Let me begin with full disclosure. I am the Robert K of Bird Forum who won a 2nd Prize Pentax Papilio in Camera Land of New York's recent on line lottery. Info about the lottery results was posted on the binocular forum by the owner several weeks ago.
I e-mailed Doug to thank him and give him my comments on the binocular. He asked me to do a short review of the binocular for Bird Forum. Now, I realize that this is rather like looking a gift horse in the mouth but I will endeavor to be as neutral as possible. But first a comment on Camera Land. I have ordered from them in the past and have found their expertise, service and merchandise to be first rate. I have received my ordered merchandise within 48 hours each time.
I won a 8.5 x 21. It is a reverse porro prism with oculars that move rather than barrels and it focuses internally by moving the objective lenses which are protected by a coated plate. I have compared it in size and bulk to a Bushnell Custom 7 x 26, which I own and optically to a Leica 8 x 20 BN Trinovid which I also own. The comparisons are necessarily subjective as you would expect.
Sizewise it is bulkier and longer by one inch but lighter than the Bushnell. The Bushnell can fit into a bellows type shirt pocket. The Papilio won't fit into a shirt pocket but it can easily fit into a jacket pocket.
Optically, I could find very little difference between the Papilio and the Leica under the virtually perfect weather conditions we had in the last 3 weeks.
Sharpness, as tested on letters and numbers on telephone poles about 150 yards away was about equal as it was when compared to words and numbers on smaller signs in my neighborhood about 100 feet away and ridge lines in a rock bank about 1000' away. Pincushion distortion was minimal in both binoculars. When I looked for CA along white edges of houses in sunny conditions, the Papilio seemed to have slightly more than the Leica, but I would describe it as minimal in both cases. When looking at birds, the 8.5x Papilio gives a visibly bigger image of the bird than the 8x Leica. Color's seemed darker and more saturated in the Papilios. Depth of field was a bit deeper with the Leica. On the one gloomy, overcast day we had the Leica's were brighter and sharper, especially at infinity. This may be a result of the coated protective plate that covers the objective lenses.
I wasn't able to give the binocular a real work out on close focus because my chronic back condition is currently acute but I did test it out on some errant bugs, fine print on watch faces, dimes and the like and quite frankly, it is remarkable; like a 2 eyed loupe! Extremely handy, beyond it's stated purpose for close up nature study.
It weighs 10.2 ounces. Has 15mm eye relief and 3 position eyecups. It has a commendable 315' FOV at 1000 yards, the 6.5x has 393 feet which should make it more useful as a general birding binocular. The right eye diopter has click stops that are a bit stiff, you have to take the binocular away from your eye to set it accurately. It also has a built in tripod adapter.
To sum it up; this is a remarkably fine little binocular! Of course, I couldn't beat the price, but then, neither can a prospective buyer. It sells for about $120.00.
Good birding,
Bob
I e-mailed Doug to thank him and give him my comments on the binocular. He asked me to do a short review of the binocular for Bird Forum. Now, I realize that this is rather like looking a gift horse in the mouth but I will endeavor to be as neutral as possible. But first a comment on Camera Land. I have ordered from them in the past and have found their expertise, service and merchandise to be first rate. I have received my ordered merchandise within 48 hours each time.
I won a 8.5 x 21. It is a reverse porro prism with oculars that move rather than barrels and it focuses internally by moving the objective lenses which are protected by a coated plate. I have compared it in size and bulk to a Bushnell Custom 7 x 26, which I own and optically to a Leica 8 x 20 BN Trinovid which I also own. The comparisons are necessarily subjective as you would expect.
Sizewise it is bulkier and longer by one inch but lighter than the Bushnell. The Bushnell can fit into a bellows type shirt pocket. The Papilio won't fit into a shirt pocket but it can easily fit into a jacket pocket.
Optically, I could find very little difference between the Papilio and the Leica under the virtually perfect weather conditions we had in the last 3 weeks.
Sharpness, as tested on letters and numbers on telephone poles about 150 yards away was about equal as it was when compared to words and numbers on smaller signs in my neighborhood about 100 feet away and ridge lines in a rock bank about 1000' away. Pincushion distortion was minimal in both binoculars. When I looked for CA along white edges of houses in sunny conditions, the Papilio seemed to have slightly more than the Leica, but I would describe it as minimal in both cases. When looking at birds, the 8.5x Papilio gives a visibly bigger image of the bird than the 8x Leica. Color's seemed darker and more saturated in the Papilios. Depth of field was a bit deeper with the Leica. On the one gloomy, overcast day we had the Leica's were brighter and sharper, especially at infinity. This may be a result of the coated protective plate that covers the objective lenses.
I wasn't able to give the binocular a real work out on close focus because my chronic back condition is currently acute but I did test it out on some errant bugs, fine print on watch faces, dimes and the like and quite frankly, it is remarkable; like a 2 eyed loupe! Extremely handy, beyond it's stated purpose for close up nature study.
It weighs 10.2 ounces. Has 15mm eye relief and 3 position eyecups. It has a commendable 315' FOV at 1000 yards, the 6.5x has 393 feet which should make it more useful as a general birding binocular. The right eye diopter has click stops that are a bit stiff, you have to take the binocular away from your eye to set it accurately. It also has a built in tripod adapter.
To sum it up; this is a remarkably fine little binocular! Of course, I couldn't beat the price, but then, neither can a prospective buyer. It sells for about $120.00.
Good birding,
Bob
