Price is another really important factor for analysing the quality of Nikon Sportstar 8-24×25 Zoom Binoculars vs other products in the Binoculars category. It’s obvious, but you will need to set your expectations of quality based on your budget and the price of the product you’re looking at, against the price of alternatives. These EagleView Zooms come with a fairly disappointing 13mm of eye-relief, which may be something to keep in mind if you want to use your optics whilst wearing glasses. Ideally and to be sure that you have enough distance to play with to enable you to see the full field of view without any vignetting when using your glasses most experts recommend that you should look for binoculars that have an eye relief of about 16mm or more. In most cases an eye relief of 14 to 15mm is adequate for most people who wear eyeglasses to be comfortable, so 13mm is a little on the short side. Most non-eyeglass wearers will just use the eyecups in the fully extended position. Of the 15 products, we discovered that 2 were more expensive and 12 were cheaper than Nikon Sportstar 8-24×25 Zoom Binoculars. Prices from Nikon To minimize reflection on the lens surfaces and ensure clear, sharp images, anti-reflective coatings are often applied. These anti-reflection coatings are very important as part of the light that passes through any lens is reflected by the front (incident light) and rear (exiting light) surfaces. This reduces the amount of light passing through the lens and if this transmittance is very bad, the image you see will be darker than on binoculars that transmit more light. Also, the reflected light may cause ghosting and flaring, affecting image contrast.

As you increase the magnification level and zoom in on an object, the FOV reduces even further. However this is not as big a problem as I would suggest the best way to use these zoom binoculars is to have them set at 8x to locate the object that you want to observe and the once you have it in your field of view, you can then zoom into it to get a more detailed view.An important thing to consider when looking at the size of a compact binocular is how small they are when they are folded. When you are are looking through them, just how small they are is not that important, but size is far more important when you carrying them around with you. Different designs of compacts fold up in different ways and this can make a big difference is their size. The first is brand. Looking at the brand of the product is often a really good indicator for judging product quality. For example you’d expect a much higher quality product from a brand known for providing excellent quality than you would from an unknown or even a budget brand. Next up is material. Read through the product description for Nikon Sportstar 8-24×25 Zoom Binoculars to get an understanding of the materials the product is made from. Some materials will obviously be known for delivering better quality item than others. You might also have decided that you’ll only accept a product made from a particular material. Find out why Nikon Sportstar 8-24×25 Zoom Binoculars scored an incredible review score of 9.1 out of 10.

The twist-up eyecups look to be made from a very hard plastic that have a very thin rubber coating on them. The ocular lens has a diameter of 11mm and the eyecup has an external diameter of 37mm, which are both considerably smaller than what you find on most full sized binoculars, but is about average for a compact. This smaller size and very thin rubber covering mean that they are not the most comfortable eyecups that I have ever used, but any discomfort is only really noticeable when you push them quite firmly against your face. Comparing a low cost binocular like these with other binoculars that are far more expensive may seem a little unfair at first, but as long as you keep in mind the price difference, it does throw up a few interesting points and can highlight a few of their relative strengths and weaknesses and show where some of your money goes if you choose a more expensive pair of binoculars. As you can imagine, pricing is one of the most important factors of any purchasing decision. We can find the perfect product for our needs, that fits the brief in every single way. But if it doesn’t fit our budgets, we simply can’t (or at least shouldn’t) buy it. As with other small binoculars, they come with a strap and a case (but the case doesn’t have its own strap). The case is simple but functional. The eyepiece cap is attached to the strap so you can’t lose it. While the objective lens caps flip down so you can’t lose them either. The next step was to try and narrow down our search even more. So we’ve already looked the prices of products in the Binoculars category. Then we’ve also looked at the prices of products from Nikon. So this step combines the two and looks specifically at the price you’d expect to pay for Nikon branded products in the Binoculars category.

Slightly more manageable as an option for birders is the retro-looking Celestron Up Close G2 10-30x50 binocular, though it’s still heavy compared with what we have here due to that extra zoom power and larger objective lens. If weight is an issue, a zoom monocular is another alternative. Here Nikon’s arch-rival Canon provides one in its PowerShot Zoom Monocular, on which a minimum 100mm focus setting is adjustable to a 800mm equivalent. It can even capture stills and videos to microSD card too, though requires a battery to power it.

The dioptre adjustment is unusual. Rather than a dial on the eyepiece, it’s in the centre where you focus. So you focus your left eye, then pop out the dial and adjust it slightly for your right. Canon offers a good range of image stabilised binoculars but higher magnifications are where you’ll benefit from it the most. Two caveats though: the high magnification makes for a narrow field of view (you see less at any given time) so it’s harder to spot the bird, star, whatever in the first place. And combined with the 32mm objective lenses, they don’t gather enough light for low light use at dusk. However, they’re great for shake-free stargazing and a delight for detailed moon gazing. Looking enticingly futuristic with a cleverly compact design, this handheld porro prism option marries a respectable if not quite outstanding 8x to 16x magnification range, to a fairly average 21mm objective lens size. As is common in present company, multi coated optics maximise light transmission while reducing the possibility of lens glare and flare. A rubberised outer coating further offers a degree of protection and grip. Yes this is a monocular rather than a binocular. Secondly, we’re including it here because not only does it feature a zoom facility but it also has a camera built in. Plus it’s from a manufacturer with a long and distinguished heritage when it comes to both cameras and optics.

Specs-wise, it boasts superior optics and coatings and its Porro prisms are made with BaK-4 Barium Crown glass, considered the best prism material available. The exterior is rubberised and lens caps flip down. Accessories include a rugged carry bag with a strap and both regular and flared eyecups. Even with two hands, the 20x magnification makes for a wobbly image. There’s an integral tripod mount (on a rail, so you can adjust balance) which is much better. If you’re using them handheld at home, it’s worth leaning them against the doorframe for a steadier picture.