I was in the market for a pair of 10 X 42 binoculars. I already have a pair of 8 X 42 and 8 X 32. I thought the extra reach would come in handy. Obviously there are many choices. My 8 X 42 glasses were over $2000 but I did not want to spend that much this time around. There are not good shops around to test many binoculars. There are shops with Nikon, Leica, Zeiss and Swarovski around. I previously had had a pair of Minox binoculars, probably equivalent to what they call their X-Lite now. I decided to take a chance on their current top of the line X-HD binoculars 10 X 44. These are the open bridge design which I like. They seem nicely constructed, polycarbonate housing with a rubber coating. Exit pupil 4.4 mm. I do not know what the eye relief is but I wear glasses and have no problem. They focus wheel is metallic with some rubber strips that give it a nice texture. The diopter adjustment is below the right eyecup. You have to twist the eyecup up to make the adjustment. It does not lock but requires some effort to make the adjustment seems unlikely to move easily. There are the usual types of rain guards and objective covers. The latter tend to fall off the lens but not the binoculars. They say they have full multicoating, phase corrected prisms and use ED glass. They describe the optical system as "top optics". I could not find any specifics regarding their ED glass. As far as performance goes the images are very bright, sharp and I did not note any chromatic aberration or distortion. Seems sharp out to the edge. Contrast is adequate but not as contrasty as my Leica Ultravids. Overall I say the image is not as vivid as the Leicas. The Leicas are an older pair but they still really pop. I do sometimes have some difficulty holding the Minox still affecting image quality. The main thing I dislike about these Minox binoculars is the focus wheel. It does not have as much resistance as I would like so when focusing I often go pass the optimum image and have to go back and play with it a bit to be sure I have it right. The lessor contrast I think also contributes to this also. On the other hand the old Leicas have what must be close to perfect resistance and with the contrasty sharp images the image really pops when it come into focus. Minox says they test every pair of binoculars before they leave the factory but I plan to try and contact someone about the focus wheel. This was not as annoying until I compared it to the Leicas.
In summary I do not think I am seeing more detail than with my 8 x 42 so far. I suspect there are probably some cheaper options with equal performance though I am not sure about this because I do think with regard to optics you get what you pay for. These were little less than half what I paid for the Leicas. While there is glass out there costing over a $1000 more that my Leicas I surely would like to see how much they can improve on what I have.
In summary I do not think I am seeing more detail than with my 8 x 42 so far. I suspect there are probably some cheaper options with equal performance though I am not sure about this because I do think with regard to optics you get what you pay for. These were little less than half what I paid for the Leicas. While there is glass out there costing over a $1000 more that my Leicas I surely would like to see how much they can improve on what I have.
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