Dear reader, by the end of this article you will know how to spot a great telescope in the market, the right price for it, and where to get it. So let's get started, shall we?
Buying a telescope is not that hard, you want to look for great quality lenses (buy a really cheap Chinese telescope and you will put your eyes and eyesight in severe danger) and some good magnification for the bucks you pay.
The job of a telescope is to gather light, not to zoom in on far away objects as many people think. A telescope is a light rays sponge!
There are 3 telescope categories out there:
* Refractors: The cheapest of the bunch (under 500 USD), well suited for beginners, they can help you see the moon with some good detail, and maybe spy on your neighbor next door. They are basically long tubes resembling what pirates used to hold to view long distances, but more powerful. Great to buy as a gift for your kid.
Buying a telescope is not that hard, you want to look for great quality lenses (buy a really cheap Chinese telescope and you will put your eyes and eyesight in severe danger) and some good magnification for the bucks you pay.
The job of a telescope is to gather light, not to zoom in on far away objects as many people think. A telescope is a light rays sponge!
There are 3 telescope categories out there:
* Refractors: The cheapest of the bunch (under 500 USD), well suited for beginners, they can help you see the moon with some good detail, and maybe spy on your neighbor next door. They are basically long tubes resembling what pirates used to hold to view long distances, but more powerful. Great to buy as a gift for your kid.
* Reflectors: Reflectors have a lot more light gathering powers, they can sometimes get really big, but they are usually smaller than refractors. They can help you see the moon in great detail and even Mars and Venus in somewhat good detail. They are priced between 500 to 1000 USD, and they are great if you got some experience under your belt. They also come bundled with software that allow you to calibrate them automatically to spot different objects in the sky.
* Catadioptric or Cassegrain: These are the best of the bunch and obviously the most expensive, they cost over 1000 USD and you can see the rings of Saturn. Their power is just awesome! Most of them come with electronic eyepieces so you can take and download pictures of your observations on your computer. And of them are also motorized, so they have some amazing stability. If you can afford them, these are your number one choice.
What to avoid:
* Second hand telescopes. If you buy a broken telescope it will cost you more to fix it than buy it new.
* eBay: eBay sells some ugly Chinese imitations of the real things that can actually hurt your vision. It's better off if you tried Craigslist, find someone that sells a telescope close to you, pay him a visit and check the telescope out.
* Products with no reviews around the Internet. Before you try anything visit a website like the one on the bottom of the article, or Amazon.
How much to pay and what to expect to see:
* Under 500 USD you will see as far as the moon
* Over 500 and under 1000 USD you will see the moon in all it's glory, and maybe close planets in sometimes good detail, plus constellations.
* With over 1000 USD, you will see as far as the rings around Saturn and you can even get special filters that allow you to watch the explosions on the sun.
So that's it basically,
1. Decide on the price,
2. Read some reviews, to get an idea about the quality of the instruments and a feeling about what is the normal price to pay,
3. Buy from a respectable seller, such as Amazon on-line, or any specialized shop around you
4. Avoid Chinese telescopes like the plague!
5. And last but not least buy a book about star gazing, that can help you point your telescope to interesting objects in the sky!
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