Canon binoculars – image stabilized and compact models

Canon markets a small line of carefully selected binoculars, specializing in image stabilized models and a few compact models.

Find, Compare, and Buy Canon Binoculars - View all Optics

Canon binoculars come in two flavors – several high-tech image stabilization models and a few compact models. One of the compacts is small enough to carry in a pocket or purse and works as sleek, modern opera glasses. It can focus down to five feet, though, so you don't have to be sitting in the upper deck of Yankee Stadium to use it.

Canon seems to have taken a Dunkin' Donuts approach to binoculars. A few years ago the donut chain (ubiquitous in the northeastern United States) introduced bagels – awful, soft, squishy bagels – to their product line with an advertising campaign based on the tag,

"It's round. It has a hole in it. We can do that." In the case of Canon binoculars, their marketing team seems to have decided, "It's got optics. It has a metal case. We can do that."

Maybe Focus Was Not Their Primary Focus

Canon made some design tradeoffs in order to offer the features they felt would be attractive to consumers while at the same time keeping the price less than stratospheric. For example, unlike other premium-priced brands, Canon does not appear to offer fully multi-coated lenses. Nonetheless, if you are in the market for image stabilized binoculars, Canon offers more choices than most, ranging from 8x25 to 12x50.

Compact binoculars range from a pocket–size 7x17 model to an 8x32.

All Canon binoculars are appropriate only for daytime conditions, and you should definitely try before you buy.

You can download a brochure from the consumer.usa.canon.com web site that explains Canon's approach to image stabilization. The site also has a store locator, but if the model you are interested in isn't sold in your zip code, you are not offered any alternatives; so you may do better searching for online suppliers.

 

Copyright 2004-2008 S&T US LLC

 

©2004-2008 Wise4Living | Contact | Advertising Info | Legal | Privacy | Directory |