Cstar "All in 1" Series 60 x 700mm Full-Size Refractor Telescope

$Cstar All in 1 Series 60 x 700mm Full-Size Refractor Telescope$

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Brand: CStar Optics
Category: Photography

List Price: ~~$149.99~~
Buy New: $99.99
You Save: $50.00 (33%)

New (2) from $99.99

Rating: 1.0 out of 5 stars

1 reviews
Sales Rank: 86674

Color: Silver and Black
Media: Electronics
Shipping Weight (lbs): 8
Dimensions (in): 37 x 8 x 5

MPN: 60-700
Model: 60-700
UPC: 653233905255
EAN: 0653233905255
ASIN: B0007YR656

Shipping: Eligible for Super Saver Shipping
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours

Features:

•	Yoke Mount adds stability to telescope to reduce vibrations during viewing.
•	Pre-Assembled Full Size Adjustable aluminum Tripod (No assembly required).
•	100% Aluminum Alloy Tube
•	Multi-Coated Glass Lenses: Allows better light transmission for a brighter image.

Editorial Reviews:

Product Description
The Cstar 60x700mm refractor telescope is designed for the beginning and novice astronomer to view the night sky or check our nature during the day. It's set-up with a special Erect Image Lens that allows it to be used as a spotting scope and a telescope. It comes with a pre-assembled, full-size adjustable aluminum tripod.

Customer Reviews:

1 out of 5 stars

Avoid this scope March 9, 2007
Doug Rice (Twin Falls, ID USA)
5 out of 5 found this review helpful

This is the perfect example of the kind of scope astronomers warn beginners against.

The first red flag is the ridiculously high maximum magnification of over "700x." Do you know what you will see at 700x in this scope? Nothing but a dim blur. Note that the objective (main) lens is 60mm. All telescope optics have inherent limitations; maximum useful magnification per millimeter of aperture is about 2x. Therefore, with any attempt to use this scope at magnification of over 120-140x, increase in image size will be more than offset by breakdown, and that's even assuming the quality of the objective lens is any good.

The finder is useless: a 6x30 is barely adequate, and this one does not even meet that standard. Using it for anything but the moon will be an exercise in frustration. The "H" on the low-power eyepiece indicates a Huygens eyepiece, a cheap and antiquated design with a field of view so narrow it is not unlike looking through a drinking straw. For not much more money the marketers could have chosen a better eyepiece with over twice the viewing area, but they were not trying to make an instrument that was usable, merely trying to make the price as attractive as possible.

Buy this telescope, and I guarantee that as soon as the newness wears off it will be relegated to a forgotten corner of the attic.

Using an astronomical telescope is not like playing an MP3 file and but rather like playing a guitar. It is a learned skill. And you must do a lot of homework before you buy a telescope. Buying without prior experience is like buying a car without knowing anything about driving. If you want to see the wonders of the sky, contact your local astronomy club and attend one of their star parties. The members love sharing their hobby and can set you straight as to how to get started. The best way is to learn the sky with the unaided eye and 10x50 binoculars (decent ones are available on Amazon), then graduate to something along the lines of a 150-200mm (6-8") Dobsonian; good ones can be found on Amazon starting under $290.

For more information on buying telescopes, see my encyclopedic guide on Amazon: "So you want to buy a telescope."