Kowa SPOTTINGSCOPE TSN-883 FLUORITE, TSN-883

First of all, as an amateur astronomer I have owned and looked through number of really high quality telescopes including Takahashi, TEC, APM, SW Esprit, etc, I can conform that this spotting scope has very high quality lenses, no chromatic aberration at all, and the view is very sharp all the way to the edge!Also, I did a star test last night, and again, it was perfect.These images was hand-held test shot in a hazy morning, the view with my eyes was way better indeed!Highly recommended.UPDATE:I have been using this spotting scope for the last couple of months, and I have to say I'm impressed even more!For wild life watching and for astronomy, this scope proves that it's very high quality, no image distortion, and no chromatic aberration!I got Kowa adapter for Digi-scoping, and now I can capture stunning images with this scope.So far I'm so happy with it, and nothing to complain about it.

I used the TSN 883 for the first time on the Cumbrian Solway Firth, using a • Kowa TE-11WZ 25-60x Zoom Eyepiece. I was amazed at the Clarity of the Scope with the Eyepiece through the Magnification Spectrum. This is an excellent replacement for my Aging Kowa TSN1. Yes, this is the Top Model but a joy to use

Really excellent. My wildlife watching has improved significantly.

My review compares my new Kowa with a 25-60 zoom to my old Celestron 100mm ED Regal with a 22-67 zoom. I favour zoom eyepieces because they allow you to choose the best trade off between light and field of view on one hand and magnification on the other.Both of these scopes are large dual focus ED scopes with some fluorite elements but they are in totally different price classes but I hope that the discussion will highlight some of the less obvious features of how ergonomics of telescopes influence viewing quality. This may not be a fair comparison given the price difference (£2000 versus £600!) and the Celestron is still a decent scope although possibly not the best in it's price range (I might suggest that the Opticron 80 ES with a HDLV2 eyepiece is better for a similar price).The Kowa is sharper and brighter than the Celestron actually the visual aspect is perhaps not so important as some of the ergonomic aspects that also contribute to the realised image quality of observation. Firstly the focus on this scope is very fast and easy to use, the dual focus on my Celestron takes a lot of turning and the coarse focus is very stiff - focussing rapidly is vital on birds at close quarters (where depth of field is small) or that are moving rapidly. On the Kowa you can feel the different focuses work with each other for a smooth accurate focus, by contrast I struggle with the Celestron's focus - particularly as the (not supplied) case I found for it does not provide the freest of access to the focusing wheel, partly because the wheel is flush to the body and less exposed to the fingers for turning. Secondly the Kowa is shorter and lighter - this matters particularly when you are viewing objects elevated above the horizon because a smaller moment of leverage means that it is easier to stabilise such a scope accurately on target, frequently on the Celestron I find myself aiming above an object, tightening the tripod head and allowing it to sag down to the required height, this could perhaps be rectified by using a really top quality tripod but robust tripods are heavy such that a heavy scope necessitates a heavy tripod such that weight saving on a scope has a cumulative effect on inconvenience. There is a 'balance rail' supplied with the Celestron but really and truly it would have made more sense to extend the foot and mounting plate further on the scope in the first place than adding yet another item around which there is a risk of rotation and detachment. A smaller moment of leverage on the Kowa also means the scope is probably less likely to detach itself from the tripod if you are carrying it on the tripod! Furthermore when you transition from viewing a lower to a higher object a longer body means that you have to raise the tripod head higher to maintain a comfortable viewing position, less of a problem with a shorter bodied scope.Another ergonomic aspect is that the Kowa comes with a beautifully made stay-on-case case (check which package - mine did anyway), I had to search for a non-specific carrying case of rather lesser quality for my Celestron. A good quality carrying case is important for peace of mind in carrying expensive objects around safely! The carrying case for the kowa is sophisticated and contains various zips, straps, buttons and velcro that make it comparatively harder to loose bits of the case - something that has been a genuine problem with my Celestron - I lost the textile objective lens cover from the non-specific (sold separately) carrying case and also the hard lens cover which was badly designed and a faff to take off and put on. The hard objective lens cover of the Celestron screws and pinch grips into the objective cavity (make a choice celstron - it's one or the other, preferably a pinch grip - their way you have to twist it back into place as well as using the pinch grips). By contrast for the Kowa the textile case contains a holder for the hard objective lens cover so when out in the field you never have to worry about putting the cover back on the lens or what to do with it when you have removed it (an easy pinch-grip mechanism), you just unzip the textile objective lens cover which can hold the hard cover under some soft textile straps. I think this is a good feature because I don't like moving solid objective lens covers that fit within the objective orofice because of the potential for accidental scratching.Viewing the moon I found that there was more of an "aura" around the image of the celestron (perhaps due to internal reflections) and that the image seemed to 'swim' a little and was yellower and duller, the Kowa was clearly superior. 88mm scopes should produce, in theory (although not necessarily in practice) a light cone with only 77% of the light of a 100mm model (100*100/88*88) but of course this depends on light loss due to reflection and vigneting. Looking at a wall illuminated in a street lamp and slightly rusty the brightness and definition was appreciably better in the Kowa. In decent daylight conditions the differences between the optics of the scopes were, although consistent in polarity, less obvious although quite clear as you zoom up beyond 40. The field of view at lowest magnification (25 in the Kowa, 22 in the Celestron) was larger in the Kowa. In summary I'd say that the Kowa is a premium telescope, thoughtfully designed by a manufacturer tailored to the birding market, the Celestron is nearly a classic but they are a manufactuer who have worked with astronomers who tolerate vastly less ergonomic set ups than those tolerated by birders. The celestron delivers good optics at a fraction of the cost but innatention to some simple ergonomic matters has cost them - it would be simple to: a) extend the foot of the scope forward to nearer the balance point b) provide a model-specific textile cover with some kind of webbing to prevent loss of parts and c) to go with a simple pinch grip objective cover or better still (IMO) an old-school cover that just fits over the outside of the end simply and without risk. The length and the weight of the Celestron are not just inconvenient for carrying, these are aspects that can reduce viewing satisfaction. The Kowa is a compact and (for its objective diameter) light-weight scope with a magnesium body. The zoom is one of the best in the world and some other reviewers who have compared it directly to various swaros generally conclude that the resolution is marginally better than the swaro. Personally I suspect that my eyes are unlikely to be good enough to tell the difference, it was hard enough at times to discriminate between the Kowa and my Celestron. A big sell for me of the Kowa is the more traditional focussing mechanism - I'm not a fan of the Swaro's helical focus, it's easy to move a scope while refocusing and I find the economy of motion of the Kowa's dual focus excellent.

