Binoculars to Avoid
Fake Binoculars: Practical Tips on How to Know and Avoid Fake Binoculars
My first binos buy was a complete disappointment and I returned the optics to the shop. In fact, I found that binoculars while doing research online.
Since I love optics and blogging and now have a wide experience in optics I decided to create a blog about binoculars.
I not only test binoculars and recommend quality optics I also review fake binoculars to help you avoid wasting your money and protect your eyesight from low quality optics.
You really need to be very careful when buying binoculars. Fake optics may hard your eyesight seriously.
Most of these fake binoculars are manufactured in China or Taiwan. I will try to give you as more info as possible so you can spot fake binoculars and avoid them.
My first recommendation is try to buy binoculars from famous brands that have years of experience in manufacturing quality optics.
If you decided to buy optics spend extra $50 and buy a good pair instead of buying from unknown manufacturer for $10 or $15.
You simply can’t buy quality optics for such a low price. You get what you pay for.
This page is going to be updated each time I find a fake pair of binoculars. So far I have been able to test 5 fake binoculars.
Of course, there are too many of them and I can’t test all of them. But I will share some valuable info so you know how to spot them.
Because fake binoculars have many characteristics that are common to all of them.
For example, those that I will describe below have pretty common issues:
- Most of them are manufactured in China or Taiwan
- Image quality is very bad (image is not clear, sharp or bright)
- Magnification is suspiciously high
- They are heavy
- Often diameter of lenses is different from the manufacturer’s description
- Most fake binoculars are zoom ones
- They have BK 7 or low quality BAK 4 optics
Those that I tested out are not worth even $10 in my opinion. Because image quality was really bad.
Magnification power was far from what it’s said in the product description.
Even diameter of lenses was in most cases different from the manufacturer’s description.
Here is the list of fake binoculars you must avoid:
- Sakura Binoculars 10-70×70
- Sakura 10-180×100
- Sakura 20-180×100
- Sakura Binoculars 30×60 HD
- Borwolf 10-380×100
- Sunagor 30-160×70
- Barste 50×50
- Barste 20×50
- Bushnell 60×90
- Bushnell 50×50
- Canon 20×50
- Nikon 70×70
- Bresser 10-60×60
- Estink Magnification Binoculars Telescope, 20-180X100
- Yosoo 20-180X100 Binoculars
- Ruixunte 20-180×100 HD Zoom Night Vision Binoculars
- 10-30×50 Zoom Binoculars
- BetaOptics 144X Military Zoom Binoculars
- Maginon HI Zoom 10-30×60
- ESSLNB Giant 13-39×70
- Scokc 10-30×50
- GOR Standard 10-70×70
- Military Zoom 20-140×70
- Col-P Super Military 20-50×70
When you see binoculars with a suspiciously high magnification, such as 20x, 30x, 50x, 60x, 70x, 160x, 180x from unknown manufacturers avoid them!
Prices may vary from $20 up to $300. The only way to stay away from these low quality optics is to remember them by their names.
Especially when you see zoom binoculars avoid them. Such binoculars produce low quality and dark image.
Real magnification is much less from what it’s claimed to be.
Even if manufacturer claims that their binoculars are made of BAK 4 prism most likely they are made of BK 7 prism which is low quality optics used in cheap binoculars.
Some zoom binoculars from reliable manufactures, such as Nikon Aculon 10-22×50, Bushnell 10-22×50, Celestron SkyMaster 10-40×80, 15-35×70 can be better than those I listed above from unknown manufacturers.
But the best would be avoiding zoom binoculars all together. The quality of fixed magnification binoculars is always superior to zoom binoculars.
Always buy binoculars with fixed magnification, such as 4×30, 7×35, 8×30, 8×32, 8×42, 10×25, 10×40, 10×42, 10×50, 12×42, 12×50, 15×70, 16×50, 16×42, 18×56, 20×56, 20×80, 20×60, 25×70, 25×100.
Especially if you plan to buy high power binoculars, such as 12x and higher always choose reliable manufacturers, such as:
- Pentax
- Nikon
- Orion
- Bresser
- Levenhuk
- Oberwerk
- Maven
- Vortex
- Swarovski
- Gosky
- Celestron
It’s also advisable to check the binoculars on the manufacturer’s website:
- Bushnell.com
- Wingspanoptics.com
- Vortexoptics.com
- Celestron.com
- Oberwerk.com
- Levenhuk.com
- Nikon.com
- Carson.com
- Leupold.com
- Mavenbuilt.com
- Pentax.com (https://pentax.com.au/)
- Orion ( https://www.telescope.com/)
For example, you want to buy Bresser 10-60×60 and can’t find the same binoculars on Bresser.com website it means they are fake.
