Best Cheap Binoculars for Older Children under $100 / £100 / 100 Euros

best children's binoculars

The question of the week comes from a teacher looking to get her class of geography students some inexpensive binoculars for an upcoming field trip:

Have A Question For Me?Question:

I am a Geography teacher in an International school in Singapore – and need to buy 10 pairs of binoculars for my students for our annual field trip to Australia.

We are based in Singapore – so need tough, humidity-resistant, waterproof, & fog resistant and teenager proof! They will be using the bins to collect fishing data by spotting lobster pot buoys from the shoreline. Size not an issue – i.e. they don’t have to be compact. The issue we find with bins here is that the rubber goes sticky in the humidity here in Singapore, and they just don’t last.

We need good value, tough and durable bins that are hard to break and will be good for spotting small things in choppy seas! Ideally under GBP100 per pair would be great (we can order from UK or US if need be).

By looking at your excellent website and reading your reviews for outdoor sport and marine bins, I’ve narrowed it down to the Vanguard Orros 10x25; Kowa 10x33 Genesis XD; Vortex 8 x42 Diamondback; Celestron LandScout 10x50; Barr & Stroud Sahara 10x25 (though not really looked closely at price for each of these yet). Advice most welcome… thanks in advance…


Answer

Hi Ellie, thanks for the question which I will do my best to answer for you:

Binoculars for Older Kids

Judging by your question and the fact that you are going on quite an adventurous geography field trip, I will assume that your class consists of older children / teenagers.

Firstly if you have some time, take a look at these following articles, both of which will help you get a better idea of what features to look out for and offer some a host of recommended bins suitable for children within your price range:

Your Selection
Of the binoculars on your list, only the Vanguard 10x25 Orros comes within your price range – it is a good compact binocular for the price and it’s unique offset hinge will adjust nicely for smaller hands and faces, so is not a bad choice at all.

BBR Recommendations
Below are also a number of other bins that I would suggest you consider based on your criteria:

Meade 8x42 Rainforest Pro Binoculars

Meade 8x42 Rainforest Pro BinocularsIf size is not a major concern and if you are after a great all-round binocular for older children (and adults) then I highly suggest you take a look at the 8x42 Meade Rainforest Pro Binoculars:

Costing around $100 / £140 they won the BBR award for the Best Low Cost Binocular of 2015.

Highlights Include:

  • Fully Multi-Coated Optics
  • Waterproof & Nitrogen Purged for Fog Protection
  • Phase Coated BaK-4 Roof Prisms
  • Field of View: 395ft @ 1000yds
  • Limited Lifetime Warranty
  • Minimum IPD: 5.7cm
  • Eye Relief: 17mm

What is more the chassis armouring is quite thick and hard and so it should survive the high humidity and temperatures and their minimum IPD is 5.7cm and so will cater for the smaller faces of children with their closer set eyes.

Cost & Where to Buy

Opticron Savanna R 8x33 Binoculars

Opticron Savanna R 8x33 BinocularsFor a slightly smaller binocular, with an open bridge body that will make it easier for smaller hands to carry and hold onto then look no further than the Opticron 8x33 Savanna 8x33 Binoculars, that offer incredible vale for money:

Important Features:

  • Low Cost Bins – approx $139 / £99
  • Open Bridge Body Design
  • Fog & Waterproof
  • Fully Multi-Coated Aluminium Coated BaK-4 Roof Prisms
  • Field of View: 366 @ 1000yds
  • Min Focus Distance: 11.5ft
  • Long Eye Relief: 20mm
  • Minimum IPD: 5.2cm

The smaller body also gives you a closer minimum IPD of 5.2cm so should easily be adjusted to fit smaller faces.

Cost & Where to Buy

Levenhuk Energy PLUS 8x25 Binoculars

Levenhuk Energy PLUS 8x25 BinocularsCurrently on sale for about $70 / £80, these inexpensive Levenhuk binoculars fill all the required criteria and leave you with a little change to spare.

At this price it is impressive that you get a completely water and fog proof body with fully multi-coated optics and roof prisms made from BaK-4 glass.

The compact 8x25 Levenhuk Energy Plus also supplies you with an incredibly Wide Field of View that will make it easier for adults and especially children to quickly locate whatever it is they want to see and then follow it. Great for birds, but also general wildlife viewing.

Cost & Where to Buy

Kowa YF 8x30 Binoculars

Kowa 8x30 YF BinocularsCosting about $100 / £120, it is easy to se why these porro prism Kowa binoculars won my award for the Best Low Cost Binocular 2013.

The Kowa 8x30 YF binoculars are easy to use and as it is a porro prism simpler with less to go wrong if dropped, so great for kids!

They also have a nice wide FOV and when I tested them I thought that the quality of the view through them matched many far more expensive products. Ideal for both adults and older children as they are still lightweight and have a narrow IPD setting for those with close set eyes.

Read my full Kowa YF 8x30 Binocular Review.

Cost & Where to Buy

Vanguard Orros 8x25 Binoculars

Vanguard Orros 10x25 BinocularsCosting less than $90 / £90, these compact Vanguard binoculars are under budget, small and lightweight.

They have a really close minimum Inter-Pupillary Distances (IPD) meaning they will fit small faces (as well as larger ones) and what is more their unique off center hinge means that it makes it much easier for those with smaller hands to reach the focus wheel.

Whilst at this price you can’t expect them to match bins that cost 10x more, they do still come with some pretty impressive optics including multi-coated lenses, roof prisms made from BaK-4 glass. The optics are protected with rubber armour and they are both fog and waterproof.

Whilst I have not reviewed the 8x version which I suggest you get due to the reasons stated above, you can still read my full review of the 10x25 Vanguard Orros Binoculars, which apart from the higher power use all the same components.

Cost & Where to Buy

Related Articles & Further Reading

Have A Question For Me? Need an Answer?

I encourage you to take a good look around BBR first, but if you still cannot find what you are looking for please feel free to Contact Me Here and I will do my best to answer your questions.

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