I started bird-watching around the age of 0. That’s what happens when your parents are birders. I started using binoculars by age 5, an ancient pair of Bushnell 10x50s I’d grab when my father wasn’t looking. They were huge—so heavy I could barely lift them—but the world they opened up was well worth the neck strain. Forty-five years later, I am less cavalier about the neck strain.

When I head out of the house these days, my binocular of choice is 8x32. (I explain what these numbers mean in my Best Binoculars guide.) Celestron’s TrailSeeker 8x32 ED binoculars offer the best combination of image, quality, durability, and price that I’ve been able to find. Many a time have I brought these to my eye and thought, I can’t believe these are only $324. They perform well above their price, matching the performance of models that cost twice as much.

Optical Performance

Celestron's TrailSeeker 8x32 ED binoculars have phase and dielectric-coated BaK-4 prisms, which are rare in binoculars of this size at this price. You might also see them listed as “roof prism binoculars with multicoated optics.” What this all means is that the air-to-glass surfaces have multiple layers of antireflective coatings, ensuring that very little light is lost within the prism. More light being reflected off the prism and getting to your eye ensures a brighter, sharper, and more contrasty image.

In practice, the TrailSeeker binoculars deliver an excellent image with a sweet spot—where the image is sharpest and has the most contrast—that is absolutely tack sharp and occupies roughly 60 percent of the image, expanding out from the center. That's very good for a $320 pair of binoculars. The image softens toward the edges, but not to such a degree that I notice, unless I go looking for it.

The edges are still sharp enough that I catch motion, at which point I can move the binoculars to center the bird, or whatever subject it is, into the sharper center. Additionally, based on my testing, most of the minimal distortion near the edge can be corrected by focusing for the edges. I never felt the need to do this in real-world use, but for the sake of testing I discovered it is possible (with a corresponding loss of sharpness in the center, since you're adapting to curvature distortion at the edges).

There's little in the way of chromatic aberrations with these binoculars. I really had to work to find situations where I noticed any purple fringing. The color is vivid with a relatively neutral cast; if anything, these binoculars tend to have a warm rendition of colors, which works well for birding.

Are there binoculars with a larger sweet spot with less focus falloff? Yes, but they're generally larger and much more expensive. Optically speaking, in terms of what you get for what you pay, these Celestrons are at the top of the pack, based on my testing.

The close focus distance of the 8x32 TrailSeekers is 5.6 feet, and they offer a linear field of view that stretches to 409 feet at 1,000 feet, which is wide for this magnification at this price. Competitors typically hit only about 390 feet. That might not sound like much, but using these alongside the Nocs 8x32 (which have a field of view of 387 feet), the difference was very noticeable. That extra room goes a long way in helping the TrailSeekers avoid the “tunnel vision” feeling that sometimes happens with smaller binoculars.

Single-Hinge Design

Celestron has gone with a traditional, single-hinge design for almost all of its binoculars. The large, smooth focus knob is forward of the hinge, well past the eyecup. I find the positioning ideal, as my index finger rests on the focus knob and my pinky still has room to rest against the barrel and isn't in danger of drifting into the front of the glass (which sometimes happens with smaller binoculars).

Focusing knobs are one of those things that come down to personal taste (shout-out to the old KnobFeel website), but I love the focus knob on the TrailSeekers. All of Celestron's focusing knobs are large and smooth, with good tension that makes for smooth focusing. I don't think I've ever overshot focus with a pair of Celestrons. This is also partly due to the excellent depth of focus—it's easy to see when you're close.

The eyecups rotate out with one intermediate click that gives you the option to leave them at about 50 percent. I wear glasses, so I usually have the eyecups collapsed, but they're plenty comfortable, with a slight inward curvature that helps cup your eye. The diopter is just forward of the right eyecup and is stiff enough that it stays where you put it.

The outer rubber of the body has a bit of texture where you grip it on the sides, which makes it easy to hold. There are attached covers for the objective lenses, and a flexible rubber cover for the eyepieces. Celestron provides a nice well-padded strap, though I am partial to an all-cotton strap I got years ago. There's also a chest harness included with the TrailSeeker 8x32. I am not a fan of chest harnesses, but this one performed well enough.

There’s also a nice padded carrying case (also with a strap), and you can buy a separate tripods adapter, though I’ve never felt the need for that, save with astronomy binoculars like the Celestron SkyMaster binoculars or scopes. The TrailSeeker binoculars come with lifetime warranty, which protects against manufacturing defects—you can find more details on Celestron’s website.

Lighter Load

As someone with not-so-great vision (I've worn glasses since I was 15), I still love my 10x42 binoculars. But they're heavy. In an effort to lighten my load, especially when hiking, I've discovered that an 8x32 binocular provides a nice compromise between optical performance and portability. I think the field of view is wide enough that even beginners should be able to use these without any trouble.

As long as the light is good, until the sun actually sets, I see almost no difference between these and my 10x42s. Yes, the 10x42s have a larger exit pupil, which gives you a roomier image, but most of the time when I'm birding I'm not roaming around the scene; I've got the bird in the sweet spot or am moving my binoculars to get the bird in the sweet spot.

If you're looking for something for hunting, where low-light performance in late evenings and early mornings under tree canopy is paramount, then go for the 8x42 TrailSeekers, which I've also tested and are excellent.