I spent a good bit of time yesterday looking through binocs.
Here was what I was comparing:
SLC 8x32
Trinovid 8x32
Ultravid 10x32
Zeiss Conquest 8x30
Zeiss Conquest 10x30
Zeiss Victory FL 8x42
Minox 8x33
My findings were that the Ultrvids pretty well blew everything away. They were sharp, bright and I really liked the feel.
The Trinovids were very good, but I didn't like the egronomics as well.
The SLC's were very good. Still not sure if I like the bottom focus wheel though.
FL's were great for brightness, of course being 42mm they should and the sharpness was right there with the Ultravids. I didn't care for the feel, not sure if it was just because they were bigger being 42mm. Also didn't like the focus wheel as well as the others.
The Minox to my eyes weren't in the same class as the others and didn't like the feel.
The Conquests had the best feel for me with the exception of the Ultravids. Could be the fact that I owned 8x30 and 12x45 Conquests untill this past summer. but I am really impressed by the ergonomics of these for my hands.
The Conquests weere also very close to me in sharpness when compared to the other 30-32 mm binocs, and better than the Minox. They weren't as bright as either Leica or the SLC's.
If it weren't for the $1700 price tag on the Ultravids, they would easilly be my choice.
Right now I am deciding if the ergonomics for me favor the Conquests over the better brightness of the SLC's.
I should add that I also looked at the Swaro EL 8x32's and was very impressed by both the optics and how they felt in my hands, but if I were looking to spend that kind of $$$, I go with the Ultravids.
