The new Nikon Monarch 7 8x30 is very nice! I have been using mine and I am very satisfied with it. The thing is really cute kind of like the Swarovski CL and about the same size but lighter YET! It is REALLY light. It is weird how much smaller a 30mm can be. The mechanics on it all work fine including diopter, IPD tension and eyecups and typical silky smooth Nikon focus. The accessories are all great with a nice rainguard, great strap, nice little case with belt loop and good tethered objective covers. Very typical Nikon high quality with a nice comfortable cushy rubber armour. I like it better than the Swaro CL for 1/2 the price. It has a much bigger FOV than the Swaro and in contrast to it's bigger brother the 8x42 Monarch 7 HD it is dead sharp on-axis. As sharp as my Swarovision and Conquest HD on-axis although these two do have a bigger sweet spot and of course the Swarovision has those sharp edges. IMO it is a better binoicular than it's bigger brother which too me is not that sharp on-axis. Very nice binocular if you are looking for something portable in the sub $500 range that is easy to carry around and you don't want to put up with the idiosyncrasies of a compact. I haven't looked through the new Swaro 8x25 but I will bet this little jewel will smoke it and it isn't much bigger. B&H has them in stock now and they have a no-hassle return policy.