I’m intrigued by the prospect of an image stabilized scope, but I honestly don’t really understand where it fits in an optics setup. Could you explore that in your review?
Considering its weight, does it (handheld or rested on a pack or knee) outperform a mini scope and a tripod of equivalent total weight?
I'm not interested in hand-holding a 3 1/2 pound scope at all, and the lack of high magnification makes the argument for added tripod stability moot; any spotter at 30x won't really shake enough to hurt you too bad anyway.
I do find it interesting and a testament to Fujinon that even 45 years later, people are still using their tech.
I’ll throw a small wrench in the equation. How would this spotter be in a tree stand or box blind looking down long senderos or power line cuts? Does the image stabilizer add value then? Balancing this on a single bar of a tree stand or tripod (the type you sit on) rail.
Really like the imagine stabilized binos. The spotter I believe is more of a niche item for most hunters… heavy to pack in, magnification similar to smaller ultra lite /mini spotters. Day hunts/truck hunts, and guys looking to film this will be a nice piece of gear.
The only time I’ve ever even considered an image stabilized spotter to be useful is glassing from a truck window clamp when people can’t sit still or the engine is causing vibration. Other than that a lightweight tripod is too useful for glassing and shooting to leave at home for me.