By Jonathan Lawton
Whether you are an avid birder, boater, hunter or simply enjoy observing things around you with great detail, a good set of binoculars is something no outdoor enthusiast should be without. This month I had the opportunity to review a set of Promaster Infinity Elite ELX binoculars. The ELX series is at the top of Promaster’s binocular lineup and carries the reputation of rivaling the optical quality of binoculars priced nearly three times what the ELX sell for.
My initial impression is that these binoculars were built to last. The body is made of a magnesium alloy and is coated with a hard-textured rubber. The outer coating, combined with two concave thumb grips, makes holding on to the binoculars very easy and comfortable. In my hand, the binoculars felt very balanced. Weighing only 27 ounces the ELX has enough heft to make holding them steady a simple task. They also feature integrated caps for the main objective lens that provide users a simple way to keep track of and not lose the caps while out in the field. Users who wear eyeglasses will appreciate the fully adjustable eye cups that make setting the eye relief effortless.
The most impressive feature of Infinity Elite ELX binoculars is immediately apparent as you put them to your eyes. These binoculars are incredibly bright and sharp. The ELX achieves this impressive resolution due to a few key design elements. The roof prism on the ELX is silver and phase-coated to reflect the most light to your eyes. Each objective lens is made of Extra Low Dispersion (ED) glass that greatly reduces color fringing. Also, all of the lens surfaces are fully multicoated to help diminish internal reflections. All of these features together mean more light is transmitted where it is needed – your eyes.
It’s obvious the Infinity Elite ELX series binoculars are built to perform. They are waterproof, nitrogen-filled and fog-proof. Promaster stands behind the quality of all its Infinity Elite binoculars. Each pair comes with a no-fault lifetime warranty – meaning no matter what you do to these binoculars, whether you accidentally run them over with a truck or drop them in a river, as long as you send the pieces and your receipt back to Promaster, the company will replace them for you.
The Infinity Elite ELX is available in 8 x 42 and 10 x 42 and comes packaged with a leather case, strap and lens cloth. ◊
Jonathan Lawton has been a photographer for more than 10 years and operates his own photography business (www.jonathanlawton.com). He’s also a salesman at Hunt’s Photo and Video in Melrose, Mass. If you have questions on any photo-related topics, contact him at jlawton@wbhunt.com.
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