The finest overall binoculars money can buy - Vortex Razor HD 12x50mm Roof Prism Binoculars

There are binoculars that work well at a lower price for a lot of things, there are binoculars that are better in certain aspects than these that cost the same or even more but I have never used an optic that does so many things so well at this price range.

Sometimes you just want a little sharper image, better glass, brighter images, lighter weight, a little more aperture, a little more magnification, slightly nicer feel, easier to steady. You can pay thousands of dollars for the truly top shelf binoculars and have these attributes in spades, the main difference being in the personality rather than objective capability, or you can pay less but then the performance will start to fall off and you can only have maybe one or two in the above list.

Vortex has created a flagship binocular that is extremely close to the super premium pairs costing many thousands of dollars for a fraction of the price. You still have to pay to play, these are not cheap, but if you just want one pair of binoculars to do it all in excellence and not be left wanting, buy these.

What specifically makes the Vortex Razor HD 12x50 is the overall combination of attributes. When you look through these the image is very sharp, the field of view wide, the exit pupil and eye relief quite decent. It feels like you are looking through a very high end 10x42 pair and thinking that you don't have to hold them so close to your eyes, that it's easy enough to scan and that you don't really miss the 8 power except they are even brighter. Vortex makes you feel like you have a 10 power binocular that manages to attenuate its downsides against an 8 power as best as possible but the truth is that you have a 12 power unit that does not even feel it.

I can make out details in trees or see animals at hundreds of feet in low light, see intimate details in birds, and make out objects in the distance such as the security cameras on my property in twilight at the end of my road from where even lower cost binoculars would not do the trick. You can see 22lr at 100 yards or 556/223 at 200 yards printing on paper with ease just like make out details or writing on boats powering by at long distance of see people and what they are doing in the valley from a mountainside.

What is also exceptional is how well this design manages to eliminate the weight penalty of the 50mm aperture through light design helping the 12 power shine so bright. They are slightly less heavy than many mid level 42mm binoculars which is why this model is so desirable. In short these binoculars are exceptional because they make larger aperture binoculars weigh like smaller aperture binoculars, are extremely ergonomic and easy to hold in such a way as to make a normally very high magnification seem and work as if it were a lower magnification. As with all designs as you get more power, more aperture, there are penalties and Vortex has almost completely eliminated the weight or excess downsides of a 12x50 binocular to those of a 10x42, for a very steep price of course.

The biggest problem with this design is the cost. The sweetest spot for this bino is the 12x50 which the technology allows to work so well but the truth is that there are certainly better binoculars out there, all of them cost significantly more.

One setback to the magnification that these optics cannot overcome is the shallow depth of field. Images are sharp but you really need to focus in on something, even at a distance and things that are even a little closer or farther will not be in focus. For that you do need the pricey, brand name offerings as Vortex can only do so much at this price point. Therefore, if you wish to track rapidly moving targets especially those moving towards or away from you in their environment having all in easy focus, a lower magnification or more expensive, more brand name offering, or both type offering might find you more satisfied.

Little things like the accessories are also not where they should be for this price point. The case is nice with extra pockets but offers an excessively tight fit and does not seem anatomically designed for the binos they carry with the lens caps often getting stuck of forced open when you take them out. The lens caps themselves are OK but for the money are a little flimsy. Again I am picking nits, but there are binos that cost a lot less and while don't offer such an outstanding combination of optical performance and weight, have these silly little things better sorted out as I don't think it's expensive to get them right.

Overall there are certainly nicer binos, but if you want portable, high magnification binoculars that are easy to carry and use in the field for a variety of conditions, the Vortex Razor HD 12x50 make a compelling argument. They are good in just about any situation and while can be bested by a few high end models in individual fields, it's tough to find just one pair that does it all quite so well at its pricepoint. Highly recommend!