• Welcome to BirdForum, the internet's largest birding community with thousands of members from all over the world. The forums are dedicated to wild birds, birding, binoculars and equipment and all that goes with it.

    Please register for an account to take part in the discussions in the forum, post your pictures in the gallery and more.
ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

When a new Zeiss binocular? (1 Viewer)

According to the Zeiss website, something with 95% light transmission is coming in March. Only 90% transmission is claimed for the Conquest HD's that have already been announced, so we're still left to guess at what this other thing is.

Thanks, Henry. I went to the Wild Bird Center in Chapel Hill on Sunday and tried out the EL's, EDG's and FL's. There was also an Ultravid although they are no longer authorized dealers - she commented that anyone interested could get it for a good deal. I asked if they had heard anything about a new Zeiss top model coming out soon. She had not....so I suppose we can continue speculating.......Rob
 
Thanks, Henry. I went to the Wild Bird Center in Chapel Hill on Sunday and tried out the EL's, EDG's and FL's. There was also an Ultravid although they are no longer authorized dealers - she commented that anyone interested could get it for a good deal. I asked if they had heard anything about a new Zeiss top model coming out soon. She had not....so I suppose we can continue speculating.......Rob

Isn't the case that Leica will only honor warranties on Ultravids purchased from authorized dealers? So if you buy the Leica from the Wild Bird Center and it breaks down, you're responsible for the repair costs.

Considering what I've read Leica charges for repairs, it would have to be a very, very good deal.

Brock
 
I was not interested in the Leica - so I did not ask about the deal. Don't know if the warranty would be honored or not as the inventory was purchased when they were authorized?
 
I was not interested in the Leica - so I did not ask about the deal. Don't know if the warranty would be honored or not as the inventory was purchased when they were authorized?

i think that the warranty would be honored , because every shop can go away or loose the dealer ship after you bought a binoculair.
 
Other 32mm from the most brands have also 52 mm

Really? Which ones? As far as I know, the list doesn't include Leica, Swarovski, Nikon, Pentax, Swift (except some past porros), Bushnell, Minox, Canon, Leupold (except the 30mm porros), Vortex, Kowa, Zen-Ray, or Opticron. I must admit though, that I haven't kept up with all the latest models, so if there is a current 8x32 or 10x32 model, especially a roof with good optics, I'd love to know about it!

--AP
 
Last edited:
New cryptic bits of information have appeared on the Zeiss teaser site today.

http://www.zeiss.com/zeissexperience

Looks like the mystery thing coming in March will have something called "comfort focus". Also, a new third circle has appeared which clearly refers to a rifle scope, but that one disappears if you click on the "birder" icon, so I think there must be something else new besides the scope.

To access the new tidbit, click on the center circle marked "95%", then click on the middle of the three tiny circles.
 
Last edited:
I cannot see any way of fitting the gearing needed for a dual speed focus wheel into the body of a binocular.

An interesting theory though !!!!!!
 
It seems like all it would take is a screw with a pitch that increased from one end to the other. That would be easy to machine nowadays. I wonder if it would be much harder to turn near the quick-ratio end.
Ron
 
I cannot see any way of fitting the gearing needed for a dual speed focus wheel into the body of a binocular.

An interesting theory though !!!!!!

If you go to "Better View Desired" and read the Brunton Epoch review, Brunton claims to have a "progressive focus" mechanism. Here is an excerpt from the review:

"Brunton hit the focus issue head on. They designed what is, as far as I know, the first progressive focus control on the market. The the amount you have to move the control to change focus changes as the distance to the bird changes: small movements close in, longer ones far out. The result is that the apparent speed of focus does not change at all. The same finger motion produces the same apparent change in focus no matter where you are in the focus range. This is revolutionary functionality! This is an epoch making development! And, for those who have always struggled with focus, it could be the making of the Epochs (and Brunton’s name in the market)."

I have not personally tested.
 
Last edited:
Garymh certainly knows more about this than his current "masters" will allow him to say, so we should all closely examine his every word. I'll just note that he didn't quite flatly deny that this unknown optical thing of interest to birders has a variable speed focuser. It's already been done in the Brunton Epoch binoculars, so it ain't impossible.

The advantage of a variable speed focuser is that it cuts down on the amount of focuser turning required at very close distances. A constant speed focuser seems much slower at close range because the spacial value of a 1 diopter change in focus shrinks dramatically up close. Changing the focus from infinity to about 20' might make roughly a 10 diopter change and might require about a 100 degree turn of the focusing knob. Changing the focus from 8' to 6' requires about the same 10 diopter change and 100 degree turn in a constant speed focuser. A variable speed focuser gradually speeds up at close range so that the 8' to 6' change requires less turning. Butterfly and warbler watchers are the main beneficiaries. Of course, this is all pure speculation. All we know for sure is that Zeiss claims the unknown thing's focuser is "a revolution in ergonomics and precision".

Edit: I see that while I was writing Argon posted a good description of how the Epoch focuser works. Maybe Garymh could throw us another bone. We won't tell!
 
Last edited:
Isn't the 'Quick-Close-Focus' on my Minox HGs similar to this? Slower focusing at distance and quicker focusing close up. Or have I misunderstood what has been posted here?

Ron
 
To be honest, I am not really aware of it in use. The focus is quite quick and direct, although I have to shuffle them backwards and forwards a tiny amount at distance to get accurate focus. My 8x32 Trinovid BNs seem to snap into focus a little easier.

Ron
 
Last edited:
I had a chance to look through the Bruntons in Chapel Hill the other day but did not. Kinda wish that I had now.
 
I had a chance to look through the Bruntons in Chapel Hill the other day but did not. Kinda wish that I had now.

The Brunton design works very well; it is even nicer than the Pentax Papilio's shifting ratio design, but unfortunately, the Epoch is a disappointment for close focus work because its optics aren't as good as the competition, and the narrow FOV makes for poor image overlap at close distances. I'm always happy to see interest in variable ratio focus because I'd like to see it in the next generation of alpha bins. If the Swarovision EL had it, it would be my idea of binocular perfection, but without it, the utility of the Swarovision's close focus is greatly handicapped.

Some more of my comments on the Brunton Epoch's focus: http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?p=2309033

--AP
 
Warning! This thread is more than 12 years ago old.
It's likely that no further discussion is required, in which case we recommend starting a new thread. If however you feel your response is required you can still do so.

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top