Although this thread has gone silent for more than a year, I open it again to shed some light on the discussion about improvements/changes in the YF II compared to the original YF.
I've finally had the chance to compare my mom's YF 6x30 and my daughter's YF II 6x30.
Although in other thread there was a discussion whether Kowa had adopted a new case for the YF II that allowed to carry the binoculars on its side, and thus have a slimmer case, in this unit it was not the case. In this case, the case remained the same (see what I did there?). I can report that both case, strap and rain guard were exactly the same.
As for the binoculars, they look exactly the same. Same dimensions and design, same rubber (although in different colour, obviously), same eyecups, same focus wheel with the same spongy feeling. Looking at the lenses, the reflections looked pretty much the same. On some occasions I'd say the YF II could display a slightly different colour pattern, with some more purple, but that could be just changing reflections. For the most part, it's the same device, with 3 notable differences you can discover upon closer inspection.
1. The YFII does not carry a "Made in China" sticker, but a "Assy. in Philippines", as if components were shipped from China (or elsewhere) and were assembled in the Philippines (there's a number of other brands selling pretty nice optics made in the Philippines, I can think of Sightron or Kenko).
2. In the YFII there's a protruding bit of plastic at the front end of the hinge. Unscrew the cap and you discover the YFII can be mounted on a tripod. If you look at the picture, you can see it clearly. The original YF has no space for a tripod adaptor. Although not something you use everyday, it's something I end up missing in the models that don't have it. So, well done, Kowa.
3. Regarding the discussion about coatings we had earlier on in this thread, I have to say that there is a (at least on paper) difference in coatings. While the badge on the hinge/bridge of the YF says "KR Coatings", the one on the YF II says "KTR Coatings". All else remains the same: overall lettering design, font, size, etc. So apparently Kowa has introduced new (improved?) coatings.
Comparing the two side by side under different light circumstances, I'd say the difference, if any, is quite hard to tell. Whatever improvement the KTR bring is really subtle. Sometimes I think I could have seem something in the way of contrast... but look again and I wouldn't bet 10 € that there was any difference.
So, there you have it. If you own an YF, not much new to report apart from the tripod adaptor entry. If you're going to buy one; unless you really need the tripod socket, I'd say go for whatever is cheaper or more convenient to find.
