Vortex 8x42 Razor HD
I thought I would share a few impressions. Take these with a grain of salt because I have no extensive experience testing binoculars. I have the Nikon 8x32 SE and the 10x42 SE and the Pentax DCF WP 8x42 just did not impress anymore. I really needed a higher quality waterproof 8x42 (don't apply logic to the last statement) so I went to look at the Swarovski SLC HD and the Swarovision. The store only had the 8.5x42 SV and I could see right away the increased sharpness and the color popped more than the poor old Pentax, but the price!!
The salesman said "take a look at these" and pulled out the Vortex.
Initial snap impressions.
Vortex and SV are both sharper than Pentax as expected. The Vortex seemed brighter than the SV - I find that hard to believe, but it was my impression. Both were brighter than the Pentax and the colors pop noticably more than the Pentax. I believe I can see some CA in the Pentax, but not in the Vortex. The Vortex did not seem as well built as the SV. SV was more solid and I liked the ergonomics better.
With a 30 day return policy, I figured I would grab the Vortex and take them home. (Only one set new in the box and the demos were left.)
At home it was close to sundown, so not much time to compare. Still brighter and more contrast/color pop than the Pentax. No question that they are sharper. The Vortex are longer than the Pentax by just under an inch with the eyecups fully extended. I did not think I would like the objective caps, but they are starting to grow on me. The included case seems to big, I suspect it will fit the 10x42 Razors also. There is about 1 1/2 inches of room to spare laterally. The Pentax case fits like a glove, the only thing the Pentax scored higher on. The case and bino straps I will not open until I know I will keep the binos. There is an enclosed cleaning cloth.
Then I got worried. The Vortex showed white in the lower outer quadrant of the FOV. It seemed to be worse on the right than the left. I think I would say it was like looking through mild to medium thick fog. I grabbed the Pentax again and saw the same thing but even more pronounced. With careful eye placement, it seems to resolve in both binos, but I will check it out more tomorrow. I did not see this in the SE's (and thankfully I do not get the blackouts in the SE's)
I pulled out the Nikon 8x32 SE. I think that I would say the Nikon is sharper, but not by much. Color pop and brightness are better in the Vortex as the sun was going down. No surprise there.
For less than half the price, I think I can be happy with the Vortex Razor HD's. I need to do a little more serious comparisons tomorrow and over the next few days before I am completely sold. In the store I did see the rolling ball effect on the SV's. It did not bother me too much, but I did not spend that long with them. I actually thought it was kind of fun to pan around and watch the effect. It did not bother me looking at rows of fishing poles, maybe it would get old in the field. I guess I will never know for sure. As far as sharpness to the edge of the field, I really looked for that and found I tend not to move my eyeballs around but turn my head and center the object. Maybe it is because I am so used to binos with poor edge correction that I have trained myself to never look at the edge of the FOV. I will spend more time with that tomorrow when I use the Nikons (8x32 and 10x42).
Anyway - those are my first impressions right or wrong.
I have four days off of work, so I hope to do some more serious testing. I think I might have to check out some stars and compare the Vortex to the 10x42 SE's!
Mike
I thought I would share a few impressions. Take these with a grain of salt because I have no extensive experience testing binoculars. I have the Nikon 8x32 SE and the 10x42 SE and the Pentax DCF WP 8x42 just did not impress anymore. I really needed a higher quality waterproof 8x42 (don't apply logic to the last statement) so I went to look at the Swarovski SLC HD and the Swarovision. The store only had the 8.5x42 SV and I could see right away the increased sharpness and the color popped more than the poor old Pentax, but the price!!
The salesman said "take a look at these" and pulled out the Vortex.
Initial snap impressions.
Vortex and SV are both sharper than Pentax as expected. The Vortex seemed brighter than the SV - I find that hard to believe, but it was my impression. Both were brighter than the Pentax and the colors pop noticably more than the Pentax. I believe I can see some CA in the Pentax, but not in the Vortex. The Vortex did not seem as well built as the SV. SV was more solid and I liked the ergonomics better.
With a 30 day return policy, I figured I would grab the Vortex and take them home. (Only one set new in the box and the demos were left.)
At home it was close to sundown, so not much time to compare. Still brighter and more contrast/color pop than the Pentax. No question that they are sharper. The Vortex are longer than the Pentax by just under an inch with the eyecups fully extended. I did not think I would like the objective caps, but they are starting to grow on me. The included case seems to big, I suspect it will fit the 10x42 Razors also. There is about 1 1/2 inches of room to spare laterally. The Pentax case fits like a glove, the only thing the Pentax scored higher on. The case and bino straps I will not open until I know I will keep the binos. There is an enclosed cleaning cloth.
Then I got worried. The Vortex showed white in the lower outer quadrant of the FOV. It seemed to be worse on the right than the left. I think I would say it was like looking through mild to medium thick fog. I grabbed the Pentax again and saw the same thing but even more pronounced. With careful eye placement, it seems to resolve in both binos, but I will check it out more tomorrow. I did not see this in the SE's (and thankfully I do not get the blackouts in the SE's)
I pulled out the Nikon 8x32 SE. I think that I would say the Nikon is sharper, but not by much. Color pop and brightness are better in the Vortex as the sun was going down. No surprise there.
For less than half the price, I think I can be happy with the Vortex Razor HD's. I need to do a little more serious comparisons tomorrow and over the next few days before I am completely sold. In the store I did see the rolling ball effect on the SV's. It did not bother me too much, but I did not spend that long with them. I actually thought it was kind of fun to pan around and watch the effect. It did not bother me looking at rows of fishing poles, maybe it would get old in the field. I guess I will never know for sure. As far as sharpness to the edge of the field, I really looked for that and found I tend not to move my eyeballs around but turn my head and center the object. Maybe it is because I am so used to binos with poor edge correction that I have trained myself to never look at the edge of the FOV. I will spend more time with that tomorrow when I use the Nikons (8x32 and 10x42).
Anyway - those are my first impressions right or wrong.
I have four days off of work, so I hope to do some more serious testing. I think I might have to check out some stars and compare the Vortex to the 10x42 SE's!
Mike
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