Wee bit off topic, but I find my Leitz Trinovid 8 X 20s to be the perfect compromise between pocketable versus view, meaning that there’s little reason to leave home without them.
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Excellent advice … regarding the “spend as much as you can afford” my father used to say it’s better if you only cry once …
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I’ve suggested these to my kids as a birthday present for myself. We go on a walk or bikeride often and ‘pocketability’ is an important aspect.
I like 'em, and they’re out there at just over the £300 mark.
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Love my little babies…
10 x 25.
Minox are better known of course for their famous miniature spy cameras. The optics of their ‘bins’ are excellent, on a par with Leica but much cheaper 
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Any views on Hawke binoculars for bird watching?
I don’t have any experience with Hawke binoculars. I think more important than the brand, is the type of binocular for birding.
For birding, an 8 or 10 power is ideal. The binoculars I have owned for birding have all been 8x42 and I think they are great.
Yes I have settled on 8 x 42, but can’t afford Swarovski. I have seen very good things written about Hawke, but there are so many brands. Avalon is another I see promoted widely. My budget is up to £400.
You might want to check out the Nikon Monarch 5. I believe it is within your budget and it gets very good reviews.
I looked at binoculars at an RSPB reserve store a few year ago. The Swarovski were excellent, and outperformed the RSPB own brand in both brightness and clarity, but when it came down to it I realised that the RSPB ones were very good and my ability to identify birds wasn’t limited by them. Frankly I can’t tell a pectoral sandpiper from a sandpiper, that level of subtlety is beyond my expertise. I got the RSPB bins (the current equivalent range is HD which do seem quite a bit brighter than mine), and they are great to use, and I have had a lot of pleasure birdwatching through them.
For that you could pick up a lovely pair of s/h Leitz Trinovid 8x40s. They are classics (for good reason) and a nice pair shouldn’t set you back more than £3-400. I have a pair and they’re the kind of binocular that you find yourself making all sorts of excuses to take along with you for walks - they’re that good to look through. Find a good pair and you’re set for life.
Otherwise, if you’re happier buying new, then the Opticron imagic BGAs are great value and excellent all-round bins and should come in around £400 if you shop around.
Your advice is much appreciated. Any suggestions for UK sources of the Leitz 8 x 40? You might be able to save me some Google searching. Or is it just a case of looking around? Thanks
You just need to look around. Also eBay can be good (especially Germany), but you need to ask some probing questions to make sure things like collimation are not out of alignment (can be fixed, but adds more cost). The later 8x40Bs probably have the best coatings and don’t be put off by the very late ones made at the Leitz facility in Portugal - many reckon they’re best of the lot. The diopter adjuster and focussing should be buttery smooth. They’re really easy to look through, give really sharp images, and have a nice wide field of view. What’s more their depth of field is also excellent (if you want the best then go for the 7x42 version), so you’re not constantly having to fine tune the focussing to get a reasonable image. This makes picking up subjects so much easier.
Interesting thread…
I have Opticron 20x80 (on tripod) for terrestrial/sky viewing, and Opticron 8x42 for nature, both relatively low cost and very reasonable quality…
…and a pair of non-descript 10x25’s…finally going to upgrade these to some high quality compact 8x25 or 8x30/2’s, lots of good advice above to study/research…
Have a good Sunday
Many thanks for this very helpful advice. I’ll take a good look around.
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