To me, Leica Sport Optics have always been synonymous with vivid, naturally colored views, precisely engineered craftsmanship, and durability. My Trinovid BA, despite a few technical flaws by today’s standards, still offers a very saturated and satisfying view. Find it amazing that I still enjoy occasional use after nearly 3 decades of ownership. Another Leica gem that seriously impresses me is the 8x32 Ultravid HD+ = all of that delicious view in such a tiny package. Other aficionados also heap praise on the UVHD+ 7x42 and 10x50.
As previously discussed, while Leica premium binocular offerings have lost ground to Zeiss and Swarovski in recent years they’re still very much mainstream in other Sports Optics offerings. They were and still are an innovator in integrating laser rangefinding technology into optical devices. The Leica CRF is a thing of beauty and often the device targeted by other manufacturers. In fact, I was in a wilderness camp a few years back where several other brands of rangefinding devices were present. Having endured those owners touting that their devices were superior, I was a bit amused when, out on the mountain, they were often asking me to range subjects that their devices simply could not. IME Leica cuts through mist like no other. My point here is that Leica appears well respected within this market segment. They continue to innovate and expand offerings within this product line and other segments of Sport Optics.
IMO Zeiss and Swarovski have done a far superior job of understanding the premium binocular consumer, the features they desire, engineering those desired features into their product lines, and overall marketing. As Lee’s article of the development of the EL points out, Swarovski took tremendous risks in a major departure from traditional binocular design, but the heavy focus on user interface / features in its engineering both captured the market and revolutionized the industry. A few years back I was in the market for a new premium binocular and directly compared the black Victory SF, EL and the Noctivid (NLs weren’t out yet). While thoroughly impressed with the Noctivid image, I slightly prefer the SF’s view and find some of its other features (focuser, balance, haptics) superior to the Noctivid. While everyone’s preferences and the value placed on individual features will vary a bit, most premium buyers (brand loyalty aside) will likely choose the device that provides the most overall enjoyment when used for its intended purpose. Although critically important, a smidge better optics by itself doesn’t guarantee a shift in the premium market. Competition is also becoming increasingly intense as many newer, very high performing mid-grade offerings are definitely shrinking the performance gap with Alpha binoculars and capturing increasing market share.
As far as marketing goes - here in the USA Swarovski is absolutely dominant among the Big 3. Although all 3 have booths at major birding and sportsman’s shows/events, SW has far more advertisements in birding/sports periodicals, links on websites, celebrity endorsements, and even have their own weekly Swarovski Optik television show.
