Birdwatchers: The Ultimate Buyer’s Guide to Binoculars

Author: Checkout Spy

If you can, it is a good idea to actually see the binoculars you are looking to buy in person so that you can truly assess the quality of the binoculars prior to purchase and ensure that you are comfortable with the set that you buy. There are eight major things to look for when buying a new set of binoculars.

1. Weight: How heavy is the set of binoculars? Will you be able to hold them up to your eyes for an extended period of times without fatiguing your arms? Are the binoculars light enough that you can carry them in your rucksack all day without hurting your back? Is the weight well distributed when you are looking through them?

2. Size: How large is the set of binoculars? Are the binoculars comfortable to hold up to your eyes for a long period of time? Many better sets of binoculars have thumb rests built into them to make holding them easier – do these thumb rests fit well with your hands? Where will you be keeping your binoculars most of the time – your car, a bag or your pocket? Will the binoculars fit easily into your intended storage area?

3. Viewing: The inter-pupillary distance of the binoculars is important. Adjust the barrels of the binoculars so that you can view through the binoculars with ease. You should be able to see a full field of view with no shadowing. Better sets of binoculars will allow you to ‘lock’ your favourite settings into place. If you wear glasses, ensure that the eyecup material will not scratch your lenses.

4. Focus: Adjust the focus on the binoculars. Does the focusing wheel turn easily? Ideally, one rotation will take the focus from close to distance whilst still allowing for very minor focus adjustments in between. How closely & how far away can you focus? Think about how you think you are going to be doing most of your viewing and then ensure that you are happy with the focus of the binoculars at that distance. Some binocular models have a locking feature that allows you to lock a particular focus in – if the set that you are testing has this, is it easy to use?

5. Magnification: 7x is probably the most popular, however try a few different models and find what sort of magnification you prefer. Compare several different manufacturers at the same magnification as different brands will be of different quality and often the higher the magnification, the darker the image, the shallower the depth of field and the narrower the field of view. 6. Colour Fringing: Most binoculars will have some form of ‘colour fringing’ (an effect of lateral chromatic aberration where bands of colour appear to contrast boundaries). Cheaper binoculars tend to have a lot more colour fringing than more expensive models so test out a few sets of binoculars and decide what degree of colour fringing you will accept. You can test this easily by looking at a dark object on a light background.

7. Curvature: When looking at an image, do straight objects end up curving badly at the edges? Are the objects in focus all the way along the line or do they veer out of focus towards the edge of the picture?

8. Quality: Quality is difficult to assess unless you have owned the binoculars for a period of time. The key things to look for are to ensure that the binoculars are fully waterproof; look for a set which are gas filled so that they are sealed from dust and rain. Check how ‘solid’ the rubber armour is on the binoculars. Is it sticky? Sticky rubber will end up attracting all sorts of dust and muck so avoid rubber which looks like it might perish quickly.

Although most binocular manufacturers will push the quality of image of their binoculars, there is little point getting a high-end set with the best image around if they are really uncomfortable to use. Although quality of image is undoubtedly important, it is equally important to ensure that the binoculars you buy are comfortable and easy to use otherwise they will just become an expensive dust collector. If you have a set of binoculars in mind that you would like to buy, always remember to compare binocular deals to ensure you get the cheapest price possible.

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