The clue is in the name: these MeoStars are designated B1.1 which is just a 0.1 uplift from the original B1 MeoStars. Actually, this modesty is a breath of fresh air in an industry where a minor facelift is sometimes presented as a brand-new model.
But what is new about B1.1, what is new and what remains unchanged?
The body shape and armour are familiar and are as handsome and as comfortable as before, while the view through these instruments remains beautifully transparent and engaging. They are still delightful to handle and look through.
The main up-grade is the locking dioptre which replaces the non-locking arrangement of B1 that I found did occasionally move accidentally when a day’s outing included scrambling over rocks, and fences, and laying down to photograph flowers and other subjects. During these processes I would often tuck the B1’s inside my jacket or under my arm and just occasionally would find afterwards that the dioptre had moved. On less rugged outings when simply walking along with nothing more than a gate, a stile or some stepping-stones to negotiate, the dioptre never moved.
The new arrangement is shown in the first photo below. As usual you simply pull the dioptre adjuster up, set it as required and then push it back down. Now the first time I did this I was slightly disconcerted by the short distance that the adjuster moved, and wondered if I had really pulled it up far enough, as there was no click or other indication that I had pulled it to the right position. Pushing it back in was similar, with no audible click to tell you that all was done. However, after having done this several times now, I don’t think about it anymore as on every single occasion the adjustment has been successfully made and, in addition, I have noticed that there is a red ring under the adjuster that is visible when it is pulled out, so you have a visible warning to inform you of the adjuster’s position. In the second photo the nearest bino has the adjuster pushed down whereas the bino furthest away has the adjuster still pulled up and the red ring is clearly visible.
The other change is that the eyecups now have an intermediate position as well as the fully-up or fully-down ones. This is a welcome additional adjustability because the more you try out different models of binos, especially if you were spectacles and change them from time to time, the more you realise that the golden rule stating non-spectacle wearers always need the eyecups up, and spectacle wearers always have the eyecups screwed all the way down, isn’t as golden as it purports to be: it is just a starting place. For sure, since changing to frameless spectacles with thin lenses I have had to make adjustments that a couple of years ago I would never dreamed of, so I welcome any change, however modest, that increases the adjustability of binos.
Those are the updates that B1.1s have, and since it is some years since I tried out a MeoStar 10x42 I have borrowed a B1.1 10x42 HD, and will be reporting on these shortly.
Lee
But what is new about B1.1, what is new and what remains unchanged?
The body shape and armour are familiar and are as handsome and as comfortable as before, while the view through these instruments remains beautifully transparent and engaging. They are still delightful to handle and look through.
The main up-grade is the locking dioptre which replaces the non-locking arrangement of B1 that I found did occasionally move accidentally when a day’s outing included scrambling over rocks, and fences, and laying down to photograph flowers and other subjects. During these processes I would often tuck the B1’s inside my jacket or under my arm and just occasionally would find afterwards that the dioptre had moved. On less rugged outings when simply walking along with nothing more than a gate, a stile or some stepping-stones to negotiate, the dioptre never moved.
The new arrangement is shown in the first photo below. As usual you simply pull the dioptre adjuster up, set it as required and then push it back down. Now the first time I did this I was slightly disconcerted by the short distance that the adjuster moved, and wondered if I had really pulled it up far enough, as there was no click or other indication that I had pulled it to the right position. Pushing it back in was similar, with no audible click to tell you that all was done. However, after having done this several times now, I don’t think about it anymore as on every single occasion the adjustment has been successfully made and, in addition, I have noticed that there is a red ring under the adjuster that is visible when it is pulled out, so you have a visible warning to inform you of the adjuster’s position. In the second photo the nearest bino has the adjuster pushed down whereas the bino furthest away has the adjuster still pulled up and the red ring is clearly visible.
The other change is that the eyecups now have an intermediate position as well as the fully-up or fully-down ones. This is a welcome additional adjustability because the more you try out different models of binos, especially if you were spectacles and change them from time to time, the more you realise that the golden rule stating non-spectacle wearers always need the eyecups up, and spectacle wearers always have the eyecups screwed all the way down, isn’t as golden as it purports to be: it is just a starting place. For sure, since changing to frameless spectacles with thin lenses I have had to make adjustments that a couple of years ago I would never dreamed of, so I welcome any change, however modest, that increases the adjustability of binos.
Those are the updates that B1.1s have, and since it is some years since I tried out a MeoStar 10x42 I have borrowed a B1.1 10x42 HD, and will be reporting on these shortly.
Lee
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