
It also seems like a logical jump to suggest that Monarch HG might be preceding a refresh of the EDG or the introduction of a new high end model. Pure speculation but it is certainly plausible.
On an aside, I had no idea Leupold had so much US market share!
WJC
Well-known member
marinemaster
Well-known member
You know they are market driven because they don't make a 8x32 for common man.
One has to spend $1500 plus to get one in 8x32. In US likely most people get the 8x42 or 10x so forget x32 version.
Still Nikon is a solid brand name with world wide recognition with good reliability.
Kind like Yamaha they make low and mid receivers that sound like a tin can and people's rave about it as they never heard Class A, model A-S3000, just like they rave about Monarch 3 cause they never looked through an EDG.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
One has to spend $1500 plus to get one in 8x32. In US likely most people get the 8x42 or 10x so forget x32 version.
Still Nikon is a solid brand name with world wide recognition with good reliability.
Kind like Yamaha they make low and mid receivers that sound like a tin can and people's rave about it as they never heard Class A, model A-S3000, just like they rave about Monarch 3 cause they never looked through an EDG.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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Not entirely true MM. Nikons Prostaff 7s come in at less than $200 in the States and Monarch 7s are less than $400, although, admittedly, these are 30mm rather than 32mm.
But you are right to say that 42s outsell 30/32s everywhere so brands favour the large objective.
Lee
Nikon never did make 32mm binoculars except for the 8x32 SE Porro Prism and the 8/10x32HG and HGL Series Roof Prisms aka LX/LXL in the USA. They were replaced by the 8/10x32 EDGs.
Nikon did make mid-priced early Monarch version 8 and 10x36 binoculars. The 8x36s sold very well judging from the user reviews that Eagle Optics got for them.
In my case my new 8x32 SE cost me under $600.00 from Eagle Optics and my new 8 and 10x32 LX/Ls cost me just under $1000.00 from Eagle Optics. The 8x32 LXL always seemed to be priced competitively with the Swarovski 8x30 SLC.
When the EDGs came out the prices for the 32mm versions doubled.
Bob
Nikon did make mid-priced early Monarch version 8 and 10x36 binoculars. The 8x36s sold very well judging from the user reviews that Eagle Optics got for them.
In my case my new 8x32 SE cost me under $600.00 from Eagle Optics and my new 8 and 10x32 LX/Ls cost me just under $1000.00 from Eagle Optics. The 8x32 LXL always seemed to be priced competitively with the Swarovski 8x30 SLC.
When the EDGs came out the prices for the 32mm versions doubled.
Bob
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I don't think Nikon wants the Monarch HG to compete with their EDGs. That is why they put them in the Monarch category and in the same price range as the Zeiss Conquests.
The EDGII is now close to 10 years old if one considers the original double hinged EDG I which came out around 2008 and was sold only in North America. It was discontinued in 2010 at about the time the EDG II was introduced in North America. Optically there was no differences between them. The double hinged exterior version was dropped with the introduction of the EDG II.
It would not surprise me if a new version of the EDG series is in the works.
Allbinos has a brief history of both EDGs in this review of the 10x42 EDG here:
http://www.allbinos.com/215-binoculars_review-Nikon_10x42_EDG.html
Bob
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