I’ve been checking out the Vortex Viper 12×50 binoculars for a few months now, using them from everything from checking out the random animals in the neighborhood, to spotting shot placement at the range.
The Vortex Viper 12×50 HD Binoculars are really a nice pair of binoculars. They are well made, have good glass and just function really well.
The Vortex HD lines use “HD Glass”, or High Density glass that is designed to have extremely low dispersion (how the glass effects light that passes through it, like a prism). This helps create optics that are extremely clear and crisp.
What’s Included
The Viper 12×50 binoculars come with a nylon carrying case (pictured above), lens covers and a nylon neck strap. There are also a few other small items like a lens cleaning cloth that are included.
The case isn’t anything crazy special. It’s a very simple Nylon case with a minimal amount of padding and a small internal storage compartment. It also has belt loops so you can attach it to your belt or pack a little easier.
The lens covers are quite nice and work well. The covers on the objective attach to the binoculars so they are easy to use, and not lose. The covers for the ocular lenses fully remove and can be attached to the neck strap. The attachment of the ocular covers isn’t as nifty as the objective covers, but they work well.
Construction
The Viper 12×50 binoculars are very well made. They are constructed with a metal housing that has a rubberized coating, HD glass and sturdy rubber coverings for the lenses. The knobs and adjustments all have a very high quality feel and work very smoothly.
The hinge that allows you to adjust the distance between the centers of the lenses is stiff, but very smooth.
Features
They key features of the Viper 12×50 binoculars include adjustable eyecups, a large and easy to use center focus knob, a locking diopter adjustment and a tripod adapter socket/cover.
The eyecups are nice as they allow you to get a standoff distance for using the binoculars without glasses or sunglasses (the eyecups extended) then to simply turn in the eyecups to use with glasses or sunglasses. This allows you to easily and comfortable have an easy field of view… In reality, I often don’t adjust these when out and about and just pull the binoculars away from my face a bit… but, it’s definitely nice to have.
Final Thoughts & Impressions
Overall, I really like the Viper 12×50 binoculars. They weigh in at 1 lb 14.5 oz (with the covers), they are a bit heavy for applications that you need to keep an extremely light load with. I think these are great for hunting, camping, keeping in your truck, taking to the range, to have around the house, or for general hiking, spotting and sight seeing applications. But I think I would pick something lighter if I was planning to go rock climbing or something like that. But those are wildly varying applications.
The bottom line is, I cant say enough good things about these binoculars. For everything I’ve used them for they have worked perfectly and in a lot of cases better than I expected.
If you are looking for a good pair of binoculars, definitely check out the Vortex Viper HD line of binoculars.
Specs
| Magnification | 12 x |
| Objective Lens Diameter | 50 mm |
| Eye Relief | 15 mm |
| Exit Pupil | 4.2 mm |
| Linear Field of View | 252 feet/1000 yards |
| Angular Field of View | 4.8 degrees |
| Close Focus | 8.5 feet |
| Interpupillary Distance | 59-75 mm |
| Height | 6.7 inches |
| Width | 5.2 inches |
| Weight | 28 ounces |