I was in London for work on Thursday and Friday and managed to actually get my hands on some binoculars. Sadly, I did not have a lot of time and not all of them were available to test. However, maybe I learned enough to share some thoughts which may be useful to folks with similar needs. Please note, I am new to binoculars and so these are subjective and non-technical observations.
After testing a few pairs I really liked the 10x32/30 spec. Reading around, this is a less popular specification vs. 8x32/30 and I understand why. 8x seems to serve a very important role for many birders and photographers. However, 10x does seem a good fit for me. The Cairngorms has some beautiful Caledonian forests; if you haven't visited Uath Lochans and Glen Feshie, you'll love it. However, it is mostly an expansive mountain range and I think the extra magnification will be useful for observing raptors and deer. Thanks @crinklystarfish for giving me a steer on this.
Sometimes, I don't know what I think until I write it down. I think this is a safe space, so I've shared my rankings below. These were written before I got my hands on any binoculars and I'm sure most people will have different opinions. I'll also say that this exercise proved to be both useful and useless! (The brand ranking refers to my perception or experience of their build quality and customer care.)
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One of the first tests I did was to put the very low scoring Monarch M7 against the highest ranked Swarovski CLs. I immediately loved the feel of the Swarovskis in my hand and disliked the Nikons. However, when I looked through them, honestly, I could not see where the ~4x price difference was. The Swarovskis image was crisper, brighter, better colours, etc. To my non-expert eyes, that performance was perhaps 20% (30% being generous) better than the Nikons. On build quality, the Swarovskis were in a different league. A different binocular for a different budget. I then tried the MHGs and the difference vs. the M7 was rather small. Arbitrarily, I'd say 10%-15% better across most parameters. The MHG build quality is a bit better than the M7s, but when you look at the price difference I couldn't make sense of it at all. Nikon has absolutely knocked it out the park with their M7s.
I tried the Zeiss Conquest HDs and these were on a par with the Swarovskis optically. If I was being fussy, I would say the colours overall in the Swarovski were more to my liking. The Conquest HDs felt not as nice in my hands, but controls were great and a step up from the Nikon's feel. I then tried the Zeiss Victory SFLs and this was a mistake. They were out of my price range and it was immediately obvious that they were the best binoculars I had tried. Everything looked better in them and they felt as good in the hand as the Swarovskis. Almost as pretty too!
I also tried a pair of Leica Trinovids, but I liked these least of all. They felt nice it the hand, the image was very good but not great. The colours were very nice and crisp. I'd just tried the SFLs, which was probably a factor in my reaction. The Trinovids FOV immediately threw me. It is so noticeable vs. the binoculars that I think it killed off the Trinovids as an option for me despite my affection for the red dot. Price-wise, I think they could be better for the money Leica is asking.
I walked away without a decision and a bit shocked. I know some of you will appreciate the differences in image quality in a way that I can't, but I felt the M7s were insanely good value. The Zeiss Conquests HDs did nothing wrong and for their current price are incredible. My heart says the Swarovskis, my brain says the Conquest HDs, and my wallet says to buy the M7s and put the change toward a new Hilleberg tent.
I'll wait and see what Black Friday brings.
Cheers,
Ian
Wow, nice personal summary for not having a lot of time! And quite a list. Probably more good 30-32mm binoculars than I have tried yet, I think. While 8x30-32mm is my favourite format (in general).
Your post illustrates well how actually trying them out can give useful insights (to a considerable amount also very personal ones, which are as important).
Wrt the Nikon M7: you can find here on the forum several people mentioning they are nearly identical to a.o.the Kite Lynx HD(+) (likely just all clones from the same factory). That can help you find additional info on the forum. I never tried the Nikon but have the Kite. Véry good binoculars for their price, especially if you can find them second hand. Their main issue optically, for me, is there be quite some glare/reflections with them under some lighting conditions (ref.other threads). (E.g.the Ultravid or older Zeiss FL are much better to that regard. And the FL is superb wrt lack of CA.) Otherwise, I recommended them to 2 family members who (perfectly understandably) didn't want to spend several times that amount for an UV or FL, and they now both enjoy their respective samples of the Kite. Though I have to admit I don't use mine often anymore since having the UV and FL.
Some things only become apparent when using in the field, some things even only under some specific (e.g.lighting) conditions. This makes it difficult to check everything in-store, while it also makes it more or less relevant to different people, depending on when/where they use their binoculars.
Good luck with you search and purchase!
They are probably all good binoculars, to enjoy in the field.
