Hello All,

I am new here, ordered my first ScrapYardDog some weeks ago, but already have five SwampRats around the house.

Enough off topic, focussing on binoculars now.
Three things are to consider, weight, bulk and price. Bulky is cheaper, heavy is cheaper.
I.e. for more money you get roof prisms binoculars, which make for a lighter and less bulky binocular but need a more expensive coating to give a clear image. Cheaper models have porro prisms, which are comparatively inexpensive but more bulky and heavy.

The numbers are not all that counts, e.g. I had the opportunity to compare a small and lightweight Leica Ultravid 8x20 (roof prisms) with a not as small and more bulky Pentax 8x25 UFC WP(porro prisms). Yes, the leica had a crisper and brighter image even though the objective diameter is smaller. The price of course was much higher. That said, the Pentax isn't a bad glass, just the Leica is better even though then umbers would suggest the opposite. Why was the Leica better? It's the coatings and tighter manufacturing tolerances.

Size and/or weight does matter when hiking. Binoculars get heavier if bigger lenses are used to gather more light, that is the case if the objective diameters are bigger. I.e. a 8x20 is much lighter than a 8x40.
The power of a binocular doesnt add significant weight, a 8x40 does not weigh significantly less than a 10x40.

Another thing to consider is waterproofness. but really there is nothing to consider, waterproofness is a must, because it not only keeps the water out, it also keeps the air out and the nitrogen in, otherwise your binocular would easily fog from the inside, and thats nothing you want to have.

If you wear glasses while using the binoculars, you might want a longer eye relief and adjustable eyecups.

If you are going to hunt or to birdwatch, you want high contrast vision, that means you want to gather as much light as possible with your binoculars. A 10x50 or a 8x40 would be a good choice. Both would propably weigh a little more than a pound if the expensive roof prisms are used. With Porro prisms such a binocular is close to two pounds.
Just for hiking, something between 8x20 and 10x25 is a very good choice, they weigh just more than half a pound.

Of course there are always some exotic sizes, like the Pentax 9x28 LV, which could be just right for you.

In any case, go for a reknown optics manufacturer such as
Leica, Zeiss, Nikon, Pentax, Docter, etc. they usualy know how to coate lenses swell.

One more thing, forget about zoom binoculars and binocuilars that could run out of batteries...just my 2 cents.

Best regards,
JoBe