So, I got my binoculars today, and while I'm not sure how informed my opinion can be (as I have no other experience with quality binoculars), I think they are incredible.
They were quite expensive (£108), but they feel solid, just the right weight to allow a steady hold even with the 10x magnification, but not so heavy that you would get tired holding them up even after prolonged viewing.
The optics appear to me to be top class. Probably objectively similar in image quality (colour, crispness/contrast, brightness) to the Vortex, or a little better, mainly in colour reproduction if anything (perhaps due to phase coated prisms), at times with the Vortex you don't feel like there's glass there at all, this is an almost permanent feeling with the Barr and Strouds. But the 10x magnification seems to be where the biggest difference is.
When I say image quality is similar, objectively the contrast etc on what you can distinguish is similar. But the amount of detail/distance that you can see with the Barr and Strouds is so much more, this is simply due to the magnification I think, so I can't tout it as being a much better optical quality. However, the difference in subjective image is a big one.
For example, without optics I would estimate I could easily recognise someones face at around 150-175 metres, with the Vortex this would increase to around 550-750, with the Barr and Strouds I think this would jump to around double the distance or more, about 1400-1500 metres. The field of view doesn't seem greatly compromised either, probably due to the lense size. In addition to this, the very nature of binoculars means you get infinitely better depth perception, which really helps with the subjective reality/tangibility of the image.
To sum it up, while objectively the image quality seems only slightly better on the Barr and Stroud binoculars (primarily in colour reproduction) when compared to the (already really good) Vortex Monocular, where they really excel is in maintaining a similar if not slightly better clarity and brightness to the image and without compromising much at all on field of view, while giving a much higher magnification; which subjectively makes a massive difference to what you can see. In my opinion the binoculars, while being only 10x to the 8x of the binoculars, about double the effective visual range, while also providing a solid platform which are easy to hold steady even at this magnification, along with providing all the traditional benefits of binoculars such as better depth perception, making the whole image seem more real (like a 3D film compared to a 2D one I guess).
However, I do not have experience with other brands of similar prices and specifications, so I can't say that these observations are unique to the particular set that I bought. What I can say is that I am very pleased with what them, and very impressed with their performance.
