DBA Oasis S-Coat Review
Back to DBA Oasis S-Coat
Jeff Baker, Head of Membership, The BTO, August 2008
When Opticron first launched their top of the range Oasis DBA binocular there was much speculation as to whether a) there was room enough in the market for another high-end binocular, both in terms of quality and cost, and b) they could produce a quality product to compete with the optical brilliance of Swarovski, Leica and Zeiss.
I was fortunate enough to be asked to review the first DBA model that Opticron produced. At the time I rated these binoculars as a breakthrough for Opticron because of their brilliant optical performance at a price that was a little over half that of the other established brands.
This was several years ago now and I am still using them today as my everyday birdwatching binocular. They still look brand new and have stood the test of time in all weather conditions. In this time the only problem I encountered was a loose eye-cup, which Opticron promptly replaced as part of their 30 year guarantee. I had them back within 4 working days! Not a bad service.
The latest DBA S-coated binoculars look and feel exactly the same as the previous model and on being asked to review them I was a little sceptical as to what real differences I would detect when out in the field. To do this properly and fairly this meant taking both pairs out with me on every trip! On many occasions this was during my BTO Atlas fieldwork. This proved challenging what with two pairs of binoculars, field notebook and OS maps to juggle with!
I had no reason to doubt that the new model would not stand up to the same rigours and stresses that my old pair had endured over the past three years. Why shouldn’t they – they are the same robust body and rubber armouring as before. And they did. Winter Atlas fieldwork these days means mild and often wet conditions and the new DBA’s were on occasion subjected to driving rain showing absolutely no harm done. The summer Atlas fieldwork saw me out in the sandy, and often windy Brecks - a real test (and worry!) for any pair of binoculars! However, to date no grinding or crunching sound from any moving parts.
So, the real test, for me, was to compare the optical quality of the S-coated model with that of my older pair. And, to be honest, I was hard pressed to detect a significant difference. However, it is easy to get caught up in the publicity hype of brand launch. The most we can expect from optical evolution these days is very small improvements and I think this is what you will see in this model. Yes, colour rendition, light transmission and therefore clarity is very marginally better, but better it is - and that’s what it’s all about.
