-
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.
Search results
-
Nikon EII 8X30s arrived yesterday, wow.
After several years of wanting a pair, I finally pulled the trigger on a pair of 8x30s for $370 from Amazon, and they arrived this afternoon. I regret not buying these a lot sooner. The view is just superb and I really like the unique weight balance and ergonomics of the stubby porro shape. In... -
Zeiss Conquest HD 8x32: highs and lows
I believe I was right around the 6-8 week mark when they finally came back. My experience with the service departments at Eagle Optics and Nikon was thats you're looking at 2 weeks tops before the binoculars are returned. Hopefully Zeiss can develop a way to drastically shorten that turnaround... -
8x30 E II vs Contemporary Binos
Well I gave Tristate a call this morning and the sales rep said the EII is out of stock and won't be available from the store in the future either. I guess I'll go with Amazon then. I'm surprised there aren't more retailers selling this as a gray market product though; it seems to be a pretty... -
8x30 E II vs Contemporary Binos
The E IIs look like they are currently on back order at Tri-State; I'll give them a call tomorrow to inquire further. Maybe they special order the product from Japan? They seem to be the best choice for American consumers at the moment, as they probably have a decent enough return policy along... -
8x30 E II vs Contemporary Binos
I see that Tristate Camera still has the 8x30 E II listed, and it's about $50 cheaper than the Japanese Amazon sellers. But their customer reviews aren't all that positive; how was your experience dealing with them? I'm assuming the E IIs they're selling are pretty new stock? -
8x30 E II vs Contemporary Binos
The Conquests just sold this afternoon for what I consider a very respectable price, so I guess I'll buy an E II and see how I like it! -
8x30 E II vs Contemporary Binos
Thank you everyone for the feedback. Maybe I should think a bit longer before swapping the Conquest for an E II. My main reasons for wanting to switch were: cheaper price, the Conquest seems to struggle a bit in overcast skies (greenish tinge to objects silhouetted against the sky, rather... -
8x30 E II vs Contemporary Binos
I had a pair of 8x32 SEs that I regret selling, and have found that I miss the 3D porro view. I also prefer the SE's focusing action, and assume the E II would be similar. The lack of a US warranty scares me a little, but hopefully the binoculars are solid enough that I'd never need one anyway... -
Zeiss Conquest HD 8x32: highs and lows
It's certainly not a Zeiss trait, and I'm confident it's not even a trait that is common to all 8x32 Conquests--the binocular has been out for several years and this is the first time I've seen this issue mentioned at BF. In fact most people praise the action of Zeiss focusers. I don't think... -
8x30 E II vs Contemporary Binos
I considered adding this post to the giant E II thread, but maybe it would be better to start a new one. For those of you who own or have owned an 8x30 E II, how does it compare to other modern binoculars you've tried, particularly the the Conquest HD and similar models? I'm looking to replace... -
Zeiss Conquest HD 8x32: highs and lows
I have experienced the exact same thing as Peter, though to a far lesser extent. In fact, the 8x32 Conquest HDs I currently own are a warranty replacement for a pair that had the same issue, and these also exhibit the problem. In my current pair, right out of the box I noticed that the focusing... -
New Binocular Advice
I won an Eagle Optics Denali 10x42 in a drawing, and am quite pleased with the image and mechanics considering its under $200 price. My only real complaint is that EO is one of the brands with the counter-clockwise to infinity focusers, I wish all manufacturers would standardize. My experience...- perseid28
- Post #12
- Forum: Binoculars
-
Smart HD Binoculars
Interesting. I'm sure they have their uses, but birding probably isn't one of them. If nothing else, a $479 binocular with a 4-16x zoom doesn't promise much for optics. I'm curious as to why a velocity feature was added to binoculars; most of the time I struggle to get a steady image while...- perseid28
- Post #2
- Forum: Binoculars
-
Nikon Prostaff 7 (not 7S) versus Bushnell Excursion HD 8x42
I'm not sure how much a safari to Africa costs, or if this is something you plan on doing again in your lifetime, but I think it might be in your best interest to buy something that you can be reasonably confident in. I agree with Bob that the Monarch 7s are worth a long look. Even with the... -
Nikon 8x30E11
The two Monarch 7s I tried had mechanical issues; one had some vertical misalignment and the other had an uneven focuser that required constant readjustment of the diopter. The Monarch 7s certainly have fine optics and comfortable ergos, but I don't doubt that the build quality of the E II is... -
-
Ohio Hawk: Cooper's or Sharpie?
Had this visitor to my yard today; are these pics enough to confidently identify as a Sharpie? I always struggle to distinguish these species. Thanks.- perseid28
- Thread
- Replies: 3
- Forum: Bird Identification Q&A
-
Zeiss warranty, seems very tolerant
My one experience with Zeiss' customer service was very positive. They made no trouble replacing my Conquest HDs, but it took about 6 weeks to receive the replacements because the original ones were sent to Germany to evaluate whether to repair or replace. I do wish they had a US repair facility... -
Getting my first real pair of bins
I have tried both the Nikon and Kite Optics versions of the 8x30 Monarch 7/Lynx HD. Both of them showed a tremendous amount of glare in more situations than I was comfortable with--for example, even when I was only looking at treetops against an overcast sky. Sharpness was excellent, and the...- perseid28
- Post #13
- Forum: Binoculars
-
Why do midrange binoculars exist?
This shows why it's rarely helpful to distinguish between binoculars based on price. The Fuji FMT series is decidedly not "midrange" in its optical or mechanical quality. Taking product quality into account, I don't think many people would consider the Nikon SE series "midrange" either. The SE...- perseid28
- Post #135
- Forum: Binoculars
-
Do you ignore Leica ?
The only way I can think of is requiring binocular registration with the manufacturer within a certain time of the purchase date. I've never owned Leica binoculars so I don't know if this is how they do it. -
News from Leica
But I didn't understand the old price position of the Trinovids: for a couple hundred bucks more, you were already in Ultravid range. If I was a Leica customer and had the pocket change to afford a Trinovid, I would think long and hard about spending just 20% more to buy a true alpha glass. On... -
A binocular mystery
Dennis, this got me to wondering whether the 10x42 format really is the most popular. One quick (and probably not-so-accurate) way of doing this is to count the number of reviews for various binocular models in their different formats. Sticking with one size format (eg, 42mm) is a good idea...- perseid28
- Post #30
- Forum: Binoculars
-
windows 10
At an earlier time, you must have agreed to install Windows 10. My understanding is that Microsoft began offering to let users upgrade long before Windows 10 was available, and when it became available users could either ask to install it at their earliest convenience or Microsoft would...- perseid28
- Post #72
- Forum: Computers, Birding Software And The Internet
-
Good spots for birding from car?
Does anyone know of good roads to bird from in the car, especially in or near the southwest part of the state? I lived in New Mexico for several years and really enjoyed places like Bosque del Apache NWR, where much of the birding can be done from within the vehicle. Among other things, it...