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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Jeff Bouton" data-source="post: 1270939" data-attributes="member: 14925">Hey Thorin,You make some good points, and I'm glad service has continued to stand behind the product when you've had problems and sorry that you've had them at the same time. Regarding you wanting to hear my commentary on decisions made very high in the company by management, board of directors, etc..... "umm, NO!" ;p I'm afraid as the birder/naturalist representative for the US, they don't call me for advice on these business decisions, I typically only get calls when someone has a specific usage question regarding digiscoping or for the, "I saw this bird in my yard..." I will say for the record though if we simply kept the same design and maintained the focal lengths required so the old eyepieces would work seemlessly, we would not have been able to add the revolutionary wide-angle eyepiece. Nor would we be able to take full advantage of everything we've learned over the past 12-13 years regarding different combinations of glass that offer superior light transmission, etc. Simply putting a new cover on the same product and trying to re-introduce it as a "NEW" product, might be "business as usual" for some manufacturers but not for Leica fortunately. IMHO the Televid scope has out-performed its contemporaries over the past decade particularly regarding resolution at distance at higher magnifications. However, to reintroduce the same product again without taking advantage of revolutionary technologies we had at our disposal, would be the wrong decision. So I support the decision to make a new scope that has all of the advantages we can come to market with to insure it will remain a viable piece in the marketplace for a long time. Again remember I'm a birder and not a businessman though and I have lots of pretty bird pictures online to prove it! <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite2" alt=";)" title="Wink    ;)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=";)" /> There are a lot of current Televids out there, and yes new stock is gone (as are Trinovid binocs for that matter similarly), however I don't see this as a problem so long as you continue to receive quality service as you have to date. A spotting scope is a tool of the trade, and like any tool they can be worn down, broken, and eventually even need to be replaced. When I worked construction for a living I'd buy new cordless drills every other year or so, and now (travelling to 25-30 shows annually) I get new luggage each year. How often do we replace automobiles?!?... It's really all relative to the amount of use and abuse these items receive. At any rate, even given the buzz over the price, looking at the economy, inflation, etc. and the fact that most consumers will carry these products for a decade or more... So that's a mere only 250 quid annually to insure the best views money can buy! <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite2" alt=";)" title="Wink    ;)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=";)" /> Serriously though, when we compare the price of a brand new state of the art piece to a competitors' decade old design, there will undoubtedly be a significant difference in price. However, this is likely to change dramatically as competitors follow suit and roll out new designs of their own.For those interested in image stabilization. It's a neat idea but it would be a difficult sell for a lot of reasons. First, at present it seems the market is being driven by smaller size and less weight as primary concerns (even at the understood cost of optical performance in many cases). Taking a decent scope and adding electronics and gyros, etc is not going to make it lighter and certainly not smaller when you consider that the optics need room to "float" inside a larger body. The second issue is that of durability, when moving into the world of electronics you now have a piece of equipment you DO NOT want to drop or even smack into a tree, etc. Additionally, any electronics piece will carry a VERY short warranty period. It's these reasons along with battery issues, etc. that have really limited the growth of IS optics use in general. They're big, they're heavy, and they definitely don't "bounce" gracefully (an unfortunate side effect of having an optical system that needs to "float" freely rather than being solidly locked in place).My random thoughts for the day. By the way did I mention my pretty bird pictures and a birding blog?... Something 25 years as a professional birder HAS prepared me for.Jeff BoutonProduct Specialist - Birder/Naturalist MarketsLeica Sport Optics, USALeica Birding Blog:<a href="http://www.birdwatchersdigest.com/leica" target="_blank">www.birdwatchersdigest.com/leica</a>my digiscoped wildlife images:<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/16435490@N00/" target="_blank">http://www.flickr.com/photos/16435490@N00/</a></blockquote>

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