Top 10 monoculars

Continues our ranking of the best monoculars Steiner 8x22 Miniscope Monocular. This “German” (which, incidentally, is included in the Beretta holding together with another well-known manufacturer of optics - Burris) is much cheaper than its eminent countryman, and immediately attracts the eye with an unconventional layout: even by the standards of the compact “eight-men”, it is small in size, there is always room for it in your pocket. Miniscope Monocular weighs only 80 grams. And we have no complaints about the quality: excellent optics, clear and sharp image. The monocular is protected from fogging, and the warranty from the manufacturer is 10 years.

A curious feature of this model is the use of the Sport Auto-Focus in it. In fact, we are not talking about the presence of autofocus? As you might think by name: on the contrary, it’s not necessary to focus the monocular, in principle, it is set to hyperfocal distance. Once you have adjusted its diopter correction under your vision, you will see sharply all objects in sight that are farther than 4 meters up to “optical infinity”. Conveniently? Definitely! And, unlike many low-cost models, it does not have to pay for it with a “soapy” and dark image.

The only thing we quibble about is the convenience of holding — by getting used to taking ordinary tubular monoculars in your hand, you can puzzle for a long time, it would be more convenient to unfold the halves of the Steiner and to catch them more cleverly.

The manufacturer has not forgotten about ergonomics: the tides on the body fit comfortably in the average brush. The same solution is used, by the way, on Celestron Nature 10x25 - the Chinese traditionally do not hesitate to clone successful models. But the original from Bresser is more expensive for good reason: here both the optics are better and the focus is more qualitative. Weight can be called moderate - 156 grams. Next to the focus ring - retractable eyecup, which does not interfere at all when not needed.

The name clearly hints that the monocular is able to survive a meeting with water without problems. Indeed, the quality of the seal is high, although the hydrophobic coating would also not hurt the lenses. But their enlightenment is quite decent, you cannot call a monocular too dark. The overall impression of the monocular BRESSER Nautic 8x25 WP is a good one, it's worth the money.

The fixed eight-student can be called expensive, especially given the dubious origin of the “Russian-American” brand of the lower price category. Nevertheless, a lightweight and compact monocular is well experienced in falling and floundering in a backpack, the nitrogen content does not allow it to mist inside when temperature changes occur. The eyecup is quite comfortable, although it interferes when the monocular is hanging around the neck.

You can use it with your hands comfortably - the original strap has a lining, it does not cut into the back of the hand. A stock of four diopters will suit most people to adjust to their vision.

This monocular attracts with a solid look and effective moisture protection, but it costs a lot to pay for it - more than 600 grams for the monocular is already a bit much, and the price makes you think that it makes sense to add and take binoculars.

However, BGD 8x42C also has its own chips - in particular, a range finder and a compass are built into it, and the compass readings are visible in the field of view. It’s really convenient for tourists when searching for landmarks, the milliradian rangefinder can also come in handy sometimes. We especially note the good moisture protection - you can cross the mountain rivers with this monocular, not being afraid to remain without optics, and accidentally fall over the side of the boat, collecting wounded cracks, also happens to many.

The Kazan monocular is Soviet-style brutal (although not in the same way as the Belarusian Zenit PC-AW collimators), is bulky and, which is already there, is not particularly convenient. A few decades ago, its developers decided not to break their heads and did not develop a monocular from scratch, but simply took half of the classic prismatic binoculars. And, although the manufacturer’s website promises us optimistically “free placement in a pocket or handbag,” in practice, putting a nearly 19-inch monocular in there will be a problem.

The least fortunate was the illumination of optics: in its “minimal” version, it can be said that it does not, only the more expensive equipment has a “ruby” coating, like on the cheapest Chinese optics. By the way, about China: note that it is the Kazan optics that are littered with all Aliexpress, and all sorts of “Highest quality Baigysh 12X45 Mini Telescope Monocular military pocket HD 8x zoom BK4 HD Optical glass of the Russian army binoculars” very convincingly mimic the original (although definitely scorching "with the BOC marking - the Chinese do not pay attention to the fact that it stands for" Prismatic Binocular with Central Focusing ", and such a designation on a monocular simply cannot be).

Should I buy this monocular? The issue is controversial - the monocular is a good one, but for the same money you can find a more compact and better-going model. Please note that the case here is made of rigid and thin plastic, pasted over with film.

A decent aperture of a 50-millimeter lens and a high-quality aluminum body make the ten-time “Monty” quite interesting, but still this model is ambiguous in terms of design. Let's say it can be imagined in the hands of a hipster, who for some reason decided to become a tourist or a hunter - and that, focusing is telescopic, “not like everyone else.” But precisely because of the need to lay out the monocular before using it in practice, it is less convenient than prismatic models - it will require the use of two hands. Although his “elder brother” in another section of the rating of the best monoculars received a good score, here the competition is much stronger, therefore, the place Veber gets the last.

Given the possibility of adjusting the approximation to 25-fold, this monocular can be considered a pocket telescope. And at the same time it is compact, light (300 g), and the rubberized plastic case is durable, and even filled with nitrogen. So the monocular will not take up much space, will not pull away a pocket or neck, and its degree of protection is high enough so as not to be afraid to swim with it during a duck hunt or while crossing a river during a hike.

Curiously, the focus limit here is only 0.5 meters. At maximum zoom, the monocular begins to work almost like a microscope. 42mm lens is not bad even by the standards of binoculars, for a compact monocular and at the same time perfectly suited.