The package of such fake binoculars is also different from real Bresser packaging.
You will not find an official Bresser logo on the box or binoculars series number, no binoculars characteristics or description.
Or you can send me a message and I will help you out. Most of the time I reply within 2,3 hours or even faster.
Short review and final score:
Sakura 10-180×100 – Natural rubber material, BAK 4 porro prism optics, fully multi-coated lenses. Manufactured in China.
Sakura Binoculars 30×60 HD – BAK 4 roof prism optics, fully multi-coated lenses. Manufactured in China.
Borwolf 10-60×100 – Natural rubber material, waterproof BAK 4 porro prism optics, fully multi-coated lenses. Manufactured in China.
Sunagor 30-160×70 – Multi coated optics with BAK-4 prisms, rubber armoured body, magnification: 30x – 160x. Manufactured in Japan.
Barste 50×50, Barste 20×50 – Multi coated optics, Prism type unknown, rubber armoured body, magnification: 20x – 50x. Manufactured in China.
Bushnell 60×90, Bushnell 50×50, Bushnell 180×100, Bushnell 10-70×70 – Multi coated optics, Prism type unknown, rubber armoured body, magnification: 60x – 90x. Manufacturer unknown.
Canon 20×50, Canon 60×60, Canon 70×70 – Multi coated optics, Prism type Bak 4, rubber armoured body, magnification: 20x. Manufactured in China.
Nikon 70×70 – Multi coated optics, waterproof, prism type unknown, rubber armoured body, magnification: 70x. Manufacturer unknown.
Bresser 10-60×60 – Fogproof, BAK 4 porro prism optics, multi-coated lenses. Manufactured in Taiwan.
Estink Magnification Binoculars Telescope, 20-180X100 – Multi coated optics, prism type unknown, rubber armoured body, magnification: 20 – 180, Manufacturer Estink.
Yosoo 20-180X100 Binoculars Portable Outdoor Telescope Day and Night Vision Mega Zoom – Multi coated optics, prism type unknown, rubber armoured body, magnification: 20 – 180, Manufacturer Yosoo.
Ruixunte 20-180×100 HD Zoom Night Vision Binoculars Full Coated Optics Telescope – Multi coated optics, prism type unknown, rubber armoured body, magnification: 20 – 180, Manufacturer Ruixunte.
10-30×50 Zoom Binoculars for Adults Bird Watching HD Powered Professional Hunting Telescope – Multi coated optics, prism type BK-7, rubber armoured body, magnification: 10 – 30, Manufacturer unknown.
BetaOptics 144X Military Zoom Binoculars – Multi coated optics, prism type BK-7, rubber armoured body, magnification: 20 – 144, Manufacturer Betaoptics.
About the Author: Adam
We review and recommend quality binoculars so you don't waste your money on useless ones. 
I’m planning on getting a binocular probably next week so coming across this post really has a lot of benefits as I have known what to consider in getting binoculars,how to know fake ones and the fake ones to avoid. Thanks for sharing this information, I have always trusted you on issues like this and I will be giving feedback after purchasing the binocular.
I would be grateful for your feedback. Make sure to do the right choice. Market is full of fake binoculars and there always may be some that I don’t know about and haven’t included in my list. But you can always shoot me a message and I will be happy to help with your purchase.
I was surprised to see Cannon and Nikon on the do not purchase list because I was always under the impression that those were good brand names. Thank you for your input. Have a wonderful day.
Hello Jeeper,
I was surprised as well when I had zero knowledge in optics. These binoculars Cannon and Nikon are fake ones. Cannon and Nikon have nothing to do with these fake binoculars. Nikon is one of the best manufacturers of quality optics, cameras. If you plan to choose from Nikon product like you can find here
They have different binoculars from any price tag. You have to be careful when buying binoculars to avoid fake ones. Most of them are manufactured in China. I will add more fake binoculars to this page over time.
I just returned fake binoculars and decided to never buy zoom binoculars.Your website is very good. Had i seen your website earlier- I could have avoided buying fake binoculars.
