Orion Vista 10X50


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Brand and Model:Orion Vista 10X50
Price ($USD):$199.00
Attributes:un-checked Waterproof checked Armored
Objective Lens Size:50 mm
Magnification:10 x
Prism Type:BAK4 Porro
Coatings:Fully Multi-Coated
Field of View:5.3 degrees
Eye Relief:16 mm
Near Focus:0 ft
Weight (lbs):28 oz.
Dimensions (w/h/d):
Description:Orion Vista™ Series Binoculars
A Vista binocular is like a good book: once you pick it up, you won't want to put it down. And you won't have to. That's because they are unusually compact and lightweight for full-size binoculars, and their soft leatherette covering makes them a true pleasure to hold.

Still, Vistas are remarkably rugged, thanks to high-quality, cast-aluminum alloy construction, meticulous workmanship, and strict mechanical tolerances. They're made exclusively for Orion by Japan's largest manufacturer of high-quality binoculars, and are among the few that meet Japan's "Exceptional Inspection" industry standard. Serious binocular users, especially those who spend a lot of time in the field, demand no less.

Fully Multi-Coated Optics
Optically, Vista binoculars really shine. They feature the finest BAK-4 glass porro prisms, and lenses finely ground and polished by expert optical craftsmen. Most importantly, the Vista's optics are vacuum-layered on every air-to-glass surface with Ultra Multi-Coatings™—the highest level of antireflection coating available. They provide a pronounced increase in the transmission of light through the optical system. The result is livelier images free of ghosting, deeper image contrast, and highly accurate color balance. The view through a Vista binocular is always crystal clear and sharp right out to the edges.

Ample eye relief and roll-back rubber eyecups insure comfortable viewing, even with eyeglasses or sunglasses on.

All models include a deluxe hard carrying case, wide woven neck strap, and lens caps. And all are threaded for a tripod adapter. Twenty-year limited warranty.

8x42 Vista
The perfect choice for the demanding requirements of advanced birding and nature observation. Remarkably small and lightweight (just 22 oz.), with a delightful featherweight feel treasured by those who spend hours in the field.

Large 42mm achromatic objective lenses gather 44% more light than 35mm binoculars. Long 18mm eye relief and roll-back rubber eyecups allow comfortable viewing even with eyeglasses or sunglasses. The 8x magnification is preferred by birders who want good magnification but also a steady image. Near focus of just 12'. Field of view is 6.5°.

7x50 Vista
Big 50mm objective lenses and moderate 7x magnification make this model great for low-light conditions and particularly strong for wide-field stargazing under dark skies.

Large 7mm exit pupil is ideal for dark-adapted eyes with fully dilated pupils. Long 22mm eye relief allows eyeglass wearers to take in whole 6.0° field of view. Large, knurled focus wheel adds to the fine performance features. Weighs 28 oz.

10x50 Vista
For nighttime observing where light pollution is a factor, the 10x50, with its 5mm exit pupil, and slightly narrower field of view is a smart choice.

Its sizzling optical performance and lightweight feel make it one of the most popular astronomy binoculars in use today. And when the Sun comes up, the 10x50 brings distant mountains, ships, and wildlife seemingly within arm’s reach! 5.3° field of view, 16mm eye relief. Weighs 28 oz.


Manufacturer's Website

Vote Highlights Vote
Orion Vista 10X50
Done side by side with a brand new pair of Celestron Ultima 10x50's:

Filling in the Vote figures was a little difficult for the Orion Vista 10x50's. Why? Because I happen to think very highly of Orion and my history of making purchases from them has always been top rate. Until now. Opening the box revealed an awesome hard leather case with a metal snap enclosure. "$200 buys me this?! Awesome!" I thought. Typical Orion experience so far, always getting better than you'd ever expect for the money. Out come the binos. Beautiful feel, nice balance. Time for the close, and I mean close inspection. Now these Vistas are touted by Orion to be one of the few binoculars that pass their Japanese factory's "Exceptional Inspection" standard. When looking through the objective of the right barrel it revealed TWO large (and I mean LARGE) shavings that hung down deep inside right about where the prism is. 2 things came to mind: that they would definitely hurt image contrast and that an inspection done by the snot riddled fingers of a two year old would have revealed it to even him. How strange this should get by the closely inspecting Japanese inspector who would no sooner leap upon his own Samuarai sword than let this shabby sample get by him! Sorry Orion, as much as I love ya I felt a knife stick me in the back. There is no way they could have received an inspection of ANY kind (much less the "exceptional" one advertised) with that defect making it to the hands of the consumer.

Right there I knew they'd be going back. How sickening indeed since in my zealousness I payed for non-refundable next day air. But, nevertheless the inspection continued. Fit and finish seemed pretty darn good so I got really picky. A slow twist of the diopter adjustment revealed a metal against metal rubbing noise isolated to a specific area. Hmm.. well, it wasn't really attached straight on the eyepeice barrel, slightly cock-eyed, slowly wobbling as twisted. The Celestron Ultimas showed diopters to be dead on straight with no noise or rubbing nonsense.

