That was a very interesting and informative review, excellently written - thank you. I was lucky enough, a few months ago, to spot a pair of these when a UK retailer got hold of some brand new stock of the GECO-branded versions of the GPO range (which seems to be identical in all respects aside from the admittedly less-attractive [to me, anyway] GECO branding). The GECO versions seem to have been sold in Europe and it looks like their distributor was maybe clearing stock of the all-black versions as GECO's website now only lists the green variants (which are identically-coloured to your reviewed pair). Whilst I suspect the one thing I'll be lacking is the full warranty benefits of the GPO version, I have been very impressed indeed with the 8x32 GECOs I bought (the optical coatings have the same characteristics as the GPOs too, from what I can see) - as you found, they are really impressive optically and in build quality - and I certainly can't complain at the price I paid for them - £125 (brand new).
Your measurements are of great public utility, I was still unaware of its existence until now. I found It really crazy to see a Nikon Monarch M7 8x42 with 17.1mm eye relief drop to 13mm usable, while the M7 8x30 dropped from 15.1mm to 13.5mm. More usable eye relief than the full-size version! It would be great to know the usable eye relief of my Meade CanyonView 8x42 which is specified at 14mm, as I see the entire FOV If I press the binocular in the lens of my eyeglass. That's why I was imagining that a 16mm like this GPO Passion would be ideal.
Hi! I believe the GPO is more on the level of the Opticron Traveler (~$450) than the Explorer (~$250). On paper, It would be a good upgrade, but what I generally see from people satisfied with cheaper binoculars is dissatisfied with more expensive investments of the same format and magnification. Usually it doesn't have the upgrade they expected.
Troubador reviewed GPO Passion ED 8x32 and stated: "At the other end of the instruments I noticed that the objective lenses are inset by 9mm/0.35in and may benefit from a ‘lens-hood’ effect, reducing any glare." A high probability to be a step up.
Trailseeker isn't talked about much here, but I believe it must also have better optics for the price. But Cornell Lab does not test durability, and this is where Celetrons tend to have problems, like eyepiece breaking in cold weather, strap hooks breaking:
It’s an excellent binocular, build quality is well up to the big three standards and optically it is not a million miles behind. I think that irrespective of price, it punches well above its weight and I liked mine so much I bought the 10x.
