Celestron EclipSmart 20 x 50mm Solar Porro Rubber-Armored Aluminum Binocular with Solar Safe Filter Technology

These binoculars are great. You can look at the sun and actually see sunspots. These are a sturdy pair of binoculars definitely not a toy. I bought a second pair for another family member.

The 20x50 binoculars provide a very clear and nicely magnified view of the sun. You can clearly see sunspots if they are there. I was planning to mount this on a tripod but thought I would try them without it first. Using it only handheld, it can be a bit challenging to find the sun. What I found worked best was to find the visual location of the sun wearing approved solar viewing glasses, and then you have a better idea how to position yourself with the binoculars. You do need to move slowly when viewing through the binoculars because the sun will quickly move in and out of view due to the high magnification. I also found that when using it handheld, there is a fair amount of image shake even though I have pretty steady hands. Again, with the high magnification, this is not unexpected. So, all things considered, I will definitely be buying a tripod adapter mount, and I'm sure it will make the experience with these binoculars even better. Overall, I recommend these binoculars, and look forward to using them during the April 2024 eclipse.Update 10/26/23: I bought a tripod adapter (FANAUE Binocular Tripod Adapter Quick Release) and, as expected, it makes a world of difference. I now have a nice clear, shake-free, view of the sun. I found an easy way to get the binoculars aligned is to turn your back to the sun and, while looking at the shadow on the ground, adjust the binoculars to minimize the size of the shadow. It's probably harder to try to explain in words than it is to actually do, but I attached a picture that shows what it looks like when properly aligned. When doing this, I was consistently able to get the sun in the field of view on the first try. I also included a photo I took of the Sun through the binoculars with my Samsung S21 mounted on with a Tridaptor cell phone holder. The color distortion around the edges is from the camera, not the binoculars. The direct view through the binoculars is a lot better than the photo shows. Overall, I'm very happy with the binoculars.

I got a bad pair that wasn't aligned/collimated at all (couldn't stare at the sun through both eyepieces at the same time), but Amazon replaced them in a timely manner, so no deductions there. The replacement isn't as bad, and I really wanted to love them, but I'm still having issues with collimation. Though not nearly as bad as the first pair, I still have a double image when looking through these, and it's especially apparent when comparing it to other binoculars.First, these seem to be nothing but regular binoculars with solar filters put inside them, in case you're thinking these are somehow specially engineered for looking at the sun (if they were, they wouldn't have such a wide focus range). I am glad I went with the 20x50's for the magnification as I was able to see six sunspots pretty clearly with giving me a wide field of view, but I had to do so with one eye closed due to the double vision in the replacement pair. I've gotta wonder since these were cheaper than the 12x50 at the time I purchased them if the 12x50 have better optics, because there's significant chromatic aberration in these (the red on the left and blue on the right edges of the sun due to the prism effect of light separating, which my cellphone pic shows, even if my picture isn't nearly as sharp as looking through these binoculars actually appears). Had these binoculars been engineered as true solar binoculars, this could be reduced since the sun is almost a fixed distance from Earth, and the optics in these could be optimized for a very narrow focal point of between 147 and 152 million km (or just fixed it at 149.6 million km). Instead, it's more likely they just took one of their standard binoculars off the shelf, in this case the $50 Celestron UpClose G2 20x50 Porro water-resistant Binoculars for sporting events, with its 4.2 rating and good for focusing on objects as close at 42 feet to infinity, threw a solar filter in it, and more than doubled the price.In the end, I was so bummed by the performance of these that I ended up purchasing an 8x8 inch solar filter sheet, and with cardboard from a cereal box and some duct tape I made my own filters for my Bushnell 10x42 H2O binoculars. Seeing the difference between the two, the collimation issues with the Celestron become glaringly obvious as the Bushnells just work like they're supposed to--the Celestrons do not. The image in the Celestrons also have that chromatic aberration that I'm not noticing in the Bushnells, and on top of that I find the image using the solar filter is more pleasing, a little orange hue to it, whereas the Celestron is more white. I also wonder if the orange of the filter paper isn't filtering out more light and is therefore more protective of my eyes. I would assume that the Celestrons protect my eyes just fine, but then again, I also assumed that a company that makes telescopes and other optics would make a decent pair of solar binoculars, and I was wrong about that. (full disclosure: I own two Celestron telescopes and several eyepieces and am very happy with them).But don't buy these. If you're happy with the binoculars you have, buy a solar filter sheet and some duct tape and make your own, or buy a good pair of binoculars and still do that--then you'll have a good pair of binoculars, too. I was able to cut the 8x8 sheet to use with my 10x42 Bushnells, a 12x50 monocular scope, a 77mm for my DLSR telephoto, and I still have a 4x4 inch square left over. The price of the sheets has gone up as we approach the April 2024 eclipse, but it's still a fraction of the price for these lousy Celestron binoculars.

These binoculars, are everything I hoped for. Easy to use, bright and a good value

Delivery on time. Good product as described. Takes getting used to.

Good Celestron quality I expected.

We bought these 10 X 25 binoculars for the April 8th 2024 eclipse, and they do work pretty well.These compact binoculars have built-in permanently attached solar filters and give you about 10 times magnification of the Sun.I think the next size up of these Celestron binoculars gives you a larger apparent viewing opening, but has a 12 times magnification.For those who don't use binoculars often, the first number is the magnification number, and the second number is the apparent size of the "hole" you are peering through. It's MUCH harder to line your eyes up with a 25mm aperture than a 50mm one.From what I understand the larger apparent viewing aperture will give you the ability to see more detail in an object even if the magnification remains the same, and that's kind of what I wanted.The other factor to consider in buying binoculars like this is that it takes a steady hand to keep the sun in your field of view because you naturally have a tendency to move around. Even at just 10 magnification it was hard to do but I think it would be worth it to see more detail at 12 magnification and a larger aperture.If I have to sum it up, these smaller binoculars are a really good deal and they don't take up a lot of room, but if you really want to look at sunspots on a regular basis I would go for a bigger set of binoculars with the larger aperture and maybe consider mounting them on a tripod so the higher magnification doesn't make it too hard to stay focused on the sun.