Celestron SkyMaster Pro 72030 15×70 Binoculars – Fogproof/Waterproof

So far so good! I had trouble finding very many reviews on the skymasterpro binoculars, but just ended up buying these anyway since they seemed like they would serve me well. I couldn’t be happier, it’s true the eye cups come off extremely easy, but it makes it easier to swap them, the build is solid, I love the front cap design since you won’t lose them when removing them. There was some Chromatic aberration I noticed but I was looking at a tree in the winter with tons of snow, so not too surprised with what I saw, since that’s pushing the Optics to the limit. Okay so I did check out the Orion Nebula with these and was able to see quite a bit more nebulousity than even my 80mm triplet telescope. Also the weight isn’t too cumbersome, though for extended sessions I would definitely use a tripod.

Pros:(1) Fully XLT multi-coated lenses. Regular Skymaster binocs are not fully multi-coated.(2) High quality, flexible drop-down front lens caps and flexible connected rear caps (versus the junky caps you receive with regular Skymaster binocs.)(3) Supposedly waterproof — haven’t tested it(4) High quality, flexible rubber, light blocking second pair of eyecups — thank you Celestron!(5) Tripod mountable — very easy system, quality metal, and it “just works” — much better than plastic alternatives(6) Wonderful daytime performance. Brightness of nighttime viewing is also excellent, however nighttime clarity needs improvement.(7) Attractive stylingCONS:(1) No quality control. My first pair had to go back because of severe astygmatism. This issue never should have passed inspection.(2) Fair nighttime performance which undoubtedly lacks the clarity of Japanese glass(3) Minor quibble: Eyecups and lens caps tend to fall off a little too easily. This issue may improve as the rubber stiffens over time.I am giving the Celestron SkyMaster Pro 15×70 binoculars a 4-star review despite my first pair being defective. The lens system on the right side had a horrible astygmatism that fuzzed out more than 1/3 of the entire field of view. There was no way to adjust or compensate for the problem. Obviously nobody looked through the binoculars, and there was no “inspected by” label anywhere on the bioncs or on their packaging (= zero quality control).I sent the first pair back and received a replacement from Amazon which was visibly open-box with subtle signs of wear and a smudge on the glass. (I believe somebody at Amazon may have looked through the glass — just my belief.) The second pair did not have the huge astygmatism of the first pair, and I will be keeping them. Again, there was no “inspected by” label anywhere.For daytime viewing of boats on Lake Michigan, they are a 5 star, “OMG that’s gorgeous!” binocular. For stargazing, they are a little more challenging to use. No problem for moon gazing. Although I have pretty steady hands, especially laying on my back with elbows supported, it’s difficult to hold 15X binoculars steady enough to get a really clear view of Mars, Saturn, Venus, etc. For greater stability I use an old fashioned heavy Bogen Manfrotto tripod legs with extra leg weights (if needed) or the legs spread out wide, a 22 pound capable lock-down Manfrotto 468MGRC2 ballhead, an Imorden 6.5 foot carbon fiber mini-Jib arm with counterweights, and my vintage Bogen Manfrotto 3130 fluid camera head with counterweight. This setup is heavy!!! My Bogen Manfrotto 3265 joystick grip head also works pretty well, though it locks into place rather than allowing the smooth glide of the fluid head. My expensive and bulky system gives me good stability and an ability to get under steady binoculars to look at stars without straining my neck and without hand-shake. Obviously, these Bogen Manfrotto components increase the system cost considerably and they add to setup time. I just keep mine assembled and drag the whole apparatus out onto the deck when I look at the sky.[ Aside: I tried simpler setups and none were satisfactory: without the jib, I was struggling to keep my body away from the tripod and I constantly had to move the tripod legs as I changed sky viewing positions. Sorry people — for stabilized astronomy you’re going to get complicated. Handheld viewing is a lot simpler with a beanbag seat, blankets and a few pillows. Lake viewing and birdwatching with a simple tripod and a high quality fluid head is a total joy! Even a decent monopod works well for daytime. Don’t forget extra QR plates and mounting adaptors if you’re doing more than one kind of viewing. ]So, here is my optical review of the Skymaster Pro 15×70… The replacement binoculars are great for looking at boats on the lake or for birdwatching. They are not so amazing for astronomy. No matter how I adjust the binoculars, there is always a slight smudge on stars and planets, and noticeable chromatic aberrations even in the center of view. Chromatic aberration is NOT noticeable, however, for daytime viewing except in the outer 1/3 of the visual field (where it would be expected in any consumer grade binocular). I can see that Saturn appears slightly wider than tall (I think), but I cannot see any more detail than that. Chromatic aberration makes it difficult to be certain I am really seeing Saturn wider than tall. Again, these are wonderful daytime binocs for the person with a good tripod & head, a monopod, or steady/strong arms.I also purchased Celestron 51630 Star Pointer viewfinder, which I reviewed separately. While decent quality and easy to attach, I am not sure it adds anything to these binoculars. Maybe the 51630 would be useful for 25X binocs.I was tempted to purchase Celestron’s new SkyMaster Pro 20×80 binoculars from another vendor (currently unavailable from Amazon) but I am glad I did not do so. The non-Amazon vendors had restocking charges and a pay-your-own return shipping. Amazon definitely is the way to go for sensitive optical equipment lacking factory quality control.I was also tempted to buy Celestron Skymaster 25×100 mega-binoculars, and I may do so in the future. With my setup listed above, I could definitely stargaze with the 25×100. The longer glass would pull in distant ships on the horizon better. That said, I expect the Skymaster 25×100 to be completely unusable for hand-held viewing (based on my experience with the 15×70 and reading reviews of the 25×100) and I have concerns about Celestron quality control being even worse than nonexistent on the non-Pro Skymasters.I love the Skymaster Pro’s high quality, flexible rubber, light blocking second pair of eyecups. This was a very happy surprise, and I use the light blocking eyecups often. They are shown on Skymaster’s web page “what’s included” photo but not mentioned elsewhere. Nice extra! The only downside is the heavier eyecups tend to drop off when stargazing. Please check the ground when packing up after viewing. I nearly lost my favorite eyecups already twice this month. Celestron does not appear to sell replacements.SUMMARY: These are a decent pair of fully coated, supposedly waterproof binculars with nice extras and better styling versus the regular SkyMaster line. These are not truly Professional grade binoculars like Celestron Echelons, which I do not own… nor do they cost anywhere near as much as Echelon binocs. The brightness of the 4.6 mm exit diameter allows lots of light to reach your retina during stargazing, however pinpoint clarity suffers when viewing planets or stars. (I cannot say whether the higher powered SkyMaster binocs are any better in this regard.). Some chromatic aberration is to be expected in any consumer grade binocular, and these definitely have it but it’s not too annoying. For casual sky exploration the wide field of view makes handheld use possible — expecially laying on your back with elbows supported. I certainly wouldn’t want to try that with Skymaster 25×100 binocs. For extended viewing, a tripod setup such as what I listed above will definitely help. These binoculars are moon-gazers rather than galaxy-finders. They are higher end Chinese binocs, not German, Swiss or Japanese glass. The only quality control is the buyer, so definitely make sure you have a generous return policy like Amazon’s.Overall value: I felt $190 was a fair price for these binoculars. They are no substitute for a 16 inch Newtonian telescope. Thank goodness for Amazon returns!

