11 guides
Buying guides: choosing without being had
Few, dated, kept current. Each answers a real starting question, and each shows what the eyepiece really shows.
- By the author of Aperture
- How we choose
- Independent order · dated prices · no cookiesNo seller changes the order · dated prices · no cookies
- €300–450 and a little room: a 150/1200 Dobsonian.
- €200–300 or no room: a 130 mm tabletop Newtonian.
- Under €150, or not sure yet: 10×50 binoculars.
By situation
- Which telescope for a child?Age by age: who sets the instrument up, what they will see on the first night, and what not to buy.
- Tabletop telescopes: which one, and for whomThe 76, the 130, where to put them, and what a tabletop telescope does not do.
- Giving a telescopeWhich one to give to whom, at what price, and when the best present is not a telescope.
By budget
Head to head
- 130/900, 150/750 or a 150/1200 Dobsonian?The three forum favourites show almost the same thing. What separates them is what holds them up.
- Seestar, Dwarf or a real telescope?Two activities, not two levels: which one is yours, before the box decides.
- Refractor or reflector for a first telescope?For the same money a reflector gives two to three times the aperture. When that decides, and the two cases where it does not.
- Do you need a GoTo mount for a first telescope?At €500 the motor replaces half the mirror. Who that is a bad trade for, and the three people it is right for.
- A 250 or a 300 mm Dobsonian?44% more light, up to 7 kg more tube. Under which sky the 300 is worth carrying.
No time? Answer a few questions
Seven questions, two minutes. A spending ceiling computed from your sky, your home and who will look — often below your budget.
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