In each of those listed respects I agree with Jessie.
Jessie has not mentioned a preference for 'porro' binoculars in 8x30, where Zeiss Habicht, Nikon EII or SE (£500upwards) have been regarded as the reference examples. While they have been superceded they still offer fine wide and clean views at a much more reasonable price than later 'roof prism' super models.
Their main deficiency is related to their short 'Eye Relief' (ER) cf. roofs and, in most cases, to their rubber fold-down eyepieces cf. clicking-up eyepieces.
Imo it is in those ways that they are outdated for wearers of glasses (spectacles)
e.g. for me 16mm is the minimum for being able to see the whole field while wearing glasses.
However there are a some options in your chosen budget which might seem to be in imitation of those acclaimed porros, particularly of EII 8x30, sharing their wide fields of view, small size, and light weight:-
- Opticron Adventurer T WP 8x30 around £70 with ER 15mm which might therefore be marginal for glasses, which I have not tried
and
- Opticron Adventurer T WP 6.5x30, even wider view, around £70 with ER 18mm, which I have not tried.
they are both said to have a sweet spot of around 70% and have been favourably reviewed with regard to sharpness.
Along similar lines there is also
- Opticron SR.GA 8x32 with ER 13mm around £100, which I have tried and which is also relatively small and light.
It is very sharp and has a larger 'sweet spot' (of good focus), with a precise focusing mechanism.
* These are the very features which are usually problematic for low cost binoculars *
My own current favourite is
- Vixen Foresta ZR8 8x32 with ER '18mm', which unlike the rest of these economy suggestions is said to be more 'weatherproof'.
It's likely to be around £170 and is harder to find, but is among those I have tried.
A little larger than Nikon 8x30 SE & EII and the others suggested, and weighs a lot more at 750gms
The eyepieces are large and click-up, it is very easy to 'line up' with the eyes, and the shape and weight makes it easy to hold steady.
It is VERY SHARP (i.e. better than roofs at the price) but sweet spot is 'only' 60%
Also with my example focus mechanism was poor and required £70 refurbishment to nearly correct it.
- Levenhuk Sherman Pro 8x32 £130 is more readily available. That looks the same and you may get a better example, but I have not tried one, and anyway the lens coatings may well be different.
The 'feel' of the binoculars and the impression when looking through them are entirely subjective, hence Jessie's #4.
The common terms used to qualify opinions are not really those which can be measured without further quite complicated qualification. For example 'sharp' can be granular to give a convincing impression, while the real object may have a graduated variation of colour and tone. It also depends on the available light and the subject, while some people may prefer one version or another, but these are the nuances which tend to involve disproportionate expense!
In the same way consistent quality is more likely to be found at the high end but if you can't try them, and if you don't wear glassses or if you don't mind leaving off the glasses, I can certainly recommend Opticron SR.GA 8x32 which would currently almost fit your budget and requirements.
