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Looking to spend a few hundred on a compact pair
Seems to be a huge choice - Carson is a new name to me but seems well reviewed
How do they compare to Leica and Opticron etc?
Steiner are worth a look. (No pun intended)
James, youv'e got a PM.
Few hundred?
I’d be putting Zeiss Terra 8x32 up near the top of the list - not ‘folds tiny compacts’ but actually comfortable/stable to use and with a good balance of power and light gathering for the size.
James, sorry I didn't check the ad I put on! I'm in Boroughbridge, North Yorks.
Meopta (Czech firm) make good binos in that sort of price range, I have two pairs for different jobs, pleased with both of them. And a rifle scope.
Bought some vanguard Endeavour II ED 8x32 after some protracted research a little while ago. Very happy with them, and one reviewer pointed out a very handy feature of the 2 hinge design making it nice to carry.
Probably on the lower end of your price range, but I reckon the bins you'll leave in the car, or in the bottom of a bag will be used more often. And it means that you'll have some budget left for oh, I don't know, some 15x75 Apollo Helios for the lunar eclipse on Friday!
Below budget, I have a pair of Hawke bins which I was very impressed with for the price
Typical price list here http://www.ffordes.com/category/Binoculars_and_Scopes/Binoculars/Hawke#&&PageIndex=1&SortExpression=SalesPrice&SortDirection=Ascending
Is a few hundred 2 or 8?
Leica/Swarovski/Zeiss are the three alpha brands, you'd be pleased with anything from there
My small pair are Leicas. My medium pair are Kowa 6x30, good for my kids to use. my big pair are Zen Ray. ZR are asian bins but made very well made, as opposed to made 'cheap'. They used to have a european seller but not sure if they still exist now. You're few hundred would go a long way there
Not sure if it’ll help but some RSPB reserves have a good selection to try out. Handy if there’s one nearby.
Vortex make some clear glass ( http://www.vortexoptics.com/category/binoculars). I bought one of their monoculars for hunting and range work and it is superb. I know several people that swear by the higher end rifle scopes too.
We've got "big" (8*42) bins from Celestron (Granite HD) and Vanguard( Endeavour, the original range). Both great, the celestron probably edge it and they do a 7*33 and 9*33 if you want something mid-size
for "small" bins we had some RSPB Rambler 8*25, they were ok - I tested them against the 8*20 HD binoculars and against some swaro 8*20 ish bins at at test event, and in truth I preferred the 8*25s. They were under £100 as opposed to 300 for the RSPB HD and over £500 for the swarovskis.
We lost them while out skiing (probably dropped out of the backpack) and have replaced them with - erm - something else. Frustratingly I can't recall what hey are offhand. again though under £100.
If you want to pop round to try our bins James you're more than welcome, drop use a line or give us a bell
what I have found is that I don't find the smaller binoculars as comfortable to use as something bigger.
Thanks Jules!