Review on Canon 18x50 Image Stabilization All-Weather Binoculars: With Case, Neck Strap, and Batteries - Perfect for Outdoor Enthusiasts by Sarah Clark

SUMMARY: Despite the significant "CONS" listed below, I like my 18X50 and would buy it again (if i could afford it). Having only been using these binoculars for a few days I believe Canon knows everything about quality lenses and image stabilization but much less about good binocular design. PROS: The image stabilization technology is incredible. When you press the IS button, it feels like you've just escaped the rattling gravity as your rocket rises, flattens and enters space. This is a WOW moment. CONS: 1) VIEWERS - Unless I fold the long eyecups back (which brings my eyes closer to the lens) I can only see a narrower box in the center of my field of view. Canon suggests folding the eyecups if you wear glasses, but I have to do this without glasses too. My concern is that shortened eyecups sometimes don't block glare from sunlight. So I sacrifice the anti-glare feature by turning back the rubber eyecups. 2) WIDTH ADJUSTMENT. Canon's method of adjusting the width between two eyecups (thus merging two images into one) is stiff and awkward. If I need to change the latitude setting (when my wife rents the binoculars) I have to turn the binoculars upside down and use both hands on the adjustment knobs (which are also the grommets/connectors for the neck strap). With my Bushnell and Tasco binoculars, I can change the width by simply twisting the barrels to one side or the other without losing sight of my target. not just gravity. In my hands, 18x50 seem bulky. I feel "big around" and don't have small hands. I'll get used to it, I'm sure. 4) ALL WEATHER? - Although 18x50 binoculars are marketed as "all weather" binoculars, Canon recommends (in a warning) to put the binoculars in a plastic bag when going from cold to warm or from warm to cold. According to Canon, this precaution "prevents condensation on internal parts." That's a horrible thought. However, Canon does not provide an estimate of the temperature difference that would result in such condensation. I worried about that last night as I grabbed the binoculars from the kitchen shelf (65 degrees) and went out to my patio (40 degrees) to watch the super moon. It's ok but if it's 30 degrees outside? When does condensation form? UPDATE (seven months later): My concern about possible glare from the retracted eyecups was unfounded. No glare problems. There were also no problems with internal condensation due to temperature changes. I love these binoculars!