Explorer WA ED-R 8x42 Monocular, 30785

The Opticon Explorer has been an excellent general purpose monocular for watching wildlife and navigation while hiking and traveling in small boats. It is very compact , easy to carry and it has an image clarity that is excellent for the price. For a more objective description of the clarity, I compared the image quality of the Opticon Explorer with the Monarch Series 7 binocular, both of which are 8x42 and have a similar field of view (the Monarch is about 8 degrees and the Opticon is about 7.5 degrees). In dim light, I studied the moss and lichen on a wood fence at about 75 yards. The Monarch was superior, but only by about 15%, if you could give a quantitative figure for how much extra clarity was achieved. However, the Opticon Explorer is much smaller, weighs less and is easier to carry. Furthermore, it costs only $150 compared to about $500 for the Monarch. I have had two monoculars prior to this model. One was the Stilnand 16x50. The other was the Opticon Oregon 8x42. The image quality of the Stilnand was not as good as the Opticon Explorer. The image quality of the Oregon was about the same as the Explorer. However, the Explorer is even more compact and easier to carry than the Oregon. The Explorer is harder to focus than the Oregon, but this is easily overcome if you anticipate the approximate distance you will be looking at an object before using it. Understanding this principle, you can "prefocus" your Explorer and study warblers flitting about in the tree tops or watching seals jump out of the water a hundred years away without focusing at all.

I bought this to watch my kid from the stands at high school band completions and to see the concert stage from mid-altitude arena seats. I previously bought the budget Celestron Nature 10x25 monocular for the same purpose. My first impression of the Opticron is the glorious fat field of view. It is not image stabilization but it does mean allow more real estate in which to center the target when my hand shakes. It also is better for digiscoping. I do not have to magnify the camera image as much to remove the ocular vignette from the picture and it allows more light through to the camera lens. It works very well with a Celestron NexYZ phone adapter. The optics are superior to the budget monocular. Details are more crisp and colors are closer to the naked eye. I can confirm the shortcomings pointed out by many other reviewers. The objective lens cover is too loose, both the loop of plastic holding it to the barrel and the cover itself. Why do they not tighten it up? And the focus dial is stiff. Appreciable force is required to turn it but once in place it will not be easily moved out of focus. That might be an issue for the Celestron which is small enough to fit in a pants pocket. The Opticron will fit in a coat pocket, but guys will get funny looks if they try to stuff it in a pants pocket.

Beautiful scope. As great as the description states. Light, EXCELLENT optics, great case, super compact, perfect even atop my astigmatism correcting eyeglasses, sturdy design, easy focus, etc!!! Just used in Galapagos and now in Amazon. I love this monocular.

I enjoy the quality and compact size of this monocular. It’s great for daily use whether plane-spotting, bird watching, hunting, etc. I’m very satisfied with my purchase.

It is absolutely fantastic. Very easy to use and enlarge objects with amazing clarity.

pretty decent little monocular. focus is reasonably smooth albeit quite stiff, optics are quite good, nice wide field of view with only a little distortion right out by the edges, good contrast, etc etc. eye relief is eyeglass friendly. Carry strap is way too bulky for this, so I took it off.

I spent a couple of years reading reviews and canvassing birders before buying this monocular. I had become totally frustrated with my binoculars and the time and effort it took to focus them only to find that the bird I wanted to see had flown away. Granted I’m not a serious birder, only one who mainly checks out the birds around my house and lake. This has one adjustment option only. My only small complaint is that this adjustment is stiff and takes more effort than I think would be ideal to turn. My advice - if you’ve been considering buying a monocular, try this one.

El monocular es muy nitido para su precio , esta hecho de buen material , lo unico negativo es que las tapas no quedan tan fijas , sobre todo la delantera ¡¡por eso le puse 4 de 5 estrellas

This monocular is worth every penny. Clear image, robust and waterproof. The ED version is what I purchased and it’s ideal. Big enough to let enough light in for low light use, small enough for a decent pocket and easy to operate. Yes the focus wheel requires patience as it’s slower to rotate than others but that’s really not an issue to me. Makes you feel it’s more sturdy than anything else. Hardly stops you operating it. Really pleased I bought this for wildlife use and the 8x magnification is more than enough to make it really useful. The case isn’t anything to get excited about but it does the job. Made a veg tan leather one for mine so the finished package is now complete. All I need to do now is not lose it like my last Opticron! If you’re lucky enough to be able to afford one, I certainly recommend getting one.

The delivery was on time. The unit is lightweight and easy to use. The construction is high-grade. I suggest not going with the 10x42 because with the 8x42 it can already be a little shakey if you don't brace your arm. I struggled with this choice as there are so many units to choose from online. I am extremely satisfied with my final choice of the 8x42. It is light, has great magnification, no distortion, and excellent low-light visibility. The eye cap can be easily lost as it is not secured. I resolved this by threading the supplied strap through the eye cap and now it is secure. All in all a great high-quality unit.

Well built, Optics excellent

Mam lornetkę Opticron Traveller BGA ED 8x32, po monokularze spodziewałem się co najmniej takiej samej jakości obrazu. Okazuje się jednak, że między lornetką 8x32 a monokularem 8x40 jest WIELKA przepaść (na niekorzyść monokularu). W porównaniu do 8x32 w 8x40 jest ciemniejszy obraz i znacząco mniejsza ostrość obrazu. Dodatkowo regulacja ostrości stawia zbyt duży opór. Drugi raz bym zdecydowanie nie kupił.

Excelente produto