Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)This is a very nice telescope. I have been using it the past week and have viewed the Moon, Venus, Jupiter. Overall the optics are excellent. But there are a few issues, which had I known earlier I may not have purchased this scope.
1. Celestron advertises that the scope can be used with 8 AA batteries. This is not completely true. The batteries drain very quickly and will probably not even last one viewing session (say 30 mins).
2. Without power the telescope cannot be moved along the azimuth (left-right direction). So you cannot use it at all.
So essentially if you want to take this telescope out of the city to some dark sky location you have to buy a powertank (or maybe run it off your car). I would have liked a design that allows me to use the goto feature when I want it but still be able to slew the telescope manually, without power.
Why do I still give it 3 stars. Well, Celestron tech support is very responsive (over e-mail). The telescope itself is excellent (optically). I have gotten very good views of planets. It has been a little too cloudy and light polluted (I live in a city) for me to try seeing nebulae.
Details:
The DC motors that slew the telescope are very sensitive to the voltage and current of the power supply. If you use the telescope for 20-30 minutes after that the batteries drain down and the scope becomes unusable (till you replace the batteries of course). Celestron tech support told me that they recommend using the battery only as an emergency back up!!! Strange that they don't mention on their website that batteries are only for "backup" and you have to run the telescope on wall socket, or a "power tank".
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Boost your viewing experience with 56% more light gathering power in this high-quality telescope.Features:5" Schmidt – Cassegrain telescope with 125mm aperture56% more light gathering power than 4" models1250mm focal lengthFocal ratio: 10Ultra portable – weighs just 28 lbs. including the tripodAn ideal telescope for observing and photographing the wonders of spaceCombines the classic heritage of the original orange tube telescopes with the latest state-of-the-art featuresStarBright XLT high transmission coatings come standardProven NexStar computer control technologyIncludes:StarPointer finderscope to help with alignment and accurately locating objectsQuick release fork arm mount, optical tube and accessory tray for no-tool setupSturdy computerized altazimuth mountInternal battery compartment to prevent cord wrap during useUltra sturdy steel tripod features built-in wedge for astrophotographyCD-ROM "The Sky" Astronomy Software which provides education about the sky and printable sky mapsNearly 40,000 object database with 200 user-definable objects and expanded information on over 200 objectsSkyAlign allows you to align on any three bright celestial objects, making for a fast and easy alignment processFlash upgradeable hand control software and motor control units for downloading product updates over the InternetCamera control feature and shutter release cable that allows you to remotely take a series of exposures using your digital SLR cameraCustom database lists of all the most famous deep-sky objects by name and catalog number; the most beautiful double, triple and quadruple stars; variable star; solar systems; objects and asterismsDC Servo motors with encoders on both axesDouble line, 16-character Liquid Crystal Display Hand Control with backlit LED buttons for easy operation of GOTO featuresNexRemote telescope control software and RS-232 cable included for advanced control of your telescope via computerGPS-compatible with optional CN16 GPS Ac
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