Vortex Optics Crossfire HD Binoculars

First impressions:
purchased the vortex optics crossfire hd binoculars, 10×42 version.

I bought these binoculars for bird watching, which has specific requirements as opposed to sports events and nature hikes. I wanted a large enough magnification that i could easily see the birds, but also with a wide enough field of view so that when a bird hops from one branch to another – something they are prone to do – that they wouldn’t be lost out of frame. I also wanted a fairly light weight and sturdy construction, all of which i found in my choice.

These binoculars provide a crisp, clear image with no refraction. That is no colored fringes near the outer edges. The aperture is large enough that there is plenty of light gathering ability. Focusing is easy and natural, with the dial centrally located.

This line is advertised as light weight, and it is, compared to other brands, but still it’s noticeable when hanging around your neck. This is not a complaint.

Choosing magnification:
for my whole life i’ve chosen and used bargain basement binoculars, usually 8x magnification. I thought 10x would be marginally better, but experts claim that when you use anything over 8 times, then the image can bounce around from your hand movements and shaking. I didn’t choose the 12x for that reason. The 10x that i purchased has noticeable jitters if held with one hand, but not so much that you lose track of the image. I’m glad i didn’t get the 12x. I’m quite pleased with the 10x, but i think i’d be just as happy with the 8x.

Choosing field of view:
as mentioned above, i want the objective lens diameter to be large enough so that if a bird is on the move it would be easy to track and not fly out of range. The 42mm turns out to be perfectly suited to my needs. The next step up, 50mm may have made the binoculars bulkier and heavier, so i’m happy with this choice.

Adjustments:
the inter-pupil distance adjustment was easy and intuitive. If the left and right sides are not adjusted to your eyes, you will see dark edges on the sides of the image. Once adjusted you don’t have to worry about this, unless you accidentally jar the adjustment.
The diopter adjustment, likewise, was simple and intuitive. Once set up (if one of your eyes is weaker than the other) you can set once and forget about it.

The neck strap was easy to install and adjust. No problems there.
As mentioned in other reviews, the body strap for the carry bag it just too complicated. It reminds me of a medieval torture device. I discarded it and purchased a simple shoulder strap.

Minor complaint:
i found that to see clearly through the binoculars and get a full field of view, your eye must be positioned exactly in the center of the eyepiece and at a specific distance from your eyeball. For me, this required me to hold the eyepiece about 3/8 inches from my eye. I found that resting my forefinger on my forehead, and the binocular eyepiece on the edge of my finger accomplished this nicely. The problem, however requires a more comfortable and reliable solution.

I purchased a pair of 42mm rubber eye cushions that did the trick. That size rubber buffer is standard for microscopes, and are available for about $10 on the internet. See photos.

Conclusion:
all-in-all, i quite satisfied with this excellent product. It has made my bird-watching experience much more productive and enjoyable.

Got this pair of binoculars to leave on the porch so we can observe wildlife at a moments notice. They are very clear and have lots of detail. I also love the rubber caps over the lenses. Had them for a few months and no issues with condensation dirt or pollen getting past the caps. They live on the porch exposed to all elements except direct rain. The focus works very well and are easy to hold. They are also not slippery. I would not use these for hiking. As you can see with my photos, they do live outside.

They came fast and work as they should. Have no issues with them at all

We used these on a recent yellowstone trip. They were easy to use and compact. Would definitely recommend.

I’m new into birding and was super unsure about which binoculars to buy and at what magnification. I got the 8×42 and glad i didn’t get the 10×42 as i think that would have been a bit much. I’m absolutely in love with them. They’re clear and i like that you can keep your sunglasses on when viewing. I’ve seen so many cool things through these binoculars. They don’t fog. Mine got soaked on a kayaking trip and i was worried they would be ruined/water got in, but no they were fine.

I have used these for watching airplanes and wildlife at great distances, and am amazed by the clarity of these binoculars. They are a bit heavy to hold for longer periods of time. I don’t think you can get better image quality for the price.

I rate these binoculars highly for several reasons. First, and no doubt most important to many, is the quality of the optics. Although i do not own a multi-thousand pair of binocs to compare these with i do own an assortment of binoculars, monoculars, and small scopes. Also have some older/vintage items that are high quality. These crossfire binoculars impressed me with their clarity and overall performance in terms of quick focus and good field of view. I believe they are 8x and for me that is a good power to maintain a steady view of the subject at all ranges. A bonus is the glasspak case/harness that was included with the purchase. I can see it being a very useful item if used for hunting or watching/spying from a fixed position over any lengthy period of time. All in all, am very pleased with this purchase and suspect that vortex’s higher end products are equally good quality and well worth their price.

