Adorrgon may be a lesser-known brand, but their line of HD binoculars will make you sit up and take notice. Their extensive line of budget-friendly birding binoculars may give buyers pause, but if you know which features are important, and which ones aren’t then right away you’ll spot the binocular’s high-quality optics, multicoated lenses, and ergonomic design and know a winner when you see one.
Our Verdict: They may not be as adjustable as higher-priced models, but they do feature top of the line lenses complete with several layers of protective coatings designed to improve clarity while minimizing reflective loss of light and enhancing light transmission. The 12x magnification and one thousand yard range capability will allow you to easily sight far off birds, yet you’ll still be able to view even the smallest details. I’d would recommend these binoculars to both beginner and experienced bird watchers in need of a pair that can handle a variety of light conditions like a champ.
Read on to learn more about these popular Adorrgon binoculars and find out if they really have what it takes for birding at dusk and dawn.
Overview and Features
These binoculars may not offer many of the same bells and whistles that a higher-priced pair of binoculars will, but if you’re looking for an easy to use, highly adjustable pair of binoculars that can provide a better than average viewing experience for a model in this price range, then you may as well skip this review and head straight to the buy now button.
Magnification
These binoculars feature 12x magnification and come complete with forty-two millimeter objective lenses.
Product Rating:
- Roof prism
- Impressive range
- Two-year warranty
- Lightweight design
- Shock-resistant rubber cover
- 12x magnification
- Reasonable price
Sighting Range
The larger objective lenses allow for an impressive range of three hundred and sixty-seven feet up to one thousand yards. The larger field of view makes it easy to capture even the finest details, even when you’re hundreds of yards away from your target.
Roof Prisms
Roof prisms provide the best type of viewing experience, especially when compared to models equipped with porro prism lenses. The roof prism binoculars are often marketed towards experienced birders since they’re considered more durable than porro prism binoculars. They also provide a more powerful viewing experience since it splits the line into two pathways, via the objective lens. A section of the prism features two faces that will meet at a ninety-degree angle. The reflection from the faces will return a laterally flipped image across the axis. Many experienced birders often choose models equipped with roof prisms since it’s believed that they offer superior viewing quality. These Adorrogon binoculars use only the best prisms, claiming they not only work to enhance optics quality, but they also allow you to easily view your target in most types of light conditions.
Coating Use
The large 15.6 multicoated objective lenses allow you to view clear, crisp images, regardless of the time of day. These lenses are what make these binoculars perfect for birding at dusk and dawn. The multicoated layers improve the lenses’ light-gathering capacity. When light is transmitted through the binocular’s lens, some will reflect off its surface, which results in a loss of light. But these lenses are coated with layers of protection that are designed to prevent this, while also enhancing light gathering ability. These thin chemical coatings help to improve light transmission and reduce reflective loss. Without the addition of protective coatings, the average lens can lose around four to five percent of light. Since the light bounces around the interior of the lenses, these coatings can also prevent the optics from washing out certain colors. Basically, these extra coatings, combined with the roof prisms ensure you get the most out of your binoculars in a variety of light and weather conditions.
Ergonomic Design
A lightweight pair of binoculars may not sound important to the hunter, but a lightweight ergonomic design is crucial for the serious birder.
These binoculars weigh in at one pound, which makes them highly portable and promotes longer use. The thick rubber coating also helps to improve the user’s grip. However, the rubber covering isn’t just designed to improve user comfort, it also helps to prevent serious damage in the event the binoculars are dropped or get tossed around during transport.
Optimal Viewing Even in Weak Light Conditions
These binoculars can provide a crystal clear viewing experience, even in low light conditions. However, they tend to struggle to provide the type of performance you need if you’re out at dusk and attempting to sight nocturnal wildlife.
Warranty
The binoculars come with a two-year warranty, in addition to twenty-four-hour customer support. This warranty will cover the binoculars against manufacturing defects and damage. If you run into any issues with your binocular’s performance, make sure you contact customer service before you spend the cash to have them repaired.
Performance
When put to the test, these binoculars do, in fact, offer a clear viewing experience and one that is comparable to higher-priced models. The binocular’s lightweight design not only makes it easier to carry them around all day but when you find yourself stuck hiding in dense brush for hours at a time, trying to sight a rare species, you won’t experience the type of arm fatigue that heavier models cause after just an hour of use. The rubber covering helps to ensure you have a better grip on the binoculars even if your hands are sweating. It can also provide that extra protection your binoculars so desperately need when they’re stored in your bag all day or they’re accidentally dropped during a hike.
In terms of ease of use, focusing these binoculars is pretty easy and fast, and speed is exactly what you need if you’re out sighting birds and don’t have much time to devote to adjusting the lenses. The magnification is perfect if you’re sighting birds of prey, which are known to fly higher than songbirds.
Advantages and Disadvantages
Pros
- Roof prism
- Impressive range
- Two-year warranty
- Lightweight design
- Shock-resistant rubber cover
- 12x magnification
- Reasonable price
Cons
- Difficult to see wildlife at night
Related Questions
Are These Binoculars Compatible with Smartphone Use?
No. While this may seem like an odd question, there are models of best binoculars for bird watching out there that are, such as the Gosky 10×42 Roof Prism Binoculars. These binoculars have a lower magnification at 10x, however, they allow you to attach your smartphone to the binocular’s lenses so you can record long-range shots of the birds you’ve sighted throughout the day. To learn more about these binoculars and how birding binoculars work, click here to read our birding binoculars buyer’s guide.
Can These Binoculars Handle Daily Use?
Are you a Big Year birder? If so, this means you’ll be using your binoculars more often than just on the weekends. In fact, the Big Year is a popular birding competition that challenges birders to view as many species of birds as possible in a single year. Serious birders always keep their binoculars on hand for this purpose, so a pair of reliable birding binoculars is a must. If your goal is to sight as many birds as possible throughout the year, then you obviously can’t ignore nocturnal birds. Unfortunately, these lenses are not able to handle total darkness well, so if you’re a serious birder then you may need to rely on a different pair for nighttime use.
In terms of durability, the binocular’s shock-resistant thick rubber covering makes these binoculars very travel-friendly.
The Big Year birding event isn’t just exclusive to America, although both the American Birding Association hosts their own big year event, and there’s the Lower 48 States Big year event. You can also join the global Big year, which obviously encourages you to travel in order to sight as many birds as possible. Having the right birding binoculars during your year of intense birding will be a must. Fortunately, this is a pair of binoculars that you can really rely on in terms of daily use, however, you will need to use a different pair of binoculars if you’re birding at night. To learn more about the Big Year, click here to read our article on Big Year Birding rules.
Conclusion and Rating
Product Rating:
This pair of Adorrgon birding binoculars can easily outperform other models in this price bracket. The addition of roof prisms, combined with the multi-layered lens coatings provides users with top of the line optics, which is exactly what you need when you’re birding in dense brush or in low light conditions. But birding in total darkness is a real challenge for most pairs of binoculars. If you’re in need of an ergonomic, lightweight pair of binoculars that come equipped with roof prism HD optics and a beginner-friendly design, then your search is over. We gave these binoculars a rating of four and a half out of five stars.