Best binoculars?

[Pleiades M45]

Well I have never really researched binoculars and not sure what they are truly good for looking at in the sky so I am just looking for some incite and what would be good..

Are there are certain type of binoculars for deep sky viewing? Or are binoculars practically the same as any telescope?

If you can help on choosing what would be good for this my budget would be around $300 - $400, And since this is mostly a UK based forum this would be equal to £190 - £254

Thanks

[Ruud]

Kunming United Optics' BA8 line is excellent value. Very bright and sharp optics. Heavy. Shockproof and waterproof. If you want better you'll have to pay much more.

The Orion Resolux is an example, but they are sold under many brand names. Here's  how Astro-Physics advertises them.

[ronin]

I use the everday 8x42 nature/birding binoculars.

To see detail on something like Jupiter you need more magnification then binoculars tend to give. So yes there are 15x70 but they do not really make a sudden leap in something like that. Jupiter needs 40x or 50x as starters, others wat more.

The more the magnification the harder they are to hold, 15x will have an image bouncing all over the place, and being heavier you therefore will want/need a tripod or monopod.

I have Bushnells, the 8x42 Natureviews I find are very good, post recently about the Bushnell Legacy binoculars and they are good.

Most are made in China and branded accordingly.

If it is somethong more astro specific then look at the 15x70 or 15x80 but you will need a tripod, and they are then only really useable for astro, too big to carry round if out for a walk.

Binoculars and scopes do different things.

I tend to put it that binoculars are for looking around, a scope is for looking at.

If you want to look around say Hercules and see where M13 is binoculars are great for that, if you want to look at M13 then get a scope.

My "problem" is that people will get binoculars instead of a scope but they do not really (to me) do the same and then the money they would have had for a scope has gone. I use both, but each has a seperate area of operation and use.

[Alfian]

I see from your signature that you have an Orion 102 Mak which is probably very similar to the Skywatcher version that I have. A great little scope but with a narrow field of view. Binoculars would certainly fulfil that need for a wider view. With that budget, as Ruud says, the BA8 series 10x50s would do you very nicely. The Oberwerk Ultras are another incarnation.

One query is that also on your signature, you mention a "tripod" and a "mounted laser". What mount do you have on your tripod? Also a proper wide field finder might help you find objects better than a laser pointer.

Depending on the kind of tripod and mount you have, an alternative to binos could be a short F5 refractor , 80mm (?)  with which you could use your existing eyepieces. (but not the 40mm). The 25mm would give you 16x and probably something over 3 degrees fov. Not as much as a 10x50 bino but still very useful. 

[ollypenrice]

Binoculars come in sizes which offer entirely different observing experiences. I use them only for very wide field hand held observing, so I like 8x42 or similar. I have low power widefield scopes for more mag. If you want to hand hold then 8x will give a stable view as any birder will tell you. But tripod-sized bins are also great and take you to another level of complexity. These are really two different activities. Which do you prefer?

Olly

[RikM]

I have a pair of 8x56 which give nice widefield views.

I also have a pair of 20x60 which are wonderful for observing the moon but need to sit on a tripod or monopod to keep steady. This defeats the point of binoculars a bit for me, so I tend to use a small refractor more often than not for lunar observing.

[hullobservertory]

Celestron 15x70 binoculars but I am just a beginner lol