Nikon 7245 Action Ex Extreme 10 X 50 mm All Terrain Binoculars

I bought a set of the Nikon 8x40 Action Ex for my girlfriend and I liked them so much I decided to get a pair for myself. Not wanting to get the exact same ones she had, I decided to 'upgrade' to the 10x50. The 10x50 are about 200g heavier and significantly larger as well. Overall I found that they were too hard to stabilize, and the focus mechanism too slow with too much resistance. In the end, the extra magnification provided little advantage as the image was not any clearer than the 8x40, and the image was much less stable.

In the end, I returned the 10x50 for another pair of the 8x40 Action Ex and I couldn't be happier.

We do a lot of wildlife viewing from our house (we live way out in the boonies). The glass in these binoculars is very clear. The 50mm lenses allow wildlife viewing at night.

I do not take them out into the weather so cannot speak to how they will hold up in bad weather. They are too large and heavy to carry around in the woods but work great for our use.

Since it looks like Amazon is consolidating several of the Nikon Binocular reviews into one, this review is for the Nikon Action Extreme (#7245) 10x50 Binoculars. I wish Amazon didn't do this since the specs are much different between the "Action" and "Action Extreme" models. ...Anyway, the Action Extremes are very good binoculars. They are not the best you can buy, but you can buy much worse. Actually, there is only one thing that keeps me from giving the 7245's a 5 Star Rating. The optical coatings could be better. The binoculars suffer from some internal reflections when used under difficult lighting situations, such as viewing a bright object like a full moon. The optical coatings are better than your average binoculars, but not as good as some other models. Most of the better ones will cost much more though. During normal circumstances though, the 7245's shine. They have excellent edge to edge sharpness and clarity. I have no problem seeing very fine detail at far distances. All in all, I give them 4.5 stars.

Pros:
Moderately priced.
Waterproof and fogproof.
Rugged construction.
Excellent performance under most conditions.
Long eye relief (17.2mm).
Good accessories.
25 year limited no fault warranty.

Cons:
Optical coatings could be better.
Slightly heavy.

I have a fair amount of experience with good optics as an avid amateur astronomer. I have a Meade 10" SCT GPS telescope that is used on a regular basis, as well as an 8" reflector scope and really appreciate quality optics. I needed a pair of relatively decent binoculars to use around the rural property I live on.

After extensive research and shopping, I settled on the NIKON Action Extreme 10 x 50. The waterproofing was a nice, and important bonus. However, the real pay off is in the bright, pure image that these glasses deliver. Very little edge distortion, practically no corona, excellent color transmission, and very easy to hold. Focus is smooth and sure. The diopter adjustment actually works (as opposed to not working at all on lesser glasses), and again the images are crisp and rival much more expensive binos. Great field of view and good eye relief round out the long list of attributes for these binoculars.

One very minor complaint concerns the objective lens covers. You'll have to modify them somewhat to make a strap system to permanently attach them to the bino strap. Nikon includes some slots on the covers to temporarily attach the to the strap, but it's not a permanent solution.

All in all, you really should buy these. Stay away from anything less.

A quantum leap up from even name brand binoculars from the big box stores. This is a great deal.

I knew I wanted big binoculars to add to the two (I thought) adequate, smaller binoculars I'd used for outdoors. I knew I'd use them everyday from the house to watch wildlife, and only infrequently use them on the trail. Once I'd looked through the Nikons, though, I haven't picked up the others and know that I'll wear myself out carrying these around rather than sacrifice clarity and brightness by using smaller binoculars.

Remember that the closest focus on these 10 x 50s is about 17 feet. I stand back from the window to watch birds and squirrels close to the house. A squirrel 20 feet away pretty well fills the field of vision.

At this price, buy them. You might want a harness to steady them and spread the weight around if you'll be carrying them a lot, such as when hiking, or looking through them for a long stretch. They are heavier than smaller binoculars, as you might expect, but that's the trade off to consider when buying binoculars--magnifying power, brightness and clarity of vision versus weight and bulk.

Also, if you're a neophyte to binoculars (or, like me, already know how to do everything and thus tend to ignore the directions or anything you can't figure out on your own), read the directions and use the diopter. Embarassingly, I only just started using it when I got these. Maybe I never would have noticed the difference on the binocs I've had in the past, but I certainly notice it in these excellent units.