Review of the Celestron Outland X 8x42 Binoculars

I’ve been sent a pair of Celestron Outland X 8x42 binoculars to try out, they’re a sleek pair of roof prism binoculars, at a moderate price, but what can they offer?

Visuals
These binoculars have been built for birdwatching, they even come in a classic anorak shade of dark green. The choice of roof prisms keeps these binoculars compact and agile, and most importantly; comfortable. The 8x magnification makes this pair of binoculars an all-rounder. It’s a good magnification for wildlife enthusiasts and it will cover all aspects of birdwatching in particular. Celestron have done a good job with the multi-coated optics, the imagery was bright and sharp; there’s little loss of light. The prisms are made of BaK-4 glass, which is known to be a premium choice within the world of binoculars. The colours produced from the prisms strike a good balance between realism and over-saturation.

Durability
Celestron have included a ‘limited lifetime warranty’ in the package, but it’s completely useless. These binoculars are indestructible*, they’re in the same league of durability as the Nokia 3310 and the Toyota Hilux. * In the loosest sense of the word. The chassis are encased in a matte, shockproof rubber, that offers a lot of grip. A similar material is used for the lens caps. Both focusing wheels feel great; I know a good knob when I see one.  Whilst I was looking through the lens, reaching for the focuses felt natural, and the calibration was about right. The relatively large sized knobs helped to keep it precise. When adjusting the interpupillary distance there was a nice amount of resistance. I didn’t have it lose its position during use. Celestron describe the binoculars as being waterproof as well as fog-proof. Celestron obviously know how to market in Britain.

Extra Features
The Celestron binoculars come with twist up eyecups. The mechanism for adjusting the eyecups is incredibly satisfying. There’s a delightful physical and aural click upon reaching each setting, it’s a fantastic experience. Aside from the click, the eyecups can be adjusted quickly to suit whether you’re wearing eyeglasses or not, quite a useful feature. The carry case, bundled with the binoculars is a nice touch. It offers ‘moisture resistance’ due to being made of neoprene, but unfortunately it doesn’t feel like a wetsuit as I’d imagined. The binocular’s straps are of decent quality and are pre-attached, and easily adjustable. Wearing the strap around my neck is comfortable.

Verdict
This is a high-quality pair of binoculars; built with bird watching in mind and is great for wildlife enthusiasts in general.