Best binoculars for whale watching

[OKPACIFIC]

Any suggestions for a set of hand held binoculars for whale watching that are not crazy expensive or crazy heavy? Are there any features (anti-glare??) that are a must for looking over water? A close up view would be more important to me than a wide field of range. Thanks!

 

[Phydeaux]

http://www.opticsden.com/best-binoc...fRA1rWWnByhKZuq_YwBHI0Y_kbJCTew5dORoCnmHw_wcB

 

["Roger"]

I understand that you don't want crazy expensive and understand that. If you are not going to be a frequent user of binoculars, don't spend a ton of money on them. Not a good investment. The question is at what price does crazy expensive start. (Full disclosure, I have owned a number of pairs of binoculars during my life and definitely in the crazy expensive category by any measure.)

I'll start by throwing binoculars into two categories: "department store" binoculars (not crazy expensive) and "something better." I am not a fan of department store binoculars. At first, they seem to do a good job. Decent focus at the center of the image. Why pay more? The problems are that they do very poorly under adverse lighting conditions and the good focus is only at the center of the image.

The prices for "something better" start at about $90 to $125 dollars and from there they go sky high (absolutely sky high). There are really some good binoculars at the $90 to $125 range, more than good enough for someone not a serious birder or hunter. The question is whether that is already getting into the crazy expensive range for you. (No problem if it is. You do not sound like you will be using these binoculars much beyond one trip.)

Things to consider beyond price. Waterproof? (Whale watching that might be important.) 8X vs. 10X. (That refers to the magnification. At first, you might say 10X in that gives you more magnification, but hand shake becomes more of an issue as you increase the power.) Avoid zoom binoculars. (A gimmick that decreases the quality of the binoculars considerably.) Physical size. (Compacts are nice in that you can slip them in your pocket, but the image will be darker. There are midsize and full size, but as size goes up, so does the weight.)

If you are willing to spend the $90 to $125, I would talk to these people over the phone. They are real pros as helping people out based on what they say they want and need.

Good luck!

 

[clifffaith]

Any suggestions for a set of hand held binoculars for whale watching that are not crazy expensive or crazy heavy? Are there any features (anti-glare??) that are a must for looking over water? A close up view would be more important to me than a wide field of range. Thanks!

Great topic. About 18 years ago when we lived right on the coast we bought a pair of tri-pod mounted mega-binoculars from a store over an hour away from us. By now can't remember what was amiss, but as soon as we got home we discovered we were sold the wrong item. Back we go, and I bitched about having to spend two hours on the road due to their error. As an apology they gave us a pair of purse sized binoculars which sat unused until we started traveling some years later. Last March we had them with us in Hawaii, but then in July I noticed they were no longer in the suitcase -- I suspect we (meaning Cliff) lost them during our Boston trip. So Friday we check in at Kaanapali, ocean front, with no whale watching binocs.

 

[MULTIZ321]

http://www.opticsden.com/best-binoc...fRA1rWWnByhKZuq_YwBHI0Y_kbJCTew5dORoCnmHw_wcB

Great List!! Thanks Phydeaux.

Richard

 

[GetawaysRus]

I have the Vortex Diamondback 10x42 (mentioned in the link above). I like the quality of the optics and the simplicity and ease of focusing. I see them on Amazon for $163 if you have Prime:

https://www.amazon.com/Vortex-Optic...1485225790&sr=8-1&keywords=vortex+diamondback

You will see it compared to the Bushnell (mentioned in the article) on that same Amazon page. The Vortex weighs just a bit less than the Bushnell and costs a bit less.

On that same page, notice also the Vortex Harness Strap. If you wear binoculars around your neck, they will move away from your chest if you bend forward or to the side, which I find to be a PITA. The harness strap holds the binoculars snug against your body if you should bend. But the downside of the harness is that it does make it harder to share the binoculars with others because you have to remove the harness to share the view.

 

[DaveNV]

Are you a Costco member? This is one of a few they have on their website:

https://www.costco.com/Alpen-Shasta...-Roof-Prism-Binoculars.product.100096395.html

Dave

 

[Phydeaux]

If it were my money, simple choice: Bushnell.

Why? Simple.

Quality of their products, and this warranty:

Bushnell's No Questions Asked Lifetime Warranty Promise
We’re proud to guarantee your complete satisfaction, and promise to repair or replace your product and ship it back to you at absolutely no charge. This fully transferable warranty covers accidental damage, as well as any defects in materials and workmanship, for the life of the product. *

Binoculars (Bushnell Elite, Legend Ultra HD, Legend E, L & M Series, Trophy and Trophy Xtreme)

As in their TV commercial, if your kid throws it into the fireplace, they'll replace it, free of charge. Damn hard to beat that kind of warranty on a solid, extremely high-quality product. Yes, I'm a fan of Bushnell.

 

["Roger"]

Just so that you are aware, Bushnell is not the only company currently offering the kind of warranty described by Phydeaux (although this sort of warranty tends to come with binoculars that start at above $200). I have nothing against Bushnell. I own a pair of Bushnell compacts myself (bought years and years ago).

