I was in the market to replace my $40 Simmons Venture 10x42mm binoculars.I'm a tree stand/saddle whitetail hunter on the U.S. east coast so I wanted to try out some 8x42mm binos to accommodate the woods. There were plenty of options available, and I chose the following binos for a comparison (black friday/cyber monday prices):1) Vortex Diamondback HD ($167.99)2) Leupold BX-2 Alpine ($179.99)3) Carson 3D ($334.99)4) Maven C.1 ($300.00)I know its an apples to oranges comparison with that wide of a price range but here's my opinion on the bunch:BLUF: I kept the Maven C.1s-All of them were miles above the $40 Simmons Ventures I have.-I compared them during an overcast day with scattered showers, looking across fields from 50yds to 400 yds, then some wooded areas.-I have no affiliation with any of these brands and this is a subjective review (its from my eyes, last I checked I had 20/10 vision so results may vary).1) The Vortex DB HDs were a great budget bino. Both optical clarity and overall feel were a good value for the money. Compared to the others, there was slight distortion around the fringes of the glass, and the set I was issued had an aberration of some sort on the right ocular (appeared as a greyish distortion). Overall, if that distortion wasn't present, the Vortex DB HD or the Leupold BX-2 would be the best bang for the buck. Came with a bino harness and lens cloth.2) The Leupold BX-2 Alpine was marginally better in terms of optical clarity (to my eyes), and overall felt like a higher tier of quality in the hand. The issues I had with it were: A) it was the most difficult to focus at distance, the focus wheel seemed to be set up more for a coarse adjustment when I needed fine adjustment. It wasn't impossible but I found myself overshooting focus and continuing to go past the correct focal plane compared to the others. B) The eyecups have little bumps to aid manipulation for your eye relief. I thought this was cool but after using them for a while (10 mins or so) they became an irritant to my nose (maybe I have a skinnier nose than others so it may not affect you).Good clarity, with imperfect clarity around the edges of the glass; however, I'd give the nod to the BX-2 over the Vortex DB HDs ever so slightly (this may just be me attributing the optical clarity to the overall improved quality feel/weight, it was that slight). Came with a bino harness and lens cloth.3) The Carson 3D was a step above the previous two (duh, over $150 above them). Optical clarity throughout/to the edge of the glass was a substantial step above the previous two. The overall quality was solid, honestly a great piece of equipment. Didn't really have any issues with the binos, its just the Maven C.1 was a stronger option for me. Came with a bino pouch and lens cloth, no harness (but honestly I have my own bino harness so whether it came with one or not didn't matter for me.4) The Maven C.1 had the best glass (to my eyes). Optical clarity was supreme, and from edge to edge of the glass. I don't know if I couldn't adjust the other binos enough or what but when I put these up to my face, it was a crisp circle with a great image, I saw zero aberration/fuzziness, everything seemed to be in focus once adjusted. On top of this, the weight, mechanics, and materials seemed to be the highest quality of the bunch. It only came with a bino bag and a lens cloth, but I ended up seeing that much value in it to warrant choosing it over the others. It was the easiest to focus (I'm not talking about the force it takes to manipulate the focus wheel or the diopter wheel, just the easiest to get my picture in focus) and what I felt was the best optic of the bunch.I know the Maven C.1 is normally $400+ but if you get it on sale, after shipping and taxes for around $333, it beats out the Carson 3d (in my opinion).If you want to spend on the budget binos (option 1 or 2). Both are great, and should the Vortex DB HDs you receive not have the fringe aberration I witnessed, I would probably take them over the Leupold BX-2 due to the two issues I had with them.