The Meade LightBridge Mini 130 Dobsonian comes assembled and with a red-dot finder, two eyepieces (26mm and 9mm), instructions and Meade’s Autostar planetarium software. They can be very affordable, and being simple and quick to set up, make for good beginners' telescopes that - most importantly of all - are likely to be in regular use. Read our full Sky-Watcher StarQuest 130P reviewĪnother miniature Dobsonian makes our list of budget telescopes. This is a well-made and easy-to-use telescope. We also managed to attach a smartphone adaptor to the 25mm eyepiece and were able to get a good capture of the lunar surface. The Omega Nebula and M16 were also impressive: so too the Dumbbell Nebula. Weighing just 8kg and simple to set up, it makes for a good first-time telescope, but also a cheaper option for established amateur astronomers who want a scope to transport to dark-sky sites.ĭuring our testing, Altair appeared as a good tight pinprick for 70% of the view, double star Albireo in Cygnus showed well-defined colours and star cluster M39 displayed its clearly defined triangular nature. The mount sits on a tripod and comes with an accessory tray and two eyepieces: 25mm giving 26x magnification and 10mm giving 65x. The StarQuest 130P’s tube length is nice and short, so it’s not too tricky for beginners to handle.
BEST TELESCOPE TO SEE PLANETS FULL
Read our full Celestron StarSense Explorer LT 70AZ review.Īs we break the £200 barrier, the Sky-Watcher StarQuest 130P Newtonian might not be everyone’s idea of a ‘budget telescope’, but it’s certainly worth considering spending a bit more on your first telescope if it’s within your means. The Celestron StarSense Explorer LT 70AZ really does make the argument that an inexpensive telescope, when it’s designed as well as this, can offer a great observing experience.
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Using the 10mm, we could even see the Trapezium Cluster at the heart of the nebula.
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We achieved impressive view of the Double Cluster, the Pleiades, the Beehive Cluster and the three Messier clusters in Auriga.Įven though the Orion Nebula was low in the sky at the time of reviewing, we were able to see plenty of nebulosity and detail using the 25mm eyepiece.
BEST TELESCOPE TO SEE PLANETS MANUAL
We particularly liked the StarSense Explorer phone dock, which offers both a smartphone holder and a mirror, turning a basic manual telescope into an instrument that can locate celestial targets via a touchscreen smartphone and the StarSense app. It’s mounted on a basic altaz fork mount and comes with two eyepieces - 25mm and 10mm – as well as a 2x Barlow lens and a star diagonal. We found the tube itself to be sturdy and lightweight. The LT 70AZ refractor offers a 70mm diameter front objective lens featuring coated optics and a focal length of 700mm.