APO-Televid : Leica's top-of-the-line

The Televid line of spotting scopes hit the U.S. market in 1995, with the achromat Televid 77 and the apochromatic APO-Televid 77 available in both straight and 45 angled models.

I recently upgraded from a Televid 77 to the APO-Televid. The difference isn't startling but is definitely noticeable, especially at high power.

The APO-Televid uses a triple-element objective which contains an outer element of hard-coated, multicoated crown glass protecting two more elements of multicoated Calcium Fluorite crystal. This is the key to restoring the color shift that takes place in ordinary achromatic objectives and is also the reason the APO model is noticeably sharper than its more economical brother in the line. The extra element adds a bit of length (20 MM) and weight (200 grams)to the APO Televid in comparison to the Televid.

An enormous light shade helps protect the objective from rain and stray light- not that rain is a concern, all Televids are waterproof to DIN standard at 3 meters submersion, about 10 feet, with or without the eyepiece in place. Leica recommends the use of a 77 MM UV filter to help protect the front objective still further.

One change to the Televids in the past 5 years is in how this filter is mounted. Original, 1995 production units had the threads for the filter on the lens hood lip, so when you pulled the hood out the filter came with it, exposing the filter directly to light and rain. New Televids have the threads inside the hood right by the objective so the filter stays near the objective-shielded by the hood- even when the hood is in use.

One mechanical feature stands out in the Televid line. The dual ratio focus mechanism falls readily to hand and allows for relatively quick shifts from the 3.95 M close focus distance to infinity. The slower knob, which is also a bit easier to move, allows for that perfect fine focus. This is a useful feature which can now be found on a very few other scopes today.

Many other small touches contribute to the elegance of this instrument. A rotating mechanism allows the entire body to be rolled along the long axis, which is invaluable on the 45 model. A video head locator pin socket is included on the generously sized tripod mount. A quick twist allows rapid eyepiece changeover.

Optically the APO Televid is outstanding, with no detectable chromatic abberation, high contrast, and an "easy on they eye" image made easier by enormous amounts of eye relief and click-stop eyecups. This model is "the" choice if you want to take pictures with the available, 7-element photoadapter.

The robust design elements of this scope (up to a 100G shock load capability) all-weather performance and elegant design make this a great choice for the serious observer.