Rating  - Exactly what we were looking for
Perfect first telescope--and not just for kids--I bought this for my husband who has always talked about getting one but we never wanted to shell out too much $. This was the perfect solution. It looks "cool" (apparently a hit with my husband and boys!) and has already been getting many trips outside to get a good look at the stars and moon!
Rating  - A Telescope is less than what you expect
I bought this Telescope for my son, expecting to be able to see the stars...
These are a couple of problems related to telescopes in general, this one in particular is not an exception:
* Telescopes are difficult to use, locating stars/planets is quite difficult, and requires a lot of patience (not all kids come with this!)
* When you get to, say, the Moon, what you see is a bit disappointing... It is only a bit bigger, you see more detail, but nothing else.
Rating  - Stay away from this scope
This is a good example of the kind of scope astronomers warn beginners away from.
The first red flag is the ridiculously high advertised magnification of "600x." Do you know what you will see at 600x in this scope? Nothing but a dim blur. Note that the objective (main) lens is 60mm. All telescope optics have inherent limitations; maximum useful magnification per millimeter of aperture is about 2x. Therefore, with any attempt to use this scope at magnification of over 120-140x, the increase in image size will be more than offset by breakdown, and that's even assuming the quality of the objective lens is any good.
The finder is useless; a 6x30 is barely adequate, and this is not even that big. Finding any object other than the moon will be an exercise in frustration. the 1 1/4" size of the eyepiece is creditable, but too high a mignification for this scope. And the field of view is in doubt, and don't even think of using the barlow. Buy this scope, and after a few outings, it will most likely sit in the attic. The review immediately before mine is correct. This is no way to get started in astronomy.
In a way, it is hard to fault Celestron for making and marketing this scope. Their upper-tier instruments are quite good, but the big money appears to be made on mass market toys like this. In one sense the sale of these scopes subsidizes their good models. Just make sure, gentle reader, to stay away from the toys.
Using an astronomical telescope is not like playing an MP3 file and but rather like playing a guitar. It is a learned skill. And you must do a lot of homework before you buy a telescope. Buying without prior experience is like buying a car without knowing anything about driving. If you want to see the wonders of the sky, contact your local astronomy club and attend one of their star parties. The members love sharing their hobby and can set you straight as to how to get started. The best way is to learn the sky with the unaided eye and 10x50 binoculars (decent ones are available on this website), then graduate to something along the lines of a 150-200mm (6-8") Dobsonian; Celestron's own 6" Starhopper can be found on Amazon for under $290.
For more information on buying telescopes, see my encyclopedic guide on Amazon: "So you want to buy a telescope."
Rating - Too Small, Poor Mount, Useless for Astronomy
This scope is not a good starter scope for anyone interested in astronomy. Here's why:
1. The objective is too small, only 60 mm, 2.36 inches, so it is too small to bring in the light necessary for even a beginning look at the universe. I suppose it is adequate for the moon, but that is it. The planets will appear as very small disks. One will be able to see Saturn's rings, but the image will be very small. Forget it for deep sky objects, clusters, galaxies, etc.
2. The mount is an altazimuth, which will not follow the celestial object in the sky. The earth is rotating, and anyone focusing on a star or moon will quickly find the object drifting out of the field of vision. A better mount is an equatorial mount which makes it much easier to track objects.
3. The 4mm eyepiece is too powerful for this scope. The observer will find it hard to look through (very small eye opening), and will in most cases cause blurred images. The 20 mm eyepiece is the only functional eyepiece. The barlow is a 3x, which again is too poweerful for this scope.
4. The mount will vibrate when touched, which will cause the image in the eyepiece to "shiver", which is very frustrating.
Even for the low price, don't be enticed by this scope; it has too many flaws. Save your money for a larger scope with a better mount.
Jim "Konedog" Koenig, astronomy buff
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Customer Reviews for Celestron,21041,050234210416,0050234210416,B0002CTZAC, |
