Gijs' Comprehensive Test of Transmission in Pocket Models (1 Viewer)

[John A Roberts]

As Gijs has indicated elsewhere this morning, his test of around 20 different models, both past and present,
has been posted at: https://www.houseofoutdoor.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/THE-NEW-SWAROVSKI-7X21-CURIO-def.pdf
So lots of comparisons to be considered!

John

 

[Tringa45]

I think the 8x20 Leica Trinovids/Ultravids must have S-P prisms and not Uppendahls.

John

 

[kabsetz]

Quite surprised to see virtually identical transmission spectra for the Curio and Ultravid 8x20

 

[[email protected]]

I would like to see a transmission test on the newer Nikon E2 8x30 from S/N 820xxx and on. I would really like to know if Nikon did improve their coatings.

 

[yarrellii]

This is truly remarkable. The work of Gjis van Ginkel is such an invaluable contribution to binocular lovers, we are in debt with him for all his efforts. I cannot thank him enough. I've just read the document and find it utterly interesting, not only for the information about the Curio, Zeiss and Leica and the other top-of-the range models, but also by giving information about such a vast array of models of different prices and configurations. What an amazing asset! Dank u wel meneer van Ginkel!!

 

[Gijs van Ginkel]

yarrellii,
post 5,
Graag gedaan, it was a lot of work and a challenge to get so much compacts to investigate, but I had a lot of help.
Kabsetz, post 3,
Why were you surprised? Leica makes very good binoculars.
Gijs van Ginkel

 

[kabsetz]

Gijs,

I well know that Leica makes very good binoculars. I happen to own an Ultravid 8x20 and am well aware of its generally superb quality. But I also know that Swarovski has demonstrated the ability to make perhaps the best multi coatings, and there is a 15 year difference in age between your tested Ultravid and the Curio.

- Kimmo

 

[Gijs van Ginkel]

Kimmo, post 7,
Now I understand, but we could not make anything else from our measurements.
Gijs van Ginkel

 

[[email protected]]

Gijs,

I well know that Leica makes very good binoculars. I happen to own an Ultravid 8x20 and am well aware of its generally superb quality. But I also know that Swarovski has demonstrated the ability to make perhaps the best multi coatings, and there is a 15 year difference in age between your tested Ultravid and the Curio.

- Kimmo

I think that is just an example of how Leica gets it right the first time. They don't have to make a lot of changes in their binoculars or coatings to keep up with the competition.

 

[Ries]

Great comparison test (very elaborate, nice!) I think many people have been hoping for, fantastic work again, thank you Gijs

To me it seems Curio only lacks a shorter close focus, which (nice and tiny) Ultravid has best but lacks in FoV. Surprised about the Ultravids high transmission!
Victory seems an inbetweener (although quite a bit larger), its focus speed shines again as fastest, with very good FoV and very acceptable close focus but the mentioned diopter problem? I'd never read about that before, but it seems so frequent it deserved mention?

with the prices, and being a backpacking entomophiliac, I'd be tempted towards the Leica Ultravid...I've learned the FoV is less important to me, more important for ease of view is the eyecups and eye relief being right for my face/eyes... Although the Zeiss Victory seems to do it all too, but its size is minus... Curio last place for me due to slower focus speed and less close focus. Purely birder's bins those, not for faster closer critters.

Eyecup inner diameter, that's the only thing I think would be a useful number to be included in the tables. I've read multiple times bins fail to match people's eyes/face because of that.

 

[kabsetz]

Leica Ultravid 8x20 eyecup outer diameter 29mm, inner diameter 19mm, eyecup movement between fully in/fully extended 8mm. Maximum IPD 72mm, minimum 36mm. These are measured with a precision steel ruler.

The eyecups are small, as this is a compact binocular. For me, best results for holding come when I support the top curves of extended eyecups against the bone of my eye sockets between my brow and upper eyelids. This works quite well. There is no hope for bone contact below the eyes.

Image quality is superb for such a small binocular, but for me personally, I can never get a fully satisfactory view with exit pupils less than 3mm, with 4 and above being better still.

