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value of IS? and wide angle binoculars?
I think for those who have used binoculars for long enough to be really comfortable with them for birdwatching or other terrestrial observation, there is not a lot of value in moving to IS, unless perhaps most of your birding is looking at waterbirds, where extra magnification (greater than 10x) is desirable and the IS really does become a necessary feature. That may not be the case for astro, but then it is usually possible to find a post to lean the binocs on for the odd occasion you are straining to look at the moons of Jupiter, or Saturn. Saturn, by the way, is a really good subject to use to assess the resolving quality of a pair of (supported) binoculars.
On another but related topic, I would be interested to hear from anyone who has explored the availability of quality wide angle binoculars for birdwatching (i.e. 8 degrees FoV or wider).
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