Bushnell Powerview Compact Folding Roof Prism Binocular

. I wanted to see how suitable the inexpensive Chinese-made binoculars are for gifting and for spare sets to have around for nature outings with kids etc. In February 2010, from Amazon.com I purchased a set of: TASCO ESSENTIALS 8x21 @ approximately $13 BARSKA LUCID 10x25 @ approximately $15 BUSHNELL POWERVIEW 12x25 @ approximately $18 For a baseline I compared these units to a tried-and-true set of NIKON VENTURER II 10x25's that we purchased back in 1989 for a stadium concert at Grant Field by the World's Greatest Rock `n Roll Band. Although we own quite a few sets of binoculars, those old NIKONS purchased way-back-when continue to be my "go to" set both for birding around the house and for field trips. Nothing I saw from the three sets that are the subject of this review would change that and I am not a "binoculars snob" by any means. Read on... [BTW, the current equivalent of my 20+ year old Nikons would be the NIKON 7278 Travelite VI Binoculars] EASE OF USE: My baseline Nikons are a porro prism design while all of the sets in this review are roof prism design. In the real world, I find that my Nikons get me "on target" faster every time better than any of the roof prism binoculars we own. This could just be me but I think a lot of other people are the same way - whether they have quantified it or not. BOTTOM LINE: If speed matters, as it often does in wildlife viewing, you may want to spend the extra bucks for a porro prism design. HINT: On Amazon.com as of right now there is a set of PENTAX 8 x 21 binoculars with porro prisms for less than $50 AND WITH Super Saver shipping! IMAGE BRIGHTNESS: Again, with the porro prism design having an inherent 12-15% advantage in brightness, my Nikons "see" better all the time and at dawn or dusk there is no comparison between them and the sets reviewed here - they are WAY BETTER! [read up on this aspect at the famous online encyclopedia!] IMAGE SHARPNESS: I found that all three sets here pretty much held their own with my Nikons - perhaps being only ever-so-slightly less crisp. What this means is that for viewing something that is more-or-less static - say a rock concert or an opera - all of these sets will do the job - and inexpensively at that! DURABILITY: I have had the three sets for about a year and a half at this writing and have not had a problem with any of them from either the standpoint of wear and/or breakage or from misalignment of the optics. Besides being more compact, the one great design advantage of roof prism binoculars is that the optics stay in alignment better that with the porro prism design. They all came with decent-if-not-great soft cases and neck straps. CONCLUSION: No doubt you noticed that I am rating three different levels of magnification in this review. Sorry about that but I determined going in that I wanted to see which of the three magnifications in this test worked the best in the "real world". Here's what I found: 1. None of these binoculars get "on target" as quickly and as unconsciously accurately as my Nikons; I suspect that this would still be true today were someone to spring for the roughly 5 to 8 times more expensive current equivalent of the Nikons that I have. 2. Of these inexpensive sets I far and away prefer the Bushnells and I believe that one can get the Powerviews in all three magnifications. When discussing magnification power the general rule of thumb is that the lower the magnification, the less "jittery" the image. What I found in these three sets was that the 12X Bushnells were every bit as bright and crisp as the 8X Tascos and 10X Barskas and I had the benefit of higher magnification to boot! If I were trying to sort a Downy from a Hairy on our suet feeder I'd definitely grab the Bushnells if I couldn't lay my hands on my Nikons! [Birders will get that LOL!] 3. While all of these Chinese-made binoculars are relatively high quality and provide great "bang for the buck", if you plan to use your binoculars often, you might want to go with a set of Nikons for what I myself consider to be the very best cost/benefit optimization of ergonomics, optics, and durability. If you just need to save some bucks but want to go to the occasional outing where the stage will be far away, these little jobs are more than equal to the task! PS - I wanna see the butterflies [and other bugs etc!] My next set of binoculars will be the Pentax 62216 Papilio 8.5x21 binoculars with the fabulous C.L.O.S.E. technology!

I originally bought these binoculars as I bird watch in my back yard and I also wanted them for events such as concerts, sporting events etc. My husband and I went to a concert this year and though we were not in the nose bleed seats we weren't in the front row either, and these binoculars were fantastic, I got to see my band very close up, I could see their faces and instruments very clearly. The binococulars are light and very compact, the case that they come in has a belt loop on it so you can slide it on your belt, and that is exactly what my husband did. My husband also took them to a baseball game and he said they were great. His team won too. Now I can't say the binoculars can help your favorite team to win but they can certainly help enhance your enjoyment of watching them play. We also took them on vacation with us, they can be packed easily into your suitcase or carry on bag. We use them on the beach to watch the boats in the distance and other water activities going on. There are many occasions that these binoculars can be used. Great pair of binoculars at a very good price. They would also make a good gift for someone, young or old alike.

I chose this brand because all of my scopes on my rifles are working great and they have a very clear glass, 4 stars on this cause they sent me this binoculars with one eye cup crooked , it does not affect the performance but , bushnell quality control lack on this one ,other than that it’s works great!

I've had these Bushnell Powerview 12x32 folding roof prism binoculars about 4 weeks. After working out the best way to hold & adjust them to my eyes and after getting used to them, I found them easy to adjust, easy & smooth to focus, clear and conveniently compact. The binoculars are inexpensive, quick to grab, easy to use and reasonably clear & effective. I use these for quick looks out the kitchen window at birds in nearby trees. . .short dogwoods. They work well for that purpose (I'm not looking up into 80 foot pines with these). I'm anxious to see how they perform out on broad water in a kayak for more distant viewing. I think I prefer the larger objectives in this compact folding roof prism style binocular (where the objective is 32 part of 12x32 or 16x32). I haven't tried the smaller objective Bushnell roof prism binoculars in this Powerview model but I never have been satisfied with similar smaller binoculars in other brands. An important consideration is the size of the image presented by the binoculars to the pupil...which is determined by dividing the objective lens size by the power, such as 32 divided by 12. I don't want to go and get all the proper terminology but in general, the smaller the binocular's value of that ratio is in relation to the user's pupil size at the time, the less satisfactory the viewing experience is. That's probably why I'm not happy with the smaller objective lens sizes in a binocular...the image presented to my eye probably is much smaller than my pupil -- You wind up having to hunt for the image in the eyepiece a lot. Anyways, the only thing I don't like about this folding compact style is the double hinge they all have. When using them I sense they are folded unevenly and cock-eyed which bothers me...I like to have just a single hinge. But then, these are "Compact Folding" BECAUSE of the double hinge and even if they are uneven it shouldn't affect the viewing.

Best ever binoculars,great looks, ultimate 12x zoom, comfortable and handy too....its worth buying!!!loved it

Pour son prix, c'est un excellent produit. Effectivement, elles sont livrées sans bonnette pour les objectifs et c'est tant mieux, car on ne sait jamais ou les ranger et ça fait perdre du temps. L'étui livré avec suffit à protéger les jumelles. Attention, plus ces appareils grossisses, plus il est difficile de maintenir une vision qui ne tremble pas, limite, il faudrait un pied pour ne pas trembler et fatiguer la vue.

These are very compact and great for short distances. You can also get a detailed view of the moon when lit up. Carry case is sturdy and useful. Focus is adjusted 'one eye at a time'. Bushnell quality materials & construction. Recommended!

Jumelles parfaites pour leur prix. Je les ai toujours avec moi. Ne prennent pas de place dans le sac et sont robuste.

I highly recommend these Binoculars, a very clear viewing and light enough to carry. was going for the 10x32 but opted for these 12x32, so glad I did. Great choice :)