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Zeiss Terra ED 8x25 vs. Swarovski CL Pocket Mountain 8x25 vs. Zeiss Victory 8x25 (1 Viewer)

C

Common Raven

Well-known member
Like many of us here, I'm in a never ending quest for the perfect binocular. I need help deciding between these. I wear glasses and am leaning towards the Swarovski, but want second opinions. Most important is compactness WHEN IN A CASE (these will most often be in my backpack that I take on the bus, train, and basically everywhere else with me). (This is why the Swarovski leads.) Field of view, and eye relief are the next considerations. I am not interested in a smaller binocular (I already have an Ultravid 8x20 that is just a little too finicky with eye placement for me to like), or a larger one (I have several 8x30's and the Bushnell Custom Compact that are a little too large for my tastes to be truly portable, and a Meopta 7x42 as my main bin.) (Thank you Chuck chill6x6 for the through review on the Meopta!) So I've decided 8x25 as the sweet spot compromise.

I understand there's a soft carry case for the Terra but I can't seem to find it anywhere. Or if anyone has any more suggestions for a small case for it (or the Zeiss Victory Pocket 8x25, I'd love to know about it).

Thank you all.
 
CR,

I owned the Swaro 8X25 CL-P for about 6 months...currently have the Zeiss Terra ED 8X25. Both provide great optical views, but have their pros\cons, mostly related to the large disparity in price-of-admission!

James Holdsworth has an informative BF thread on the Terra HERE (my comments in post #38)!

The tight fitting hard case I use can be seen HERE. Not sure what accessories the Terra 8X25s come with now?

Can't comment on the Zeiss Victory 8X25, but sure they are great pockets. Might have another member who can give hands-on feedback...

Ted
 
I pulled the little Terra out today for a peek as it has been awhile. Very sharp with good contrast, nice large sweetspot, perfect whites, neutral colours, very little CA, reasonably easy eye-placement.

For the cost, you really couldn't ask for much more. Binoholics would notice the difference when moving up to a $1000 compact, the rest likely never would.
 
get the Terra and keep steppin...Like James said you have to look very hard see any improvement with the other big dollar compact bins mentioned....
 
Thank you all for the reports so far. Troubadour, your reviews are always a pleasure to read, so I'll be looking out for your review. As far as the 3x the price, I am understanding about diminishing "bang for the buck" returns the more you spend / realize that the Terra is more "my money's worth," but am concerned about the decreased eye relief and field of view. That's part of the reason I've given on my Ultravid 8x20's.

I also find the small form factor of the Swarovski's compact case appealing. Do you guys know the dimensions of the Terra's case?

Cheers and thanks again for the input. :)
 
Last edited:
One question, is the Terra 8X25 a better glass in it's format (pocket/smaller aperture) than any of the larger Terras, (i.e. 32 and 42mm objective) binos are in the lower/mid range of it's class.

Andy W.
 
dries1 said:
One question, is the Terra 8X25 a better glass in it's format (pocket/smaller aperture) than any of the larger Terras, (i.e. 32 and 42mm objective) binos are in the lower/mid range of it's class.

Andy W.
Click to expand...

Good question Andy. I have the Terra ED 8X42s and YES, IMO the little Terra 8x25s come in with unexpected much better optics for their respective format class!! :smoke:

Ted
 
yes...all the terra bins do a good job for their price class....the pockets terra bin just does a better job....in fact they are so good if you didn't know how much they sold for you would think them an alpha class....
 
Common Raven said:
I also find the small form factor of the Swarovski's compact case appealing. Do you guys know the dimensions of the Terra's case?

Cheers and thanks again for the input. :)
Click to expand...

CR,

My Zeiss hard case is 5.25"L x 4"W x 2.375"H and weight is 422g\14.8 oz with The MIJ Terra ED 8X25s inside!

Ted
 

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Compared to my LX/L 8X20 the eye cups appear larger, my biggest gripe with the pocket (8X20) glass models is the small diameter retractable eye cups, made for a squirrel.

Andy W.
 
dries1 said:
One question, is the Terra 8X25 a better glass in it's format (pocket/smaller aperture) than any of the larger Terras, (i.e. 32 and 42mm objective) binos are in the lower/mid range of it's class.

Andy W.
Click to expand...

The 8x25 Terra is made in Japan, and the other Terra's are made in China,
at a lower quality and price point.

That says it all right there.

After reading some of the other posts, I agree that the Zeiss 8x25 Terra
is a nice value in the pocket size, and you can stop looking right there.

I have or have used some top others from Leica, Zeiss and Nikon.

It is much the same with the bigger binoculars, just striving a bit for better.

Jerry
 
At this point, I've probably tried ~8 units of the Zeiss 8x25 Terra ED. If you get a good unit, it can be a decent binocular. However, it is not a match to the optics, mechanical quality, or design of top-end bins. To me, the differences are obvious.

--AP
 
dries1 said:
Compared to my LX/L 8X20 the eye cups appear larger, my biggest gripe with the pocket (8X20) glass models is the small diameter retractable eye cups, made for a squirrel.

Andy W.
Click to expand...
That is so true about the smallish eye cups. I guess they have to use smaller eye cups on a compact binocular or it would look strange with full size eye cups.
 
Jerry, that is news to me I thought all Terra models were made in China. Good to know. It looks like a good value. Thank you.

Andy W.
 
Yes Dennis, they would look odd, and would not be pocket size anymore. The optics are good for an 8X20 and with some bigger eyecups would be usable, I now just carry an 8X32 - no more pockets for me. I am looking to get a Terra pocket as a gift for a Nephew.

Andy W.
 
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