Starsense Explorer 130mm Tabletop Dobsonian

I got this telescope as an upgrade to my simpler telescope from the same brand, and I was impressed by its quality. I feel it is quite easy to use. (The app and the computer program are also pretty awesome, and they make everything much easier to see and to make sense of!) The assembly part was fairly easy, but the instruction manual is not very helpful. That would be my one criticism of the product. It is very sturdy, and the base sets easily on a table or the ground. It is stable, and the view angle is adequate and easy to adjust. The lens that came with it and we got some great viewings of the moon and planets. This item was not cheap but I feel it delivers great quality for the money.

The Celestron StarSense Explorer 114AZ is an amazing telescope for beginners and casual stargazers! The setup was quick and straightforward, and the StarSense app makes finding planets, stars, and constellations incredibly easy — no more guessing where to point. The optics are clear and crisp, and the mount feels stable for its size. I was able to see the Moon’s craters and even Saturn’s rings on my first night out! It’s lightweight enough to move around but still feels solid. Great for anyone who wants to explore the night sky without a steep learning curve. Highly recommend!

The setup takes a few hours to assemble right out of the box. The instructions could have been better. They need a good set of orientation pictures at better angles. The only trouble I had with the assembly was that the holes that were predrilled were drilled too short. An easy fix to this problem was with a hand drill. I took the 150mm Celestron out for a test after assembly and found that it worked as expected. The lenses were just ok! And, I will be buying Possel lenses with better eye relief. The moons of Jupiter came in as clear points of light even with the packaged 10mm & 25mm lenses. The focus wheel was a little stiff, but a drop oil helped. The DOB frame and base are solid and are easy to handle. But, the 150mm DOB table top is a little heavy. So, if you are thinking about the weight being a problem, then the 114mm desktop DOB might be a better choice. The DOB was on sale at the time I ordered it, and at a discounted price. So for the price I paid it was great.

This seemed to be a nice telescope. I have a lot of trees around my house and planned on taking it. And setting it up somewhere else. Unfortunately, this particular model is not ideal for transporting to another location, other than your home. I had a lot of problems with setting up the programs to make it work.And also it's a main program that it's forty nine ninety nine that is given free is only good for the computer. Not good for out in the field. I was a little bit disappointed with that. I put this together and realized how much effort it was going to take. To use this anywhere so I had to return mine because it was just gonna end up sitting somewhere. And not being used due to the amount of foliage around my property. The telescope seemed like it was very well made and looked to be pretty nice. There was a lot of assembly and the base of it was there. Very heavy, I'm not sure that this is meant for anyone. But an adult or a teenage child at a minimum. The actual base of this telescope was pretty heavy and I was disappointed that they used press board for it other than a quality product like solid wood or or an aluminum, especially at the cost. The other issue I had was the tripod, and any other things that you would definitely need to have with it. We're extremely costly. I tried to use it one time and the moon looked pretty good, but it wasn't really what I expected, to be honest, not based on what I've read from other reviews. Was slightly disappointing, but it's probably a good start off point.

Pretty easy to use once you get familiar with it and the app. Pleased with viewing quality although heavily dependent on ambient conditions as with all telescopes. Might have been slightly off with the Apollo 11 landing site but somewhere in that area i think (photo). I bought some extra lens and a 2x Barlow. I really like the app; it separates "easy targets" from "challenge objects". It gives you viewing tips and tells you whether something is too difficult with ambient city lights etc. it guides you through it.

Worth every penny

Scope arrived with the base unassembled, laminated particle board. It is pretty sturdy after it is put together, and an impressive site to see. Not too large for my 12yr old to handle, but large enough to let in sufficient light for star and planet gazing. The lens caddy for the base is meant to take on and off so the screws cannot be over tightened as they only go in so far. The laser pointer/finder slides right on, is easy to adjust, and works pretty well! I was able to align it with the scope within minutes. Do this during the day… Saturn was in view last night and I aligned the scope with Saturn using the laser finder and it appeared right in the lens’s field of view! It was the first time I ever witnessed Saturn and it’s rings through a telescope and it was pretty exciting. I added a 2x Barlow lens adapter and was able to get a zoomed in view that was even more impressive. I was even able to make out one of it’s orbiting moons. It takes a little patience getting used to adjusting the scope while viewing targets as everything you see appears in reverse. To track targets while looking through the lens, you will need to move the scope in the opposite direction (right goes left, left goes right, up goes down, down goes up). It’s easy to do, just takes some practice. The Starsense app works as expected and I was able to get it working without a lot of extra effort. I’m pretty satisfied and makes the setup look professional. I can’t wait to see what else we can spot in the night sky! This is our first telescope so we cannot compare it to anything else, but based on our experience last night, I would have no problems recommending it!

Holes on the base to attach to tripod do not line up properly. What a waste of time and money. Can't comment on quality of optics since the manufacturer can't provide consistent mounting patterns. 2 of 3 holes fit. Is it really that hard!?!