Nipon Scopes & Optics, a Review of their 20X80 Binoculars.

The first thing I noticed, even before I removed the packaging, was that these are so lightweight.

They have BAK 4 Prisms, the eyepieces are large (23 mm diameter) and have fold-down rubber eye-cups. The eyepieces offer long eye relief. They have fully multi-coated broadband green coatings, and scream QUALITY product.

It took several nights before I could test them and I have to say it was worth the wait.

Wow, these binoculars are good! They come with a built-in tripod adapter and sliding, lockable stabiliser. I mounted them on my trusty tripod in seconds and was ready to go. They have a nice "chunky" central focus knob, best appreciated on cold nights when wearing gloves and you can adjust the right eyepiece to get sharp focus.

First target was the Moon; the image was bright, crisp, and the detail sharp, an easy start. Jupiter was nearby and I could clearly make out the four Galilean Moons. However, binoculars are not really suited for planetary observing but come into their own when looking at deep sky objects. M31 the Galaxy in Andromeda was pleasing on the eye and its shape obvious. The three open clusters in Auriga M36/M37/M38 all showed up well. M42/M43 in Orion was truly superb. I could make out the Trapezium stars, and the three belt stars just fit into the field of view, so this means the field of view of the binoculars is 3 degrees. M35 in Gemini was easy to locate, and the different star colours these constellations show really stood out. But the best I saved till last. M41 is an open cluster in Canis Major. It's not that faint (+ 5.6) but because it lies about 4 degrees below Sirius it never gets that high, and also because there are lots of other bright objects in the region that catch the eye, it never gets the attention I think it deserves. It's such a pretty sight, well worth waiting for. I will be using them to watch several Binocular Mira Variables, T Cep, Chi Cyg, U Ori, and R Leo, the colours will stand out well.

Finally, I would recommend investing in a "Parallelogram Binocular Mount". It will save a lot of neck ache.

If you are a birdwatcher like me, and you prefer the use of two eyes then they will also come into their own, especially as we know all to well that once seen any bird will immediately fly as far away from you as possible.

The binoculars have a R.R.P. of £80. I think they are more than good value and have no hesitation in recommending them.

Binoculars 20X80