Nikon EDG 10x32 Binoculars Review

Nikon 10 x 32 EDG Binoculars
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These Binoculars are On Sale Discount Binocular: The Nikon EDG 10x32 binoculars are available at a discount on Amazon.com, Binoculars.com and Eagle Optics in the USA >> Check Prices
Price Range: (5/6) High Value Binoculars       

Ideal Uses:

General Use Rating for General Use Binoculars
Birdwatching Rating as Birdwatching Binoculars
Outdoor Sports Rating asOutdoor Sports Binoculars
Safari & Travel Rating as Safari Binoculars
Hunting Rating as Hunting Binoculars
Marine Use Rating as Marine Binoculars
Astronomy Rating as Binoculars for Astronomy

According to their own marketing, Nikon created their EDG Binocular range as proof of their "commitment to provide a premium lineup of the finest instruments in the field of sport optics" so with this in mind, I take a look at the compact but powerful Nikon 10x32 EDG binoculars and see if they are as good as Nikon say they are.

The Optics

I was immediately impressed by the clarity and the brightness of the image was very impressive. If you take into account the smaller 32mm diameter objective lenses which when compared to full size binoculars will in theory will take in less light, their brightness is even more impressive. Of course many other factors combine to produce the final image brightness, these include the quality of glass, their coatings and the physical assembly and quality of the prisms. So what do these Nikon EDG 10x32 binoculars have that help to produce such an excellent quality image:

Nikon EDG?
The EDG range of binoculars and spotting scopes from Nikon get their name from the ED Glass which is used on them. This 'extra-low dispersion' glass is said to effectively compensate for chromatic aberrations to provide images of superior contrast and outstanding resolution! What this really means is that the glass is of a very high density and is often found on high end spotting scopes and camera lenses. This ED glass reduces the scatter and separation of the different wavelengths of light so that they all arrive at the same time on the same focal point. This helps to reduce the color fringes that are called chromatic aberration and results in a sharper clearer image.

Lens & Prism Coatings
Nikon use dielectric high-reflective multilayer coatings on the roof prism, rather than the aluminium coatings used on cheaper binoculars that have a reflectivity of 87% to 93%. The dielectric coating causes the prism surfaces to act as a dielectric mirror and boosts the light reflectivity to more than 99% for the full visible range, giving you clearer whites and a sharper, brighter, more natural vision across the entire field of view.

The prisms on these EDG binoculars also have a Phase-correction coating that basically helps to reduce the phase shift of light that is caused by phase differences arising from total light reflection on a roof surface. This Phase-correction coating thus reduces the loss of image resolution maintaining high-contrast images and is found on most high end roof prism binoculars.

Field flattener lenses are used in the Nikon EDG binoculars that minimizes curvature of the field—aberrations that occur when focusing on the centre of the field of view causing the edges to go out of focus or the centre to go out of focus when focusing on the edges. This produces sharper, clearer images all the way to the lens periphery and are used in most high end binoculars these days. On top of this multilayer coatings are applied to all lenses and prisms to increase light transmission and to reduce flare and ghosting for super-bright, razor-sharp images, even at dawn and dusk.

Nikon EDG BinocularsThe Main Body

Mid Size Binoculars
I travel abroad a lot, almost always taking a pair of binoculars with me. In the field I also often carry a bird book, camera or something else along with my binoculars in, so I do like the current trend of producing binoculars that are more compact than full size versions, yet are not so compact as to loose all of the light gathering qualities of larger binoculars. The ideal formula for these Mid Size Binoculars seem to be a objective lens diameter between 30 and 32mm.

Weighing 650g, the 10x32 EDG is a little heavier (50g) than the Swarovski 10x32 EL Binoculars that I consider to be one of the best mid size binoculars available today. They are also only 13.8 cm long, compared to 15cm of the full size the Nikon 10x42 EDG binoculars.

