Ultravid HD Plus vs Noctivid a beginners raw account (1 Viewer)

My background is as a beginner. Here is my opinionated and raw commentary as to why I chose the Noctivid’s over Ultravid’s.

The testing was 1 week with each the Trinovid HD 8x42, Ultravid HD Plus 8x42 and Noctivid 8x42.

Why I chose the Noctivid’s over the Ultravid’s

1. Close focus - The Noctivid can focus down to 1.9m compared to 3m. For me this is a big deal. Allowing me to see things I simply couldn’t with the Ultravid. Interestingly the cheaper Trinovid’s also beat the Ultravid’s with 1.8m close focus.

2. Smooth focus - While the Ultravid has an accurate focus, I found it wasn’t nearly as smooth as the Noctivid’s or Trinovid’s. The Ultravid’s focus is a little crunchy and noisy, but accurate and durable. Pickup the Noctivid and you notice the difference. Silky smooth. Perhaps not as smooth as the Trinovid which uses a different technology, but a close second place.

3. Diopter - Both the Ultravid and Noctivid are very functional with a center diopter focus. For me the Noctivid has the edge on design. Allowing for the same knob to change both focus and diopter settings. Very impressive!

4. Distortion - The Noctivid produces a flatter image in my eyes, while maintaining no “rolling ball effect”. The Ultravid’s produces more pin cushion distortion on the edges when compared to the Noctivid’s.

5. Accessories - The Noctivid comes with superior accessories. This includes a much nicer case, much nicer objective covers and rain covers. I’m not sure why Leica doesn’t include the same accessories throughout their range?

6. Comfort/ Style - The Noctivid’s look excellent with their open design. Being compact it is difficult to grasp between between both barrels with larger hands. The Ultravid’s perhaps have a slight edge on comfort. Though this would depend on the individuals hand size and placement. Overall a wash here, both preform well, are extremely comfortable and look excellent.

7. Image Quality - Both bin’s preformed really well here. With the Noctivid’s having the edge. I found it more difficult to focus the Ultravid’s pin sharp, especially in low light conditions. The Noctivid’s immediately produced “wow” image in most conditions. Perhaps due to the smoother focus or better low light performance.

8. FOV/ Brightness - I’ve paired both of these together because most will not notice any difference without doing a side-by-side comparison. The Noctivid are brighter and wider, though the Ultravid still hold’s it’s own here.

So are the Noctivid worth paying 20% more? Yes. I would even consider upgrading if I was an Ultravid HD Plus owner with spare cash.

As an owner of two UVHD+ (7x and 12x) and one NV (10x) I would agree with you 100%. I love them all though and the 7x and 12x are only available in the UV. Great summary though - I sometimes feel that the NV gets unfairly slated here.

Right, I’m off to fetch the popcorn....... :eat:

I tend to agree with you Tom. No doubt the Noctivid is Leica's best binocular. But I sure do like the handling qualities of the UVHD+. I can't recommend against either.

The 7x42 Ultravid and 8x42 Noctivid are the two finest binoculars I’ve ever looked through.

I would reckon you’ve officially graduated beyond “beginner” status. Congratulations and nice review

Glad to see you guys love your NV’s and UV’s as much as I do. I literally take my NV’s everywhere, even if I don’t even have the opportunity to use them.

Not sure if I’m ready to graduate yet eitanaltman3 Not with 3 bins under my belt.

eitanaltman said:

I would reckon you’ve officially graduated beyond “beginner” status. Congratulations and nice review

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When I was going thru the same process of looking at these three....I would have to say I agree with your account 100% ...with number 1 & 2 standing out to be as being fairly obvious over the UV, while numbers 3 and 6 are also important. I might add that the UV is no slouch and the ergonomics of it equal that of the Noctivid. Nice write-up.... I didn't see this until now, months after the fact but reading it, I had to take a double check to make sure " I didn't write it! " And to boot, I got my Noctivid at the same price as a UV due to my binocular being used in an international birding competition for a week, jim

I have both the UV HD 8X42 and Noctivid 8X42, while the Noctivid is ahead on the optics, I find find the UV HD wins in the handling ergonomic department, it packs like a large 8X32 to me.

Andy W.

I know the Noctovids are supposed to be a step up in optical quality, to the Ultravid HD+, but looking through a pair of 7x 42 HD+ Ultravid, and 8x 42 Noctovid, i thought the image quality of the Ultravids slightly clearer.

This was my perception, other's no doubt will beg to differ, but the definition and image clarity, was slightly better with the Ultravids.

All i can offer, is that the slighter smaller 7x magnification, lends to a slightly better image clarity and defibition.

It was the main reason i bought the Ultravids over the Noctovids, and i suppose its down to each owners eyes, and the way they perceive a image.

