justabirdwatcher
Well-known member
My wife has a pair of Travellers I bought her and she loves them. Nice wide fov and bright. the eyecups don't extend out far enough for me but she wears glasses and they work well for her.
I've owned the newest version of the Minox 8x33 BL HD as well. For me it was just ok optically, not particularly sharp or bright. Nice build quality though. I also owned the previous version of the new Kowas in 8x32. They were quite nice but i had a very bright halo effect on the outside edge. Sounds like the new ones are getting good reviews though. I liked the Maven 8x30s a lot and found them to be much better optically than the M7 8x30. Smaller than what you are looking for though.
Had the Endeavors as well and the build quality was horrible and the optics so so. Had the Styrka S7 in 8x42 and the CA was horrible and I don't usually notice it. I'd suggest adding one of the older Leica Trinovids in 8x32. I've never owned a pair but have checked out a friends and they are very nice. A little on the heavy side though.
Funny how different people's eyes can see things. I compared the Maven 8x30's to the M7's and was not impressed with the Mavens at all. The fellow who owned them sure was though. I guess that's all that matters!
I do like how robust those older Trinovids are but I'm trying to downsize a little from my full size 8x42's for those quick and light trips.