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Until now, it has been my impression that Hawke Sport Optics has primarily focussed much, it not all their attention on the lower and mid-tier price levels. Indeed even their high performance Frontier ED X series still just makes it into the mid-high price range here on BBR.
Also, almost with out exception, where I think Hawke's strength lies is in their focus on performance to price ratio and by that I mean it is my experience after having tested many of their instruments, that you always get more than what you would expect to find at their intended price level. If you consider that these lower tiers are also the most abundant and thus also have the most competition, this is impressive for a brand that began life in the founders garage!
Now with the APO Frontier, Hawke have raised the stakes by venturing into the more rarefied atmosphere of true High-End ($500 - $1200 /£/€) binoculars where in terms of numbers the competition may be less, but the quality of competitors is higher and often much more experienced.
Currently offered in the 8x42 or 10x42 configurations, the standout feature, by which they are also named and which currently sets them apart from the other instruments in the Hawke stable is that they incorporate APO (Apochromatic) lenses into their optical system.
Below I go into detail about this as well as all their other features in this review and give my opinion on their performance, which I wrote after a full summer as well as half a winter of testing to see how they compare to the competition at this higher level:
Features at a Glance:
Shape
As normal, both the 10x42 and 8x42 Hawke Frontier APO Binoculars use the same chassis and outer components and thus this section of the review is valid to both:
Whilst the APO version of the Frontier immediately looks like a typical Hawke binocular, there are a a few subtle differences to the body and it's components that set it apart, even from the ED-X and HD-X Frontier:
Firstly measuring just 2cm across at the center, the bridge between the two barrels, is noticeably thinner and less beefy looking than most including the other Hawke Frontier models.
It is also positioned nearer the the eyepieces than the objective lenses, giving these what I call a top-hinge design. This thin bridge and it's position means more of the ends of the barrels are free for you to grasp onto, which I found to be a nice secure way to carry them one handed when not glassing and not using the neck strap.
The potential negative to this very thin bridge is that it is not as strong as others and whilst I did not test it to destruction, it feels robust and is not something that I would be overly concerned with unless perhaps if you particularly need a very rugged instrument?
My first impression on taking them out the box was how they look and feel very compact for a 42mm binocular, especially in therms of their length.
I measured the outer surface of the two 42mm objective lenses to be set back 7mm in from the ends of the barrels, which is a little less than the majority and definitely helps make the instrument shorter and more compact than most 8x and 10x42 out there, but on the flip side, it provides a little less protection to the glass than those that are more deeply set.
Exterior Rubber Coating
As with pretty much all the other Hawke binoculars I have reviewed the rubber used for the outer armor on the Hawke Frontier APO 10x42 binocular is thin, hard and fits tightly onto the chassis underneath.
This gives it a nice looking finish, but does not provide as much impact protection or grip as those using thicker, softer rubbers.
Hawk does add a very fine texture to the rubber and it has a fine diamond texture on the sides of the barrels which does help with both grip and reducing the reflectivity of the material, but even so, you would never describe the Frontier binoculars as having a very stealthy or high grip exterior.
There are no thumb indents on the underside, which is is not a big issue to me, but I do find those which do have them and which are well placed can just encourage you to hold the instrument at the correct balancing point and in the correct way without even thinking about it.
Inter-Pupillary Distance (IPD) Adjustment
Even though it is so thin, the hinge opens and closes with quite a bit of resistance, not enough to make it annoying to adjust, but comfortably enough to ensure that it remains at your desired IPD setting.
The exact IPD range on these 42mm Hawke Frontier APO binoculars is from 5.8cm up to a maximum of 7.8cm which is pretty standard for a full-size roof prism instrument like these.
Chassis
Unlike less expensive binoculars that very often will use plastic, all the Hawke Frontier binoculars have a magnesium alloy chassis hidden under the armor.
Whilst this usually is partly the reason higher-end instruments like these weigh more than cheap binoculars, a good metal chassis is often more robust (not always the case, depending on the design and exact materials used).
Magnesium alloy also has an excellent resistance to temperature-related expansion and contraction and thus any chance of there being a misalignment of the optics due to to temperature changes is reduced.
I also find that a heavier metal binocular just feels better in the hands than a very lightweight plastic one.
Fully Sealed
The Hawke Frontier APO 10x42 binoculars are sealed and thus are fully waterproof and not just "weather protected", which is what you would expect at this and indeed the mid-level price points.
