AndrewJD
Reviewed: 13 June 2010
less than half the weight of a binocular .. but much less than half the usefulness
I paid £5 for this in a sale on a whim.
I subsequently "got into" binoculars and now have around ten of the things. Ahem. From time to time I still take out the monocular just in case it has somehow got better since I last used it. Surprise surprise it never has.
There is a reason virtually every creature on this planet has evolved to have two eyes not one; binocular vision is vastly superior to monocular vision, for a variety of reasons.
So it is with monoculars and binoculars. Perhaps the biggest advantage of binoculars is that they allow distance perception. This helps enormously if you are using them to navigate. It also helps if you are wildlife-watching - the 3d effect allowed by binoculars helps whatever you are looking at to stand out from its surroundings.
Buy a monocular (not this one) if you have only one good eye. Otherwise, buy a binocular, small and lightweight if you're walking, bigger and heavier if you're not. One tip - avoid high-magnification binoculars, especially with small objective (furthest from your eyes) lenses. A 6x30 is a good size. 10x50 much more serious and bulky. Any 12x25 will be horrid. Rough guide - divide the second number by the first; look for an answer of 4 or more. 5 is better still. 6 or more is only really justified if you are viewing in poor light.
Binocular geeks will feel at home on birdforum.net/binoculars.
