i bought a 10x42 El older pair this spring. then about a month ago, i bought a pair of the new 10x42 el. using them side by side, i have to say the new ones do not offer a lot more in terms of image quality. the ONLY difference i can make out is, there is a tiny, intsy-wintcy less bit of focusing required. and i am REALLY picking flyshit out of pepper here. image quality....the older ones dont give up much (if anything) to the the new ones. and with the customer service swarovski offers, i dont understand why anyone would spend 1000 for a lesser optic. the way i see it, up your budget a smidge bit more, and have the best.
from someone who had an older pair, and spent the cash for the new ones....knowing what i know now, would i buy the new ones again? nope. if you want the most bino for your money, pick up a pair of used EL’s. if you have a pocket full of money and you want the absolute latest (tiny) advancements, buy a new pair. but the return on the extra money you are going to spend is going to be very, very small.
all that being said...there are some gadget differences between the older versus the new. focus knob, diopter adjustment lock, attached lens caps. while they are nice, they are solutions to a problem that didnt really exist.
hope that helps.
