SWAROVSKI dG
£1,650
Manufacturers of all sorts of products have a habit of describing their new gear as groundbreaking, even when it’s often nothing of the kind, albeit a significant improvement on its predecessors.
Swarovski’s dG, though, really is like nothing you’ve seen before. Essentially, it’s a monocular with a built-in camera, which then links by wi-fi to your phone. In fact, potentially to the phones or tablets of anyone close by who has downloaded the dG app.
So, you find the bird you want to look at, get it into focus using the wheel just in front of the eyepiece, and then take stills or video using the button just in front of that. All very simple.
But there’s more. If you’ve already downloaded the
Merlin app, and the dG Mammals app, you can then use them to immediately identify what it is you’re looking at, assuming you don’t already know.
Quality build
The first thing to say is that the dG has been made with all Swarovski’s customary attention to detail and build quality. It feels robust and well-made, although it’s lightweight (550g) and well-balanced, and thus easy enough to use for long periods.
Using it purely as a monocular, it’s really excellent. The 8x25 optics are the same as those used in the CL Companion binoculars. The image is crisp and sharp, right to the edges of the 119m@1,000m field of view, with impressive brightness and natural colour, and it focuses easily and very sharply, taking 1.25 clockwise turns from close focus to infinity.
Oh, and that close focus is quoted as around 2.5m, but in fact seemed closer to 2m, so I can imagine it would appeal to watchers of dragonflies, butterflies and other insects
– it will be interesting to see if anyone brings out ID apps for them that can be used with it.
The eyepiece twists up and offers a maximum of 17mm eye relief, and it’s really very comfortable in extended use.
Using the camera functions takes some brief preparation – you need to make sure the dG is charged (the appropriate lead is supplied), download the dG app, link your phone to the dG, and off you go. You’ll want to have the dG turned on ready before you start doing any birding, as it does take a few seconds to fire up.
Once you’re ready, it’s a pretty simple task to focus in on your subject, press the button, and watch the image
...YOU CAN SEE PLENTY OF SITUATIONS IN WHICH THE dG WOULD REALLY COME INTO ITS OWN...
or video appear on your phone screen. But there are considerable limitations. The camera focuses automatically as you take the photo, so there’s a time lag between you clicking the button and the photo being taken – not always great with fidgety birds. And until the photos appear on screen, you have no idea just how sharp they are.
That means that the dG does a more than acceptable job for record shots, but not really anything more. I’ve seen suggestions that the combined package compares favourably with what you’d pay for a decent bridge camera and some mid-range binoculars, but such a camera would offer you a lot more flexibility in terms of settings, and most these days come with wi-fi connectivity, so that you can quickly (if not instantly) view your pictures on a larger screen.
But having said that, you can see plenty of situations in which the dG would really come into its own.
Tour guides would certainly appreciate it in some situations – you can imagine it would be an effective way of getting everybody in a group onto a bird at times, especially in forest settings. Certainly easier than everybody taking their turn on one scope, say, or using directions. Similarly, some reserves would be able to make good use of them, too, as a quick and easy way of enthusing the more casual visitor about what can be seen.
The same might well apply in families – the ease of viewing would make it a great way of introducing children to birdwatching.
One slight surprise, for me, is that there is no cover for the objective lens and camera lens. They’re potentially rather vulnerable, so you’d have to take care, although the excellent carrying case would come into play a lot of the time.
Close focus: 2.5m
Weight: 550g
Size: 146mm x 112mm x 60mm
RRP: £ 1,650
Supplied with: Strap, fabric carrying case with strap, eyepiece cover, cleaning cloth
Website: uk. swarovskioptik.com
More stuff than usual to spend your hard-earned cash on
WORDS DAVID CHANDLER