The cornucopia of new glass available today makes some sifting necessary. Not all that’s new is useful because sometimes competition on the marketplace encourages the release of new products just to get press coverage, but what seems redundant to me may not to you. This overview hits the new binoculars we could find, and while it’s not an exhaustive list, it’s a great way to begin your search for new glass.

For a full list organized by price CLICK HERE

Alpen
A relative newcomer to the outdoors optics field, Alpen has won industry awards for value in both its binocular and spotting scope lines. New are compact versions of the top-shelf Rainier 42mm binoculars. At 25 ounces, the 8x32 and 10x32 are 20 percent lighter, but they’re loaded with features: BaK-4 lenses and phase-corrected coatings, magnesium frames, locking diopter dial, and twist-out eyecups. The Teton 42mm binocular now has 8x50 and 10x50 siblings.

In the AlpenPro Porro prism series, a new 8x30 offers short interpupillary measure to make glassing more comfortable for folks with close-set eyes.

ATK
Nitrex has released four binoculars. The 8x42 and 10x42 are of roof-prism, center-focus design, with phase-correction coatings to boost image quality. The 10x42 Nitrex I examined delivered bright, razor images in flat fields that show virtually no color-fringing. The click-detent diopter dial makes more sense than the straight-pull eyecups. Best of all, the price is palatable (see chart). Compact versions, 8x25 and 10x25, weigh only 11 ounces. Like the full-size glasses, they have fully multicoated optics.

Brunton
The current flagship model is the Epoch, a roof-prism glass with 43mm front lenses and magnification of 7.5X, 8.5x or 10.5X. It has all the features you’d expect in a top-end binocular. Brunton’s 8-15x35 zoom Epoch earned a "Gear of the Year" award from Outside magazine. Like fixed-power models, it boasts lockable, twist-out eyecups and accepts a doubler to hike magnification. The less costly Eterna and Echo binoculars have done well too--Consumer’s Digest gave the Eterna 8x45 and 11x45 a "best buy" rating. The 8x32 and 10x32 excel on the trail. Use the tripod adapter on the 15x51, and you’ll get spotting-scope reach with both eyes open.

Burris
While changes to the FullField II line for 2008 are just cosmetic (now available in Realtree AP Green), the Signature Select series gets a new 8x56 model. The Signature Selects have BaK-4 prisms and broadband multicoatings on lenses, twist-up eyecups and more. The new 8x56 provides an exit pupil of 7.0mm and a 350-foot field of view at 1,000 yards. They weigh 36 ounces, not surprising given the large objective lenses, but they’ll gather as much light as you can use and will allow extended viewing without strain.

Bushnell
The new Elite e2 binocular (8x42 or 10x42) is built on a lightweight magnesium chassis. It weighs 26 ounces and features locking center-focus and diopter dials, both on the hinge. Thin textured rubber armor looks good and affords a sure grip. The e2 has twist-up eyecups. The lens system is fully multicoated, phase-corrected and has a Rainguard coating.

Bushnell offers a pocket model too: a 7x26 e2. Also on the 2008 ticket comes the Excursion EX series. Priced lower, these binoculars still give you fully multicoated glass with PC-3 phase correction coating. Choose the new 36mm version or the 42mm standard, 8X or 10X, camo or black finish.

Cabela’s
Cabela’s two Euro models top the list--yes, they’re built in Europe. Both the 10x42 and 12x50 feature fully multicoated optics in a rubber-armored alloy frame, twist-out eyecups and a diopter dial against the center focus wheel. At 30 and 35 ounces, these binoculars are not lightweight.