The Steiner Merlin 8x24 binos just won the Outdoor life best buy for compact binoculars. Price 239. The editor's choice was the Zeiss (of course) Victory 8x20B T* at 455 bucks. Steiners are a good bet for the money.
But How about this: consider a giid set of 3x30's Yes they will be havier but you can see so much better with them. ANd they are not too expensive. Bushnell legend, Sightron, and burris all make a good inexpensive 8x30 or 8x32.
mco