Binoculars for bird watching (1 Viewer)

[Esmeralda]

Hello everyone! I am new to this website. Thank you for having me!

I come with a question. I want to gift my boyfriend a pair of good binoculars; he is a biologist but only has a bootleg, extremely heavyweight set. However, I don't really understand what really makes good binoculars for birding.
We're from Argentina, which means everything is extremely expensive here. My budget is around 100 USD; will I be able to buy something in that price range that isn't for someone that isn't exactly starting at this activity? Are 10x50 really necessary? What models of Nikon (is it actually a good brand?) would be nice?

Thanks so much in advance! Of course I don't expect anyone to explain to me every aspect of a binocular, given that I can do that research on my own. But I would love to hear some personal experiences.

 

[Sky2goflying]

SVBONY SV202 8x32 Binocular ED FMC IPX7 Waterproof BAK4 Telescope Outdoor View 792855937692 | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for SVBONY SV202 8x32 Binocular ED FMC IPX7 Waterproof BAK4 Telescope Outdoor View at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

These binoculars by Svbony even though they are 8x32 they have ED glass, Phase Coated risms and a Field of view of 409 ft. They have some good reviews. Also they have a rebate and the total cost would be $109 USD. I think they are a good value for the money.

Also you can check these out.

Nikon PROSTAFF P3 8X30 Binoculars Fog Waterproof Black Binocular for sale online | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Nikon PROSTAFF P3 8X30 Binoculars Fog Waterproof Black Binocular at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

I hope this helps

 

[jafritten]

Hello everyone! I am new to this website. Thank you for having me!

I come with a question. I want to gift my boyfriend a pair of good binoculars; he is a biologist but only has a bootleg, extremely heavyweight set. However, I don't really understand what really makes good binoculars for birding.
We're from Argentina, which means everything is extremely expensive here. My budget is around 100 USD; will I be able to buy something in that price range that isn't for someone that isn't exactly starting at this activity? Are 10x50 really necessary? What models of Nikon (is it actually a good brand?) would be nice?

Thanks so much in advance! Of course I don't expect anyone to explain to me every aspect of a binocular, given that I can do that research on my own. But I would love to hear some personal experiences.

That's a very tight budget for a good pair of binoculars, especially if they'd be meant to be an upgrade for a user with some experience and professional demand. On a budget like this I'd look at porro designs rather than roof prism binoculars because roofs must be manufactured to much tighter tolerances, which means they're more expensive or leave quality control to the customer. You may be able to return a sample if it's not up to your expectations but as you want to give it to your boyfriend, that's not a good idea. Some people return 5 or more samples before they have found a keeper. Unfortunately, I don't know many binoculars that are within your budget. My kids use a Kowa YF 6x30 which I keep recommending to everyone who wants an inexpensive pair with good optics. For birding, the 8x30 configuration may be what you're looking for. They're about 135€ in Europe. I'm sure other users know a few porros that are within your budget.

PS: 10x50 is not necessary for birding. For daytime use 8x30 or x32 is fine.

 

[Esmeralda]

SVBONY SV202 8x32 Binocular ED FMC IPX7 Waterproof BAK4 Telescope Outdoor View 792855937692 | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for SVBONY SV202 8x32 Binocular ED FMC IPX7 Waterproof BAK4 Telescope Outdoor View at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

These binoculars by Svbony even though they are 8x32 they have ED glass, Phase Coated risms and a Field of view of 409 ft. They have some good reviews. Also they have a rebate and the total cost would be $109 USD. I think they are a good value for the money.

Also you can check these out.

Nikon PROSTAFF P3 8X30 Binoculars Fog Waterproof Black Binocular for sale online | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Nikon PROSTAFF P3 8X30 Binoculars Fog Waterproof Black Binocular at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

I hope this helps

Thank you so much!! Will definitely check these out

 

[Esmeralda]

That's a very tight budget for a good pair of binoculars, especially if they'd be meant to be an upgrade for a user with some experience and professional demand. On a budget like this I'd look at porro designs rather than roof prism binoculars because roofs must be manufactured to much tighter tolerances, which means they're more expensive or leave quality control to the customer. You may be able to return a sample if it's not up to your expectations but as you want to give it to your boyfriend, that's not a good idea. Some people return 5 or more samples before they have found a keeper. Unfortunately, I don't know many binoculars that are within your budget. My kids use a Kowa YF 6x30 which I keep recommending to everyone who wants an inexpensive pair with good optics. For birding, the 8x30 configuration may be what you're looking for. They're about 135€ in Europe. I'm sure other users know a few porros that are within your budget.

PS: 10x50 is not necessary for birding. For daytime use 8x30 or x32 is fine.

All the things you mentioned are super useful. Thank you! The returning thing would not be possible, given that we both live in South America and I was thinking of getting the binoculars shipped here. But still, I am hopeful I will find something that he enjoys. Again, thank you!

 

[jring]

Hi,

first of all, welcome to birdforum!

An 8x42 pair would be the usual size for general birding - with 10x42 (for those who can hold 10x pairs steady and for mainly far away birds on water or for raptors) and 8x32 (for lower weight which gets traded for a few minutes less observation time at down or dusk).

Will you wear glasses when using the binoculars (e.g. do you have a prescription for glasses with sth else than spherical)?

Joachim

 

[Esmeralda]

Hi,

first of all, welcome to birdforum!

An 8x42 pair would be the usual size for general birding - with 10x42 (for those who can hold 10x pairs steady and for mainly far away birds on water or for raptors) and 8x32 (for lower weight which gets traded for a few minutes less observation time at down or dusk).

Will you wear glasses when using the binoculars (e.g. do you have a prescription for glasses with sth else than spherical)?

Joachim

Thank you so much!

Yes, he does wear glasses

 

[jring]

Hi,

in that case the SVBONY 8x32 pair linked up there might be problematic as their eye relief (the distance your eye has to be at for observing the full field of view) is fairly low at 15.6mm - there is a chance that your boyfriend will not be able to see the whole field of view when wearing glasses. This is not the end of the world, as this pair has a fairly wide field of view of 7,8 deg so a little less is still ok...
18mm eye relief is sufficient for most glasses - unless they are very thick and bulky....

It ticks the necessary boxes for fully multicoated, phase coated and waterproofing and is really cheap and just out of budget with the 104 USB pricetag during black friday sale (until Nov 27th). The question is whether they will deliver to Argentina (they don't to Germany) and if yes, what will be the postage to there...

PS: There is also one story (among several who liked their pairs) of a really bad example of these on BF with the seller trying to dodge the returns policy - which might be tricky anyways from Argentina...

Joachim