Children are naturally curious and love to explore the environment. They have a taste for adventure, which includes outings in the great outdoors and nature. Binoculars are a great tool for your children to enjoy their outdoor escapades. If, in addition, your child likes to observe the stars, binoculars are also very suitable for learn about astronomy, before considering purchasing a telescope.
Good news: binoculars for children are not just plastic toys and they are quite affordable. As usual, we have done the research and comparison work for you and have selected the best binoculars for children, but which you can also benefit from.
Why buy binoculars for children?
If your child loves going on adventures and exploring everything around them, then they will love their binoculars. Children love to see things up close and when they can't see what they would like because their target is too far away, they quickly become frustrated. This is where binoculars come in. They allow you to observe things that would otherwise be out of reach. Your child can explore and study their environment, the sky and the Universe simply and safely.
Whether to observe birds, whales, stars or to admire a beautiful landscape, binoculars are an excellent tool to allow your children to discover the planet and the Universe. Not only will your children be able to, for example, identify birds and animals, but they will be able to learn more about the stars and different constellations.
How to choose the right binoculars for children?
When it comes to choosing binoculars for children, one of the first things to consider should be weight. Traditional Porro prism (W-shaped) binoculars may be heavier than newer roof prism (H-shaped) binoculars. Indeed, as they are specially designed to be more compact and lighter, children find it easier to hold and use them.
Another factor that affects the weight of binoculars is the diameter of the objective lens. These are the optical instruments that point towards your target, not the eyepieces you look through.
The diameter of the objective lens can be important because it determines how much light the binoculars can gather. Indeed, as the objective lenses are made of glass, larger lenses will, of course, be heavier. The diameter of the lens is measured in millimeters and varies between 20 and 70 mm.
If your child is interested in ornithology, whales, hiking or simply likes observing landscapes through binoculars, a lens diameter between 20 and 35 mm will suffice. However, if he also likes to observe the stars, we advise you to opt for a lens with a diameter of 30 mm or more.
Smaller lenses are generally suitable for daytime use, when light is abundant, but to observe certain very distant and dim stars, binoculars with a larger lens will be necessary, in order to be able to collect more light.
Many amateur astronomers therefore like to use 10×50 binoculars. But what do these numbers correspond to?
Features you need to know
All binoculars are distinguished by two numbers and you'll often hear people use them to refer to the binoculars they're using. For example you may hear someone talking about 8x40 or 10x50 binoculars, but what do these numbers mean exactly?
Fortunately these numbers are easy to understand. The first number indicates the magnification. So 8x40 binoculars have a magnification of 8x, while 10x50 binoculars have a magnification of 10x.
The second number corresponds to the diameter of the lens (also called the aperture), measured in millimeters. As we saw above, the diameter of the objective determines the amount of light that the binoculars can collect. The more light they collect, the more you will be able to distinguish low-luminosity elements, a crucial factor in astronomy. With binoculars with a large diameter objective lens, you will be able to see more details and, in theory, the image quality should be higher as well.
On the other hand, also remember that the quality of the image and the ability to see more details, which also depends on the quality of the optical instruments (i.e. lenses and prisms). However, while this aspect is important for birders and amateur astronomers, it is generally not as important for children. Moreover, this problem generally only arises with cheap, generic brand binoculars. Rest assured, the models we have selected all come from reputable manufacturers, you will not have to worry about their quality.
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