Celestron Ultima 8x56

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Celestron Ultima 8x56
Good optical performers. Very sharp, bright on-axis image; but soft around the edges.

It's the non-optical advantages these binos offer that really make them shine. (1) They're reasonably priced and usually availabe discounted. (2) They're very light and easily hand held. More than a pound lighter than the Fuji 7X50s (next level of optical performance)they're much more comfortable to use or just have dangling from around your neck. The 8X56 are more easily handheld than the 9X63 Ultiams. (This from a big, strong guy, BTW.) (3) They're inexepensive and comfortable enough that they're practical for other uses -- sports and birding for instance.

Where price and comfort matter the 8X56 Ultimas are a top choice.

Overall Rating: 8
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
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Celestron Ultima 8x56
Just ordered a pair from Adorama for $209 plus shipping. Extremely compact body & light; just perfect for smaller hands. Image is pinpoint sharp but a little soft near the edge, but acceptable. I had to return Orion Ultraview 8x42 only after a couple of days due to totally unacceptable edge sharpness, probably due to its extra wide field of view. But these Celestron 8x56's are for keeps. Plus, love that 56mm aperature!

Overall Rating: 8
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
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Celestron Ultima 8x56
One of the best all around binoc!!!!!
Perfect for astronomy!!!!!
A perfect mix of light gathering ability, X power, and light weight!
A great price to.
Almost like a night vision scope in low light too!!!!

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
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Celestron Ultima 8x56
the actual price is well below the shown figure. these binoculars are very good for the money.

Overall Rating: 9
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
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Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=41435

Celestron Ultima 8x56
These things are like a night vision scope...The aperature really lets the light in in the dark. Other comments are correct about the soft edges but it's not an over objectionable problem. Would buy them again!

Overall Rating: 9
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
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Celestron Ultima 8x56
I love these binoculars, I carry them practically everywhere except to work! I also have a pair of Nikon Fieldmaster 12x50s (also good), but the Celestrons are superior in every way except the magnification. The brightness and color saturation are awesome, the view seems more colorful than with the naked eyes! Resolution and detail are great!

They are light for 56mm aperture and perfect for terrestrial use or birdwatching, but still a bit heavy overall for extended handheld astronomical viewing. The 8x view is much steadier than with my Nikon 12x, making it a pleasure to use for quick glances up at clusters and planets. With a tripod these would be really nice with the wide field (6°), light-gathering power, and 7mm exit pupil.

Overall Rating: 9
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Celestron Ultima 8x56
Adding to my review just before, I need to mention that these binoculars are not water-resistant! Somehow I got moisture inside the barrels (I think from cleaning them, I may have gotten the objectives too wet or something) and now the pair are with Celestron for drying out!

So handle them carefully and don't get them wet, and you'll be very pleased with the performance.

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Celestron Ultima 8x56
These are great binoculars! Light, and easy to hold steady. Others have complained about the edges being "soft", mine do not exhibit this and are sharp to the edge. These are one of my best investments.
Scott B.
San Diego Astronomy Association

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Celestron Ultima 8x56
EXCELLENT BINOCULARS. SHARP IMAGES, INCLUDING STARS. VERY COMFORTABLE TO HOLD, THOUGH THEY CAN ALSO BE MOUNTED. CONTRAST AND COLOR ARE SUPERB ON TERRESTRIAL IMAGES AND THE MOON. PRICE OF $220 IS A BARGAIN, WITH A LIFETIME WARRANTY.

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Celestron Ultima 8x56
RATING IS FOR THE ABOVE COMMENT.EYE RELIEF IS VERY GOOD FOR NON EYEGLASS USERS.

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
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Celestron Ultima 8x56
Very light and bright. I can see M101 on a decent night with these binos. Edge performance suffers some, but I paid $180 for them, I don't worry about putting them down in the dark when I go back to the scope. Every astronomer should own a pair these Ultimas, very comfortable to use.

Overall Rating: 8
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
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Celestron Ultima 8x56
Luv these binoculars!! They are the most comfortable to view through (great eye relief), and the most comfortable to hand hold. They are my constant companion while observing through my telescopes. Very sharp images, nice wide FOV, pinpoint star images almost to the edge. Bob

Overall Rating: 9
Optics:9 Value:10
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
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Celestron Ultima 8x56
This review is for the Japanese made Ultima, not the new Ultima DX from China. I've been using both 7x50 and 10x50 Ultimas for astronomy for some years now. I recently purchased the Ultima 8x56 because I've had very good experience with the Ultimas and figured that this particular combination of magnification and aperture might be optimal. Rather than going into details on the fine optics and mechanics that have already been discussed in previous reviews, I'll just offer a comparison to the 7x50 and 10x50 counterparts.

Versus both 50s, the 8x56 is slightly larger and slightly heavier, but not enough to notice in use. This is still a very comfortable pair of binos to hold and the smooth controls give it the feel of quality construction.

The field of view is slightly narrower than the 7x50's, but the small increase in magnification more than compensates in terms of providing a pleasing view. The additional aperture gathers enough light to make the image bright and well defined. For instance, under conditions where the nebuloisty of M42 is faint and ill-defined in the 7x50, the 8x56 makes it more evident.

The Ultima 10x50 has been my favorite bino for some years. It provides sharp, bright, well contrasted images and reveals detail that's not visible in the 7x50s. Its 5 degree field of view is somewhat narrow, but not enough to leave me wanting more except on rare occasions. My only problem is in holding them steady enough when observing objects near the zenith. Unless I brace myself against something or lean back in a chair, I always get a wobbly view. In this regard, the 8x56 is MUCH better. I find that the slightly lower 8x magnification allows me to get a more stable view at any angle, but it's particularly noticeable directly overhead.

The 8x56 truly IS an almost perfect size for hand-held astronomy. It offers significant advantages over both the 7x50 and 10x50 sizes. This may well become my new favorite.

Overall Rating: 10
Optics:9 Value:10
Weight: 5 (Veritable Vote)
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