Telescope Reviews: Celestron LPR Optiview

Hi Carolyn,

I have not seen the Celestron Optiview, though I came across another inquiry about them on Astronomy-chat.com (no replies so far). I can recommend the Celestron Ultima series (other than the 8X32 model), however, I have personally not been that thrilled with other Celestron bins. They seem to have more than average field curvature, which produces "fuzzy edges," and the mechanics are often sub-par. Both my 8X32 Ultima and 9.5X44 ED had poor edges for astronomy, though excellent centerfield resolution and relatively wide FOVs for birding. I've also used a Celestron 20X80 and found the edges barely acceptable for astronomy. I've read similar comments about the mediocre to poor edge performance of other Celestron series bins (not sure about the new Skymasters).

With a 7* FOV, the Optiview might not live up to its name due to the edge performance. Btw, I'm not a fanatic about edge sharpness like some amateur astronomers. I liked my 10X50 Orion Ultraview and found the less than perfect edges were compensated by the wide 6.5* FOV. But none of the Celestrons I've used (except the 40mm and larger aperture Ultimas) seemed as good.

The built-in LPR filter sounds like an innovative idea; however, if the optical quality of the filter is less than that of the binocular's lenses, it can degrade the image (i.e, better contrast, less sharp images). This was the case with the Baader skyglow filter I bought for my club's APO refractor.

I wouldn't automatically write off the Optiviews because of the BK-7 prisms, particuarly if it fits your budget. As Ed said above, he enjoys his BK-7 pair. However, if you use mascara, you might find yourself smudging the EPs due to the short ER.

If you cannot try out the Optiview, and light pollution where you observe is significant enough to give washed out views in a 10X50, you can enhance contrast by buying a fully multicoated BAK-4 binocular with a smaller exit pupil, such as a 10X35, 10X42, 12X50, 16X60, 15X70, or 20X80 (e.g., 80 divided by 20 = 4). Keep in mind that you will need to mount bins with magnifications greater than 10X (even 10X is too "shaky" for some folks). So that will add expense if you do not already have a steady mount. You can also add LPR filters to any bin if you are willing to cutomize them (fit 1.25" telescope filters to your bin's EPs).

Hope I didn't paralyze you further by giving you more choices. Ultimately, the "right" binocular has to match your eyes, your face, your hands, your age (exit pupil), your ability to handhold them (if that's a criterion), your sky conditions, your sense of esthetics, and your budget. Unless you are willing and able to spend $600 on a premium bin such as 10X50 or 16X70 FMT-SX or a small fortune on a Zeiss 15X63, you will need to prioritize those criteria and reach the best compromise possible (even those premium bins might not satisfy everyone's needs).

After meticulous research and prioritizing your criteria, you still won't know if they are "right" for you until you try them out under the conditions you plan to use them. So take the plunge on a bin that fits your budget, be it the Optiview or some other, and start your Quest from there.

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Brock
In Space, your lungs will instantly explode so you won't get a chance to scream.

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Oscar Zoroaster Diggs
"O.Z."

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