Celestron 52303 Regal Refractor 100mm F-ED Spotting Scope Review
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May 04, 2012 21:02:35
Meade 20218 NG-70SM 70mm Altazimuth Refractor Telescope Review
The NG-70SM Refractor Telescope comes disassembled in a compact box, but the instructional DVD video guides you through all the steps required for assembly. Go ahead and try it out in the daytime, that's the best time to align the red-dot finder scope while looking at a distant tree or telephone pole.
The optics of Meade's NG-70SM produce an image that is right side up but the diagonal mirror reverses the image left-to-right. That's no problem most of the time, but an optional correct image diagonal is available. The low power 25mm eyepiece produces a magnification 28X which is just right for spotting the Moon or the planets, while the 9mm eyepiece (78X magnification) can be used to zoom in for more detail. The MH25 eyepiece at 28X shows a lovely view of the Lunar disk in a dark sky, while the MH9 eyepiece at 78X shows literally hundreds of craters on the Moon and begins to show the rings of Saturn and the cloud bands of Jupiter. For even better views it's easy to add better eyepieces. My best view of Saturn, for example, came with an optional 6.4mm Super Plossl eyepiece, about 110X magnification.
The Altazimuth mount included with Meade's NG-70SM is lighter and easier to use than an Equatorial mount, yet the slow motion knobs make it easy to keep objects in view. The rotation of the Earth causes the Moon or planets to appear to drift out of the eyepiece, but the slow motion knobs make it easy to keep the telescope on target, even with a high power eyepiece. The telescope is sensitive to vibration, however, so a high power eyepiece can be difficult to focus.
Meade's NG-70SM is a good entry level telescope at a very good price. The optics are good, the Altazimuth mount is easy to assemble and easy to use, the instructional DVD includes a nice Lunar Atlas as well as planetarium software, and it's easy to add better eyepieces to improve your view of the planets. –Jeff Phillips
Pros:
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Mar 07, 2012 21:04:09
BARSKA 40070 Starwatcher Compact Refractor Telescope with Table Top Tripod And Carrying Case Review
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Feb 20, 2012 13:26:10
CELESTRON Powerseeker 50 Refractor Telescope Review
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Jan 17, 2012 22:07:35
Celestron 21064 AstroMaster 90 EQ Refractor Telescope Review
Refractors are known for their crisp, high contrast views of the Moon and planets and the Astromaster 90 delivers sharp views right out of the box. The low power 20mm eyepiece (50X magnification) nicely frames the moon, while the high power 10mm eyepiece (100X magnification) delivers a crisp close up image full of detail. The sharp Achromatic optics of the Astromaster 90 EQ give me memorable views night after night. On a moonless night I like the way the 20mm eyepiece frames the ghostly glow of the Orion Nebula. Zooming in with the 10mm eyepiece, I can easily pick out all four stars of the Orion Nebula’s embedded quadruple star the Trapezium. Another night I was treated to a nice view as one of Jupiter’s moons cast its shadow on Jupiter’s cloud tops.
The Equatorial mount included with the Astromaster 90 EQ is designed to help track stars and planets at high power. When I set up the telescope, I simply point the polar axis at Polaris, the North Star. This makes it easy to keep celestial objects in the field of view by turning one slow motion knob. Celestron also offers the AstroMaster 90 EQ MD which includes a battery powered motor for automatic tracking. The CG-3 equatorial mount is a little wobbly when the legs are fully extended, but that’s normal for any large telescope in this price range. The built in “Star-Pointer” finder allows me to aim the telescope by aligning an illuminated red dot with the target. This works OK for bright objects like the Moon and planets, but it’s not so easy to use on fainter deep space objects. --Jeff Phillips
Pros:
 Jupiter showing the shadow of Ganymede, July 22, approx 400X. |  Double star Albireo in Cygnus, July 28, approx 200X |
 The Moon as seen at 50X with Canon Powershot camera. |  The Moon as seen at 200X with Neximage camera |
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Jan 13, 2012 03:45:13
Celestron 21062 AstroMaster 70 EQ Refractor Telescope Review
The AstroMaster 70 EQ features very good optical performance. Achromatic refractors have a two piece objective lens, the second lens element compensates for “chromatic aberration”, the false color or blue fringes seen in low cost telescopes. In daylight tests I see very little blue fringing with the standard equipment 10mm eyepiece (90X magnification), and none at all with the 20mm eyepiece (45X). Stars and planets show up very nicely with the AstroMaster 70. The bright double star Castor, one of the “twins” in the constellation Gemini, is cleanly split at 90X with the 10mm eyepiece. When I tried an optional 6mm Plossl eyepiece for a magnification of 150X, I was treated to lovely views of Saturn’s rings and the little orange disk of Mars. My view of the Moon was delightfully crisp and clear; the 20mm eyepiece nicely frames the Lunar disk, and using the 10mm eyepiece I could easily see mountain peaks and terraced walls inside the crater Copernicus.
The AstroMaster 70 EQ also features a newly designed tripod with 1.25 inch stainless steel legs. This new tripod holds the telescope firmly; I had no trouble focusing even with a high power eyepiece. The equatorial mount is a little more complicated to balance and align than the AstroMaster 70 AZ , but the reward is better slow motion control and tracking at magnifications over 100X. Simply point the equatorial axis at Polaris, the North Star, and the telescope tracks celestial objects by turning one slow motion knob. This makes it much easier to use a high power eyepiece while viewing the Moon and Planets. The “star pointer” finder scope works by shining a red LED on a plastic window; just look through the window and line up the red spot with your target. This works OK for bright objects like the Moon and planets but not so well for finding galaxies and deep space objects.
The AstroMaster 70 EQ is a very good entry level telescope for a student or family. The good quality 70mm optics produce an image that is significantly sharper and brighter than 60mm beginner scopes, and the AstroMaster 70 EQ includes a solid mount, two good eyepieces, and fully illustrated instructions. --Jeff Phillips
Pros:
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Dec 12, 2011 16:58:06
Celestron AstroMaster 21064 Kit - Celestron AstroMaster 90mm Equatorial Refractor Telescope 21064, Review
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Oct 09, 2011 09:36:07
TwinStar Blue 80mm iOptron Computerized GPS Equatorial Refractor Telescope Review
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Sep 27, 2011 04:36:35
TwinStar Black 70mm iOptron Computer Controlled Refractor Telescope Review
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Aug 17, 2011 10:17:33
