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ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

Noctivid 8x42 is here (1 Viewer)

TXdefender

Well-known member
So, I decided to start a new thread. It doesn't seem appropriate to post in the "talk me out of Noctivid" thread, that ship has sailed. I have to compliment Doug at Cameraland I didn't expect they would arrive so soon.

First impressions. I wish I could say all is peachy. The first thing I noticed when removing them from the box was these silver rings on the objective lenses. Upon inspection it appears the objective covers are touching the lenses and smudging them. I can't help but think this is unacceptable for a bino costing this much. I do not like having to clean my optics, especially from the factory, but some gentile teasing with a lens cloth and smudges are gone. Ok, I'll order an extra set and go at them with an exacto knife and shave them a few millimeters. The eyecups are similar to the Ultravid series. I was prepared for this and they are functional but I would have liked to see quality of eyecups like the Swaro EL at this price. I had read about the awkward placement of the studs for the neck strap and experienced it first hand, it does rub my hand as I try to focus, perhaps time will show a better way to hold the bins.

The good. Well, the image. This is obviously an "alpha" view. Unfortunately for me the glasses arrived late last night and it was dark. Today the weather is nasty and overcast but it didn't stop me from taking them out. Despite weather conditions I found the view bright. Images were sharp and crisp. I pan left, I pan right and it's glorious, no rolling ball. I appreciated the natural and relaxed view of the Ultravid and this seems to be on par. I did not get to spend as much time as I would have liked this morning with the glass but shall report back when I have more experience. Wish you all well.
 
TX. Yes, that was quick - great service. The smudges on the lens are something that’s been reported here before, although I never seem to have had that problem. I agree that ergonomics are not perfect, but I’d never even thought about it until I read it on here, so it’s something that you easily adjust to.

And then, there’s the view........... :eek!: :t: B :)
 
Mr. Murphy is well and alive. I feel like a kid who got a new bike for Christmas and he can't go out and ride it. The weather here is still nasty and overcast and now the wind is having 30mph gusts. I believe in using (not abusing) my optics, if I had a target to look for (bird or game animal) I would go out and use my bins but I'm not risking 30mph sand/dirt for nothing to see. So, I've settled for looking out the open front door. I also decided to lay out all my premium bins for comparison so this should be interesting.

First up, Noctivid, I pulled the objective covers off and looked at lenses. I see the very faintest sign of the ring (I don't know if the caps are still touching or if I didn't clean it well enough last time) either way it's fine and I'm not touching it. The view, just as it was, amazing. The apparent field of view is great, image bright, objects sharp, I'm loving it. For whatever reason I did not notice the ergonomic issues so perhaps I wasn't thinking about it. This may or may not be a big deal for extended use but today it didn't bother me.

Next up UVHD 8x32, same great Leica view maybe not as bright but jeez they're 1/3 the size. Still a favorite. Then my UVHD+ 7x42. Here I found the reduced magnification to yield a bit steadier view, more relaxed but I found while the actual FOV is bigger it felt more like looking down a tube than Noctivid or 8x32 for that matter, still pleasing I'm not parting with them.

Switched to Noctivid for a bit because I wanted direct comparison to Swaro SV 8.5. So I picked up SV and immediately noticed I had the eyecups fully extended again, one click in and I got that amazing immersed in image view like the Noctivid. I noticed the rolling ball effect (I find if I start the day with the SV it doesn't bother me but switching from a normal bin to the field flattened image makes it worse). Ok, so the image is still first class, resolution seems on par. It did seem to yield a bit of a cooler image than the Noctivid. I don't know about brightness, the Noctivid SEEMED brighter but it could be the color tone, it could be in my mind. The image in Noctivid seemed more relaxed to me.

Just for giggles I looked through my SV 10x and realized I've had enough coffee for the day but same beautiful image as 8.5x just bigger with more shake. Also for giggles I looked through my CL pocket and Vortex Razor HD. The pockets are surprisingly good for their size (I haven't and don't use them often enough since 8x32 purchase) but ergonomics and FOV remind me why I got the Leica 8x32. The Vortex is an almost there bin. Resolution is good, FOV is narrow and it's missing some contrast or something but surprisingly good. I take these to places I don't want to risk damage to premium bins due to Vortex extensive warranty and let others in my household use them.

Summary, I'm pleased with the Noctivid image. Is there room for improvement? Sure, I'd like a Swaro EL body (and eyecups) with the elegant look of black Leica armor and Noctivid optics. But the build is good and I don't know if I have room to complain. Now, I need better conditions so I can go out and see something. Would love to hear thoughts and your experiences.

I've attached a small photo for fun. L to R as follows UVHD 8x32, NVD 8x42, UVHD+ 7x42, SV 10x42, SV 8.5x42, CL 8x25, VTX 8x42 and Swaro 20-60x80HD in background for kicks.
 

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A little sunlight. There is something special about this glass (Noctivid), can’t quite put my finger on it. My word are they bright! Almost hurt your eyes bright. The vivid yellow on the underside of some not positively ID’d flycatcher. (Still an amateur). A little Carolina chickadee. It’s still windy out. I did notice some color fringe on things that were not in focus, this isn’t uncommon and I find it in my SV’s too. I did notice I can’t snuggle up to the eye cups or I’ll get blackouts. Still, I’m impressed and having too much fun.
 
The first thing I noticed when removing them from the box was these silver rings on the objective lenses. Upon inspection it appears the objective covers are touching the lenses and smudging them. I can't help but think this is unacceptable for a bino costing this much.

Strange, no matter how hard I try, I can't get my covers to smudge the objective lenses of my Noctivid 8x42.
 
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I agree that ergonomics are not perfect, but I’d never even thought about it until I read it on here, so it’s something that you easily adjust to.

It's true, even though I had to get my Noctivids and try out for myself to see. Like you I never noticed this 'rubbing' in the last two years I owned the glass!
 
Strange, no matter how hard I try, I can't get my covers to smudge the objective lenses of my Noctivid 8x42.

I wish I could say the same. I'm only reporting what I observed. That said, I've been careful to be gentile replacing the covers and I do not believe the problem has repeated itself....yet.


I haven't been able to spend as much time as I would like with the new glasses but I did have the pleasure of watching this magnificent red shouldered hawk hunting from a power line for a little while over the weekend.
 
Hi,
I had three noctivids and can confirm that with the prints on the lenses through the lids!
Each time you open the same footprints were available.

Andreas
 
Just a FYI, i contacted Leica about the objective cover issues. I received a response stating they will send me some other covers for 42mm to try and see if they work better. Will report.
 
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