8x30 E II in Singapore (2 Viewers)

plyscope · Nov 26, 2012

Yesterday I arrived in Singapore. I had previously contacted Nikon Singapore about the possibility of buying an 8x30 EII as this bino is not available in Australia. They kindly arranged for one to be sent to Cathay Photo, a Nikon dealer in the city. I was able to negotiate a deal which included a Lowe Pro Slimline 100 padded case for the official price of $718 SGD. I will be able to claim a tax refund of $34 when I depart in a couple days.

I think there may be better deals for this bino but I am happy with that. It was nice to be able to walk into a shop for a change and handle the binocular before paying the price.

Now I need to start saving up for the 10x35 and the 18x70!

denco@comcast.n · Nov 26, 2012

plyscope said:
Yesterday I arrived in Singapore. I had previously contacted Nikon Singapore about the possibility of buying an 8x30 EII as this bino is not available in Australia. They kindly arranged for one to be sent to Cathay Photo, a Nikon dealer in the city. I was able to negotiate a deal which included a Lowe Pro Slimline 100 padded case for the official price of $718 SGD. I will be able to claim a tax refund of $34 when I depart in a couple days.

I think there may be better deals for this bino but I am happy with that. It was nice to be able to walk into a shop for a change and handle the binocular before paying the price.

Now I need to start saving up for the 10x35 and the 18x70!

How do you like the EII?

plyscope · Nov 26, 2012

I like it very much Dennis. First impressions are what I expected after reading reviews and forum posts over the years. It is early days though, it is still less than 24 hours since I received it and I won't be able to compare to my other 8x30 (Habicht) until get home later this week.

denco@comcast.n · Nov 27, 2012

plyscope said:
I like it very much Dennis. First impressions are what I expected after reading reviews and forum posts over the years. It is early days though, it is still less than 24 hours since I received it and I won't be able to compare to my other 8x30 (Habicht) until get home later this week.

I would definitely like a comparison to your Habict 8x30. That would be very interesting.

brocknroller · Nov 27, 2012

plyscope said:
Yesterday I arrived in Singapore. I had previously contacted Nikon Singapore about the possibility of buying an 8x30 EII as this bino is not available in Australia. They kindly arranged for one to be sent to Cathay Photo, a Nikon dealer in the city. I was able to negotiate a deal which included a Lowe Pro Slimline 100 padded case for the official price of $718 SGD. I will be able to claim a tax refund of $34 when I depart in a couple days.

I think there may be better deals for this bino but I am happy with that. It was nice to be able to walk into a shop for a change and handle the binocular before paying the price.

Now I need to start saving up for the 10x35 and the 18x70!

Holy Moly! You better start saving, I can only imagine how much they want for the 18x70 Astroluxe! An arm or a leg, or both?

718 SGD = 932.94 USD! The EII does give an alpha quality view, but that's a new price record. Chinaarts in Hong Kong was selling the EII for 450 USD. Well, you are getting $34 back.

I hope to compare my 8x EII with the 8x Habicht next year, please let us know how you think they compare.

Btw, if you have problems balancing the stubby 8x EIIs in your hand, add #5 Bushwacker covers, Don;t buy the covers in Singapore, they will probably charge you $50.

You can see in this photo how it makes the 8x EII longer (that's the 10x EII next to them).

Brock

ganymede · Nov 27, 2012

Brock, SGD718 equals to USD587 according to my BlackBerry...

brocknroller said:
Holy Moly! You better start saving, I can only imagine how much they want for the 18x70 Astroluxe! An arm or a leg, or both?

718 SGD = 932.94 USD! The EII does give an alpha quality view, but that's a new price record. Chinaarts in Hong Kong was selling the EII for 450 USD. Well, you are getting $34 back.

I hope to compare my 8x EII with the 8x Habicht next year, please let us know how you think they compare.

Btw, if you have problems balancing the stubby 8x EIIs in your hand, add #5 Bushwacker covers, Don;t buy the covers in Singapore, they will probably charge you $50.

You can see in this photo how it makes the 8x EII longer (that's the 10x EII next to them).

Brock

plyscope · Nov 27, 2012

Thanks for the picture and the tip on the Bushwackers Brock.

Ganymede is right about the price it is more like $587 USD.
Take off the tax rebate and the cost of the Lowepro case it is about $525 ish.

You can see the official pricing here;
http://www.nikon.com.sg/en_SG/pagearticle_full.page?DCRPath=templatedata/en_SG/free_format_content/data/custompages/binoscope/nature_watching-binoculars.xml

ceasar · Nov 27, 2012

plyscope said:
Thanks for the picture and the tip on the Bushwackers Brock.

Ganymede is right about the price it is more like $587 USD.
Take off the tax rebate and the cost of the Lowepro case it is about $525 ish.