All the air is also purged from the interior and a completely moistureless nitrogen gas replaces it which protects the internal glass surfaces from fogging up. Again at this level, this is expected.
Eye-Cups & Eyepieces
The design and function of the twist-up eyecups on the Hawke APO Frontier binoculars are very similar to that used on the other Frontier models I've tested, which is good news, because I really like the look and whilst probably not the most comfortable to push firmly against your face because of the hard rubber used, I would not describe them as uncomfortable to use.
I also really like the fact that these twist-up housings can also be unscrewed and completely removed from the rest of they eyepiece. This not only makes them easier to replace should the need ever arise, but it is much easier to properly clean them and the ocular ocular lenses underneath.
Whilst the eyepiece housings are certainly made from metal, it does look to me that the eye-cup housings on the Hawke Frontier APO binoculars are plastic, which is a bit of a surprise to me.
Thankfully there is no looseness or play in eyecups, and whilst there are better examples out there in terms of the click-stops being more definite and snapping into place, the Swarovski NL Pure 8x32 binoculars that I recently reviewed spring to mind, but they cost a whopping 4x more than these!
So not the most "clicky" click-stops in the world, but there is enough resistance in the twist-up mechanism that enables you to position them at any point in between fully extended and retracted, which is good for anyone who may need to fine tune the eye-relief.
Focus Wheel & Focussing
Whilst slightly different in design to the others in the Frontier series, I am glad to see that the focus wheel on the Hawke Frontier APO 10x42 Binoculars is metal and not plastic, which you find all too often these days, even on very expensive models.
The focusing mechanism on my sample was very smooth, but at the same time not too loose and there was no free play or stiff points at any point between the extremes of minimum and maximum focus.
I like where it is positioned and I found it very easy to reach and adjust even with just one finger. I also like that Hawke has added a rubber track to the outer surface of the wheel, but I just wish they had made the tread a little more aggressive so as to raise the grip level just a bit more.
This is a very minor point and the very smooth mechanism mostly makes up for this, but when I tested them with thick woolen gloves, the wheel I found the wheel not as obvious to adjust as some others out there.
The gearing of the focus mechanism is very interesting on the Hawke Frontier 10x42 binoculars in that is it ultra aggressive: On my sample it took less than one full turn (about 340°) to change the focus from one extreme to the other.
This is great for making large, rapid focal changes from near to far or vice versa but you do have to be more careful when making fine adjustments and get the focus pin-sharp.
Diopter Adjustment
Used to calibrate the binocular to counter any difference in vision between your left and right eyes, you only need to adjust this setting very infrequently and thus it is interesting that the rubber track Hawke has used has more grip than that on the focus wheel.
Still, there is a good level of resistance in the mechanism and thus only a small chance that you are going to move it and thus change your setting by accident. Note that there are some high-end binoculars out there that have a lockable diopter which is more ideal and would have been a nice detail to have seen here.
In terms of markings, there really only is the neutral marker and a + and - sigh to work with and thus if you have a particular setting that doesn't line up with any of these, I would suggest making a small mark with a pen or a small nick with a sharp knife.
Tripod Adaptable
The Hawke Frontier APO Binoculars are "tripod adaptable" meaning that you can simply unscrew the dust cap located on the front face of the central hinge.
This reveals a standard tripod/monopod mounting thread (¼" - 20 UNC) and because there is a good gap between the two barrels, this instrument should easily take just about any standard binocular tripod adapter.
Body Quality Score: 8/10
Weight
Like many others in the higher price categories, the Hawke Frontier APO binoculars would not be considered a lightweight 42mm binocular, but at the same time, at 26.1oz /740g they are also far from being the heaviest.
This is chiefly down to the use of metal parts where cheaper options instead opt for plastic:
Dimensions
Right from the moment I first took the Frontier APO out of the box, I thought these look and feel small for a 42mm binocular.
Sometimes this feeling can just be down to a particular shape, but in this case, especially in terms of their length, this is confirmed if you compare their outer dimensions to others I have tested in the table above.
They really do not feel or look much different to larger mid-sized binoculars and thus make a good option if you want a "more compact" full-sized binocular to carry about or travel with.
