Peter Audrain
Consummate Indoorsman
In honesty this question would be directed at a specific Bird Forum member, mfunnell, if I knew how to mark this post for his attention, since he's posted thoughtfully about both these binoculars.
I'm looking for something quite small and light that costs less than $200 (so no Leica Ultravid Compacts) to have with me while walking to and from the train to work. I started out looking at 8x25s, but that part is flexible: above all, I want to enjoy the binoculars I get, and to enjoy always having them with me.
My commute is actually not terrible birding territory at either end. This spring I walked immediately underneath a Red-tailed Hawk sitting calmly and extremely close overhead, on a bough crossing the sidewalk to my building, and felt stupid for not having anything with which to see him better.
In any event, I can't figure out whether, if I were going to make Diamondbacks my commuting binoculars, it would be better to try 8x28s or 8x32s. They seem surprisingly close to one another both in size and weight, except with the 8x32s having the shockingly wide field of view.
But I think—though I'm not sure—that mfunnell, who seems to have already gone through exactly this exercise, ended up liking the 8x28s much better than the 8x32s? And perhaps the 8x28s are just that extra bit smaller that makes all the difference?
Anyway, I'd appreciate any thoughts you have, especially about this direct Diamondback-to-Diamondback comparison.
I'm looking for something quite small and light that costs less than $200 (so no Leica Ultravid Compacts) to have with me while walking to and from the train to work. I started out looking at 8x25s, but that part is flexible: above all, I want to enjoy the binoculars I get, and to enjoy always having them with me.
My commute is actually not terrible birding territory at either end. This spring I walked immediately underneath a Red-tailed Hawk sitting calmly and extremely close overhead, on a bough crossing the sidewalk to my building, and felt stupid for not having anything with which to see him better.
In any event, I can't figure out whether, if I were going to make Diamondbacks my commuting binoculars, it would be better to try 8x28s or 8x32s. They seem surprisingly close to one another both in size and weight, except with the 8x32s having the shockingly wide field of view.
But I think—though I'm not sure—that mfunnell, who seems to have already gone through exactly this exercise, ended up liking the 8x28s much better than the 8x32s? And perhaps the 8x28s are just that extra bit smaller that makes all the difference?
Anyway, I'd appreciate any thoughts you have, especially about this direct Diamondback-to-Diamondback comparison.