You can see the official pricing here;
http://www.nikon.com.sg/en_SG/pagearticle_full.page?DCRPath=templatedata/en_SG/free_format_content/data/custompages/binoscope/nature_watching-binoculars.xml

That's a high price. The total price for both of my 8 x 30 EIIs was under $500.00 but I bought my 1st one in 2001.

The one useful improvement on them since then seems to have been a change to a hard body covering which doesn't bubble and peel off like the original thin rubber covering on them was prone to do. I hope you got that. If not you can simply re glue the rubber covering back on with Loc Tite glue. Get the small bottle with the brush in it. It's annoying but not hard to do. It gives the binocular a bit of character!:king:

Bob

plyscope · Nov 27, 2012

It's true it may be less expensive in some parts of the world. I think I have done ok considering that it is not possible to buy it in Australia although the 8x32SE is available at over twice the price. I wonder how many they sell at these prices?

http://gerrygibbscamerawarehouse.com.au/binoculars/nikon_binoculars/nature_watching

Rodgerbiltit · Nov 27, 2012

G'day Andy et al,
Purchased my 8x30 EII's back in August from Chinaarts (GBP 285 = AU $441), no use to you now! Arrived in Tassie in 4 days! I don't know if he still has stock? Subsequently "Rodgered" them - photo attached (flash cooked!).
I agree with Brock the bushwackers are a great idea. I purchased mine from the local gunshop. However although my hands require size 8 surgical gloves, I shortened the bushwackers to fit snuggly over the objectives, and find that they fit beautifully in my mits!
"Rodgering" included:
- a very shortened (Bill Oddie) Leica comfort strap - bling!
- heat shrink to the left eyepiece rainguard (attached with loops)
- shortened Bushwacker Size 5 optics covers
Being more compact than my 8x32 SE's, I intend to transport them in my handlebar bag when cycle touring.
Rodger

brocknroller · Nov 27, 2012

ganymede said:
Brock, SGD718 equals to USD587 according to my BlackBerry...

You're right, $587.23 to be precise. I must have clicked on the wrong currency in the pull down window on the xe currency convertor widget. I'm relieved, that was way too high, though still over $100 more than what the Hong Kong store was asking.

OTOH, he got to try them in person. Not sure if he tried more than one sample, but it's better if you do so you can pick the "cherry" of the lot.

Io

JanPB · Nov 27, 2012

ceasar said:
The one useful improvement on them since then seems to have been a change to a hard body covering which doesn't bubble and peel off like the original thin rubber covering on them was prone to do. I hope you got that. If not you can simply re glue the rubber covering back on with Loc Tite glue. Get the small bottle with the brush in it. It's annoying but not hard to do. It gives the binocular a bit of character!:king:

Bob

Someone on this forum researched this and his conclusion was that "3M™ VHB™ Adhesive Transfer Tape" was the best tool for this. Here is the original posting.

--
Jan

plyscope · Nov 27, 2012

Thank you Rodger for your picture and list of upgrades, it is nice to know what is useful and practical in the field.

I was initially going to order from Chinaarts but then I found myself in Malaysia for work with a trip home via Singapore. I contacted Nikon Singapore to ask who might have the bino in stock and they arranged for Cathay Photo to have one in stock before I arrived. I get the impression they would not normally have it in stock but can get them from the manufacterer with a couple of days notice.

So I didn't get to try more than one sample and even if I did I doubt I would have been able to pick the difference in the situation and time available.

I'm very pleased with the one I did try!

ganymede · Nov 28, 2012

brocknroller said:
You're right, $587.23 to be precise. I must have clicked on the wrong currency in the pull down window on the xe currency convertor widget. I'm relieved, that was way too high, though still over $100 more than what the Hong Kong store was asking.

OTOH, he got to try them in person. Not sure if he tried more than one sample, but it's better if you do so you can pick the "cherry" of the lot.

Io

Brock,

Not everyone has the luxury of trying out many pairs of binoculars in a store and chose the best one, I for one certainly do not have that luxury... |8(|

Io? Fan of Jupiter? :king:

brocknroller · Nov 28, 2012

ganymede said:
Brock,

Not everyone has the luxury of trying out many pairs of binoculars in a store and chose the best one, I for one certainly do not have that luxury... |8(|

Io? Fan of Jupiter? :king:

Same here, stores that carry all the alphas are far and few between in central Pa. I have been fortunate to have some generous friends who loaned me their top bins over the years, so that's mainly how I got to "try before you buy". Otherwise, I've relied on reviews, mainly Better View Desired. I was happy with most of Ingraham's recommendations.

Yes, I'm a fan of Jupiter and the Jovian moons. I was a JPL solar system ambassador for three years. Had conference calls with PIs and mission planners and gave talks on planetary missions at various venues in the state.

