Swarovski Optik EL (8.5x42) Binocular
- Binoculars Type: Binocular
- Max Magnification: 8.5x
- Lens Coating: Fully Multi-Coated
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Beautiful binoculars
Pros
Excellent optics, beautiful build and good design.
Cons
A trace of chromatic aberration. Pricey - so what did you expect?
Recommended it?
Yes
The Bottom Line:
Superb optics, design and build. At a price.
Introduction
The Swarovski 8.5x42 EL binocular is a premium quality full sized binocular from the prestigious Austrian optical company. It is already a best seller due to outstanding optics and ergonomics.
Design and Build
The Swarovski 8.5x42 EL is unusual in having two tubular optical assemblies joined by two hinges. Whether or not you like this is a personal issue, but to my mind it is a wonderful shape. The tubes are covered in a high quality lightly textured green rubber that has a slight give and a pleasant feel. The frame is made from a magnesium alloy that helps to reduce the weight to about 800g which is fairly light for this class of instrument. The hinge is stiff, as it should be, and from old samples that I have seen, it does not seem to work loose with use. The focus wheel and diopter adjustment are combined in one large rubber coated knob that sits between the eyepieces, on one of the hinges. The push pull locking diopter adjustment works well. There has been a lot of criticism of the focus knob, specifically that it is too fine, making it hard to rapidly move between distant and far objects. I find that I really like the extra control that the fine focus gives. Whereas with some binoculars it can be hard to track a bird in flight, with the Swarovskis it is easy to make fine tweaks without overshooting. I would recommend that you try a pair in the field and make your own judgement. The screw in screw out eye tubes work very well, and can unscrew completely for cleaning. The eye ends are covered with rubber that is comfortable when pressed against the eyes.
The binoculars are waterproof and nitrogen filled so they will survive immersion and will not fog (unlike my spectacles).
The binoculars are quite long which I find is an advantage. I like to support binoculars at both the eye pieces and the objectives (I have an odd method of holding them) and I find that the extra length helps me achieve a more stable image.
The build quality is outstanding. Swarovski seem to have pulled out all of the stops to produce an instrument that has a luxury feel. The finish, design and smoothness of the mechanics are all exceptional.
Optics
The optics are outstanding. The field of view is ~130 m at 1 km (as good as the competition), the sharpness, the brightness and the depth of field are outstanding. The field is essentially flat with just a bit of softness and distortion at the edges, but no worse than the competition. (In practice you won't notice the edge softness unless you look through the bins in a very unnatural manner.) The close focus is excellent at 2.5 m and the sharpness and image quality at close focus is superb. Flare resistance is superb. Eye relief is excellent (about 18mm) giving a very easy viewing experience. I wear glasses and find that I can see the whole field of view with glasses on.
The only negative comment I can make is the presence of some chromatic aberration (CA). In high contrast situation you might see some slight purple banding. I find this mildly irritating, but it is fairly minor. It is also worth mentioning that most of the competition (such as the Nikon 8x42 HG) show noticeably more CA. I am informed that the CA comes largely from the roof prisms.
Summary
These are excellent bins with - in my opinion, and it is just that - exceptional handling, and superb optics. These are in my opinion better than the Leica 8x42 BN and Nikon 8x42 HG/Venturer due to the lighter weight and nicer shape. You might prefer the shape of the Leica, or the extra brightness of the Nikon. Alternatively you might prefer the very bright Zeiss 7x42 BGAT or the light 8x40 Victory. Which you prefer is very much a matter of personal taste. I urge you to try before you buy.
Of course if you want slightly better optical quality (almost no chromatic aberration, almost as sharp, and unbelievably, equal brightness) then you should try the Nikon 8x32 SE. However they are not waterproof, and because of the smaller exit pupils (4mm) I find that they can be a bit more fiddly to use in low light.
The Swarovski 8.5x42 EL binocular is a premium quality full sized binocular from the prestigious Austrian optical company. It is already a best seller due to outstanding optics and ergonomics.
Design and Build
The Swarovski 8.5x42 EL is unusual in having two tubular optical assemblies joined by two hinges. Whether or not you like this is a personal issue, but to my mind it is a wonderful shape. The tubes are covered in a high quality lightly textured green rubber that has a slight give and a pleasant feel. The frame is made from a magnesium alloy that helps to reduce the weight to about 800g which is fairly light for this class of instrument. The hinge is stiff, as it should be, and from old samples that I have seen, it does not seem to work loose with use. The focus wheel and diopter adjustment are combined in one large rubber coated knob that sits between the eyepieces, on one of the hinges. The push pull locking diopter adjustment works well. There has been a lot of criticism of the focus knob, specifically that it is too fine, making it hard to rapidly move between distant and far objects. I find that I really like the extra control that the fine focus gives. Whereas with some binoculars it can be hard to track a bird in flight, with the Swarovskis it is easy to make fine tweaks without overshooting. I would recommend that you try a pair in the field and make your own judgement. The screw in screw out eye tubes work very well, and can unscrew completely for cleaning. The eye ends are covered with rubber that is comfortable when pressed against the eyes.
The binoculars are waterproof and nitrogen filled so they will survive immersion and will not fog (unlike my spectacles).
The binoculars are quite long which I find is an advantage. I like to support binoculars at both the eye pieces and the objectives (I have an odd method of holding them) and I find that the extra length helps me achieve a more stable image.
The build quality is outstanding. Swarovski seem to have pulled out all of the stops to produce an instrument that has a luxury feel. The finish, design and smoothness of the mechanics are all exceptional.
Optics
The optics are outstanding. The field of view is ~130 m at 1 km (as good as the competition), the sharpness, the brightness and the depth of field are outstanding. The field is essentially flat with just a bit of softness and distortion at the edges, but no worse than the competition. (In practice you won't notice the edge softness unless you look through the bins in a very unnatural manner.) The close focus is excellent at 2.5 m and the sharpness and image quality at close focus is superb. Flare resistance is superb. Eye relief is excellent (about 18mm) giving a very easy viewing experience. I wear glasses and find that I can see the whole field of view with glasses on.
The only negative comment I can make is the presence of some chromatic aberration (CA). In high contrast situation you might see some slight purple banding. I find this mildly irritating, but it is fairly minor. It is also worth mentioning that most of the competition (such as the Nikon 8x42 HG) show noticeably more CA. I am informed that the CA comes largely from the roof prisms.
Summary
These are excellent bins with - in my opinion, and it is just that - exceptional handling, and superb optics. These are in my opinion better than the Leica 8x42 BN and Nikon 8x42 HG/Venturer due to the lighter weight and nicer shape. You might prefer the shape of the Leica, or the extra brightness of the Nikon. Alternatively you might prefer the very bright Zeiss 7x42 BGAT or the light 8x40 Victory. Which you prefer is very much a matter of personal taste. I urge you to try before you buy.
Of course if you want slightly better optical quality (almost no chromatic aberration, almost as sharp, and unbelievably, equal brightness) then you should try the Nikon 8x32 SE. However they are not waterproof, and because of the smaller exit pupils (4mm) I find that they can be a bit more fiddly to use in low light.
