NL Pure Image Flatness - Good or Bad? (1 Viewer)

[Stuarts vision]

I had the 12x42 Pure. I sold a pair of EL 8.5's to get them and I regretted doing so almost immediately.

I disliked the NL so much I sold them within 6 months. I do not know whether it was my eyes (I had differential LASIK some years ago) or my copy of the NL but I could see odd artifacts in the image - almost like a pattern of lines - and I could never get them comfortable on my face even with the head rest.

I'm stuck on the fence between Zeiss SF and Leica Noctivids at the moment.

Why not go back to the EL's? Progress isn't always a good thing.
Take the UK smart motorway idea for example, real bue sky thinking, only cost us a few billion. 😠

 

[Will K]

I had the 12x42 Pure. I sold a pair of EL 8.5's to get them and I regretted doing so almost immediately.

I disliked the NL so much I sold them within 6 months. I do not know whether it was my eyes (I had differential LASIK some years ago) or my copy of the NL but I could see odd artifacts in the image - almost like a pattern of lines - and I could never get them comfortable on my face even with the head rest.

I'm stuck on the fence between Zeiss SF and Leica Noctivids at the moment.

I’m sorry to hear that. I hope you find a good alternative, but it’s a shame to loose the 12x option. Good luck making a selection!

 

[Trinovid]

I wasn't as impressed with Pures as I had thought I would be. I preferred an Ultravid to pures.

That’s been my take too so far and the little Curio remains the only ‘bird branded’ binocular to totally sway me.

 

[pm42]

That’s been my take too so far and the little Curio remains the only ‘bird branded’ binocular to totally sway me.

I have the opposite experience (except for the Curio) so we cannot state once more how important it is to try because it is really a matter of preferences.

 

[Paultricounty]

I had the 12x42 Pure. I sold a pair of EL 8.5's to get them and I regretted doing so almost immediately.

I disliked the NL so much I sold them within 6 months. I do not know whether it was my eyes (I had differential LASIK some years ago) or my copy of the NL but I could see odd artifacts in the image - almost like a pattern of lines - and I could never get them comfortable on my face even with the head rest.

I'm stuck on the fence between Zeiss SF and Leica Noctivids at the moment.

Both are phenomenal choices, but of course can’t be had in 12x. I would never discourage anybody from choosing the Noctivids which are probably my favorite Binoculars of all time. That being said if you’re still looking for a 12 X , there’s the EL 12x50 probably one of the best if not the best, and or the Leica Ultravid in 12x50.

Paul

 

[Elpha8888]

That’s been my take too so far and the little Curio remains the only ‘bird branded’ binocular to totally sway me.

That Curio has something special, wonderful image, even compared to it's bigger NL brothers.

 

[Kiwimac]

Both are phenomenal choices, but of course can’t be had in 12x. I would never discourage anybody from choosing the Noctivids which are probably my favorite Binoculars of all time. That being said if you’re still looking for a 12 X , there’s the EL 12x50 probably one of the best if not the best, and or the Leica Ultravid in 12x50.

Paul

Hi

Thanks; The 12x was really nice to have - the image of birds etc was so detailed. However it is not a hill to die on for me - I think 10x would suffice.

I can still get the olive green Noctivids which I must say I like the look of. Unfortunately here in NZ getting a good test of these things is not easy unless you know someone with a pair of their own. The biggest binocular dealer has a policy of allowing exchange if you do not like them - but specifically excludes alpha binoculars when asked...

I have a pair of Ultravid (not HD or HD+) which I bought 15 years ago and which are great with a lovely view, but poor CA with a strange yellow fringe often appearing on high contrast subjects like mountains against bright sky etc.

Hopefully the much more expensive and newer design NV would have reduced that a good amount.

It's also been sad to see Leica reducing warranty. In my 20's Leica binoculars had lifetime warranty. My Ultravids had a 30 year warranty in 2007 and a new pair of NV has a 10 year warranty now!

 

[Kiwimac]

Why not go back to the EL's? Progress isn't always a good thing.
Take the UK smart motorway idea for example, real bue sky thinking, only cost us a few billion. 😠

I loved the 8.5 but that seems to have been discontinued now. Also the newer ones have been hamstrung in the close focus range as well, I understand.

 

[Paultricounty]

I loved the 8.5 but that seems to have been discontinued now. Also the newer ones have been hamstrung in the close focus range as well, I understand.

