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Message: <blockquote data-quote="mac.o" data-source="post: 3519658" data-attributes="member: 136360">My experience with the Meopta 12 x 50 HD (and other bins)Thanks for your review, David. I've purchased the same binoculars 3 months ago, and I'd like to show my view, using citations from your text for my comments. (I just discovered your review some days ago, so my experiences are not influenced by it.)The binoculars I use nowadays are two Meostar B1 from Meopta: a 7 x 42 (purchased last spring) and a 12 x 50 HD, purchased last autumn. I've seen a lot of bins the last months, but for me the Meostars are the best from the sub-premium class: nearly the performance than the premium bins (and sometimes better!), but for 30 to 40 percent of the price of theme (at least in Switzerland). Unfortunately, there is no dealer to present them in a shop, there is only an online shop in Switzerland who orders them through the official representative. And that is the reason, only few persons know and appreciate the Meopta binoculars. They would be better known, if one could take them in the hands and test them with one own's eyes. (Regarding to me, I would not hesitate to order another Meostar online without having tested it before - but not a pair of Meo Pro HD binoculars, which Meopta does not produce itself, but buy at another factory - these are more conventional bins with some faults.)The colour rendition of the 12 x 50 is a bit on the warm side, but less than that of the 7 x 42. But I like it more this way than that of my Zeiss Conquest HD 10 x 42, which are a bit cold. (Meopta's colour bias is similar to that of Leica binoculars.)The grip: perfect for me. The look: I don't think of military green or hunting green, but of the good old green of the Swiss (and German and Austrian) Federal Railways 30 years ago... Advantage: green doesn't get heated by the sun so fast as black!They fit my hands as well. (The 7 x 42 are even better!)The rain guard for the eyepieces are very good. Its material does not bother me when it touches my hand. Most users will use them threaded only at the strap on the right side. The rain cover will not be damaged like that on my Zeiss Conquest HD which has a sharp strap and a soft rain guard.Yes, but the alternatives are similar.Well, I carry them for several hours, often combined with my 7 x 42 Meostar, which weighs an additional 860 g.I agree, the plus in viewing details compensates for the shake - but not if you have just climbed a hill and are out of breath!The focusing unit is the best I've seen - much more better than the ones of the Swarovision EL, the Zeiss SF and the Zeiss Conquest HD. It is on a par with the one from the new Noctivid from Leica! Compared with that of the Meostar, the focuser of the 12 x 50 from Svaro EL is mediocre - I never could focus with one movement of my finger, there is a resistance that suddenly broke down and resulted in a defocused view. This effect is not big, but in consideration of the very limited depth of field of 12 x, it is annoying.That is the one and only drawback of these binoculars for me: being far-sighted, my glasses need an eye relief of at least 16 mm. But I can live with this incovenience, because I use 12 x 50 binoculars only to identify details, for overviewing a flock of birds I use my 7 x42.No problem, I share your enthusiasm...Compared with binoculars that magnify 7 or 8 times, a pair with a magnifying factor of 12 outperforms clearly a 10 x 42. In my experience, a combination 7 or 8 + 10 times does not make any sense, but a combination 7 or 8 + 12 does.I agree, but I would say that this is not only an effect of sharpness, but also of brillance and the nearly complete absence of chromatic aberration.I wouldn't say that they are flat field (as far as I know, there is no lens at this purpose), but the borders aren't really bad. Again, I use the 12x50 mostly for details in the center of the image.That's is very important for me: I get uneasy when there is a remarkable rolling ball effect (as in the 8x42 SF from Zeiss).As I said before, the chromatic aberration is very well corrected - true HD.Glare and false pupils are indeed no problem, in contrast to my Zeiss Conquest HD 10 x 42 which break down when I am viewing against the light (for example reflections of the sun in a pond). (The 7 x 42 are even better - nearly perfect in this regard!) I could compare my binoculars with the 12 x 50 Swarovision EL from Swarovski, and I had also the impression that the Meostar magnify more than those pair. By the way: The image quality of the Meostar was at least as good as that of the Swarovision (which cost at least double the price of the Meopta). The eye relief of the Swaro is better (about 18 mm), but the focussing unit is worse, and that is a major disadvantage.All the Meostars B1 of Meopta are bargains - in my opinion. I think they are a much better choice than the Zeiss Conquest HD, for example. They resemble the Swarovision SLC, which are very good, but also not flat-field - but these cost more than the Meostars and there are not all models available (especially no 12 times magnifying bin).As I said before, I often use a combination 7 x 42 and 12 x 50 - that's heavy, but I have only a tiny Lumix super-zoom digicam with me and thankfully a healthy neck!Best regards,Mark</blockquote>

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