Thanks to all that responded to this - you've added some great points! Well,
drum roll.........I'm going to go for Swarovski 10x42EL. This was really
down to personal choice though. Didn't like the Zeiss, felt colour clarity
was slightly (very slightly) less perfect than both the Leica and Swarovski,
+ my eye's seemed less "relaxed" when using them. And I think this is the
key point to choosing good optics - its how comfortable your eyes feel - its
like wearing that old pair of slippers that just get more and more
comfortable as they age. To me the Swarovskis had the edge - they were my
new old pair of slippers! Indeed as some have pointed out, I reckon this
makes a huge difference in the quality of your birdwatching experience -
using cheaper binos all day, can really give you alot of grief, particularly
in poor light. Its true that these are significantly more expensive but
buying these is a very rare event. The Swarovskis also had significantly
closer focusing than Leica - I find this very relevant when in the bush -
they also felt more comfortable to hold. On the brightness front very very
close, but I felt that in dull light Swarovskis were better - couldn't tell
the difference in good light (eye comfort again was the judge here).
Again thanks for your views - just got to get permssion from the wife (I'm
sure she'll understand, when I tell he that we have to have bread and milk
for a couple of months because I prefer Swarovski to Pentax!).
Again, thanks for yr help
Simon.
PS: By the way the best price I got was $2,755 from the Binocular and
Telescope Shop - I may get them from the US as one subscriber pointed out
that Binoculars.com have them at USD1,699 (AUD2,580 incl customs + gst).
Perhaps those interested should club together and go for a bulk order - I'm
sure we could save another $200-300!
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