Wingspan Optics Willow UltraHD 8x32 binoculars.
With a name like Wingspan Optics, you have to wonder if these bins are worth your time. They have proven to be quite a pleasant surprise & their offices are in Wyoming, so may be an American company. Was formerly Polaris Optics.
I took a shot with these & scored! I was looking for a more compact binocular when I came across these. The combination of features & low price was too good to pass up. I was skeptical at first, but after some research, I suspect that these are discontinued in the Wingspan catalog & would have originally cost much more than $69 on Amazon. Their specs equate to the ProBirder UltraHD in the current catalog & they sell for $135. Anyway, I am extremely happy with the performance of the Willow UltraHD 8x32. I have done a side by side comparison with my Nikon Prostaff 7s 10x42 & the Willow's appear to be their equal in sharpness, brightness & overall feel. Spec says ED glass??? The focus wheel is very smooth with no stiction or slop in the mechanism. The weight is just right for me. They have a good solid feel & enough weight to make them easy to hold steady. They are pretty quick to focus with a stop to stop travel of around 2 revolutions. The close focus distance is insane! When I am reclining with my legs extended, I can focus on my toes! Seriously! That's about 43 or 44"! This makes for a whole new use for these binoculars. Watching bugs & such right up close. Such fun! The objective covers are easy to put on & take off & stay out of the way when viewing. They come with a nice hard, molded case & a wide neoprene stretchy strap. The warranty for the UltraHD line is a no-fault lifetime warranty, so they will be replaced if you accidentally damage them. If you are looking for an inexpensive binocular give these a try. The low price is not an indication of the quality & hopefully the quality will be consistent with all samples.
Regards,
Kev
P.S. I was not impressed with the Wingspan Spectator 8x32 compact bins. Different league than the Willow. May have just been my sample, but the focus mechanism suffered horribly from stiction. I operated the mechanism repeatedly, but it didn't clear up. This made them unusable & the objective caps are nearly impossible to secure without excessive fiddling, they're too tight. Otherwise they seemed OK. Nice size, but I didn't spend much time with them.
With a name like Wingspan Optics, you have to wonder if these bins are worth your time. They have proven to be quite a pleasant surprise & their offices are in Wyoming, so may be an American company. Was formerly Polaris Optics.
I took a shot with these & scored! I was looking for a more compact binocular when I came across these. The combination of features & low price was too good to pass up. I was skeptical at first, but after some research, I suspect that these are discontinued in the Wingspan catalog & would have originally cost much more than $69 on Amazon. Their specs equate to the ProBirder UltraHD in the current catalog & they sell for $135. Anyway, I am extremely happy with the performance of the Willow UltraHD 8x32. I have done a side by side comparison with my Nikon Prostaff 7s 10x42 & the Willow's appear to be their equal in sharpness, brightness & overall feel. Spec says ED glass??? The focus wheel is very smooth with no stiction or slop in the mechanism. The weight is just right for me. They have a good solid feel & enough weight to make them easy to hold steady. They are pretty quick to focus with a stop to stop travel of around 2 revolutions. The close focus distance is insane! When I am reclining with my legs extended, I can focus on my toes! Seriously! That's about 43 or 44"! This makes for a whole new use for these binoculars. Watching bugs & such right up close. Such fun! The objective covers are easy to put on & take off & stay out of the way when viewing. They come with a nice hard, molded case & a wide neoprene stretchy strap. The warranty for the UltraHD line is a no-fault lifetime warranty, so they will be replaced if you accidentally damage them. If you are looking for an inexpensive binocular give these a try. The low price is not an indication of the quality & hopefully the quality will be consistent with all samples.
Regards,
Kev
P.S. I was not impressed with the Wingspan Spectator 8x32 compact bins. Different league than the Willow. May have just been my sample, but the focus mechanism suffered horribly from stiction. I operated the mechanism repeatedly, but it didn't clear up. This made them unusable & the objective caps are nearly impossible to secure without excessive fiddling, they're too tight. Otherwise they seemed OK. Nice size, but I didn't spend much time with them.
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