New Swarovski 8 to 12x zoom binoculars? (1 Viewer)

soloflyfisher · Apr 16, 2016

Are you guys thinking you'd have a tripod or monopod with you to support the binocular? I guess I just don't see high magnification as being all that useful unless you have something like a tripod to steady the binocular.

etudiant · Apr 17, 2016

soloflyfisher said:
Are you guys thinking you'd have a tripod or monopod with you to support the binocular? I guess I just don't see high magnification as being all that useful unless you have something like a tripod to steady the binocular.

Binastro specified an IS unit. That substantially eliminates the need for a tripod, at least up to about 20-25x.
Nikon is currently selling the P900 camera, with built in image stabilization, which offers about 40x. It allows decent photographs at 2000mm equivalent hand held. There are lots of shots and comments about it here:
http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=300509

iveljay · Apr 17, 2016

The prices and weights quoted in the survey were not encouraging from my point of view. I'm afraid I wasn't exactly encouraging in my answers.

I have only had 2 pairs of 12x and only use them on rare occasions - handholding for me is OK as they are porros - heavy 12x roofs I do not find attractive, even if they can zoom down to heavy 8x.

gunut · Apr 17, 2016

when I think of zoom binoculars what first comes to mind are a child's toys.....next are those lever actuated night time monstrosities....

etudiant · Apr 17, 2016

gunut said:
when I think of zoom binoculars what first comes to mind are a child's toys.....next are those lever actuated night time monstrosities....

So true, but that is the opportunity.
The optics and electronics technology necessary to build a superior zoom glass are almost commodities today. Someone will build it, ideally an alpha shop such as Swarovski, but if not, some enterprising start up such as Maven or maybe some Chinese producer desperate to expand the available market.

ceasar · Apr 17, 2016

A digital zoom binocular will have to be pretty big to be good.

The new Panasonic FZ 1000 uses a 1 inch sensor and has a fixed F2.8-4.0 16X 24-400mm zoom lens. It is as large as an SLR.

http://shop.panasonic.com/cameras-a...lumix-point-and-shoot-cameras/DMC-FZ1000.html

Bob

iveljay · Apr 17, 2016

I came to the conclusion that being spring that he surveys must have returned from migration, not only Swarovski but one from Amazon the same day, trying to work out why I don't buy my musical instruments from them. I saw some point to the binocular survey!
Anyway - for the first time I am happy with what I've got - which is possibly their problem. Are Alpha sales drying up?

ticl2184 · Apr 17, 2016

I would seriously consider buying a Swarovski zoom bino.

I used to own a pair of Duovids but the weight and narrow fov put me off a bit.

If Swarovski could offer a true zoom bino integrating 8-10-12x magnifications and was a reasonable weight I probably buy them.

Cheers Tim

gunut · Apr 17, 2016

I don't know....maybe if they were built on the porro habicht body and came in a flimsy cardboard box with a cellophane window....

seriously...like mentioned above they would almost have to have some type of micro electronics to be viable...I don't think the mechanics are up to building a reasonably priced pair that would hold together in everyday use...and Im sure they would be hell to have repaired....

birdrousta · Apr 17, 2016

iveljay said:
Are Alpha sales drying up?

don't know about that, but given the pricing that swarovski has historically commanded and the number of folks looking at meopta, maven, and the new trinovid pricing, I think swaro has to be asking what they should add to put and keep a premium bino well north of the 3k USD range.

I do wonder how many rangefinder binos they sell. I would think that for hunting, having the rangefinder on the scope would be more useful, but that's speculation on my part.

a well-executed optical zoom is probably a design they're considering. with decent-sized objectives and a reasonable weight there may be a market for it. would it be able to fetch 3 or 3.5 k? not from me, I don't think. at 10x I have trouble hand holding binos, so a zoom bino would need a tripod to be useful for me, and once I'm carrying one I'm likely to want 20x magnification or more as a reason to carry it.

a well done walking stick/monopod as an accessory might help, though.

Gijs van Ginkel · Apr 17, 2016

Birdrousta,
The range finder in a scope is already there for hunters.
Gijs van Ginkel

etudiant · Apr 17, 2016

ceasar said:
A digital zoom binocular will have to be pretty big to be good.

