Customer Reviews

Zeiss 8x42 T* FL Victory, Water Proof Roof Prism Binocular with 7.7 Degree Angle of View, U.S.A.

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I've had these binoculars for more than six years. They are totally outstanding.They are supremely bright, sharp and are fast focusing. They have a wide field of view and feel great in the hand. I birded with them for hundreds and hundreds of hours in all kinds of conditions. They've traveled from the heat and dust of East Africa to the humidity of Central America. Two years ago, during the Christmas Bird Count, I changed my clothes twice while birding in pouring rain. The binocular's seal held tight while exposed to hours of torrential downpours. They are expensive but the quality of these binoculars makes them worth the cost. One day I found that I had dented one of the binocular tubes on the end. Although it didn't affect the view, I didn't like how it looked. I sent them back to Zeiss for repair, expecting to pay. They repaired them free! I was very happy with the service.

Zeiss quality and performance are legendary, so it was with confidence and enthusiasm that I purchased a pair of Zeiss Victory FL 8x42 binoculars. On the first outing the right-side "adaptive lockable eyecup" malfunctioned in its plastic track, so that the two eyepieces could not be adjusted uniformly. The quick fix shown in the owner's manual failed to remedy the problem, so in May the binoculars were shipped back to Zeiss for repair.

After a few weeks without hearing from them, I e-mailed an inquiry to Zeiss customer service. A second letter motivated customer service to pass the request on to the service department, who subsequently informed me that repairs had been made under warranty and that the binoculars had promptly been delivered to my business address by a third party carrier a month earlier. One of my employees had signed a "final attempt failed" delivery notification slip and that was interpreted by Zeiss to be a confirmation of delivery. Having been told by the delivery service that the package might have been returned to the sender, he called the Zeiss service department to resolve the matter. In that conversation, my employee felt that he was being accused of dishonesty or theft.

Many, many calls over ensuing weeks to the delivery service and to Zeiss customer service as well as their technical service representative have produced no result in locating my binoculars or replacing them. For their part, the delivery service acknowledges loss of the shipment and asserts that Zeiss has since been reimbursed for the value of the product. Today, more than two months after sending my binoculars, I received the first return call from a representative of the Zeiss customer service department. Nothing new was offered. The representative stated that this is not a customer service issue, then once again passed the buck to the service department and to a nameless supervisor who is "expected to be back in the office on Monday."

As an intensely loyal customer who has purchased Zeiss optics out of brand loyalty and confidence in the company for almost 40 years, I am dumbfounded that they are capable of producing such a flimsy product and that Zeiss AG could sanction such negligent, even accusatorial, customer service. More than a pair of binoculars has been lost--I've lost an old friend.

These binoculars offer excellent mechanics, superior tactile feel and the cleanest view available. Having owned Leica Ultravids, Nikon LXL's and Minox HG's the Zeiss Victory FL series offer razor sharp clarity, minimal color distortion and glare as well as an amazing field of view. The well balanced polymer frame provides tireless carrying and handling.

If you are about to spend your hard earned money on these binoculars, but are feeling apprehensive I can only recommend that you desist. A cheaper pair of binoculars like Nikon Action 8x40 will give comparable image quality at a tenth of the cost. A lot of my comparison is with the cheaper Nikon Action 8x40 (or a similar specification) so you see what you get for the extra money (comparing a porro prism Nikon against a roof prism Zeiss).

I now own a pair of these. They cost me a great deal more than the official price because I thought I was clever to buy them from Ebay and get them imported (and had to pay extra VAT and Import duty). If you want them cheap, the best route is Ebay in your own country. Ebay is risky as you may not get a guarantee.

They are lightweight (compared to other roof competitors) and my largish hands have to wrap around them in a way that is tighter and more folded than with the Nikon. Roof prisms are a lot better for smaller hands, though our hands can adjust very well. The Nikon is around 760g and this is 775g and this difference does not give much much choice for preference. Both feel about the same weight. The Nikon however fits more comfortably into the hands, feels chunky and solid and easier to hold. I can reveal that the porro prism image of the Nikon feels brighter and fuller given the field of view is about 469ft at 1000 yard (8.2 degrees) compared to the Zeiss that gives about 405ft (7.7 degrees).

The Zeiss is superior in focussing speed. I will have to make about 2 twirls of the knob that focusses very fast compared to the Nikon that may take 5 twirls for the same job (compared by focussing from a close object to a distant object, using the same objects). There is a greater depth of field with the Nikon. This means that the focussing plane is deeper and you can see more details clearly both near and far at the same focus than with the zeiss where objects in the background or foreground may be less focussed than what you are aiming at. However, overall focus is more precise with the Zeiss.

At twilight the Zeiss presents marginally less colour aberration at the edges of objects than the Nikon. Both these binoculars have good close focussing with the Zeiss being superior. I notice that binoculars have dark blobs appearing if the eyes are too close to the eypiece lenses. This effect is less serious with the Nikon. The Zeiss does have excellent eye relief and this is not a problem if the eyes are kept at the correct distance though with the Nikon, one has to be less concerned about this.

Compared to cheaper roof prism models the Zeiss is much better. It gives closer focus and a wider field of view than many a similar model. Like many other roof prism models it is practically everything proof with its water repellent coating and you could have it survive well, if it falls into shallow water.

The focussing knob on the Zeiss seems to behave differently according to the temperature, being a little tighter in colder weather than the Nikon where this effect is not apparent as the focussing is slower.

So compared to the cheaper model what are you getting for the extra buck? It is mostly the name. Zeiss is synonymous with quality binoculars for more than a century. Novels from 1916 will remark about "I looked through my Zeiss" ... you get fully sealed everything proof optics, faster focussing, slightly better image quality in terms of sharpness, color and light though not in depth of field. You may also get a superior diopter adjustment to suit the specific requirements of your eyes, especially if one of them is weaker. These work very well without spectacles, given I am a spectacle wearer. With the Nikon you have binoculars more vulnerable to the elements with slower focussing but the image is not too different.

My biggest gripe with Zeiss is their lack of customer service and apparent absence of product warranties or guarantees. I contacted them through their website about whether they had any dealers in Thailand and received absolutely no reply. I am not confident about their customer service or product accessories. Since buying them, the binoculars seem to get dusty quite fast and given that Zeiss recommends very light cleaning, I obtained a blow brush lens cleaning accessory that should help.

If Zeiss are prepared to reply about their customer service (I live in the UK) or have dedicated places I can contact, I would have much more confidence. When buying something so expensive, you expect to be looked after and guided a lot more than Zeiss seem to offer.

These binoculars are apparently the best in the world based on most of the reviews I've read, but for the money you spend, do consider a cheaper option unless Zeiss seem to offer a superior customer satisfaction. Zeiss do sponsor environmental conservation, which is another reason I picked them. At the moment I am quite happy with my binoculars, but feel apprehensive about using them for a lifetime as the investment dictates. I do look forwards to this.