Steiner Predator 10x42 vs Steiner HX 10x42
Quick take: The Steiner HX 10x42 costs $20 less; the Steiner HX 10x42 has a wider field of view (326 vs 324 ft @ 1000 yds).
Field of view, to scale
Top-down view · drawn to true scale — no exaggeration
Which one to buy
Steiner's cheaper 10x42 in this pair is also its better one, which almost never happens. The HX 10x42 costs $20 less than the Predator 10x42, and owners describe it as a clear step up: German-made optics they call very bright and extremely sharp, a visible improvement in resolution and color over the Predator, and one owner who rated it every bit as good as a Leica he compared it against. It adds ED glass, dielectric prism coatings and a magnesium body. The HX is discontinued, though, so it may be hard to find new.
The two share a lot: a 4.2mm exit pupil, 16mm of eye relief that owners of both call borderline for glasses, a fussy eyebox, fields of 324 ft and 326 ft, lifetime warranties and tough armor. Both focus close for hunting glass, 6.6 ft on the Predator and 6 ft on the HX, and the Predator is a little lighter at 26.3 oz against 28 oz. HX owners split on color fringing, with some seeing it on high-contrast edges and others none, and they say edges go soft past roughly three-quarters of the field. Predator owners relay mid-pack test scores for clarity and brightness, a stiff diopter and coating claims testers couldn't verify, while praising its grip and decades-long durability.
The HX is the one to buy if you can find it new at or near its current price. The Predator's main advantage here is simply that it is still in production, and its own owners advise buying it only on sale.
Steiner Predator 10x42
Worth it mainly because it is still in production; buy on sale, as its owners advise, and skip it if you wear glasses.
Steiner HX 10x42
The sharper, better-built 10x42 for slightly less money, if a new one can still be found; it is discontinued.
| Spec | Steiner Predator 10x42 | Steiner HX 10x42 |
|---|---|---|
| Approx. price | ~$770 | ~$750 |
| Use case | Hunting | Hunting |
| Magnification | 10x | 10x |
| Objective | 42mm | 42mm |
| Exit pupil | 4.2mm | 4.2mm |
| Field of view | 324 ft @ 1000 yds | 326 ft @ 1000 yds |
| Eye relief | 16mm | 16mm |
| Close focus | 6.6 ft | 6 ft |
| Prism | Roof | Roof |
| Glass | HD | HD |
| Coating | Fully Multi-Coated | Fully Multi-Coated |
| Weight | 26.3 oz | 28 oz |
| Dimensions | 5.5 x 4.9 in | 5.4 x 4.8 in |
| Warranty | Lifetime | Lifetime |
Feature comparison
Steiner Predator 10x42
- ✗ED Glass
- ✓Phase-Corrected
- ✗Dielectric Coating
- ✓Waterproof
- ✓Fogproof
- ✗Image Stabilized
- ✓Tripod Adaptable
- ✗Magnesium Body
- ✓Locking Diopter
Steiner HX 10x42
- ✓ED Glass
- ✓Phase-Corrected
- ✓Dielectric Coating
- ✓Waterproof
- ✓Fogproof
- ✗Image Stabilized
- ✓Tripod Adaptable
- ✓Magnesium Body
- ✓Locking Diopter
What birders say
Steiner Predator 10x42
- ✓The 10x reach suits the open-country side of the Predator's hunting mission - antelope, mule deer, and cross-canyon glassing where 8x runs out of magnification
- ✓Same CAT (Color Adjusted Transmission) coatings hunters buy the line for - owners report game colors standing out against foliage and filtered glare off leaves
- ✓Low-light capability earns repeated praise in hunting reviews - testers found dawn and dusk images stayed impressively bright through legal shooting light
- ✓Steiner's build toughness is the brand's calling card, with NBR rubber armor and owner reports of Predators lasting decades of field abuse
- ✓Grippy, hunter-friendly ergonomics with molded thumb rests that reviewers single out - easy to hold steady with gloves on
- ✓6.6 ft close focus is excellent for a 10x hunting binocular
- ✓At 26.3 oz it's mid-weight for a rugged 10x42 - a little heavier than a Vortex Viper HD 10x42
- ✓Lifetime Heritage Warranty and US-based service, with long-term owners vouching that the company stands behind it