Mac308 said:

The 7x42 Ultravid and 8x42 Noctivid are the two finest binoculars I’ve ever looked through.

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I agreed with that statement until the release last year of the 8X42 NL Pure

While the NL 8X42 is the latest and for some the greatest, I really enjoy the NV 8X42 and the UV 8X42, and were the NL not to have the wide FOV, I would have already sold it, I use it as much at night for astro as the day. Yes the NL is a nice glass, but different than a NV or UV in viewing. I much prefer the colors to my eyes from Leica during the day.

Andy W.

Llandudnoboy said:

I know the Noctovids are supposed to be a step up in optical quality, to the Ultravid HD+, but looking through a pair of 7x 42 HD+ Ultravid, and 8x 42 Noctovid, i thought the image quality of the Ultravids slightly clearer.

This was my perception, other's no doubt will beg to differ, but the definition and image clarity, was slightly better with the Ultravids.

All i can offer, is that the slighter smaller 7x magnification, lends to a slightly better image clarity and defibition.

It was the main reason i bought the Ultravids over the Noctovids, and i suppose its down to each owners eyes, and the way they perceive a image.

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Hi,

I see it similarly!
The Ultravid is not necessarily better than the Noctivid, but I think it's equivalent!
Both are excellent binoculars, a 7x42 is always a bit different from an 8x42, a direct comparison is not possible!
Put both binoculars in a sack, you will always pull out the right one.

means,
Andreas

Conndomat said:

Put both binoculars in a sack, you will always pull out the right one.

Andreas

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Nice!

I haven't tried the Noctivid yet, but I have some good experience with UVHD+ binoculars. My impression of the glass in my UVHD+ bins is that they are all-alpha, all the way. Spectacular, punchy, saturated, and crystal sharp for the bulk of the image view, which is where my eyes are when I use binoculars.

My only question about Noctivid design is around the placement of the focuser. Do any of you wish that Leica had placed the focuser farther from the ocular end? More like where the SF and NL focuser placement is? Or do you find that the focuser placement is just fine where it is? (I have never handled a pair of Noctivids.)

If I wasn't so well fleshed-out, in terms of my binocular squad line up, I'd be extremely tempted to buy a pair of Noctivids. I would be hard pressed to give up a pair of UVHD+, though. They're fantastic.

ZDHart said:

My only question about Noctivid design is around the placement of the focuser. Do any of you wish that Leica had placed the focuser farther from the ocular end?

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Hi,

in advance, I don't own a Noctivid myself, but I had the pleasure three times.

The focuser was actually too close to my nose, I had to spread my fingers a bit to reach it, maybe it's all a matter of getting used to, but the focuser on the SF is much more comfortable.

Otherwise great binoculars, very high quality and robustly made, the optics are in line with the SF or EL, with blindfolded you always have a winner!
I found the NV on the axis extremely sharp, almost dissecting, the contrast is very good and so is the stray light suppression, in these points I can even see it at the front.
I think the NV is a bit underestimated binoculars, in times of extremely wide-angled binoculars, of course, it has to look wrong, but if you can live with roundabout 60 ° AFOV, you will get a great glass.

Andreas

Thank you, Andreas. Unfortunate about the placement of the focuser on such an otherwise outstanding pair of binoculars.

I know what you mean by Leica's "dissecting, extreme sharpness". I just received a new pair of UVHD+ 10x32, and they are at least as sharp as, quite possibly sharper than, the 10x32 SF and 10x32 NL that I have recently been comparing.

Having a slightly wider field-of-view is not important to me. Razor sharp clarity, contrast, and delicious color quality are far more important to me, and I have found that sharpness and color quality in spades with every UVHD+ binocular that I have and have used. Leica glass is exquisite!

Yes, Leica makes great binoculars!

I have some binoculars that have around 60 ° degrees AFOV, I don't have the feeling that there should be "more" with any binoculars.
Very large fields of view sometimes also have disadvantages, the optics are more difficult to control and the viewing behavior can get nervous, the impression of the SF is more restless for me than the NV.
Everything has advantages and disadvantages, but the FOV of binoculars is just one point among many others, how high you rate the FOV is of course up to you.

Andreas

I have no issues with the placement of the focuser on the NV, thus...the suggestion always is to try it out for yourself. No doubt others might have an issue with any feature of any product, so always try yourself.

So here’s a comparison I would like to see, how does the 10x50hd plus optically compare to the 10x42 NV or Zeiss sf 10x42. Again optically only, I don’t care about size or ergos. Does the larger Aperture make up the difference optically? Also the 10x50 UVhd has almost the same fov as the Zeiss 10x42sf.

Make up what difference?