The Best Binoculars

ASTRONOMICAL: Light gathering is the most important quality here (diameter of main lens). If you want to hand-hold the binoculars, choose the largest aperture you can and still allow you to hold them comfortably for at least five minutes. The most common hand-holdable astronomical binocular is a 7 x 50 (7.14mm exit pupil... excellent!), but some manufacturers have come up with an incredibly light weight 8 x 56 (a great choice!).

BIRDING OR WILDLIFE: Birders or wildlife enthusiasts tend to have their binoculars up to their eyes for long periods of time, so it is important to have something that is easy for you to hand-hold, but that brings as much light to your eyes as possible (exit pupil, diameter of main lens, optical coatings). 8 x 40mm binoculars have become a favourite of birders because they have a good exit pupil & medium magnification and light gathering.

MARINE: Marine (or waterproof) binoculars are most commonly found in a 7 x 50 rubber-armoured design. The reasons make sense, low power is easiest to deal with on a moving boat, because they are easy to hand-hold and make you feel the least queasy! A large aperture (diameter of the main lens) is desired because so much of the time you may have a gray sky and gray ocean... and are possibly trying to see a gray boat!

COMPACTS, OPERA GLASSES, & MONOCULARS: Compact binoculars are a wonderful addition to the family. They go anywhere... concerts, plays, ball games, backpacking... anywhere a larger, bulkier binocular would be unwanted because of weight or inconvenience. Roof prism compacts are so small they can fit in most shirt pockets when folded up, and porro prism compacts can fit in a jacket pocket or purse.

SPORTING, ZOOM, & GENERAL PURPOSE BINOCULARS: The most common specifications for a general purpose binocular are either 7 x 35 or 8 x 40. They are large enough to do work during low light, light-weight enough to hand-hold, and come in a wide price range. If we were to ask you what you wanted to use your binoculars for, and you said "EVERYTHING!", we would steer you in this direction.