Granite 7x33...great little binoculars - Celestron Granite 7x33 Binoculars

I could not resist trying these. Glad I did.

These actually are my 2nd pair of 7-power binoculars.
My first pair was the Sightmark Solitide ED 7x36, which I enjoy very much and have previously reviewed here on Optics planet.
Now, with the addition of the Granite 7x33, I think it might be helpful to contrast the two binoculars,
as they are both in the same class and similar in size and power.

Both pairs have an outstanding optics build for this price range.
They contain objective lens of ED glass, fully Multi coated lens and BAK-4 prisms with superior coatings.
They both exhibit positive characteristics of a true "HD" binocular.

Build and Ergonomics:

The Granites win here easily. The charcoal-grey rubber coating is super tight and attractive.
The Sightmark provided a thick, but perhaps, overly, thick black rubber.

The Granites have perfectly firm tension on the main focus wheel, center hinge and extendable eye cups.
The Sightmark were a bit loose in all these areas.

The granites were handier,...mainly because of the 33mm objective lens and thinner, but attractive rubber coating.
Both pair are about the same length, so at over 5 inches long, they don't quite fit into the "compact" category.
But, having said that, they are both somewhat smaller and lighter than the usual 8x42, and yet both offer vastly better
view than 99% of more "compact" type binoculars. But don't expect them to slip inside your jean pocket.

Eye Relief:

Oddly enough, Celestron always seems to stiff themselves with published eye relief.
These 7x33 are listed as having only 15mm of eye relief.
I cannot officially contradict them, but this pair of 7x33 Granite seems to have closer 17mm of eye relief.
This basically ties with Sightmark at 16.8mm of eye relief.

Field of view:

This is a major payoff for selecting a 7 power binocular.
Both pair have an enormously large fields of view.
The Granite lists 9.1 degrees angular and 477 ft. linear.
The Sightmark Solitude 7x36 ED lists 9.08 angular and 477 ft. linear.
To my eyes, the Sightmark appears wider for some reason,
but after a few rough and un-official sight measurements, they are apparently equal.
There is no clear loser here, as they are equally enjoyable to use due to this expansive F.O.V..

Depth of Field:

The Sightmark scores highest here. That is one thing I commented on in the review.
When you throw the Sightmark up to your eyes, the depth of field is so great,
that whatever you were about to observe is either already in focus, or very well close to it.
I cant think of a better binocular to chase a moving bird or deer.
Of coarse, the down side to this is finding that perfectly crisp image once you are on your subject.
This same advantageous depth of field then makes it a tad more difficult to "snap into" that perfect focus on your object.
I find myself constantly re-focusing, simply because there is so much room for error.
It's a good problem though.

Contrast that to Granite 7x33, which seems to perform like the great mass of binoculars.
Find a object, throws the glasses up, focus on it. Not a problem.

Sharpness:

The Granites win here in my opinion.
Both are very sharp, but the image sharpness of the Granites borders razor sharp.
Very satisfying.

Vivid Colors:

As much as I like the true and natural colors of Granites, …the Sightmarks have me intrigued.
It is a much warmer picture. This may mean (just my guess) that the Sightmarks may process a slightly higher
percentage of the red light spectrum. This tends to make animals "stand out" more in the visual.
There is even a famous optics company that does this on purpose and sells a great many pairs due to this.
Sightmark certainly does not advertise the overly warm picture as a positive,
and rather they intended this or not, the Sightmark 7x36 binoculars turned out that way.

Because of this, I find watching wildlife with Sightmark 7x36 ED very enjoyable.
The granites may process a broader and perhaps even a more complete sample of the wave spectrum.
At any rate, the colors in the Granites are very true-like, and given the ability to focus in razor sharp is equally satisfying.
So, that is really the main difference in the sight picture of these two pairs.

Overall impression:
I rated both 7-power binoculars a "5".
Time will tell which pair I use the most.

I can tell you the Granites are just hard to beat considering the handy, solid build and razor sharpness.
It was about 3 years ago that I dropped my similar Granite 9x33 binoculars onto concrete.
They made a tremendously loud "CLAK". I picked them, expecting them to rattle.
...No damage, no fractures, no cracked lens, no mark, no rattle. The Granite 9x33 are still perfect to this.
Good final thoughts.