VortexOptics Diamondback 10x42 Roof Prism Binocular

Excellent in every way, and at this price... well, a bargain! I find the views bright, sharp, and completely without residual color fringing. The collimation seems perfect, so there is no eyestrain at all with prolonged viewing. The field of view is in good accurate sharp focus from the center of the field of view to edge of the field. The apparent field of view is huge, wide, and this heightens the perception of the 3-D effect that the binoculars give (it's clear that the eyepieces are a wide-field-of-view design-type). I also use the binocs for stargazing, and find the star images very sharp and without astigmatism or flaring, a stringent test for any optics! Viewing very bright objects such as the moon does not result in ghost images or multiple images: the anti-reflection coatings on all the optics and internal parts thus seem very efficient and effective. And I see no evidence of internal reflections from scattering when viewing bright objects: clean! The weight of the binocs is good, and not excessive, and they feel very solid; the focus control is easy and conveniently placed, and the variable diopter adjustment on the right-hand eyepiece is easy to adjust and it "stays put" once set, yet is always easy to re-adjust (say, when you hand the binocs to a friend with differing eyesight details). I'm very happy with these binocs, and will use them in all applications where 10x42mm binocs are appropriate, and especially in birding and Astronomy. I purchased a Vortex binocular Harness strap for easy carrying in the field, although the neck strap already included with the binocs is very fine and has a nice comfortably padded neck-piece cushion. The included binocular case is good, but my pair will spend most of its time out in the open and ready to use (read, "grab") in an instant. Again, this is a bargain and really a beautiful marriage of very high optical quality and mechanical design & implementation. Kudos!, Vortex. The 10 x 42mm Vortex Diamondback binocular is a hit with me, a retired Astronomer who appreciates fine optics and mechanism.

This binocular from Vortex has very clear glass, the eyepieces have great eye relief (16mm) and the right-eye diopter placement worked absolutely perfectly for me. The compact design feels very good in hand and the middle finger of my right hand easily accessed and worked the center focus wheel as needed. With a good field of view (345 feet at 1000 yards) and an almost 3D quality true color view, we were impressed by the Vortex Diamondback 10 x 42 Binocular and would recommend it to others.This Vortex binocular is now on its way to a friend who is a world-class collegiate archer, as he wants to test against his Leopolds. I will return here to add comments from his review as completed, and offer the following from my week's worth of testing so far:To begin with, the binocular was shipped quickly in a well packed box, and arrived in perfect condition. The binoc comes with a rainguard, lens covers, carry strap and a semi-hard clamshell zippered carry case. The exterior of the binocs is made of a waterproof, rubberized green and black material that is very comfortable to hold, and the compact size adds to that comfort.Within just a few minutes I had the eye relief of both eyepieces adjusted to my liking, and then set the right-eye diopter to my vision needs. Very easy to do... so we headed out to the back forty. Right away we had a great test experience; we have a family of Barred Owls that live near the creek that runs through the property, and papa owl was sitting right there in a tree surveying the land (looking for dinner, we surmised). I was standing on a little hill, and Mr. Owl was in a tree about 40 yards away. Between us there were various trees and undergrowth, including a beautiful dogwood tree (purple/red fall time leaves) sitting in a small swale.With this Vortex Diamondback 10x42 binocular, I could see the fine detail of the owl's brown, gray and white feathers and seemingly peered right into the dark black pools that were his eyes. Very cool; like a staring match seeing who would blink first (am sure he won). Yet, with an easy turn of the center focus wheel I could back off of the owl and focus in quickly on the dogwood tree, seeing the vivid red-purple leaves, and every vein running through them. Even though the tree was 30 feet or so away, this binocular made it feel as if I could reach out and touch the leaves and small berries.That was my first experience with the Vortex Diamondback Binocular, and the rest of the day, the rest of the week, followed suit. Am very happy with the performance based on the following:* Clarity: Very good; better than any other binocular under $400 that I have experienced* Color: Absolutely true color came back to us through the lens* Ruggedness: The rubberized armor coating helps make them tough, but also makes them easy to hold* Water & fog proof: The lenses are multi-coated and the binoc is argon gas filled, so we had no fogging. Temps ranged from 68 to 16 on our test days* Design: Outstanding compact size, easily adjusting to the distance between my eyes, with controls that are easy to reach and use* Eye relief: One of the best features of all, allowing my eyes to have the space needed to see the full field of view* Field of view: Very good 345 feet at 1000 yards, or about 6.6 degrees* Size & weight: Just right for our needs at about 6 inches long, 5.5 inches from side to side, and just under 1.5 lbs* Warranty: You can't get better than a Lifetime Warranty...Having purchased other Vortex gear (such as their StrikeFire) and been impressed, this Vortex Diamondback 10x42 Binocular maintains the great Vortex track record.This binocular has a fantastic price-to-value ratio and you really have to spend some time comparing it to other units in order to gain full appreciation for how good a deal this is. The VIP Unconditional Lifetime Warranty coverage that Vortex provides also adds value; given that warranty, if an issue ever arises I will return here to update the review and let you know what the issue was and how resolution was handled. I did receive this binocular gratis from the manufacturer and put it to immediate use to objectively find out how well it performed. My statements here reflect that testing, and will be updated when the archery team finishes their review too.If you are looking for a 10x42, waterproof, fogproof, binocular of this style, size, power and price, for use similar to what I have described above, then I highly recommend this Vortex Diamondback 10x42 Binocular to you based on our experience with it. This binocular seems well built and easy to use, and has worked very well for me.Highly recommended. Go for it.(PS: By the way, the fleece hat is nice, soft & warm too)

Excellent on all fronts. Love them.