Product Review: Nocs Provisions, Pro Issue 8x42

I recently got a new pair of the Nocs Provisions, Pro Issue 8x42 binoculars and in exchange I told them that I would write a review of their product. There wasn’t necessarily anything wrong with my Nikon Aculon 10x50’s, but I had tried some 8x42’s and liked how clear the image was. Pair that with the different shape and lighter weight, and I knew the 8x42 was the size of binoculars I wanted if I ever got a new pair. I had always thought that I’d get Vortex, but I’ve been seeing a lot from Nocs Provisions lately and Tyler at Iowa Young Birders has been using them for field trip loaners and highly recommended them.

My main concern when looking for a pair of binoculars is the warranty. I generally know which brands are decent and after looking through a pair of the 8x32’s at our annual conference, I knew that Nocs had good glass at least. Then I learned that they also provide a lifetime, no matter what warranty and knew I had to try them out. I had also been considering them for our nature center as loaners because they come in some fun colors that might help kids gain an interest in birding.

Specs

I’m pretty impressed with what Nocs Provisions is able to offer in an almost $300 pair of 8x42 binoculars. They feature a phase coated Bak4 prism that helps to provide a crystal clear image with high contrast, a fully broadband multi-coated lens array that helps to extend the visible spectrum and make the colors that you see more true to life, an IPX7 waterproof and fogproof rating meaning they can be submerged in up to 3 feet of water without and damaging effect, and they were built with digiscoping in mind.

I made a chart to compare the difference between the important specs of my old Nikon Aculon 10x50’s, my new Nocs 8x42’s, and the other binoculars I had considered, the Vortex Diamondback HD 8x42’s. Overall, not much difference between the Nocs and Vortex, but both are an improvement over my old Nikon’s.

I feel quite satisfied knowing that for the price, I am getting a definite upgrade from my Nikon’s and that both options I had chosen were very comparable. The Nocs are slightly cheaper, but a respectable mid-range and they boast a wider field of view angle and better fov performance at 1000 yards. Relative brightness and exit pupil are comparable, and eye relief are the same. If you’re looking for bang for your buck, the Nocs Provisions Pro Issue 8x42 look to provide a slightly better value.

Initial Impressions

Out of the box I was impressed with these binoculars. They came in a beautiful hard case with a soft cloth cinch bag as well. The plastic coating felt solid and the ridged design felt comfortable and provided nice grip. I like how the front lens caps recess into the binoculars and actually seat. I never used those on my Nikons because they didn’t seat well and always fell out during transport. The ocular lens cap also fits snugly, but not too tight so you can’t get it off quickly when a new warbler comes into the trees.

Looking over my back yard for the first time with these binoculars, I was impressed. The image quality is amazing; the sharpness was great, colors were true, and the image was nice and bright. My pair of Nikon binoculars had been used hard for about eight years, so some of the image quality difference could be chalked up to heavy use and age, but when I sat in the chair where I do my morning migration checklists, the tree that I struggled with the most this year (because it always had warblers and kinglets in it) was well magnified and extremely clear. It was interesting to me that my new 8x42’s seemed to provide better magnification than my 10x50’s, but maybe this is just an affect of always wanting new to be better.

I intend to give my best possible review of these binoculars so I plan to give an update after a week, a month, and even after one year of use. For now I am very impressed and these binoculars seem to stand up to all of the Vortex brand that I’ve used. I think that Nocs Provisions is going to be a real competitor in the birding community and I’m happy with my decision to test them for myself instead of just relying on the numbers on paper. I’m excited to see where this brand goes and I might even have to try one of their new spotting scopes as well. With the fun color options that they provide with the amazing quality and value that I feel like I received, I have no doubt that they are going to be a great choice for our nature center as well.