Body Stats Score (for a 42mm binocular): 8/10
In their marketing material, Hawke draws your attention to the point that their Frontier APO's use their "new" H7 optics. But what exactly does this mean and in what way does the Frontier APO differ from the Frontier ED-X and Frontier HD-X models that also use their H7 system?
Apochromatic (APO) LensesThis additional lens element increases weight, but the advantage is that an APO lens is able to focus three wavelengths of light onto a single point and thus have the potential to lessen the chromatic and spherical aberrations which can result is a clearer or perhaps a better way of putting it is a higher definition image.
As neither the Frontier ED-X nor the HD-X binoculars mention this in their marketing or spec sheets, I will assume this one of the the main differences between them.
ED Glass
These instruments also have lens elements made from extra-low dispersion (ED) glass.
ED glass in the lenses gives more options when it comes to directing the wavelengths of light as they split up going through the lens and thus a well designed system has an improved chromatic aberration control, which once again can result in a higher definition image as it will display less color fringing around the edges of objects.
For details on how these actually performed, check out the Image Quality section below.
In regards to the ocular lenses, Hawke Sport Optics do not go into detail, but I did measure the outermost ocular lens as having a diameter of 24mm, which is certainly on the larger end of the scale for a 42mm binocular. Note that this is also larger than that used on the Frontier ED X.
As well as making them easier to line up with your eyes and thus prevent black rings forming on the periphery of the view, larger oculars can offer a number of advantages, for more, take a look at my article on Binocular ocular lens size.
Made from Bak-4 glass, the Hawke Frontier APO binoculars use the Schmidt-Pechan design of roof-prism inside them to invert the upside-down image created as the light passes through the lenses, which for a modern, good quality binocular is most common.
Anti-Reflection Coatings
At this level, I would have been completely shocked to learn differently, but it is important to confirm that these Hawke Frontier APO 10x42 binoculars have a Fully Multi-Coated optical pathway.
What this means is all the outer lens surfaces throughout the entire optical pathway have multiple layers of a special anti-reflection material added to them. By reducing and better controlling any unwanted reflections, you achieve a superior image brightness and quality compared to those with fewer coatings.
More: What To Look For When Buying Binoculars & Anti-Reflection Lens Coatings.
Prism Coatings
As the light passed through the prisms, it can cause the wavelengths to step out of phase, and thus better quality roof prism binoculars like these Hawke's have phase correction coatings added to them which improves image resolution compared to those which are untreated.
Unlike porro prisms, roof prisms do not reflect 100% of the incident light and thus highly reflective materials are added to a surface on the prism to boos the reflectivity which in turn boosts both the quality and brightness of the view.
Lesser binoculars use materials like aluminium or silver which can get the level up to 98%. High-end instruments like all the Hawke Frontier binoculars are dielectrically coated which is technically more difficult and costs more, but has a reflectivity of over 99%.
Protective Lens Coatings
The outer surface of the lenses on all the Hawke Frontier binoculars also have water repellent coatings added to them.
As well as making them perform better in wet conditions, they also reduce water stains and other marks that can form on the lenses and thus they say cleaner cleaner for longer, which in turn means less frequent cleaning is required.
Optical Components Score: 9/10
The Field Of View (FOV)
The view you see when looking through the Hawke Frontier APO 10x42 binocular is rated at 372ft wide at a distance of 1000 yards (124m @ 1000m).
Or if you describe it another way, the viewing angle from the binocular is 7°, but whichever way you describe it, for a 10x binocular, this is extremely wide.
Indeed their FOV even compares well against many 8x binoculars, which means you can almost have the best of both worlds: more image detail without an appreciable loss of the width of the image.
Note: If you want an extremely wide FOV, consider the 8x42 Hawke Frontier APO is rated at 426ft @1000yds (142m @ 1000m)!
Close Focus
On BBR I rate any minimum focus distance of 6ft (1.8 meters) or less on a standard full sized bino like these as being excellent.
So, with an advertised 6.6ft (2 meters), these Hawke 10x42 binoculars do fall a little short of that, so I wouldn't suggest them if very close-up observation of something was your primary interest (e.g.: insects), but even so it is still very good and they still make more than a decent option should you occasionally like viewing butterflies and flowers for example.
Eye-Relief:
At 17mm, the eye-relief does fall short of the 18mm needed for me to rate them as having very long eye relief.
However, for a 10x42 binocular with such a wide field of view, this is still very good and combined with the good quality twist-up eyecups on these Hawke Frontier APO binoculars I would say it still makes them a good option for most users who want or need to wear glasses whilst using their instrument.
