sorting out compact reverse porros

I've been trying to decide on a pair of compact binos for some time, and I'm thinking porros may give me better optics on a budget. As I looked through the options, I saw 5 possibilities:

- Bushnell Legend Ultra HD 8x26
- Leupold Rogue 8x25
- Nikon ProStaff 8x25
- Pentax UCF WP 8x25
- Vortex Vanquish 8x26

Are any of these clearly better than others? The specs all look similar, so I'm mostly concerned with which ones are built the best and have the best optics.

...I'll add another to the list that I'm wondering about:

- Pentax Papilio 6.5x21. The specs on this differ more from the others I listed above, and I worry a little about it not being waterproof, but if the optics were better than the others, I'd still consider it.

The two frontrunners in this class have always been the Nikon Prostaff and the Pentac UCF WP, both of which I have tested, thoroughly and both of which I highly recommend. In fact, I have friends with both of these. I prefer the Nikon by a slight margin for it's slightly more compact body style.

No need to go with the Papilo unless you actually need that kind of close focus, but otherwise a very good binocular in terms of optics, though no better than the Nikon or UCF WP

The others are, at the very least competitive, but none of these clearly stands out as the best. All good buys for the money.

Thanks for the reply Joanie. I'll try to get my hands on the Nikons and Pentax to compare them.

I also see there are Bushnell Elite compact porros, but it looks like I'd have to double my budget, and, while they have some sort of water repellent on the lenses, the binos are not actually waterproof.

You are very welcome, nate

The Elites are wonderful compacts, though. Optics are right there with the much more expensive Euro compacts. If you have a chance, take a look.