Stan Halpin wrote on Sat, 16 Apr 2011 20:25:56 -0700 > Meg and I will probably be buying at least one pair of binoculars for > birding. > Something in the $250-500 range - i.e., quite a bit better than the $40-50 > compact everyday binocs we have now, but not anything in the $1000+ "serious > birder" category. > > My inclination to brand loyalty tells me to buy Pentax, all other things > equal. > But the few reviews I have found (e.g., in Cornell's birding magazine) put > Pentax toward the bottom of the list. And I don't want to buy a clearly > inferior product just for the Pentax name. > > So, anyone here with experience with Pentax binoculars? Can you provide any > comparisons with other brands in the same price range? Can you convince me > that > I should (or should not) go for a Pentax? Note that I am not that concerned > with the price as long as it is in my general price range; if there is a > Pentax > model that costs $499 that is equivalent in features and performance to > something else that costs $349, I would probably buy Pentax. I just don't > want > to pay the same or more for the Pentax if it is clearly inferior. And I don't > have any local stores where I can go and see and try out any of those I am > thinking about. > > I am also toying with the notion of a spotting scope, and Pentax has an > eyepiece adapter that converts their scopes to a 780mm or 1000mm f/12 K-mount > lens. But, again, the reviews put Pentax spotting scopes toward the bottom of > the list. Anyone here with experience with this class of product? > > Any information, opinions (informed or otherwise), pointers to good web > resources, etc. would be greatly appreciated!
Stan, I bought a pair of Pentax DCF SP 8x43 binoculars which were in your price range several years ago and have found them very satisfactory. I did some web research and found a site with useful info and reviews: http://www.birdwatching.com/index.html I didn't buy from that site; found the model I wanted for less at another online store. Regards, Jim __________________________________________________________________________________________ "Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see." - Mark Twain -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
