Features table
Right up front, from an optical standpoint...resolution, contrast, color fidelity, brightness, and overall image quality...the new Superior Es are the simply the finest binoculars I have yet tested. Their measured resolution equals the best I have seen (center field resolution in my cherry Swift Audubon 8.5x44s) at just over 3.5 arc seconds. That compares with an average resolution for the highest quality binoculars of something like 4.2 arc seconds. The added resolution is plainly visible in the field in critical viewing at what we might call normal distances and light levels, and becomes ever more visible as the demands on the optics increase...going after the far and wee and dim.

Image contrast is exceptional. Even compared with the best of the roof prism models, the Nikons yield a cleaner, clearer, snappier image in almost all conditions. There is a very small amount of image flaring, and a slight reduction in contrast, in very bright sun over water. I attribute the flare to not quite enough body extension to shield the objectives from light striking in at extreme angles.

Color transmission is very neutral... neither warm nor cool.
The image through the Superior E appears particularly bright, noticeably brighter than anything I have to compare them with...that includes 8 and 10x40-44 roofs and porros of the highest quality.

It seems to be, however, the overall image quality of the Nikons that really sets them apart. It may be the sum of a lot of little things done right...or it may be due some one particular design feature (the eyepiece is an exceptionally complex and well corrected design, for instance), but for whatever reason the Superior Es simply deliver the clearest, brightest, most detailed view, close in or far out, that I have yet to see in binoculars. This translates to the best dollar bill test step 2 distance I have yet measured (see the December 1995 issue)‹23 feet, as compared to 22.5 feet for the Swarovski 10x42s (in capsule form, the step 2 distance means that I can see the same amount of detail on a dollar bill at 23 feet with the Nikons as I can at 12 to 15 inches with my naked eye). An improvement of six inches might not seem like much, a matter of 2%, but when you stretch the distance out to 100 yards and beyond, even 2% becomes quite significant...it is like being 6 feet closer to the bird.

Field of view is acceptably wide for 10x binoculars at 6° (315 feet at 1000 yards). Eye relief measures about 17mm... slightly on the long side for my spectacles and eyes. I have to get the binoculars in exactly the right position in front of my eyes or I get image blackout. Rolling the eyecups down only part way helps, but then I lose just a little of the edge of the field.
Handling is exceptional. At just over 25 ounces the Superiors are among the lightest 10x glasses. The body coating is a lightly textured non-slip rubber-like material. The body itself is compact at just over 5 inches tall, fairly slim for a 42mm glass, and quite rugged looking and feeling. Balance is very good, and the glasses fit the hands so well, and are so easy to hold, that it makes the full 10x usable.

Focus is smooth and precise, employing a large, semi-soft, center wheel. Extreme cold stiffened the focus just slightly...but even a moment's use brought it back to its normal silky state. Even the individual eyepiece adjustment has just the right amount of tension...tight enough to stay put once set, yet not so stiff you can't turn it easily with one finger when adjusting it.

All in all, the physical attributes of the Superior E seem to have received just as much attention to detail as its optics...and that's saying quite a bit.

Nikon scrupulously claims no weather proofing for the Superior Es. Their position on weather sealing is that a glass is either completely water and fog proof (immersion safe, nitrogen filled), or it is not...there are no shower or spray proof glasses in their line. Still, extensive use of the Superior Es during this exceptionally cold and wet Maine winter has shown them to be very well sealed. Even on days cold enough to put frost on the outside of the objectives and eyepieces, no moisture got inside. The glasses were completely usable once thermal equilibrium was achieved ...and I could get an acceptable view by simply wiping the frost off. If you are on open water a lot of the time, you might still consider a fully waterproof model, but for most use the Superiors should do fine.

I have been using the Superior Es for several months now, and I will say again that, even though I do not like 10x binoculars, using the Es has made it very difficult to use anything else in the field. When I carry something else, I know that there are details that I am simply not seeing. It doesn't amount, most of the time, to a make-or-break-the-id difference, but, for me at least, there is an aesthetic pleasure involved in seeing clearly that is addictive. I want to see all the bird there is to see, simply because I enjoy seeing birds. The Nikon Superior Es consistently deliver just that...all the bird there is to see...and that makes them the clear Reference Standard for High Power Birding Binoculars. An 8 to 9 power Superior of this same quality would stand an excellent chance of displacing my current pick (the Leica 8x32 Ultras) as the best all around birding binoculars.
If you are in the market for high quality, high power binoculars, overcome whatever prejudice you have in favor of roof prisms and give the Nikon Superior Es a fair trial. I guarantee you will not be disappointed.