AllBinos.com

Cons: Heavy and big for a 7x but very well balanced; in line with classic 7x50 porro designs. Individual focus prevents some use scenarios. Limited eye relief, requires removing the rubber eyecups completely to view the field stop with eyeglasses on. I came up with a solution applying a rubber o-ring to the internal rim of the eyepieces, allowing me to remove the rubber pieces while avoiding scratches to eyeglasses. Field of view is limited at 50 deg AFOV but still very usable due to the extremely large sweet spot; I don\'t suffer the tunnel view much with this bino. While this bino is renown for a perfectly flat field at infinity, I still see some mild field curvature starting from 85% of FOV and up to the field stop; it\'s very gradual and more visible during the day than at night when observing star fields. Sharpness in this outer 15% of FOV is completely restored by refocusing, thus the effect is entirely related to a forward field curvature. This effect may be relevant to stargazers because coma and astigmatism mildy affect the last 15% of FOV when focused at infinity, however I consider it a pro because the mild forward field curvature actually improves the use during the day, contributing to the perception of greater depth of focus when focused at infinity

Pros: Built like a tank, feels extremely solid. Great ergonomics despite the weight. Optically superb, rewards with outstanding quality of view if you can cope with the weight and individual focus. Resolution and contrast are comparable to the best available today, which I was not expecting given the large objectives: contrast is very high even during the day and comparable to the best 4mm exit pupil roof prism designs. Focus snap is superb for both barrels and the images merge in a very easy and natural way: the view is very relaxed and there is no eye strain even after long viewing sessions. It\'s probably the case of best collimation I ever experienced in a binocular, resulting in exceptional confort of seeing. This bino will strain your arms much earlier than your eyes... Chromatic aberration is extremely well controlled, a remarkable result considering that the objectives are made of an achromatic doublet only: longitudinal aberration is virtually absent (i.e. no purple or yellow fringing at center field) even during bright overcast days, while lateral chromatic aberration is minimal and limited to the outer 15% of FOV at infinity focus. This is probably entirely due to the mild forward field curvature described in the cons, because within the curved field of sharp focus (i.e. closer to the observer at the image borders) I see no color aberration, nor coma or astigmatism. All in all a chromatic performance comparable to a very good modern ED design. No spikes from artificial light sources at night, a performance you will hardly get from roof prism designs. Ghosting is minimal both at day and at night. Light trasmission is superb and the large exit pupil is still relevant at night to my 40-years-old eyes! I can clearly see a difference to my 8x40 roof prisms in very dark conditions.

Summary: What really sets this bino apart from competition is the ease of view: no other bino gave me the same perception of \"just being there, seven times closer\"... Separation of planes at medium distances is an added bonus, typical of porro prism designs. This bino is the apex of porro prism design toghether with the Docter Nobilem 8x56 which I regret having sold years ago. A reference for optical performance, get it while you still can.

Cons: No internal baffling. No rubber armor, no twist up eyecup. Difficult to buy. Brightness falls short of Zeiss 8x56 FL by a little bit.

Pros: Traditional style. Textbook perfect view. Can't pick any flaw. Image true to life. Better than Fujinon FMT (a little bit yellowish cast).

Summary: A must buy for Porro lover. Buy before it discontinue like SE.