- ✗The 16mm eye relief is snug - eyeglass-wearing hunters can struggle to see the full field, more so than on the 17.25mm 8x42
- ✗Independent testers couldn't verify the CAT coating's game-highlighting claims, finding no measurable visibility advantage over ordinary competitors
- ✗Optics-forum enthusiasts are notoriously lukewarm on Steiner roof prisms, calling them overpriced for the optical performance and pointing buyers to Vortex Viper HD instead
- ✗Comparative testing of the Predator line scored clarity and brightness mid-pack for the price bracket
- ✗324 ft field of view is average, and combined with the fussy eyebox some owners describe, finding and holding the image takes more care than with easier-viewing rivals
- ✗The stiff, awkward diopter adjustment complaint applies across the Predator line
- ✗10x magnification amplifies hand shake, so long looks want a brace or a tripod
- ✗Wild street-price swings (roughly $330 to $650) mean you can easily overpay - forum advice is to only buy on sale
Steiner HX 10x42
- ✓One hunting-forum owner who compared it side-by-side with a Leica Trinovid and Zeiss Victory called the Steiner 'every bit as good as the Leica glass' - and that kind of above-its-station praise recurs around the HX
- ✓German-made optics that precision-shooting forum members describe as 'very bright and extremely sharp' - a clear, visible step up from the Predator line
- ✓Frequently found at $400-600 street despite the ~$750 list, where forum members consider it flat-out great glass for the money
- ✓Central sharpness is excellent across roughly the middle three-quarters of the field, which is where you actually glass
- ✓Classic Steiner toughness - rugged rubber armor, waterproof, nitrogen purged, and a lifetime Heritage Warranty with customer service stories going back decades
- ✓Low-light performance benefits from ED glass and enhanced coatings that reviewers note give a real bump in resolution and color fidelity over cheaper Steiners
- ✓Grippy hunter ergonomics and a fast, positive focus that owners say works well with gloves
- ✓28 oz is reasonable for a rugged German 10x42 - lighter than a Vortex Razor UHD
- ✗Steiner lists 16mm of eye relief, which is borderline for eyeglass wearers, so glasses-on viewing is compromised
- ✗Chromatic aberration reports are genuinely mixed: some hunters report noticeable color fringing they couldn't tune out, while others see none - suggesting sample or eye sensitivity variation
- ✗Edge softness sets in beyond roughly 75% of the field - fine for hunting, but flat-field birding glass like the Nikon Monarch HG beats it at the margins
- ✗The eyebox demands fairly precise eye placement compared to easier-viewing competitors
- ✗At full $750-1000 retail some owners question the value versus a Vortex Razor HD or Maven B1.2 - the HX only becomes a bargain at its frequent sale prices
- ✗Brand perception cuts both ways: optics-forum enthusiasts still associate Steiner's roof prisms with mediocre value, so the HX gets less discussion and slower resale than Vortex equivalents
- ✗The diopter and mechanical refinement, while solid, don't match the silky feel of similarly priced Japanese-made competitors
- ✗No flat-field or field-flattener tech at a price where some rivals offer it
Steiner Predator 10x42 vs Steiner HX 10x42: common questions
How much better is the Steiner HX 10x42 than the Predator 10x42?▾
Noticeably, according to owners. They describe the HX's ED glass and upgraded coatings as a visible bump in resolution, brightness and color, a full tier above the Predator. The Predator's advantages are availability and slightly lower weight.
Do the Steiner Predator 10x42 and HX 10x42 work with eyeglasses?▾
Not well. Both have 16mm of eye relief, which owners of each call borderline, and many glasses wearers report a reduced field. Bare-eyed hunters are the buyers both models suit best, so try them first if you glass with glasses on.