The new Panasonic FZ 1000 uses a 1 inch sensor and has a fixed F2.8-4.0 16X 24-400mm zoom lens. It is as large as an SLR.

http://shop.panasonic.com/cameras-a...lumix-point-and-shoot-cameras/DMC-FZ1000.html

Bob

That is exactly the point.
The human eye uses a much smaller sensor than the 13x9mm FZ 1000 sensor, so the optics can be correspondingly downsized.
The dark adapted eye opens to some 5mm, about the same as the 6x5mm sensor in the 40x Nikon P 900. A more modest zoom allows relatively tiny optics, as shown by the 15-20x power zooms available in pocket size cameras such as the Canon SX 720 or the Panasonic TZ 80.

birdrousta · Apr 18, 2016

Gijs van Ginkel said:
Birdrousta,
The range finder in a scope is already there for hunters.
Gijs van Ginkel

does every scope have one? I know that many do.

but it's why I'm wondering how many of the bins that have them get sold, given the additional expense.

NDhunter · Apr 18, 2016

birdrousta said:
does every scope have one? I know that many do.

but it's why I'm wondering how many of the bins that have them get sold, given the additional expense.

I don't talk hunting on here, but there are very few rifle scopes with
range finders. Way under 1%.

Jerry

james holdsworth · Apr 18, 2016

That Nikon P900 could almost double as a scope, even with much less screen resolution. At least, it could be a great spotting tool....gotta check it out someday.

birdrousta · Apr 18, 2016

NDhunter said:
I don't talk hunting on here, but there are very few rifle scopes with
range finders. Way under 1%.

Jerry

thanks, jerry. I am hoping its clear I'm asking about utility and sales volume rather than use per se.

a quick search showed laser range finding scopes at half, more or less, the cost of binos with rangefinders.

it's why I wonder how many of the 3k plus rangefinding binos actually get sold - there seems but one audience for them in civilian life, and are they the best tool even for that group?

soloflyfisher · Apr 18, 2016

birdrousta said:
thanks, jerry. I am hoping its clear I'm asking about utility and sales volume rather than use per se.

a quick search showed laser range finding scopes at half, more or less, the cost of binos with rangefinders.

it's why I wonder how many of the 3k plus rangefinding binos actually get sold - there seems but one audience for them in civilian life, and are they the best tool even for that group?

I'm not a big game hunter, but it seems to me that range finding binoculars would be much more useful than a range finding rifle scope. I assume the binoculars are the tool you'd use to locate your quarry and judge its distance. The scope is a tool for aiming the gun. I don't think you'd ever scan for game with your rifle scope. And by the time you're ready to shoot, I think you'd want to have already assessed distance and wouldn't want anything like distance data to distract you from the actual process of aiming and shooting. At least that's what I'd assume.

A lot of big game is shot at relatively long distances (and you need to adjust your scope for the distance, I believe, to account for the drop in the bullet due to gravity), so I would think a high-quality range finding binocular would be a very valuable accessory.

njlarsen · Apr 18, 2016

james holdsworth said:
That Nikon P900 could almost double as a scope, even with much less screen resolution. At least, it could be a great spotting tool....gotta check it out someday.

At my last major travel the scope stayed at home. I used my pana m4/3 camera with a 100-300 (equivalent to 200-600 on a full frame camera) to take photos of things that were too distant, and could identify either using the review in camera or on a computer later.

I am seriously expecting to change the lens to the new 100-400 pana leica for even more reach

Niels

etudiant · Apr 18, 2016

njlarsen said:
At my last major travel the scope stayed at home. I used my pana m4/3 camera with a 100-300 (equivalent to 200-600 on a full frame camera) to take photos of things that were too distant, and could identify either using the review in camera or on a computer later.

I am seriously expecting to change the lens to the new 100-400 pana leica for even more reach

Niels

Ideally your decision will be mirrored by enough other birders that the scope suppliers wake up and offer stabilized optics. If Nikon can produce an inexpensive camera that allows 40x hand held photography, then surely the alpha makers can build a scope with similar capabilities.

David in NC · Apr 18, 2016

Just out of curiosity where is this survey you guys were talking about?

New Swarovski 8 to 12x zoom binoculars? (1 Viewer)

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