New 2010 Nikon EDG Binoculars
It was announced in March 2010 by Nikon that they were bringing out their new range of EDG binoculars. The biggest difference between the latest versions is in their appearance, with the new version only having one bridge between the two barrels, where previously there were two.

New Nikon EDG comparison

This new single short bridge design is comfortable to hold the binoculars are well balanced. The body is made from die-cast magnesium and overall the body looks great and is fairly lightweight.

As with many binoculars these days the EDG range feature a central dual focus knob, that you pull out to adjust the diopter setting. This works well and quick accurate fine focusing was no problem.

Thanks to the nitrogen-filled body and O-ring seals, the 10x32 Nikon EDG is both Waterproof (up to 5 m/16.4 ft. for 10 minutes) and fogproof.

Nikon EDG EyecupsThe Eye Cups
For me the eye cups can either make or break a pair of binoculars as this is the actual point of contact between you and your optics. Some people like solid ones, whilst others like me like soft rubber eyecups. The Ergonomically designed horn-shaped eyecups on all the Nikon EDG binoculars are fantastic as they are comfortable on your face and do an excellent job of blocking out peripheral light that can be so annoying and if you don't like them they are detachable, so everyone is happy. Under these you find the main more solid rubber eyecups that can Turn-and-slide making it simple to position your eyes at the correct eyepoint. For non-eyeglass wearers, you just use the eyecups in the extended position. For people who wear glasses you can just use them fully retracted or the eyecups can be adjusted to any of four click stops with a maximum of 17.3mm of eye relief, making these true long eye relief binoculars.

Nikon EDG 10x32 Vs Swarovski 10x32 EL Binoculars

What I thought may be interesting is to compare some of the numbers between, what I believe to be the market leader, the and these Nikon EDG's

  Nikon EDG 10x32 Swarovski 10x32 EL
Price (approx): $1400 $1900
Weight: 650g 600g
Length: 138mm 136mm
Width: 139mm 114mm
Eye Relief: 17.3mm 13mm
Close Focusing Distance: 2.5m 2m
Field of View at 1000m: 114m 120m
Actual Field of View (degrees): 6.5 6.9
Apparent Field of Vew (degrees): 59.2 65

So as you can see both binoculars are fairly evenly matched, but it must be said that the Swarovski EL does edge (excuse the pun) the Nikon EDG in most areas, except eye relief and price where you can usually find the EDG for sale at about $500 cheeper than the EL's.

Conclusion

Compared to other high-end binoculars, I would say that the 10x32 Nikon EDG binoculars are priced quite reasonably. If you take this into account with their excellent, class equalling but not class beating optical performance and their excellent build quality with all the features you would expect to find in high end optics, I would say that they make very good value for money. Overall they are ideal travel, general purpose and wildlife observation binoculars, which in my opinion makes them fantastic safari binoculars, highly recommended. If you are mostly going to be birdwatching, I would also consider the Nikon 8x32 EDG version for it's wider field of view.

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Main Specifications & Features:

Nikon 10x32 EDG Binoculars Video Review

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Mid Size Binoculars | Roof Prism Binoculars | General Use Binoculars | Safari Binoculars | Outdoor Sports Binoculars | Top of the Range/High Value Binoculars


Similar Binoculars:

Below are similar pairs of Binoculars that you may also want to have a look at:

Swarovski 10x32 EL

Compared to 10x42 binoculars these more compact and lighter 10x32's are ideal for travelling with and are easy to carry in the field.


Binocular Price Comparison
Where to buy the Nikon 10x32 EDG Binoculars

General Price Range: (5/6) High Value Binoculars

Below is a link that will take you to a page with online retailers in both the US and UK that sell Nikon 10x32 EDG Binoculars this page makes it easy to compare prices and then to buy from your preferred option:

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These Binoculars are On SaleDiscount Binoculars: The Nikon EDG 10x32 binoculars are available at a discount on Amazon.com, Binoculars.com and Eagle Optics in the USA
 
 
 
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