For as long as I can remember, "compact" has had negative optical connotations when referring to binoculars. Power zoom binoculars that sound good in theory have always been more toys than tools and my experience has been much the same with compact binoculars. Often promulgated in bubble packs as bonus items, what might be adequate for a night at the opera is all too often a literal headache with reasonable use.

Waterproof with fully multi-coated lenses and BAK-4 prisms, these binoculars give noticeably better clarity and color fidelity than many very good larger sets of binoculars (Minolta, Bushnell) tested side-by-side over a period of several weeks. I particularly appreciate the pullout eyecups that stay in place, finding them to be far more user friendly than the rubber roll-down and twisting approaches.

There is no standard profile that I’m aware of for "semi-compact," but these Signature Selects don’t take up much real estate at all, dropping effortlessly into a moderately sized pocket. Weighing only a pound, they are a scant 4.25 inches long. Yet, they are good enough to be primary duty binoculars for many applications.

Naturally, a set of binoculars that you have with you is far more useful than the pair you left at camp because you were tired of lugging them around. On a guided hunt, for example, I expect my guide to have better glass than I do. A good guide is always better than I am at locating game in terrain with which he is familiar.

You’ll want to checkout these new Burris Signature Select 8x32 Binoculars for yourself. This is the first set of binoculars this small and this handy that I’d be happy to hunt with. I think you’ll discover the same thing.