Celestron Oceana 7x50 Reviews

Celestron Oceana
by D , 2010-07-06

I really wanted to give these binoculars a good review being that they are from an American company right near my home but sadly I cannot. The first pair I purchased were defective when the illuminator button fell out when I opened them to first examine them. The second pair I recieved were also defective because the Illuminator did not work at all and there was a black splotch in the viewing area that was internal and could not be cleaned by me. I give up. I will save my money and buy some Steiner's now.

Excellent quality
by J. Fanshaw from Idaho, 2010-05-06

Never in my life have I looked through such crystal clear binoculars that focus so precisely on objects right in front of your face or across the valley. I have yet to figure out how to properly use the range/size finder, but that's just a matter of sitting down and reading up on it. Like some of the other reviews said, the built-in compass is a tad funky, but not enough to lessen my opinion of them!

Celestron Oceana 7x50
by Ralph from UTARD, 2010-02-25

Received these yesterday, as I have only had a slight chance to test them out I can only give first impressions.
Optical quality, very, very good, not perfect but very good especially for the price. (5 of 5 stars at this price point)
Build Quality, Fantastic, they feel very sturdy, they are covered by a rubber armor and they are completely waterproof. (5 of 5 stars)
Comfort, pretty good, a bit stiff but I expect them to loosen up over a period of use. (4 of 5 stars)
Instruction manual, with these Binoculars, there is some math involved to get the size or the distance to an object. While the instructions were adequate, they were lacking a bit. (4 of 5 stars)
Accessories (lens caps, binocular bag), This is a double edged sword, the bag is great I expected to get a very cheap case, what it came in is a well padded rigid soft case that well exceeds my expectations. The lens caps...not so much, the front caps are great, they are connected to the the body so you won't loose them. The rear cap is almost worthless. It is a single cap designed to go over both but can't be fitted securely. (4 of 5 stars because of the rear cap)
Compass, Unfamiliar with nautical compasses I was a sort of surprised not to see a N or an S or an E or a W. But after 5 seconds I was able to deal with degrees... The illumination was great and its easy to read. This is a great way to know exactly where you're looking at any time. The compass, integrated with the rangefinder is a huge plus to me. (5 of 5 stars)

I really like these binoculars, I am hoping they live up to my expectations in long term use. I'm taking them out this weekend to test out a bit more and see if the rangefinder is true in its readings and see if the optics are as good as I think they are.

Expectations not met
by J. Brown from marin, 2009-10-28

I just received this Celestron Oceana binoculars and I had very high hopes based some of the great reviews here. I find I have a several issues with the alignment of various components.

When I get the binoculars focused and the two circular views merged into one view I find it is distracting that the vertical reticle is not plumb (at 90 degrees to the horizon) but angled 10-15 degrees from plumb. I can make it plumb by widening (separating) the views . but I'd like it to be plumb at my optimized view.

To read the compass clearly I have to pull back from the binocular and lower them to look down at compass reading. I can't be viewing through the binoculars and see the reading at the same time. But that's the whole point of buying these. This alignment should be better.

I have been focusing these binoculars on distant rooftops in the neighborhood. There are these galvanized chimney vents on the roofs. In the bright sun, when I see these shiny roof vents, I see 2 levels of ghost images as well. This seems wrong.

Perhaps my expectations are off or maybe this particular item is a lemon, but I was hoping for more. I think I will have to return these.

Great Value
by Henz73 from Wilmington, DE, 2008-12-10

These binoculars offer a great combination of features for the price. The built-in compass is a very valuable on the water, and the backlighting works very nicely in the dark. Eyepiece adjustments worked very well for me and produced crisp viewing. The rangefinder scale is easy to use and may come in handy.