Telescope

[Diana73]

Hi, I'm after some advice please, my son who is 9 loves things to do with planet's, can someone recommend a telescope around the £100 mark that I could buy to enable him to see any planet's? Thank-you 

[RT65CB-SWL]

Hi @Diana73 & son and welcome to SGL. 

Not sure how good this is... https://www.firstlightoptics.com/dobsonians/skywatcher-heritage-100p-tabletop-dobsonian.html 
but if you are able or in a position  to increase your budget, than these would keep him and you occupied for many years to come. 

• https://www.firstlightoptics.com/dobsonians/skywatcher-skyliner-150p-dobsonian.html
• https://www.firstlightoptics.com/dobsonians/skywatcher-heritage-130p-flextube.html
• https://www.firstlightoptics.com/dobsonians/sky-watcher-heritage-150p-flextube-dobsonian-telescope.html

Unfortunately FLO are out of stock, as maybe other stockists. Try and avoid buying 'scope from such places such as high street stores, (unless dedicated astro-reseller), online auction sites/warehouses, etc.

Edited December 9, 2020 by Philip R

[Zermelo]

Hello,

stocks are very low at the moment. If you are hoping to get something for Christmas then I'm afraid you may be out of luck.

Also, please bear in mind that, although it is possible to get a "proper" starter telescope (i.e. not a toy) in that price range, it is going to be limited where planets are concerned. They need a fair bit of magnification to show much detail, and for that you need a reasonably sized telescope. There are so many amazing pictures around now, from space telescopes and space probes, that expectations of an amateur telescope can be unrealistic. This link gives you some idea what to expect.
But it really comes down to the individual observer. You can certainly buy a starter telescope that will show the rings of Saturn, for instance, and that sight was enough to amaze me when I was your son's age, small as it was.

I see there have already been a few good  suggestions. Here are some links to different "buying for beginners" pages that have some general advice and specific recommendations:

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/beginner-telescopes.html
https://www.skyatnightmagazine.com/top-astronomy-kit/best-telescopes-beginners/
https://lovethenightsky.com/best-telescope/for-kids/
https://uk.telescope.com/assets/articles/content-popups/whats-the-best-telescope-for-kids.html

and here are some recent discussions from this forum on similar topics:

https://stargazerslounge.com/topic/365881-buying-my-daughter-her-first-telescope/
https://stargazerslounge.com/topic/365786-best-budget-scope-for-a-5-year-old/
https://stargazerslounge.com/topic/365324-1st-scope-for-child/

 

If you find something in stock that hasn't been mentioned yet, post it back here and I'm sure someone will have an opinion.

Good luck!