Kite Optics APC Stabilized 22x50 ED AA Binoculars

The Kite Optics APC Stabilized 22x50 ED AA brings 22x magnification to a handheld, stabilized binocular of 1,020 g, run by Kite's KDGS-2 gimbal and KT 3.0 software and fed by two AA cells. Canon's 18x50 IS All Weather also runs on AA cells and adds a doublet field flattener, but at 18x it weighs 1,180 g to this binocular's 1,020 g (both without batteries), carries a JIS level 4 water resistance rating rather than IPX7, and Canon rates its battery life at about 2.5 hours at 25 °C, against up to 38 hours here.

Key Features

• 22x, stabilized. Kite's second-generation KDGS-2 gimbal and the KT 3.0 processor and software steady the image, with KT 3.0 tuned to how the eye and brain perceive movement. You observe with both eyes.
• ED optical system. Extra-low dispersion glass in the 50 mm optics minimizes chromatic aberration for natural color.
• MHR Advance+ coatings, 86% light transmission. Kite's coatings on the ED optics, with a protective repellent coating.
• A 61° apparent field. 54 m at 1,000 m (162 ft at 1,000 yd), a 3.1° true field at 22x.
• Two AA batteries, up to 38 hours. Alkaline or lithium cells; Kite recommends lithium AAs for the best battery life and the lowest risk of leakage.
• Automatic power control. Let the binocular hang from your neck and the stabilization sleeps; raise it to your eyes and it wakes, with no button to press. A 90-minute timer switches it off completely, and a low-battery indicator warns when the cells run low.
• Works without power. With the switch at off, the gimbal locks and it works as a conventional binocular.
• Twist-up eyecups. Leave them down with glasses on and twist them up without; eye relief is 16.3 mm.
• Built for weather. IPX7 waterproof, with sealed electronics and nitrogen gas filling: submersible to 1 m.
• Tripod socket. A 1/4-inch socket for long sessions at 22x.
• Made in Japan. Kite develops its APC binoculars in Belgium and builds every one in Japan.

Ideal For

• Birders and wildlife watchers at long range: shorebirds across a mudflat, raptors on a far ridge, game on an opposite slope, without setting up a spotting scope.
• Observers who want the most magnification in Kite's APC 50 ED line, at 22x against the 18x and 14x models.
• Anyone choosing a power. The APC 18x50 ED AA gives a wider 3.7° field and a 2.77 mm exit pupil, and the APC 14x50 ED AA a 3.5 mm exit pupil for dim light; at 22x the exit pupil is 2.27 mm.

Accessories & Compatibility

• Silicone jackets. Kite's APC 50 ED jackets in full black and sage green.
• Batteries. Two AA cells, alkaline or lithium, not included. There is no spare-battery compartment.
• Tripod. The 1/4-inch socket takes a standard tripod adapter.