binoculars

 

The best binoculars in 2020

The best binoculars for astronomy will be different to the best binoculars for bird-watching, horse racing or rambling. Fortunately, there are two figures in every binocular's specifications that will tell you everything you need to know – the magnification and the size of the lenses. 

The magnification is easy to explain. This is how much larger objects will appear. This also ties in with the angle of view, though, so the bigger the magnification, the smaller the angle of view. For long-distance subjects a magnification of 10x or more is great, but for relatively near subjects, or those which move rapidly and could be hard to track, a magnification of 8x or less will be better.The second figure is the size of the lenses on the front of the binoculars. The bigger the lenses, the more light-gathering power the binoculars will have so the more effective they will be in low light. Bigger lenses also make binoculars more tiring to hold for any length of time, though, and may not be needed in good light.

So the best binoculars for astronomy, for example, will be 7x50. This means a magnification of 7x and lenses measuring 50mm across. 7x is just about right for astronomy – any larger and you start to get arm-ache and a bit too much wobble – and 50mm lenses are larger than usual to give lots of light-gathering power, which helps you see faint objects like nebulae. (If you haven't used a good set of binoculars before, you will be amazed at what they reveal in the night sky.)

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