Dieses Spektiv ist auch für mich als Anfänger einfach zu bedienen. Sehr guter Kontrast und satte Farben. Nutze das Spektiv zum Phonescoping. Man sollte den Fernauslöser (Gesten-/Sprachsteuerung) des Smartphones (Smartphone sollte eine sehr gute Kamera haben mit optischem Zoom) nutzen, da es sonst zu Verwacklungen durch das Antippen des Smartphone-Displays kommen kann. Spektiv ist "made in Japan" und von außerordentlicher Güte. Sehr gute Haptik. Durch dieses Spektiv sieht man Dinge, die für das bloße Auge nicht wahrnehmbar sind. Tolle und überraschende Beobachtungen in der Natur sind möglich. Schwarzstorch, Eisvogel und Habicht wirken so als würden sie vor einem stehen und das Beste: Sie hauen nicht ab. Ich würde das Kowa-Spektiv immer wieder kaufen! Es ist sein Geld wert.

Tras leer todo lo que he encontrado en comparativas y tests de este telescopio (tambien en alemán y inglés) y haber probado diferentes marcas, pedi este telescopio en amazon junto con el ocular 25-60 gran angular.Es increíble la calidad de imagen. Todo el que quiera lo mejor de lo mejor, acertara con este kowa.

Tough as nails and has stood up to everything I've thrown at it. On a recent birding trip with 30 others we all decided to compare scopes - our own little quality test. In terms of sharpness and color clarity it was picked by the majority as being best. Better than the Swarovski. Of course it wasn't unanimous but it is a LOT less expensive than the Swaro's. Get the cover for it if you buy one. If you do get the cover I would take a brown or black sharpy and color in the bright KOWA logo. It's less jarring that way.

I have been a birder for decades and have always dreamed of a spotting scope of this caliber. From the first view, the Kowa 883 produces a bright, ultra sharp image to the edge of the field at all magnifications. Using the 20 to 60 zoom and the fast ruff and fine focus is so easy that there is no learning curve. I taught astronomy for 32 years and had nothing with this ease of use. Maybe Kowa should build telescopes with the technology they use for spotting scopes? My wife and I both agree this is an amazing product.

Bright, sharp, no colour aberrations, nice and small, light, a pleasure to use.