Being lucky to have a common and duck pond at the end of our journey, plus a national park within walking distance, migratory birds and all kinds of wildlife are always almost a stone’s throw away. Yes, I know what an urban fox and a woodpigeon look like, and I could identify them in the dark, but ask me about the less common wildfowl splashing in front of me and I often draw a blank.
As it is spring at the time of writing, some of the waterfowl have inevitably had their young, leading to a very aggressive male swan who chased away other pond dwellers, dogs and people while his mate sat on her nest.
That being said, it’s wise to keep your distance, so for observing what’s going on outside of the rush, binoculars are your best bet… but not just any binoculars.
Earlier this year, Swarovski Optik announced that it was the world’s first artificial intelligence-enabled “smart” telescope. Knowing that Swarovski is a premium Austrian-made brand renowned for its optical excellence, I had no doubt that the view offered by its AX Visio 10×32 for a few thousand pounds/$ would be razor sharp.
But the whole reason we’ll pay an even bigger premium this time around is the digital extras under the hood. Uniquely, they allow us not only to see wildlife up close and personal enough to capture feather detail, but also to identify what we’re looking at through a combination of pressing a button to activate the function and a digital overlay displayed in the eyepiece. .
It claims to be able to identify up to 9,000 birds and other wildlife – a claim I couldn’t test to the nth degree during my review period in terms of volume of critters spotted, but I saw enough to be pleasantly impressed , as I will come in a moment.
Education can be fun
Once the supplied rechargeable battery is charged using the supplied mains charger and inserted, handling these extremely high-quality AX Visio 10×32 binos proves the adage I once thought impossible to prove – that education can actually be fun sometimes.
Because it’s not just your standard binocular, I’ve also found that it requires some familiarization and a bit of trial and error to get the best out of its features and to streamline operation.
Naturally, you need to turn on binos first to get the identification software up and running. This process requires a few seconds to start and the green light located just above the right eyepiece will flash. Once it stopped flashing and showed a bright green, I was ready to go.
Wildlife and wildlife are identified with the eyepiece of the scope itself – due to limited space, it doesn’t go into great detail, just gives the creature’s name and that’s it. If you want to go further, you can pair the device with your smartphone after first downloading and installing the dedicated Swarovski Optik Outdoor App.
As long as the binos are on when pairing, I’ve found it to be a relatively smooth process. Plus, since the binos doesn’t have a built-in LCD display, you can use your phone as a remote control to access other features. Swarovski says it will provide future updates through the app, which it promises should lead to a product life cycle lasting “many years.”
Although it’s not obvious to me at first, the tube that rests on top of the eyepieces and has a mode dial located on the back that is used to switch between ID settings is the built-in camera. If you use the app, you can export photos and video clips from the scope to your phone and share them.
The Swarovski AX Visio 10×32 does not have a separate memory card slot, and the battery compartment is protected by a screw and lever lock – in both cases, the device can retain some degree of weather resistance. Although I did not attempt to dip her in the pond, I could safely continue my observations in a light drizzle without ill effect.
Do not accept any compensation
In use, it quickly became apparent that the Swarovski AX Visio 10×32 binoculars were both sturdy and heavy, requiring me to grip and hold them with both hands. Officially, the weight is just over 1kg without the rechargeable battery inserted. This meant that the included comfortable and well-padded shoulder/neck strap was appreciated.
We’re told the device’s 1960s space-age look is courtesy of industrial designer Marc Newson, and the egg-shaped rubber trims that protect the front glass give it a slightly anthropomorphic feel. The rubberized surface covering most of the device aids grip and at no point did I feel like it was going to fly out of my grip if I scrolled too fast. By the way, there is no screw thread on the base for an alternative tripod attachment for more stability, so they are very much built for handheld use. The large knurled focus wheel fell readily under my index finger as I wrapped my thumbs around the base of the eyepiece.
Unsurprisingly, the Swarovski AX Visio 10×32 Binoculars are stunning when used as a regular analog spotting tool, blowing most alternatives out of the pond when it comes to razor-sharp visibility. When I first put them to my eyes, I was dazzled by the intensity of the look, especially when used in the middle of the day with plenty of available light. However, activate the software’s bird and animal identification features and the experience is taken to a whole new level.
Okay, so even though you’re theoretically able to identify up to 9,000 creatures, I’d say the hit rate during my time using it was roughly 90%. In one case, a pond turtle was identified, first a fallow deer, and on the second attempt, when I refocused, a water beaver, which was not in place, but was approaching.
Honestly, I don’t know if it was made for amphibians, and it had no trouble identifying a squirrel or the myriad of bird species I pointed the binos at, including mandarin ducks and Egyptian geese. With the scope active, I simply had to turn the mode dial to the bird icon to support Merlin Bird ID. Impressively, I found that I could correctly identify such animals even when looking at them from behind – I didn’t always have to have the animal from the front or side, although centering the whole body in the digital frame provided by the eyepiece worked best.
So, who is it for?
If I were obstreperous, I’d admit that yes, we could debate exactly who the Swarovski AX Visio 10×32 is for, given that it’s reasonable to assume that avid birdwatchers prepared to part with such a large bag of cash will be in the clear. about what they’re looking at anyway.
And if you have your own pocket bird book and feel confident enough to identify most species, then I recommend trying the ‘regular’ 10×32 NL Pure non-AI binoculars, also from Swarovski, which offer the same basic specs of 10x magnification and 32mm objective as here.
In the end, it’s the curious amateurs who would benefit the most from the Swarovski AX Visio 10×32, even if they balk at the tempting price. However, once the tears fall, they will be the same way.
In conclusion, as a freelance writer, the Swarovski AX Visio 10×32 binoculars are way above my pay grade. But now that I’ve experienced their sharp gaze and AI Smart Alec-style identification abilities when it comes to remote viewing, I’m afraid I’m so spoiled now that it’ll be hard to settle for anything less. .