I spent the morning at Cabelas in Hamburg, PA last saturday. During my visit I played with Cabelas new Euro HD eight power binoculars. I compared them at length side-by-side with the Swarovski SLCs.

Theire was a difference in weight, with the Swarovski's being a lot lighter. However, after looking at the game mounts from across the store and in different lights (shade, direct sun) I could not see a noticiable difference in clarity to justify a $1000.00 difference in price. The sales person did say that color resolution was better with the Swarovskis, but I'm not using these for bird watching.

What are others' thoughts? Anyone else have experience with the Cabela Euro HDs?

Historically, I think the Cabelas Euros have been made by Meopa and have received pretty favorable reviews. But you often can pick up a demo or slightly used Swarovski or Leica for not much more money if you look around a bit.

call Doug at Cameraland in New York City of all places. They are great to deal with. www.cameralandny.com/

Personally I think Meoptas are the best bargain in top end optics.

@.577 N.E.: The differences are small in daylight, but You could definetly see them - go wuith both binos in the forrest and watch the same spots (the bark or leaves of a certain tree) for hours on the high seat - You will see them. Most and biggest differences occur in twilight or later in the dawn as well: there are huge differences with most optical devices then...
Definetly You need time - so try to borrow them out and watch for hours.

I am happy with my EL 8,5x42 Swarovision´s and never regret any penny I have spend for them! The image of them is georgeous!

The key difference, as scubapro pointed out, is extended use. I learned that lesson one day in Alaska as I used a pair of what I thought were great binoculars that had served me great in my home state of PA.

About 4 hours of continous glassing I felt as if my eyeballs were being pulled from my head -- great for watching a football game or casual use but right after I got home I bit the bullet and bought my first pair of Swarovski's. They aren't the only quality glass available and I don't know how they compare in price to the others as I still have the two I bought years ago and can't think of a reason to buy anything else.