<B>

plyscope · Nov 29, 2012

Arrived home this morning. It's a wet and windy day here. My initial brief direct comparison tells me the following;

The Habicht is smaller and has the slight edge in quality of build.

The Habicht focuser is a lot stiffer, though I don't see it as a problem just not as easy as the E II.

The E II with the wider field and larger eyecups is slightly easier to use.

The E II has more noticable false colour though that may be related to the wider field. They both have false colour off axis.

They are both great binoculars with small differences.

Here are some pictures.

signed Young Whippersnapper

brocknroller · Nov 29, 2012

plyscope said:
Arrived home this morning. It's a wet and windy day here. My initial brief direct comparison tells me the following;

The Habicht is smaller and has the slight edge in quality of build.

The Habicht focuser is a lot stiffer, though I don't see it as a problem just not as easy as the E II.

The E II with the wider field and larger eyecups is slightly easier to use.

The E II has more noticable false colour though that may be related to the wider field. They both have false colour off axis.

They are both great binoculars with small differences.

Here are some pictures.

signed Young Whippersnapper

Young Whippersnapper,

Thanks for posting those photos. Some people have remarked how small the Habichts are, but never was it so apparent to me until you showed them side by side with the EII, which I own. Mine a bit longer because I added Bushwackers to the "stubs".

Users have also remarked about the Habicht's narrow eyecups. They are tiny, look almost like compact bin eyecups, they could fit inside the EII's eyecups with room to spare.

Not sure what your facial features are, but can you see the entire FOV with the Habichts without having to dig your eyes into the eyecups? That was Henry's complaint and a common complaint about bins with short ER. I have no trouble seeing the entire 8.8* FOV with the EII, but I do have trouble seeing the entire 7.5* with the SE due its deeper eyecups, which rub against the bridge of my nose. I can get around this problem by opening the IPD wider.

So for my facial features, the EII's shorter eyecups are an advantage, but at some point there comes the law of diminishing returns whereby the ER is too short to see the entire FOV unless I push my eyes in farther, particularly true with wide field bins like my 8* Celestron Nova. Again there, I "cheat" by opening the IPD wider.

Given how short both bins are, the more noticeable CA in the EII is probably due to its much wider edges. The more edge, the more CA. I only see it against a high contrast background. For the backyard or in the woods, I don't notice CA.

Okay, so now the $587 question. Is the Habicht "sharper" on-axis than the EII?

Old Coot

plyscope · Nov 30, 2012

I spent a bit more time with them this morning, just in my backyard.

I can see the entire field of view in the Habicht without digging my eyes into the eyecups. I've been using an index finger or both resting on top of the eyecups and this then helps control the position of the binocular with respect to my eyes. I think I read about this in one of Steves ([email protected]) posts on Cloudy Nights in reference to the Habicht.

Binoculars with very large eyecups (BA8 10x50) I find to be uncomfortable with extended use. The E II is just about ideal for me in this area. I also like the traditional rubber eyecups like the Vixen Ultima series of porros and Docter Nobilems.

With regards to CA I only noticed it on high contrast backgrounds. I saw it in both bino's off axis when looking at tree trunks with grey/white clouds in the background. Not a big deal at all.

I checked the closest focus and found the E II would get to about 2 metres. The Habicht was about 3 metres.

I'm still hedging on the $587 question, I'll check them on the night sky eventually.

denco@comcast.n · Nov 30, 2012

plyscope said:
I spent a bit more time with them this morning, just in my backyard.

I can see the entire field of view in the Habicht without digging my eyes into the eyecups. I've been using an index finger or both resting on top of the eyecups and this then helps control the position of the binocular with respect to my eyes. I think I read about this in one of Steves ([email protected]) posts on Cloudy Nights in reference to the Habicht.

Binoculars with very large eyecups (BA8 10x50) I find to be uncomfortable with extended use. The E II is just about ideal for me in this area. I also like the traditional rubber eyecups like the Vixen Ultima series or porros and Docter Nobilems.

With regards to CA I only noticed it on high contrast backgrounds. I saw it in both bino's off axis when looking at tree trunks with grew/white clouds in the background. Not a big deal at all.

I checked the closest focus and found the E II would get to about 2 metres. The Habicht was about 3 metres.

I'm still hedging on the $587 question, I'll check them on the night sky eventually.

Cut to the chase. Which one has better optics overall? These are the two best porro's in the world. I want to know if I need to buy one.

plyscope · Nov 30, 2012

Better overall depends on what you want out of it.

The Nikon has the better field of view, better comfort, better focus action.

The Habicht has the better size, better quality, better waterproofing.

Take your pick Dennis. If you are like me you need both of them because they both have their good points!

I suppose I would say that the Nikon E II is the better value for money if you only want one.

8x30 E II in Singapore (2 Viewers)

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