John Galante Reviews

I purchased these 16x70 FMTs primarily for astronomy, but also for terrestrial & birding uses. I spent a fair amount of time weighing the cost, the quality, the size/weight, the magnification, objective, exit pupil, etc. From the specs and reviews, I figured these Fujinons were about perfect - and I was right! At just under 5lbs they are about my limit for hand hold-ability. Mil-spec: all metal barrels, waterproof & nitrogen-filled - so the build quality I wanted is there. At 16x70, the 4+mm exit pupil was important too. As expected, the optics dont disappoint, the views are great! Eye relief is OK as I wouldnt want less, and luckily I dont need more either. Some points: when stargazing it is often hard to tell exactly what I am seeing - because there are SO many more stars visible through the binoculars - it will take getting used to. Also, here is where any bit of arm support helps. They have a large depth of field when focused far away, so although the individual focus at times can be a little slow for wildlife, plenty of waaay distant subjects appear - and will appear just fine. The markings on the eyepice come in real handy for quicker focusing with a little thought and a bit of practice. While more mag/aperature would have been nice for stars, at 16x70 & still less then 5#s, I think any more power would be a tough trade against the convenience (added size & weight) and overall usefulness. Because they were a bit more money then similiar binoculars I started looking at, buying them took some effort. Now I know the money spent was WELL worth it - to get just what I had in mind & the quality I KNOW I wanted, these Fujis definitely fit the bill. A GREAT purchase. I ordered the tripod adapter too - will get used on my monopod and tripod eventually.

I purchased these 16x70 FMTs primarily for astronomy, but also for terrestrial & birding uses. I spent a fair amount of time weighing the cost, the quality, the size/weight, the magnification, objective, exit pupil, etc. From the specs and reviews, I figured these Fujinons were about perfect - and I was right! At just under 5lbs they are about my limit for hand hold-ability. Mil-spec: all metal barrels, waterproof & nitrogen-filled - so the build quality I wanted is there. At 16x70, the 4+mm exit pupil was important too. As expected, the optics dont disappoint, the views are great! Eye relief is OK as I wouldnt want less, and luckily I dont need more either. Some points: when stargazing it is often hard to tell exactly what I am seeing - because there are SO many more stars visible through the binoculars - it will take getting used to. Also, here is where any bit of arm support helps. They have a large depth of field when focused far away, so although the individual focus at times can be a little slow for wildlife, plenty of waaay distant subjects appear - and will appear just fine. The markings on the eyepice come in real handy for quicker focusing with a little thought and a bit of practice. While more mag/aperature would have been nice for stars, at 16x70 & still less then 5#s, I think any more power would be a tough trade against the convenience (added size & weight) and overall usefulness. Because they were a bit more money then similiar binoculars I started looking at, buying them took some effort. Now I know the money spent was WELL worth it - to get just what I had in mind & the quality I KNOW I wanted, these Fujis definitely fit the bill. A GREAT purchase. I ordered the tripod adapter too - will get used on my monopod and tripod eventually.