My own advice would be to talk to someone who knows all the brands and can walk you through your needs, interests, and budget. While there are a number of very reputable companies that sell by internet and phone, the one that I have dealt with is the one that I linked to in my prior post. I have the advantage of being about an hour and a half away from there location and can physically try their different binoculars. Regardless, the people whom you talk to know their stuff. The average time they take talking to someone on the phone is about an hour.

Regardless of who or where you get your binoculars, Phydeaux has added a good question for you to add to your list: what sort of warranty do these binoculars have?

Finally, just a somewhat amusing story. Years ago my wife was going to buy a pair of compact binoculars for my birthday. (This is when I actually ended up with the Bushnell's mentioned above.) I got parked at a nearby coffee shop while my wife went into the Eagle Optics store. She told them what she wanted, how I might use the binoculars, and for about how much money. After about a half an hour she came and got me and said it was just too hard to decide between a couple of options. I came, tried a few binoculars, went outside, back and forth, etc. and finally considering price chose the Bushnell. (One of the options was better for clarity, but harder to hold and definitely more expensive.) As we finished up, I asked how could anyone ever make this sort of decision over the phone. The sales person (who in this case was the owner) quietly looked at my wife and said "Which was the pair that I first handed to you after I asked you about price and interests?"

PS - Another question is ask is how easy is it to change distance and focus. Some binoculars make you twirl forever, some make you fine tune too much, some have harder to work focus adjustment wheels.

 

[Phydeaux]

Just so that you are aware, Bushnell is not the only company currently offering the kind of warranty described by Phydeaux

It would be most helpful if you listed these other companies that offer a warranty equal to Bushnell's. Thanks.

 

[DavidnRobin]

Are you a Costco member? This is one of a few they have on their website:

https://www.costco.com/Alpen-Shasta...-Roof-Prism-Binoculars.product.100096395.html

Dave

Thanks for the Costco heads-up.

 

[tugcccsp]

Many years ago I purchased Canon stabilized 12x36 IS II binoculars for my wife to do bird watching. They have been a joy to use and the image stabilization has been amazing. We have not had any problems with them and the battery lasts a long time. I would have a hard time going back to non-image stabilized binoculars because of how well the image stays frozen while viewing.

 

[VegasBella]

I actually like a monocular not binocular. It's easier for me to use with my vision. I like this one: https://www.amazon.com/Polaris-Optics-Explorer-Powered-Monocular/dp/B00K9SYPAE
If you're not a Prime member though, buy it elsewhere as it will be cheaper.

 

["Roger"]

It would be most helpful if you listed these other companies that offer a warranty equal to Bushnell's. Thanks.

The two I know of for sure are Swarovski and Vortex. I own neither one (and am not trying to promote either one). I was surprised that Swarovski could offer a warranty like that, but a friend who owns a pair told me that a number of companies have the same guarantee (thus my original statement). These warranties are not universal. I own a pair of Leica's and they have a no questions asked warranty, but only for three years.

Just so that you can see that Bushnell (a good product) is not alone, here is the exact language of the Vortex warranty (taken from the net):

Our VIP warranty is about you, not us. It's about taking care of you after the sale.

VIP stands for a Very Important Promise to you, our customer. We will repair or replace your Vortex product in the event it becomes damaged or defective—at no charge to you. If we cannot repair your product, we will replace it with a product in perfect working order of equal or better physical condition.

You see, it doesn't matter how it happened, whose fault it was, or where you purchased it. You can count on the VIP Warranty for all Vortex Optics riflescopes, prism scopes, red dots, rangefinders, binoculars, spotting scopes, tripods, and monoculars.

• Unlimited Lifetime Warranty
• Fully transferable
• No warranty card to fill out
• No receipt needed to hang on to

If you ever have a problem, no matter the cause, we promise to take care of you.​

As far as this topic as a whole, my own view is that once you get into the $100.00 to $130 range, for the casual user, all the different binoculars are good enough. As the price goes up beyond that, the quality of the glass (prisms and lenses) improves affecting the brightness of the image. The coatings on the lenses also improves (quite substantially). Better coatings help bring out color fidelity and clarity especially under lesser lighting conditions. These two things can be very important for a serious birder. For example, upon seeing a bird with subtle markings while looking deep into the woods which makes the lighting poor, the two factors can be the difference betwen recognizing the bird or not. For the casual owner, cheaper binoculars are good enough. Thus, my initial advice that a casual user should be more concerned about choosing between 8X vs.10X, the size and weight of the binoculars. These are matters of personal preference. Other features can come into play (how easy is it to fast focus, quality of warrenty, and most certainly price), but don't worry so much about whether one will get a clear image under typical conditions. Binoculars are made well now.

JMHO Others, of course, are welcome to disagree.

 

[easyrider]

We have Bushnell 10x50 auto focus that we bought at Cabella's years ago. I like the auto focus and use these mostly on the water when fishing. We do take these on trips to see whats up at the resort from our deck. The auto focus makes it easy to spot and stay on focus while wale watching. They reach out a decent distance. Mine are water proof.


Bill