An In-Depth Comparison Between These Two Similarly-Priced Compact Spotting Scopes.
The two optics we’re taking a look at today are the Angled Telescope Compact (ATC) 17-40×56 from Swarovski Optik (left), and Kowa’s Prominar TSN-553 15-45×55 (right) as the top picks for a lightweight and packable spotter.
Size & Features
Both of these spotting scopes boast incredible glass in an unbelievably small package. The ATC from Swarovski boasts a simple, yet almost flawless exterior design. Coming in either ‘Swarovski Green’ or ‘Burnt Orange’, the ATC features a slim design and a comfortable outer shell. It’s straighter shape features more curves than edges, allowing it to be more easily packed away or quickly pulled from a bag or pouch.
The Kowa, though less streamline in its design, is very easy to use, and is actually slightly lighter than its Austrian counterpart. That small difference in weight will make the difference for a back-country hunter looking to count every ounce.
Kowa uses a dual coarse and fine-tune adjustment system to change the focus distance, located on the top of the scope body. This is useful for both quick acquisition as well as slower fine-tuning of your focus wheel. The streamline design of the Swarovski means that the focus adjustment is that of most other spotting scopes, a wide ring around the main tube body. This feature is not necessarily a negative on this unit, as it moves freely and is very easy to rotate when on a tripod. Swarovski also includes a component that will guard the focus wheel from the bottom, for easy use when hand-holding or resting the scope on a bag.
The Swarovski features a very nice and durable eyepiece, as well as easily-secured lens covers, so you won’t be worried at all about damaging your lenses. The Kowa Prominar includes a built-in sunshade, whereas the ATC does not have a sunshade available.
Glass Quality & Magnification
Incredible.
The Swarovski and Kowa both sport very high-quality glass. Zero-to-little chromatic aberration, high-definition clarity, and stunning light transmission all make for a very pleasant glassing experience in both of these optics.
Swarovski Optik uses their Austrian glass paired with a newer technology they call ‘SWAROVISION’ – which involves a flatter set of lenses – to achieve their clarity, whereas the Kowa is using a fluorite crystal sourced from Japan, which really is crystal clear.
The Swarovski and Kowa have very similar magnification ranges, of 17x-40x and 15x-45x respectively. Both are comfortable to the eye at all magnification ranges. We see that the Kowa has a slightly larger magnification range, though I think 40x would be enough for most if not all of your big game hunting applications.
Overall, I concede the clearer glass to the Swarovski ATC, but not by much. As I stated before, they both include incredible glass that provides perfect sight pictures.
Value
As of 2023, the MSRP come sin at $2,450 for the Swarovski ATC 17-40×56, and a cool $2,000 for the Kowa Prominar TSN-553 15-45×55. Both scopes also come in straight models at the same prices; the Swarovski STC and the Kowa Prominar TSN-554.
I originally fell in love with the Kowa for its fine tuning focus adjustment and stunningly clear fluorite crystal, but after further examination and a little more time behind both, I really think the ATC is worth the extra $450 if you’re looking for a durable, lightweight, incredibly clear, and packable spotting scope for your long-range backwoods adventures. That said, I would not be the slightest bit upset to be wielding the Kowa, as it is honestly just as capable, and well worth the money.
Do you have any experience with either of these compact spotters in the field? Feel free to share your experiences in the comments. Also let me know if you particularly agree or disagree with anything I have said here, as I would love to hear your opinions. Thanks for reading!
