Swarovski Optik jumps on iPhone lens attachment bandwagon, announces spotting scope and binocular adapter

When hearing the name Swarovski, most people will probably think of those little diamond-shaped glass crystals that adorn so many everyday items. But the company has a much wider product range than fashion accessories. In fact, Swarovski has its very own optics division named Swarovski Optik, which manufactures binoculars and spotting scopes to exacting standards. It looks like Swarovski's been spending more time on kickstarter than they have polishing glass for the next scope, because it seems like they're jumping onto the iPhone lens adapter bandwagon. 

Swarovski's latest product is the PA-i5 adapter, which mates your iPhone 5 or 5S to any Swarovski Optik spotting scope or binocular from the following series: CL Companion, EL series (32, 42, 50), news SLC series (42, 56), EL Range, ATX / STX, ATS / STS and ATM / STM. Lest you run out to check the prices on these products, we'll save you some effort: as the luxury appeal of the Swarovski brand might have had you guess, most of the company's field optics are well into the four-figure territory.

We'll venture a guess that the price of this adapter will probably exceed your run-of-the-mill kickstarter project. Considering a smartphone isn't the first thing that comes to mind when thinking of an imaging device suited to digiscoping, we'll be curious to see some sample images taken with a combination of the iPhone 5 and one of Swarovskis optics. Unfortunately, Swarovski also seems to have taken some other lessons from kickstarter: the adapter seems to exist only in the form of renderings and the expected arrival date is a mystery (the press releases mentions nothing about pricing or availability). So for the time being, all you can do is take a look at Swarovski Optik's product range and decide on a scope to go with your iPhone ...

 

(via photoscala)