BDII XD Reviews (1 Viewer)

Thanks for the link to the review!
Unfortunately 6,5x32 is reported as having the smallest sweet spot in the series. But a personal try out will show whether I find it still satisfying. Can't wait...

Any one tested the AFOV of 832 and 1042？
How do they compare with EII? 832 are identical of EII at 8.8° as specified.

range said:

Any one tested the AFOV of 832 and 1042？
How do they compare with EII? 832 are identical of EII at 8.8° as specified.

Click to expand...

I have the Kowa 10x42 and the AFOV is 72 degrees. So it a class leader and the biggest AFOV I have seen in a 10x42. Bigger than the Zeiss SF 10x42(65 degrees) or Nikon Monarch HG 10x42(69 degrees) or even the Nikon EII 10x35(70 degrees) and you notice it. It is a very nice binocular just like the 6.5x32 and an excellent value at $400.00.

As per Allbinos the 8X32 is a bit short of 8.8 degrees FOV, I noticed this in comparison with the EII 8X30.

Andy W.

Hello,

I would be interested to know how the BDII's compare optically with the old series BDXD Prominar if the wider field of views of the BDII's are disregarded.

In other words do the optics of the BDII's give better performance over the older model as far as view quality is concerned.

Sorry for expressing myself so badly.

Cheers.

range said:

Any one tested the AFOV of 832 and 1042？
How do they compare with EII? 832 are identical of EII at 8.8° as specified.

Click to expand...

Doesn't look like anyone has actually measured the AFOV of the BDIIs. An educated guess can be made if Allbino's observation of low pincushion distortion is accurate and taking into account Allbino's and Andy's finding that the TFOV of the 8x32 is not quite as wide as the EII. Taken together those suggest that the "true" AFOV of the 8x32 BD II is probably somewhere around 63º-65º (provided the true magnification matches the EII).That would be a bit lower than the 66.5º true AFOV I measured for the 8x30 EII. Even though the EII has moderate pincushion distortion (not quite enough to compensate for angular magnification distortion) its true AFOV falls a little closer to Nikon's ISO spec of 63.2º than the simple calculation of 70.4º.

The 10x42 could have a little larger true AFOV than the 8x32, perhaps somewhere between 64º and 66º, depending on the actual TFOV, true magnification and the amount of pincushion, but it's certainly not going to be 72º. The simple calculation always exaggerates the true AFOV.

Andy could quickly determine whether the SD II 8x32 or the Nikon EII has the larger AFOV by placing his 8x30 EII to one eye and his BD II 8x32 simultaneously to the other eye. Bring the fields close together and observe which field circle appears larger.

Henry

[email protected] said:

I have the Kowa 10x42 and the AFOV is 72 degrees. So it a class leader and the biggest AFOV I have seen in a 10x42. Bigger than the Zeiss SF 10x42(65 degrees) or Nikon Monarch HG 10x42(69 degrees) or even the Nikon EII 10x35(70 degrees) and you notice it. It is a very nice binocular just like the 6.5x32 and an excellent value at $400.00.

Click to expand...

Do you mean you have the Kowa BD II 10x42 XD binos? I'm seriously considering buying it at that unbeatable price tag. My first choice would be the Vortex UHD but that is out of budget right now.

I have the 8x42 BD II XD and use it for bird watching.

Pros:

• Very light-weight.
• Wide angle.
• Works well with glasses.

Cons:

• No good field carrying case.
• Eye-piece protectors have too much friction and are difficult to get on and off.

I compared this model with a few other (e.g. Kowa Genesis 8.5 x 44) in field and didn't find the optical differences noticeable enough to motivate a higher weight or higher price.

My BD II is at Kowa now for a sloppy focus, tubes not focusing simultaneously, and loose hinge. IMHO it is no where near a Kowa Genesis from an optical perspective, except CA correction, not to mention build quality. One gets what they pay for, give it some time.

I recently got the 8x42 model.

I'm no optics expert but my 2 cents...

I love it because I have shaky hands but find it easy to keep a steady image with this model because the shape of the eye cups make it easy to rest it against my eye sockets and the big fov also helps.

The image was at least as good as the others in this price range I tried.

The image is quite cool compared to other bins I tried. And I prefer it that way.

So far i'm very happy with them.