I’m glad I was able to help you. Zoom binoculars are not good. I’m curious, what type of binoculars you purchased? I mean which brand? Was it a Chinese product?
im thinking about the 20 to 180 magnafication binoculars i have seen on the internet and was just wondering if they really are 180 x mag . im not expecting much as far as quality just thinking about long range veiwing some boats on the lake or an animal a couple feilds away
I would recommend
Barska Gladiator 25-125×80
Barska Gladiator 20-140×80
Barska Gladiator 20-100×70
These binoculars are not bad. You can’t expect high quality from zoom binoculars but these optical devices provide decent image quality considering they are zoom devices.
I sasw on a famous website the new binoculars Borwolf 20-60×70 with very good feedbacks. What do you about these binoculars?
Hi Paolo!
I don’t recommend Borwolf. Quality is not good. Generally speaking, zoom binoculars are not recommended. If anyway, you want zoom binoculars then choose any of these:
Bresser spezial zoomar 7-35×50
Celestron Skymaster 18-40×80
Celestron UpClose 10-30×50
Barska Gladiator 25-125×80
Barska Gladiator 12-60×70
thanks for your reply. I thought to buy the Barska gladiator 20-100×70, and I saw it on a website of Singapore: expertbinocular.com, but I think that the price it’s a bit too low, 73$… do you think that they sell binoculars made in China with a fake brand?
I don’t know if it is fake or not. The same binocular price on Barska website is $167
https://www.barska.com/20-100x80mm-gladiator-zoom-binoculars-barska.html
You can ask from the website or contact Barska directly to make sure that this one sold on expertbinocular.com is not fake.
Hi Paolo
did you make a purchase from expertbinocular.com? Its prices are very appealing – but probably too good to be true – I’m wary of a scam.
thanks,
Rodger
Really I don’t know anything about that site. I would buy from Amazon.com or https://www.bhphotovideo.com/
These sites are reputable and have been in the business for years.
Dear sir
Today I received celestron cometron 7*50 binocular purchased from Amazon in india.after opening it I found it is made in China and when I use it unable to fix double images.is it fake if so I may return it pls suggest.
Thanks
Celestron Cometron 7×50 is a cheap class binocular. So, it’s no surprise that you have an issue with it. It’s made in China because most brands today have facilities in China and manufacture their products there to reduce production costs. Your binocular is not fake. I recommend that you follow this guide https://binocularsguides.com/how-to-use-binoculars-tips-tricks-and-hacks/ to fix double image issue.
If after that you still have the issue try to contact Amazon and ask for product replacement. Alternatively you can contact Celestron and provide your purchase details and ask for refund or product replacement.
https://binocularsguides.com/celestron-binoculars-review/#Celestron_Binoculars_Warranty
What would you recommend for animal / bird spotting from a 100 / 1000 meter distance thanks maurice.
mauricepcarr@yandex.com
Ps love your advice on the forum
For 100 hundred meter distance magnification 8x or 10x is an ideal choice. For 1000 meter distance, recommended magnification is 12x or 15x provided you need to view an object in greater details.
I was very happy to find your article about binoculars, I need to buy one, but I found it difficult to choose and the money is short to buy a renowned one, help me choose one of these, which I saw on a Chinese website:
Eyeskey 10×50
Scokc hd 10×50
Celestron upclose g2 10×50
Borwolf 12-36×60
Celestron skymaster 12×60
thankful
Hi Fernando!
Welcome to my website and thank you for the comment. I recommend to choose Levenhuk binoculars. They have every type of magnification and very affordable. It’s an American quality and my favorite brand optics. Go to this page and choose one that you like. If you need my help to choose the right one let me know and I will help.
Hi Adam,
Thank you very much
Hello, Adam. I have a chance to buy 20×60 “Nikon” binoculars. They look exactly like Nikon Action binoculars. The exterior has considerable wear and the name:”Nikon” no longer shows anywhere on these binoculars. I actually was not aware that Nikon ever made binoculars in this particular magnification. The design certainly appears to be correct. What do you think? Thanks.
This is not Nikon binocular. I know two other binos, such as Nikon Aculon 16×50 or Nikon 8252 ACULON A211 10-22×50 Zoom Binocular. If you are looking for magnification 10 binoculars, I can recommend Levenhuk Atom 20×50 or Levenhuk Heritage BASE 15×50 Binoculars
Levenhuk provides free shipping on all $100+ orders and 45 day money back guarantee if you don’t like the product
Thank you for the excellent information, sir. Very helpful.
I was to order sacura binocular from AliExpress at cheap price but you’ve made a great change in my decision and thanks a lot for that. We must see Customer ratings at least. I think Celestron 25× 70mm is best budget binocular. And Barska gladiator comes next to it with a bit more expensive and with high magnification.
Yes, those two are good options to choose.