Tim K
09-01-2014, 08:03
I have one of the discontinued Swarovski 8X monocular LRFs and a Leica Geovid HD 10X LRF binocular.
I bought the Leica thinking I'd sell off the Swarovski. I took them both out the other day for some side by side testing and got some interesting results.
I was up on the side of a hill overlooking a populated valley. I had houses, cars, and trees as targets out way past the cabilities of either unit. I was up there all day, so I got to try both units in different conditions.
The Swarovski consistently ranged targets 300-400 yards longer than the Leica. If the Leica was good for 1,200 in bright light off a shingled roof, the Swarovski would do 1,600.
The longest hit I got with the Leica was 1,400 off a car with some cloud cover. The Swarovski was good for 1,900.
The view through the Leica is head and shoulders better than the Swarovski. I originally bought the Swarovski thinking the glass would be excellent. While it's good, it's not in the same class as the Leica. The Leicas ability to resolve detail is just outstanding. The extra 2X of magnification helps, of course. The field of view is roughly the same, but of course the Leicas are at 10X instead of 8X.
I purchased the Leica specifically for use at some of these field matches where you have to locate targets on the clock. Since these matches seem to not have targets beyond its capabilities, I think it will be perfect. Heavy, but perfect.
With some regularity I shoot well past the range of the Leicas, though, so I think there's still a place in my bag for the Swarovski. It's compact size and light weight might make it ideal for times when I want to keep weight down, too.
An interesting side note is the fact that both units failed and both were replaced with brand new units by the factories. I like the customer service, but it scares me to have high end pieces like this failing consistently. I'm hoping I was just unlucky.
I bought the Leica thinking I'd sell off the Swarovski. I took them both out the other day for some side by side testing and got some interesting results.
I was up on the side of a hill overlooking a populated valley. I had houses, cars, and trees as targets out way past the cabilities of either unit. I was up there all day, so I got to try both units in different conditions.
The Swarovski consistently ranged targets 300-400 yards longer than the Leica. If the Leica was good for 1,200 in bright light off a shingled roof, the Swarovski would do 1,600.
The longest hit I got with the Leica was 1,400 off a car with some cloud cover. The Swarovski was good for 1,900.
The view through the Leica is head and shoulders better than the Swarovski. I originally bought the Swarovski thinking the glass would be excellent. While it's good, it's not in the same class as the Leica. The Leicas ability to resolve detail is just outstanding. The extra 2X of magnification helps, of course. The field of view is roughly the same, but of course the Leicas are at 10X instead of 8X.
I purchased the Leica specifically for use at some of these field matches where you have to locate targets on the clock. Since these matches seem to not have targets beyond its capabilities, I think it will be perfect. Heavy, but perfect.
With some regularity I shoot well past the range of the Leicas, though, so I think there's still a place in my bag for the Swarovski. It's compact size and light weight might make it ideal for times when I want to keep weight down, too.
An interesting side note is the fact that both units failed and both were replaced with brand new units by the factories. I like the customer service, but it scares me to have high end pieces like this failing consistently. I'm hoping I was just unlucky.