Gaint Binoculars - Reviews

Helios Quantum 4 20x90 Binoculars

 

Sky at Night Magazine recently reviewed the Helios Quantum 4 25x100 binoculars, so we're reviewing the (only slightly smaller) Quantun 4 20x90's. Size apart, these good-looking bins have a very nicely black, rubberised finish and feel sturdy. Though lighter than their even bigger brother, they still weight in at 3.7 kg or just over 8 pounds. With their rubber coating, they are easy to hold onto, which we found an advantage over hard plastic of some other brands.

They arrived in an aluminium and black-sided case with plenty of foam rubber lining to keep them well protected. On removing them from the case, the central stabilising bar and tripod adapter felt solid and sturdy.

The lenses are multi-coated, including broadband coating, and the eyepieces offer good eye relief. The eyepieces are individually focusable. Focusing is firm and smooth, which we felt reflected the high build quality.

Optically, we gave the Quantum 4's a mark of 4/5 - the imaging was extremely good, with only a little flaring or distortion near the extreme edges of the field of view. The moon was clear and we could see remarkable detail along the terminator.

Viewing Nebulae and Deep Sky Objects

Plaeides was clear and bright and the individual stars well defined. Both M42 and M78 in Orion were easily resolved and the Orion Nebula was bright and clear, despite the mediocre seeing condition.

Helios Quantum 4 20x90 - Conclusion

Overall, a very satisfying pair of giant binoculars to use and highly recommended.