10x30 IS binoculars?

I'm someone who's really into low power, wide angle viewing and when I got into the hobby I acquired your run of the mill 7x50 binoculars which have served me well over the last few years. Yesterday I used them to have a look at comet LINEAR. My other interests, besides astronomy, include pelagic observation and hiking, and I've always found 50mm binoculars to be rather heavy for either purpose.

A week ago I managed to obtain a pair of used 10x30 Canon IS binoculars on Astromart for the princely sum of $205. I wonder if this was a good call - I hear some review say that they can reveal objects as faint as normal 10x50 binoculars! Also they are somewhat lighter than the full sized ones. It would be interesting to hear what you people have experienced with this one. Sadly, I cannot afford the 15x50 or 18x50 versions, don't depress me by offering me details of their magnificence.

I have Celestron 10x50. That's about as big as you can go with hand held. I beleive I only paid 250.00 for them brand new, very nice optics. They do very nicely for night observing as well as sports events. Very clear, crisp images. I always get comments when they are loaned out at games, "wow nice view from these binoc's!". Good luck

The 10X30 is probably the best choice for the multiple uses you described. The larger binoculars may be better for night sky viewing in a recliner but they are heavier. If you are actually getting on the water the image stabilization is invaluable and a non IS cannot compete with it. I own a 10X30 and have looked through the bigger ones. The 10X30 compares favorably and is quite a bit lighter which allows you to hold the binocular to your eyes longer. Tracking the space station is a good example.

I've been extremely happy with my Canon 10x30 IS. I think
the IS does gain you some extra detection of faint objects.
For hand-held use they perform close to 42mm and 50mm models
for most objects, though I would say the larger glasses still
have an advantage for very large, faint objects (milkyway, north american nebula, etc.). They have nice coatings and very
sharp optics, even without the IS running. I do sometimes
notice a decrease in sharpness if the IS system is running
near full compensation -- but I would expect that to happen
-- the fluid-filled wedge prisms would make some chromatic
and astigmatism at large wedge angles. To get maximum
sharpness from them, I find it still helps to brace them up
against something so the IS system is only making small
corrections. The $205 you paid is quite reasonable --
especially considering these went for around $600 new
just a couple years ago.