Considering buying a telescope as a gift, budget is £500. I know absolutely nothing about them. Any recommendations please?
Considering buying a telescope as a gift, budget is £500. I know absolutely nothing about them. Any recommendations please?
I did this over ten years ago, so the advice is a bit hazy in my memory, but IIRC correctly the best bang for buck would be a dobsonian reflector telescope. I got an 8 inch one. You get amazing pictures of the moon through it - you need sunglasses it is so bright. If you are more interested in planets, you might be better with off with a refracting telescope - these will magnigy less for the money, but are better suited at giving you a picture of a planet for reasons I don't recall. And I think the reflector should be better for galaxies and stars (assuming the same spend, I think).Originally Posted by Bangers
Ah, here's a decent quick guide:https://www.skyatnightmagazine.com/a...r-first-scope/
Last edited by barneygumble; 27th September 2021 at 14:28.
I can recommend Rother Valley Optics who I've found to be super helpful if you wanted to have a chat about options.
What does the recipient want to look at?
Guessing a 50/50 split between daytime use and night use.
You know her name yet ?
😎You know her name yet ?
These use cases aren't really aligned.
You'd be better off with a spotting scope for daytime/scenery viewing and a telescope for looking at the night sky.
Or a good pair of binoculars which can cover both applications a bit easier.
Good thread, OP.
It's definitely something you need to look into
(Groans welcome!)
______
Jim.
If you want to do double duty you’d be better off with binoculars. Spotting scopes are very different from Astro scopes.
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