For a truly pocketable binocular, I have not seen better, but have not tried the Curio yet. I'll have to see how the exit pupil advantage it has works for me.

But unless I really need the smallest binocular that can slip into a pocket, I prefer the Canon 8x20 over the Leica by a significant margin. The image is not as good, but the stabilisation makes such a huge difference that it is all that matters for me.

- Kimmo

 

[[email protected]]

What surprised me is the difference in transmission between the Leica Trinovid 8x20 and the Ultravid 8x20. I always thought the Trinovid was pretty close to the Ultravid, but the Ultravid is considerably brighter. The Ultravid has an almost 8% difference in transmission.

 

[eronald]

I can use the Zeiss VP without glasses and for the Curio I tested, I need glasses.

I just tried it yesterday, and Swaro has got a lot of things right with the Curio.

I wonder whether Swaro will add a diopter or so to infinity on request for us shortsighted bookworms?


BTW, may I say THANK YOU Gijs?

Edmund

 

[Gijs van Ginkel]

Edmund, post 13,
It is my pleasure, I hope the paper will be of help/interest.
Gijs

 

[mbb]

That report is a treasure of information and it must have been a lot of work to do all this.
Thank you so much!!

It is interesting to see how close the transmission graphs of the Curio, the UV8x20 and the older Swarovski 8x20 are. (With the older Swarovski 8x20 only loosing a bit from approximately 650nm on. I don't know enough about wavelength ranges to know how important that part of the spectrum is or when it would be noticeable.) It does seem to confirm the recent visual comparisom Yarrellii did.

I remember an older chart of the Swarovski 8x20 that did have a bit lower transmission values. Ghijs, do you know in which year these different ones where made?

The first 2-3 digits of the serial numbers (and/or the year of manufacturing) is the only piece of information that I am missing in the tables, as coatings seem to improve over the years even for the same models (at least for Swarovski,but I guess also for Leica,maybe also for the UV8x20). I don't know if that information is available?

 

[[email protected]]

The first 2-3 digits of the serial numbers would be helpful, as far as, coating improvements over the years goes.

 

[Gijs van Ginkel]

mbb, post 15,
Yes it was a lot of work first of all to get all these compacts together and that was followed by the struggle to get measuring facilities in the laboratory amidst the corona problems. It enriched our beautiful Dutch language with expressions that did not receive the report...
One of the things I should have given more attention to is the production years of all the different binoculars, something to take into accont in the next report.
Dennis it is not only the quality/composition of the applied coatings that have been improved a lot in the past decades, but there has also been the introducton of high transmission optical glass types, that can contribute to the overall brightness of the binoculars.
I will see what I still can find.
Gijs van Ginkel

 

[[email protected]]

mbb, post 15,
Yes it was a lot of work first of all to get all these compacts together and that was followed by the struggle to get measuring facilities in the laboratory amidst the corona problems. It enriched our beautiful Dutch language with expressions that did not receive the report...
One of the things I should have given more attention to is the production years of all the different binoculars, something to take into accont in the next report.
Dennis it is not only the quality/composition of the applied coatings that have been improved a lot in the past decades, but there has also been the introducton of high transmission optical glass types, that can contribute to the overall brightness of the binoculars.
I will see what I still can find.
Gijs van Ginkel

Gijs. Are the Habicht's still the highest transmission binoculars you have tested? Have you ever tested the Fujinon FMT-SX 7x50 or 10x50?

 

[fazalmajid]

Any chance the Kowa Genesis 8x22 and the Meopta Meosport 8x25 could be added to the test?

 

[Gijs van Ginkel]

Dennis, post 18,
As yet we have not found transmission values higher than 96%.
And yes, we have investigated the Fujinon 10x50FMTR-SX (not published I think).The transmission spectrumis not flat, it climbs from a minimum value below 80% at 450 nm to around 89% at 650 nm, so the spectrum is not flat and as a consequence color reproduction is not perfect.
Fazalmajid, post 19,
There is a chance, but it is very small and at the moment not likely.
Gijs van Ginkel