If the crew members watching for icebergs on the Titanic had the Fraser-Volpe Optics Mariner binoculars 100 years ago this past April 12 those 1514 people who went to a watery grave would have instead made it to New York City, and director James Cameron would likely have had to settle for making a movie about the Hindenburg instead!
Today cruise ships have modern radar to prevent tragedy – Italian cruise ship captains excluded – but for others having a pair of binoculars is still necessary, and should be a crucial part of equipment out on open water. Fraser-Volpe, which has supplied binoculars to the military for more than 30 years knows a thing or two about optics, and now have introduced a marine grade pair that are built for sea.
At $5,400 the Mariner aren’t exactly meant for weekend boaters, but those who can afford these will a pair based on the M25 military model, which offers STEDI-EYE technology that can eliminate up to 98 percent of image motion from unsteady hands or vibration. These also include night vision technology, 14X magnification and a field of view of 74m at 1,000 meters.
And don’t worry about these ending in depths that would require James Cameron and his special submarine to recover. The Mariner are buoyant and are available in visible yellow “boot” so they can be seen even when you’re out in the deep blue sea.