Minox BV II 8x25 BR Compact Binocular

I bought these to use deer hunting and to take along on fishing, biking or hiking trips. Being so compact and light they are a joy to carry or pack. Very bright for their size with a nice smooth focus. And the eye relief is fine for those wearing glasses. For very long viewing sessions they would not be the best but most people are not behind their optics all day.

Had these Minox binocs about 1 month now, use them as my pocket pair for walks at lunch and checking out birds in my yard. Like any but the most expensive compacts, they are not a substitute for a good full sized pair of binocs. That said, the image these binocs render is bright and very clear in the sweet spot, though noticeably fuzzy toward the edges, but for a little over a $100 not surprising. They are light and seem very solidly built, and they work well with eyeglasses. I'm pleased with my purchase. Giving 4 stars here, though 3.5 is more like it.

The choice of this came to four considerations other than price;i.e., weight, power, close-focus, field of view. These binoculars were a graduation gift to a young woman who would be put off from birding by any weight greater than a compact binocular. Eight power seems to be a good hand holding strength. Close-focus is always important to a critter watcher. And for flight following this compact had the widest FOV of any compact I saw for sale. The feel of the binoculars in the hands is not as nice as a Nikon Prostaff. But that was lower priority. Now we will see how rugged the binoculars are.

I purchased one of these four months ago, and I use it almost every day. For the price, it's a very nice compact bin. Sharp optics in the center of the field, and very light; you almost don't notice you've got it around your neck. Positive feel to the focus. It's not as easy to look through as a quality 8x40, but it's a compact, after all. If you're looking for a good, affordable compact bin, I recommend this one.