Telescope Reviews: Super deal right now on Celestron 15x70 bins..

Captain,

No, a poll with not be necessary for me. There are enough user reviews(166+) on Amazon alone to satisfy that. If you had read my comments about this model thru the years you will know I posted many times that, my own first hand encounter with the Skymaster 15X70 was quite positive. In fact, after spending a good 10-15 min with them at NEAF show a few years ago I could not see enough difference between the Celestron and other brands costing 2 or 3 times more.

I do not judge optics based on low price or country of origin. I love a good buy as much as anyone on CN. I own a pair of Oberwerk 12X60 LW($105) and Burgess 20X80 LW($149) myself. I have had both for over 6 years. The Burgess 20X80 is one of my most used pair for astronomy and long range day time observation. I enjoy using them more than my $400 Japanese 20X80s. 3.6 lbs vs. 5.5 lbs. I have not used the Oberwerk 12X60 for several years except to do comparison tests. They are pretty good for a pair selling for just over $100. But I like using my Leupold 12X50 roof prisms much more. They are 1/2 the size and see slightly dimmer stars than the Oberwerk. The Leupold Roofs also cost 3 X more. I try to make that clear every time I recommend one model over the other...

We all want to get the most for our optical dollars, but I also feel we should present both sides. You said you went thru four pairs before finding a pair to your liking. That data was not mentioned in your earlier posts. Only that they compared very favorably to the Fujinon FMT SX.
I have no way of knowing if the pair I saw at the Celestron stand at NEAF was or was not selected out of 20. Someone else shopping for a pair of 15X70s may not want to play the Skymaster lottery. They may wish to spend $99.98 on another model to improve their odds. Still be quite a bargain!

I Can't speak for anyone else, but I don't think I want to consider the purchase of Any product, knowing my odds of acquiring satisfaction are ~1 in 4. Oh, on second thought, Celestron does have the $25 life time warranty policy. One option would be to purchase several pairs for $50s and rotate them in and out. ;-))

You know the original iPhone can be had now for just 1/6 th of the intro price of June 2007. But how many people would make a purchase if they know one out of four May work to their satisfaction?

ERik D