EL 42’s haven’t been discontinued. Still available, still one of the best optics of any Binocular on the market. Only thing changed is they increased the short focus a few feet, oh and reduced the price $500. How dare they lower the price 😜

 

[Kiwimac]

I am not sure why they reduced the focus. It seemed odd to deliberately make something worse.

I need to try the NV. There’s a dealer in the local area that has SF in stock but I do like the warm colours Leica seem to lean towards.

 

[elkcub]

I am not sure why they reduced the focus. It seemed odd to deliberately make something worse.

Swarovski is an odd company that's been doing this marketing maneuver for years, starting with the short-lived SLC-HD series a decade ago. Odd or not, it appears to work [for their bottom line].
Ed

 

[Kiwimac]

I spoke to the largest binocular dealer in NZ today.

They were heavily suggesting the SF 10x over the NV.

Apparently all three top makers have cut their warranty in NZ to 10 years now, which is disappointing. So from that angle there is no reason to pick one over the other.

I’ve seen a few slightly negative remarks about SF eye cups and Zeiss QC online but don’t know how realistic those are.

 

[Viraj]

I spoke to the largest binocular dealer in NZ today.

They were heavily suggesting the SF 10x over the NV.

Apparently all three top makers have cut their warranty in NZ to 10 years now, which is disappointing. So from that angle there is no reason to pick one over the other.

I’ve seen a few slightly negative remarks about SF eye cups and Zeiss QC online but don’t know how realistic those are.

One year ago when I bought my NL from one of the largest optics dealers in Belgium, they highly recommended me x10 NV over x10 NL. Issues in NL armor and the focuser were the main reasons they pointed out. They said that they stopped selling SF (any Zeiss bins) due to QC issues a few years ago. However, I ended up getting x8 NL. Different people have different points of view and their own opinions, however, the final decision is up to us.

 

[Kiwimac]

It is, of course.

 

[Elpha8888]

I am not sure why they reduced the focus. It seemed odd to deliberately make something worse.

I need to try the NV. There’s a dealer in the local area that has SF in stock but I do like the warm colours Leica seem to lean towards.

I'm currently running an SF and the colours are truly gorgeous. Not sure I'd jump to an NV probably the ergos put me off a little but I'd like to try one.
The Leicas do have that sparkle and magic but this SF is a dream so far.

 

[Kiwimac]

How do you find the eye cups? They’re often the subject of negative comments in reviews I’ve noticed!

 

[Elpha8888]

They work fine for me, I don't wear glasses. The 10x needs a little bit more care for eye placement, plastic and soft rubber, comfortable.
For a binocular at this price the eye cups do seem cheap and should have been of a higher quality.

 

[Paultricounty]

I am not sure why they reduced the focus. It seemed odd to deliberately make something worse.

They definitely had their reasons according to a few representative I spoke to, but in any event the optical quality and everything else is the same , except the price. I wonder if people had the choice to buy either one, would they give up the the 2.5 feet or the $500 🤔

I need to try the NV. There’s a dealer in the local area that has SF in stock but I do like the warm colours Leica seem to lean towards.

That what’s it’s all about with Leica, and the build quality of course. I wouldn’t go buy one dealers opinion as to why they stock or don’t stock a particular optic. If you search through all the discussions and threads here you’ll notice that the other manufactures also have some QC issues occasionally.

Paul

 

[Paultricounty]

I spoke to the largest binocular dealer in NZ today.

They were heavily suggesting the SF 10x over the NV.

Apparently all three top makers have cut their warranty in NZ to 10 years now, which is disappointing. So from that angle there is no reason to pick one over the other.

I’ve seen a few slightly negative remarks about SF eye cups and Zeiss QC online but don’t know how realistic those are.

Considering how good all three are ( there’s also the Ultravid line) I wouldn’t decide my purchase on one rep opinion at a dealer. They’re all the best of the best and have their pros and cons. It’s up to you to decide which one will fit you the best. All three are crazy good. I have all of the ones being discussed and I lean to Leica the most.

Good luck.

Paul

 

[claves_10]

As some of you stated, I would not consider sale representatives opinion ultimate. There are many situations between the dealer and the provider that may lead to bad non sustainable opinion.
Had many wine sale representatives that did not talk nicely about some wines BUT when another winenery hires them, they started praising what before used to criticize.
ANYHOW con anyone compare NL Pure Image Flatness to any other BINO flatness? for example EL or SF?
Myself never tried NL binos. EL´s Flatness do not bother me that much but I admit that are more noticeable than SF.