Re: Best all around binoculars
The "wise man" must have been a birdwatcher then. If he had ever taken his pretty glass Swarovski, or, for that matter, Nikon, Leica or Bushnell into a bit of a tougher environment, he would have found out very quickly that pretty glass does not help much when the frame falls apart
I don't have anything against these brands - some of then have great glass - but every equipment choice is a compromise between multiple criteria. You have to look at glass, weight, handiness, robustness, compactness, resistance to corrosion etc. I have seen many of these brands in really heavy weather at sea, while I don't think the "wise man" has ever put his gear to the test. My first pair of Steiner 7x50s has been with me since 1990, and they have gone to places where pretty Swarovski glass would have lasted about a day.
Let me suggest a test to the "wise man": put a pair of binoculars in a moving cockpit full of seawater for 3 days, swing them into a piece of metal every 12 seconds, throw 3 tons of salt water at them every 15 minutes, use them every hour, and let me know which one can be used to actually identify an 8 ft corroded green buoy at 3,500 yards in the middle of an 18 ft dark gray sea - or, in fact, which one survives more than a day
My original armored 7x50 Steiners have seen that and more many times over the last 20 years, and they are still able to reliably give me excellent IDs, both in outline and color, in heavy seas and very poor lighting at 3,500 yards. Maybe that's why the Coasties, many world navies, and a good percentage of the armored forces in Europe and the Middle East use them when they need something with good optical qualities that will withstand really tough conditions...
Edit: OK - I looked at the cheaper Steiners - my high evaluation of Steiner does not apply to them. I am talking abt the Marine versions, not the low end models.