While on a bike ride with the mrs today, we saw what we think was a ray swimming along near the shore. Later we cycled around swanpool and along swanvale, all packed with feathered critters. This has highlighted a need for pocket sized compact bins!
As luck would have it, it's my birthday tomorrow so we popped into our local camera shop to have a look. I tried several and narrowed it down to Nikon and Hawke 8x25 models retailing at £129 and £109. I've since found them for £50 less online, but am unsure which to go for.
Your advice please
Ooh, another thing... I assume 8x would be better than 10x for general wildlife watching. Am I barking up the wrong tree?
I'm not sure I can be a lot of help.
The Hawke Frontier PC 8x25 got some favourable comments recently:
http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=217398
I think an older model is still about and wasn't too impressed with that. Do you know which one it was?
I think the Nikon Sportstar has been discontinued. I've not tried it, but I'm pretty sure it's not phase coated, unlike the Hawke mentioned. In this style of binocular (roof prisms) polarisation occurs which causes something like 30% light loss and reduces contrast. Phase coating prevents this light loss. On paper at least, the Hawke should produce a brighter sharper view.
Although not quite as compact, in this price range, the Olympus PCI 8x25 (also called Tracker) receives a lot of positive reviews on the forum. It's not waterproof if that is an issue. This style of binocular (reverse porro) doesn't require phase coating.
Hope this helps a little.
David
PS. Forgot to comment on the magnification. I suggest you go for the 8x. It will give a brighter and steadier view.
Happy Birthday!