Bought this for my first yellowstone trip. During few days visit in yellowstone, i noticed at least 2 dozens of people carrying same brand with bag hanging in front of the chest. This is not the reason i write this review. The quality of this binocular is surprisingly good. I was able to spot a wild wolf from about 1.5 to 2 miles range. Adjustment is very easy. The view is very clear. Only thing i think it could be improved is that the protective cover for eye side lens could be attached to the body of binocular like the other side cover, so you dont have to put the cover to you pocket every time you use it. Other than that it is very good product

Just got them and took a walk down the road that has couple 400 acre hay fields and was very happy on how great they work and how clear they were. Was a flock of sandhill cranes that were 400 yds out that i didn’t see until i glassed the field. And love the chest harness and case my first chest harness and it’s going to be premium during the upcoming hunting seasons.

We couldn’t believe the quality and clarity of the view using these binoculars when compared to the “standard” $75 – $100 models we have been purchasing. We like them so well, we have purchased three pair. One for us and one for each of two of our children. And, we may buy a fourth pair to keep in the car.

I felt this was a good brand for nice optics based on reviews. The description says fog proof (last bullet point). From “inside” a cruise ship, these are amazing and we love them. Off the decks, they fog up super fast, especially when trying to view the panama canal or other ships at sea in the gulf. To be fair, it could be that they need a long time to adjust in order to not fog, but i wasn’t willing to leave them out in the elements for an hour to find out. Right out of port in ft lauderdale they did fine on the balcony… It was once we got closer to the equator that they would fog up like crazy! So, we are new to optics like these… But hopefully our experience will guide your decisions. To be fair, i still used them a ton from inside. Looking forward to using them in alaska.

I was pleasantly surprised that they included a harness, not that i would use it daily, but for hiking it will come in quite handy. I love the feel of these, they feel solid. A little heavy, but not bad. And the focus! Omg! I could count the feathers on a bird over 200 yards away. Can’t wait until our resident bald eagles have their next clutch.

Guess i will build the amazon machine with some good info to help customers realize the low down. Reviewing only one specimen of the vortex 10×42 crossfire hd binoculars, so keep that in mind. Going to compare the vortex with a few similar priced binocs. Conditions: overcast rainy day, 2:30 pm pa. Going to look at a pa license plate (white background with dark letters/numbers) at 220 yards and tell you how easy it is the read the plate using the various binoculars. All binoculars in like new condition and carefully adjusted for my eyes. I could have got out the zeiss, lecia , cabelas alaskin guide, maven etc. Out to blow the vortex away but only the vortex general price range are compared. Starting with the best and going on down. Bushnell 10×25 legend hd (clearly the best, the center hinge could be tighter for my taste), next bushnell legend l series of about 4 yrs ago 10×42( small amount of play when changing direction of main focus wheel) tied with the celestron trailseeker (celestron had slightly better resolution but not quite the contrast of the bushnell) a fairly close next the vortex 10×32 diamondback from about 6 yrs ago. And the hardest to make the plate out were the crossfires but could still barely make it out finding the sweet spot. The vortex are mechanically excellent and feel great in the hand. Weigh 24oz with the rubber attached objective covers. I think that allot of folks after taking the time to adjust the diopter for their own eyes will say the vortex are a perfect binocular! But only when not having better to side by side compare(can take a little bit of time to do a careful comparison). Want to give the vortex 4.5 considering the whole package and price. I got absolutely nothing for this review! O and people will be happy to know that the play in the focus wheel when changing directions of my crossfires is almost completely gone! ( compared with my 8×42 diamond backs of about 3+ yrs ago.) if you got the money i would go for the diamondbacks, a bit lighter and likely a small amount better picture quilty (but over 50%more bucks!) update : after more experiment i would say the diamondback 10x32s are not quit as good as the 10×42 cross fires. Think i may have a sub standard 10×32 speicimin in the diamondbacks? And now i have aquired a latest version of the 10×42 diamondbacks and they are excellent, better than the cross fires, better resolution especially in low light and have better edge to edge clarity than the crossfires. ( i still feel cross fires are good). With just the objective covers installed= 24.1 oz., diamondbacks = 22.0 oz.

Nice power and resolution. A little larger than i wanted.

These work just fine for my application (hunting, scouting game, identifying game).
Happy with this purchase.

Glad i made the purchase!

Hasta ahora muy conforme con el producto, se ve de muy buena calidad.

Lens make looking at the birds very close up and they are not heavy

Hd bino’s and a harness at an affordable price, you really can’t beat ‘em!

The actual binoculars are great. They came with a small defect and when i contacted the seller i was told they would try to resolve the problem but have now not responded to my issue and it is not resolved. A lot of money to pay to not have a satisfactory product.