mr_belowski

That's the one I got and I like it. Obviously it's not good for nebulae and stuff (Andromeda is just a vague grey smudge) but moon and planets are impressive. My 9 year old and her mates loved the view of Saturn - very small but clear. But I'm just a newbie here so I defer to the more experienced members. I guess the point is that there's no single right answer, they're always a compromise

A tracking mount makes a Mak a bit more kid-friendly. I went down the same path (buying a starter 'scope for my daughter which was actually for me). I picked up a Skywatcher 90 Mak on a Virtuoso mount for £200. Once you figure out how the mount works it does an acceptable job of keeping objects in view even at high(ish) magnifications. As long as the 'scope doesn't get knocked or grabbed I can leave it tracking Saturn or Jupiter while people take turns to go "ooo" and it stays in view for a few minutes (or more depending on how level the mount is). These are decent quality little scopes that give good planetary and lunar views, pack up into a managable small box and feel quite solidly built