Action Extreme 12x50 ATB

Simply a well made and responsibly priced gem of a binocular!Excellent for nature and especially astronomy, where it can be hand held for reasonable amounts of time.Just a great buy!

I apologize, but by stating that these weren't tripod-adaptable; that applied to the 12x50 Prostaff 5, not the Action Extreme ATBs. Matching the two side-by-side they perform about equally, with the roofs as bright but naturally excluding the depth-of-field that Porros generally provide. Nowadays, I have noticed with improved prisms and coatings on good roofs, they are beginning to match up with Porros, even for astronomical endeavors for which they were never preferred in the past. My erroneous statement was simply due to the same configuration of the two. I recommend the roofs for outside activities, especially; whereas the ATBs excel in darker environments, even though they are great for just about any application you can name!

In short, Nikon was amiss, by overlooking in the description, that these do not feature the common tripod hinge. After much ado about nothing I discovered this, but instead of simply sending a replacement cap for the one I admittedly scratched up, they only offered a decal, which is becoming late to arrive. At 12x I am too elderly to get a steady image. It is a downright shame and one must presume that when a manufacteror doesn't specifically state "tripod adaptable", well, they are not.

I purchased these binoculars for general use and I am very pleased. The glass is very clear and and the rubberized waterproof design is durable and can take abuse. The large focus knobs are easy to manipulate with gloves on. Overall a high quality well designed product.

My wife and I purchased the Nikon Action Extreme 12x50 binoculars, or "bins", (Product# 7246) for use in viewing wildlife at greater distances than our 8X birding bins can easily reach. The 12x50's offer a nice bright view, a very sharp image and they are ruggedly constructed. Our bins spend most of their time in the back seat of the car, so they tend to get bounced around a bit, hence we wanted durability in addition to high quality optics. In the field, these bins will experience wet weather and sudden temperature changes, so the waterproof seals and anti-fog nitrogen purged interior are also of benefit to us. The main reason we chose the Nikon brand was our extensive experience with other Nikon bins and numerous DSLR cameras. All of our Nikon optical equipment has consistently exceeded our expectations. Note that these 12X bins are not ideal for most birding. Birders are best off using wider angle 8X, of which Nikon offers a number of great models. It can be a little challenging to hold 12X bins still enough to avoid a shaky view, but with the right holding techniques and some practice it can be easily mastered. There are many more expensive bins than the Action Extreme series, but their BaK4 prisms, fully multicoated lenses and solid construction make them a great value.