I'd lusted after a pair of those 7 x 30 Commander XPs after trying them out in my local Jessop's (RIP), and loved everything about them apart from the fact that the reticle seemed to have no in/out adjustment and was therefore not in focus for my short-sighted eyes when I focused the bins on distant objects (otherwise they'd be in my house right now! Legendary ruggedness Due to durable Makrolon housing made of polycarbonate that withstands impacts up to 11G, floating prism bearings for shock absorption, water pressure proofness up to 5m, nitrogen pressure filling against fogging inside, temperature range from -20°C to +70°C. The texturing of the body has been designed for a more comfortable and strong grip in any situation to further enhance the user experience. The binoculars have the same legendary ruggedness as all Steiner models and are nitrogen pressure-filled, to help prevent fogging and condensation, as well as being waterproof up to 5 metres.

As with many of their other instruments these are also filled with nitrogen gas under pressure and are said by Steiner to prevent fogging up inside at temperature range of between -20°C to +60°C.

The wide field of view you get from these along with an excellent quality image in my mind makes these an excellent option as a mid-sized birding binocular, be that from a boat or on land. The level of grip you get is also excellent, which on a small boat where you can and often do get wet is of more importance than ever. Disclaimer: I own roughly a dozen Steiner binoculars, some of which I like very much, some I like, and a few I really don’t like.

Over the years while seeking a holy-grail bino for enjoying daytime views, I have acquired a 7x35E, 8x32BN, 8x30FMTR, 8x30E2 and 8x30Habicht, all of which I currently use. As with any marine binocular worth its salt, the Steiner Navigator Pro 7x30 binoculars have fully waterproof and fogproof O-ring seals.However, on water (and especially where sea spray is involved), they ensure the oculars remain dry and in optimal condition and so for my trip I took the time to thread the rain-guard onto my neck strap and so used it much more than usual. This was by choice as we were going as a family and thus as well as my camera, we had my nine-year-old daughter as well as our dog in the canoe. Probably most importantly is that a Porro prism is far simpler and does not require any special coatings added to them to correct the light going out of phase as it passes through them, nor do they require any highly reflective mirror coatings to increase the light transmission levels, both of which are needed on a Roof prism to get the best out of them. I wonder how good they will still work when I am 60 -- however on the Komz there is a simple trick to make them CF -- just get a big rubber band and put it over the barrels.