Nikon Sportstar EX

8 x 25 DCF (waterproof binoculars)

Nikon Sportstar EX Binoculars Recently, I received a pair of Nikon Sportstar waterproof binoculars to mark my 60th birthday. The twin-hinged foldable design with roof prisms makes them very compact, light, and easy to carry almost anywhere. Nice!

I've always liked binoculars. I was given some when I was 21, but those were thrown away years ago. They weren't as good as Nikons.

Nikon Sportstar EX features

  • Waterproof up to 2m. for five minutes
  • Fog-free with nitrogen gas
  • Compact and lightweight
  • Wide field of view - 8.5 degrees
  • Close focusing distance: 2.5m (8x)
  • Turn-and-slide rubber eyecups
  • Multilayer coated lenses
  • Strap and soft case supplied

My other (much older) binoculars are the Swift Saratoga Mk II 8 x 40 with extra wide field: 488 feet at 1000 yards. The field of view of the Nikon Sportstar is slightly less: 143 metres at 1000 metres (469 feet at 1093 yards).

The Swift binoculars are rather bulky compared to the Nikon Sportstar EX, but the view is a little clearer, and their weight makes them less prone to shake, always an issue with long-distance magnification in a hand-held optical device. That said, one can't easily slip those Swifts into one's jeans pocket, and they're not waterproof.

Nikon sports binoculars: the perfect present

When I look at the moon through binoculars I'm seeing it as the astronauts would have seen it from 7/8ths of the way there. I can see anything as if I'm 7/8ths of the way there. And the Nikon Sportstar EX binoculars are so compact they can be carried around like a mobile phone, so they tend to get used.

But unlike mobile phones, binoculars aren't superceded so quickly, quality-wise. An old pair usually works just as well as a new pair. This makes binoculars an excellent present to give someone, because they will last and last, giving many decades of good service during which he or she will remain eternally grateful.

Comments

I would like to receive some top class binoculars as a present.

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