Note that I did check this: By fully twisting down the eyecups, I was able to achieve a full image without any appreciable loss in the FOV or black rings forming on the edges of the view, but it was close and I did not have a lot of room for manoeuver. Thus if you wear thick framed glasses, you could consider the 8x42 version which comes with an improved 18mm.
For more on this, be sure to check out my guide on How To Use Binoculars With Glasses.
Optical Stats Score for a 10x42 binocular: 9/10
With all my reviews, I use a selection of "benchmark" binoculars to compare and then rank the view against the instrument under review. This helps me to be more consistent with my assessments over time, since I am always comparing the view to a "fixed" point.
For this Hawke Frontier APO 10x42 review, I used my "alpha" level 10x42 and mid-level 10x42 benchmarks. I conducted these tests on on two occasions, once in very good sunny conditions and then again at and just after sunset.
Image Brightness
As to be expected (unless the optics are particularly bad), all three 10x42 binoculars looked very close in terms of image brightness in sunny conditions and even when looking into thick foliage any difference between the views was tough to observe. But if I had to pick one, I would say that these Frontier APO's and my alpha's looked to perform a little better that the mid-level 10x42 benchmark.
It was in poor light conditions when the difference in the quality of the optics makes for a more observable difference and I could then clearly see that both these Hawke Frontier APO 10x42 binoculars and my alpha level benchmarks outperformed the lesser quality instrument as the view on both was notably brighter and you could certainly see more detail when looking into thick bushes etc.
So for image brightness in low light, I definitely rate these Hawke Frontier APO Binoculars as excellent for a 10x42 binocular.
Colors & Contrast
Comparing all three once again in a wide range of scenarios and light conditions, the colors and level of contrast in the image to me looked to be pretty much identical to my alpha benchmark 10x42 and both were slightly better than the mid level instrument.
There was also no obvious unnatural tinting of the view and the colors to me looked vibrant, but not so much so as to make the view look artificial.
The same can be said of the contrast, which shows a good variation between dark and light areas, but is not too harsh.
Color Fringing
These Hawke binoculars have APO lenses with ED glass elements which are designed to reduce aberrations including chromatic aberrations, and thus I was fully expecting these to show very little color fringing in the final image and thankfully they did not disappoint.
By looking very carefully along the edges of a black telephone line against a bright blue sky, certainly you can see some color fringing (a thin red/purple line on top and green/yellow under), but it is very minor and no more than the very best. This includes my alpha level 10x42 and as I had it with me at the time, the Swarovski NL Pure 8x32 binoculars, both of which showed about the same.
Flatness, Image Distortions & Blurring
Hawke markets these with using the term "flat field vision" which I completely agree with as once focussed the image remains sharp from the center of the view right to the edges and there almost no image softening / vignetting right at the edges of the view.
Also to mention that at no time did I ever notice or observe any image curvature or other image distortions when looking through the Hawke Frontier APO 10x42 binoculars.
Score for Image Quality: 9/10
In general the accessories Hawke includes with their instruments is of a very high standard compared to others within the same price range and it is a trend of theirs that I have always been impressed by.
Once again, I am glad to report that even though the are very similar to that which you get with the Frontier ED X, the accessories that come with the Hawke Frontier APO 10x42 binoculars are still good enough to impress at this higher price level:
Carry Bag
Apart from a minor design change the carry case is almost identical to the ED X version, so once again I was impressed by the quality as well as the design where they have obviously put a lot of thought into it:
Rather than the usual soft case, the Hawke Frontier case is not solid, but a much more rigid design, which not only looks great, but definitely provides a much higher level of protection to the binocular inside.
Access to the interior is brilliantly thought out as there is both a full length Zip that goes almost all the way around the case, as well as a flip over flap that can be fastened via a magnetic clip.
At first this may all seem excessive. But think about if you it for a moment it is genius: For a completely secure storage solution, you would fully close the Zip. Then when out in the field and when you need quick as well as a silent access to your binoculars, you leave the Zip open and simply use the clip to keep them relatively safe inside.
As well as this, there are a couple of netted restrainers on the sides to prevent the case from fully opening and thus potentially allowing your binoculars to fall out when you open the lid.