Als erstes mal das Positive: Sendung kam schnell und das Fernglas + Equip hat einen sehr guten, wertige Eindruck gemacht. Das linke Bild war scharf bis etwa 40%, zum Rand hin stärker werdende Unschärfe/Verzeichnungen. Hätte ich gut mit leben können für den Preis. Leider war die rechte Seite nicht scharf zu bringen – hab alles probiert. An meinen Augen lags auch nicht, denn links konnte ich mit beiden Augen problemlos scharf sehen. Rechts dagegen unscharf, schwammig, starke Schweife bei Lichtquellen in Kilometer Entfernung… Habe einfach Pech gehabt. Celestron macht ja bekanntlich kaum Qualitätskontrolle. Sollte man allerdings ein gutes Gerät erwischen, ist dieses Glas aber durchaus ein gutes Schnäppchen. Leider ist das Glückssache. Wer aber kein Problem damit hat 1-2 Geräte zurückgehen zu lassen, wird sicher ein gutes Glas für einen mehr als fairen Preis bekommen. Habe mich für eine Stornierung entschieden und das Gerät zurückgeschickt. Ging problemlos. Allerdings habe ich mich jetzt für ein anderes Glas bei einem Händler entschieden, der das Glas vorher für mich überprüft.

Su calidad de visión y su bajo precio.