A couple of years ago I purchased a 12x50 pair from Orion telescope that
have been serving me well. I have a major eyesight problem and thus need a
lot of magnification. 12x are a bit too large for prolonged general use. I
have to hold my elbows down at my sides to steady the binoculars when using
them for astronomical observations. However, I do like them very much. I
can easily see the Orion Nebula and the Andromeda Galaxy. I also use them
to see the birds that come to our bird feeder. My recollection was that we
bought one of the house brands from Orion for something under $100.
A set of 8x50 or 10x50 should serve most users quite well. See the Orion
web site for info on how to choose a pair of binoculars and to see a wide
variety of types and prices. Their URL is: http://www.telescope.com/
I also purchased an L-adapter to mount my binoculars on a photographic
tripod for longer periods of viewing. Now if I could only find the time to
do some more observing.