The binoculars themselves fit snugly inside, but with some room to spare. This makes them easy to replace and take out and leaves enough room to include the neckstrap and leave the eye-cups fully extended, but at the same time is not so loose so that they flop about.
This case also comes with it's own fantastic quality carry strap that can be very easily attached and removed via the pivoted quick release clips.
On the rear there is a belt loop as well as an extra pocket. This is quite tight, so would be good for the storage of a little cash, some cards and perhaps a small set of keys.
Neck Strap
I also really like the neck strap that comes included with these Hawke Frontier APO binoculars, which I think are a step up from those which you get with the ED X.
It is nice and thick and well padded (45mm wide x 7mm deep), it also is curved to better fit around your neck and shoulders.
You can attach this strap directly to the binocular, but Hawke also includes a separate set of chest harness adaptors with a metal loops on them. You can fix these to the binocular in the normal way using a slider and then attach these to the main neck strap or to your harness. This adds a pivot section onto the strap that works well as you bring the binocular up to your eyes, giving you just a little more freedom of movement.
This is another small but excellent attention to the detail that I really appreciate.
I guess my only comment here would be is that I personally would have preferred it if they had used a quick-release clip rather than the sliders to make this task even easier and quicker.
Lens Covers
Both the lens covers and the rain-guard are fairly typical. They fit and perform their function well, but are pretty generic and lack the flair or branding that i sometimes see at this level.
Cleaning
As well as a cleaning cloth, Hawke also includes a "Protective Pouch" which is made from the same, or a very similar material. I really like this as both are of good quality and is more than adequate for using on the body and perhaps in emergency when out in the field on your lenses. But for thorough cleaning of the lenses I certainly suggest making the relatively small investment in an optic lens cleaning kit.
Instructions
The included instruction booklet is relatively comprehensive, and covers topics like the main parts, eyecup adjustment, IPD adjustment, diopter adjustment, neck strap attachment and cleaning. You also get a Quality Assured Booklet.
Lifetime Warranty
Hawke offers a No-Fault Lifetime Warranty on all the models in their Frontier series. I believe in the UK and Europe this is limited to 10 years by law.
Accessories Score: 8/10
As well as the main specs on these Hawke Frontier binoculars, I have also listed a number of other High-End ($500-$1200 / £500-£1200) 10x42 binoculars from the BBR database for you to quickly compare them with.
Open table in full-screen mode to view the full results.
With this the Frontier APO 10x42, I feel that Hawke have not only tipped their toes into the waters of high-end binoculars, but have jumped right and have certainly made enough waves to get noticed.
Field of View
The wide of the view is what I describe as very wide overall, and I upgrade this to extremely wide if you compare them against other 10x binoculars. Indeed they compete with many 8x42 binoculars and thus you get the best of both worlds with the Hawke Frontier APO 10x42 binoculars: more detail without an appreciable loss in the image width.
Optical Components and Image Quality
The Hawke Frontier APO binoculars use very high-end optics which combine well to deliver a very good quality image and what I consider an excellent low-light capability for a 10x42 binocular. In their marketing Hawke says this "The all new Frontier APO offers extreme clarity, flat field vision along with excellent chromatic aberration control for a stunning wide angle image" all of which I would agree with.
Components Used & Build Quality
I am sure most users will appreciate all the high-quality metal components that includes a magnesium chassis, metal eye-piece housings and focus wheel, which when combined with the obvious build quality and fine attention to detail all adds up to an binocular that looks and feels great to use.
Small Size
For a full-size, 42mm binocular the Hawke Frontier APO binoculars are nice an "compact" indeed apart from the larger lenses, they do look and feel like a mid-sized instrument and would be almost no different to them in regards to packing to take on holiday.
Carry Case & Neck Strap
The included carry case and neck strap are excellent, both in quality and in function and it is obvious that Hawke have clearly thought out how they will be used
Ideal Uses
Reviewed by Jason Whitehead for Best Binocular Reviews
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Main Specifications & Features:
Below are similar pairs of Binoculars that you may also want to have a look at:
A tough, lightweight Magnesium Chassis protects top-notch HD optics, including ED glass lenses and an Abbe-Koenig roof prism system...
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 Hawke 10x42 Frontier APO Binoculars this page makes it easy to compare prices and then to buy from your preferred option:
 Buy & Compare Prices for the Hawke 10x42 Frontier APO Binoculars |
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Price & Where to Buy
Price & Where to Buy
