i'm looking at getting some decent binoculars for such things as sporting events, hiking, and miscellaneous things such as these. does anyone have any recommendations? my budget is under $200.

 

the 16 year old blonde girl 10 houses down looking pretty good ey?

 

so nobody has any actual advice?

 

I have a couple pairs, both Bushnell. I have the big bulky looking ones and some smaller ones. I would definitely recommend the compact design for sporting events or general hiking around crap. If you're into birdwatching, the bigger ones come into play, but if you're a birdwatcher, you might just get a spotting scope instead.

I don't think brand matters too much. Most binocular companies are already in the lense business (nikon, cannon, etc) and I would check out ebay and lower your budget some. Even someone who spends a lot of time outdoors will have trouble getting $200 worth of use out of a pair of binoculars.

 

nikon
bushnell
leupold

the leupolds may be a bit out of your price range

but never can really go wrong with nikon or bushnell, i have pairs of both. probably for what you want you would find bushnell to have more options in your price range.

 

i had a pair of binoculars for watching the girls soccer practice from my class window in college. dont remember what kind they were.