Optically they gave very bright images, slightly brighter than the Ultimas and the barrels were perfectly parallel on both models. Thank God for that. Surprisingly, contrast on the Vistas seemed excellent so I could only imagine how it could have been without those darn shavings hanging in the FOV(which were noticeable only when looking through the objectives, the opposite of normal use). Independant barrel tests really didn't indicate much of a difference either, again, a surprise. Stars were bright but exhibited unacceptable coma, in both barrels. Star tests would show a star as a horizontal coma(like this: "_") that got shorter and shorter as I got close to optimum focus, then before the coma totally went away a vertical coma would begin(looking like an "L") then out of focus it became an "I". Whatever the star was, it was never a pinpoint, in either barrel. The Ultimas exhibited NONE of the problems mentioned here except for a very very slight star coma, as does every binocular no matter how expensive. Ultimas were about as close to a pinpoint as one could wish in binos under a thousand dollars. In a tiny defense of the Vistas, the Ultimas come with a crappy case and a one peice dual eyepiece cover which I find objectionable, so chalk that one up in favor of the Vistas.

Like I said, I think very highly of Orion as their products have always impressed me(except with this incident) and they're nice people to deal with. And if it wasn't for them mentioning how their Vistas meet the Exceptional Industry Standard I wouldn't have written this negative review at all. I would have just thought an oddball got through, it happens. But to have so many problems with them mechanically, AND optically, AND fit and finish.. Oh well, you get the point. So, consider this a dual review. If you're considering 10x50's for $200 go with the Ultimas or try the Vistas and keep your fingers crossed. I didn't get them replaced by the way, I kept the Ultimas. I'm willing to give Orion another shot, MAYBE, because there's always the chance I got the freak of nature reject of Vistas where everything just went wrong. I don't know.... If it weren't for these problems I can say that what was good on the Vistas was excellent and I'd be 10's all the way through.

Overall Rating: 5
Optics:7 Value:8
Weight: 5 (Veritable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=156915


Orion Vista 10X50
Absolutely incredible. Crystal clear. Lighweight made them so easy to hold. Not much shake at 10X with these. Feels like quality. Well made

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 4 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=41594


Orion Vista 10X50
Outstanding. Performed as advertised. Comfortable to hold, bright and clear to the edge. A keeper!

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 4 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=41593


Orion Vista 10X50
Much nicer binocular than the 10x50 Ultraview. The Vistas are sharp to the edge where the Ultraview began to soften about 60% of the way from the center to the edge.They are good looking, feel great and have dark green coatings on all air to glass surfaces.Very good contrast and pinpoint star images with no noticable chromatic aberation.Did not like the twist-lock eye cups on the Ultraviews.A very nice Binocular.

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 4 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=41591


Orion Vista 10X50
Simply a best buy at this price!

Overall Rating: 10
Optics:10 Value:10
Weight: 3 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=73269


Orion Vista 10X50
Very Nice. Bright, clear, comfy.

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 3 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=41595


Orion Vista 10X50
I've had these for a little over a year. The first pair were
optically perfect but the focuser locked up after a week.
Orion replaced with a new pair which are mechanically fine
but seemed to be somewhat out of collimation. I recentally
sent them to Cory Suddarth ( binofilxer @aol.com) and
for $45.00 he collimated and adjusted the optics. I've
since had the opportunity to compare them to binoculars
costing four times as much and could see no significand
difference. These are great binos for the money.

Overall Rating: 9
Optics:9 Value:9
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=357135


Orion Vista 10X50
Good glass, but the focus has become sticky over the last year that I have owned mine. I think I might try a pair of Oberwerks next since they are a bit cheaper for the same "extras" Bak-4, FMC, etc...

Overall Rating: 8
Optics:8 Value:6
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=288388


Orion Vista 10X50
Excellent binoculars, have a high quality feel to them and are comfortable to use. Use them on a parallelogram mount, since it is difficult to hold hands steady enough to appreciate views to the maximum otherwise. Very bright clear out to the edge, excellent, crisp view of stars. Pleaides and Orion nebula are clear and show much detail. Only one thing on the downside is that the brightest objects, such as the planets Jupiter, Saturn and Venus, do show some chromatic aberration. A purple flare on bottom of Jupiter & yellowish green limb on top. The moon is very clear, can see much detail in crates and seas, although there is a slight yellowish green tinged limb on the top edge of the moon with these binoculars. I understand that this is normal for achromatic refractors, telescopes and binoculars alike. Overall, feel like I got a lot of value for the money.

Overall Rating: 9
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=41592


Orion Vista 10X50
Excellent optics and coatings, very comfortable to hold due to the light weight construction. Mechanics are supurb, an overall quality feel.

Overall Rating: 9
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=41589

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