HTC has said that the level of detail you see at MAX ZOOM is comparable to the level of detail you can roughly see normally (without any zoom whatsoever). The zoom in-game is actually more limiting because it narrows your field of view significantly and you cannot track moving targets nearly as easily.
Also, reducing HOs is as easy as avoiding them, manuvering around them, or any other number of things. I don't agree with the "it takes 2" comment you find often on this forum, but I do believe you can seriously ruin somebody ELSE's HO with a basice manuver or two.