Advice on what to buy

[MarkusET]

Hi - I'm a new to this but a recent fitting of patio doors has me gazing at the sky on a clear night so I'm thinking of buying a telescope. I live in the country.

So after a week of googling and being overwhelmed and confused at times by the options and kit available I think I have "narrowed" it down to this wish list as follows.

Looking at Galaxies then planets.
Reflecting Telescope.
Motorised mount
Handset as well as Wifi/app control of mount using Android table or Android phone. (not an apple lover!)
Ability to use external battery bank as I read batteries do not last long.
A few eyepieces...which one's?
It would be nice to have the option to take pictures at a later stage.

Budget....£500 max I think for the right gear to get me started...I can add battery bank and eyepieces as soon as required.

So here is my list of telescopes so far and my questions.

List is in no particular order and I realise I have listed 2 versions of the 130 and 127 as I read bad reviews on the in-built wifi issues linking to phone/tablet app (though I only recall reading this about the Celestron kit - does that mean the 127 wifi is ok?) so am thinking I should buy the model with the hand held programmer in case the wifi problem raises its head.

Celestron Nexstar 4SE
Celestron NexStar 130 SLT 130mm f/5 Reflector (is the eyepiece at the top of the tube a better location for usage)
Celestron AstroFi 130 Wireless Reflecting Telescope
Sky-Watcher SkyMax 127 AZ-Go2 Wi-Fi Maksutov Telescope
Sky-Watcher Skymax 127 SynScan AZ GoTo

My other questions:

I like the idea of the 4SE sealed optical tube to keep dust out off the tube and off the mirrors.
Is this an issue with the open construction of the other telescopes I am considering? Is it a problem cleaning dust off mirrors/optics of the 127 and 130 models...photo's I see suggest these are not sealed tubes?

Eyepiece at lower end of tube....is this an issue for bending over...I am 5ft 10"
or should I consider a telescope with the eyepiece at the upper end of the tube?

If I have a computerised mount does that mean I cannot move the telescope by hand?
I have read these mounts are a drain on batteries so I should buy a battery pack...can these be used on all the telescopes I am looking at or on any telescopes recommended in any replies.

For the Celestron models - I read of issues with inbuilt wifi and phone app.....so does skyportal wifi module fix these issues? - Why would I buy the skyportal wifi module?

I get the impression the wifi connection issues are down to local wifi interference? I read about people adopting bluetooth modifications to their kit solves this? Comments?

Software:
I'm interested in this....what software is best suited for linking to the telescope...ideally using an android tablet or phone. A laptop is good too though not so easy without a table I think.

I'm sure there are other things I should consider but as I mentioned I am new to this and this is my starting point for any advice and comments.

Many Thanks for your help.

 

[Zermelo]

Hello, and welcome to SGL.

You have done some good due diligence already. Some comments:

A fast reflector like the Newtonian will be a bit better for extended objects, including the larger galaxies and open clusters. A Maksutov will have a slight edge for smaller objects needing higher magnification, like planets and planetary nebulae. I would go for the reflector as a better all-rounder, but any in that list would give you a lot of pleasure.

Closed/open tube: a Newtonian should give several years of normal use before you think about cleaning the mirror, so I wouldn't worry too much about that. The closed tubes of the Maks will take 30-60 minutes to cool down before they perform well. The Skymax does have a closed tube, by the way.

Eyepiece position: yes, it's usually lower on the Maks, but in either case I would recommend getting some sort of observing chair. You can get away without on a Newtonian, but it makes a big difference to the observing experience.

Wifi problems: I have only used a Skywatcher mount, and can't comment on the Celestron. I do have occasional connectivity glitches, but I'm pretty sure that it's caused by Android killing off Sysncan when it's running in background (the latest version is supposed to have fixed that, but I'm not running it for other reasons).

"the option to take pictures at a later stage" - with the setup you're looking at, you can get some basic images with a smartphone, and using a webcam-like camera you can do some simple imaging of planets. If you want to image deep-sky objects (nebulae, galaxies) you really need different kit (in particular, the mount) that will cost a lot more.

For control, people use phones, tablets and laptops, though the latter I think more commonly by imagers. I use an Android phone running Synscan and SkySafari and I think it's a great help. I use SkySafari to create observing lists when I'm planning, then at the scope you can drive everything from there (it works with Synscan to issue gotos). I also use it to log observations.

"If I have a computerised mount does that mean I cannot move the telescope by hand?" - it depends on the mount. I have the Skywatcher Star Discovery, which allows you to move it manually as well.

"a drain on batteries" - it is possible to run these mounts with 8 x AA cells, but most people soon find that disposable ones are used up quite quickly, while NiMH don't provide the necessary voltage. Buying or making a power tank should be factored in to your plans.

 

[Cosmic Geoff]

Eyepiece position is not really an issue with small alt-azimuth mounted telescopes.  But you should factor in the use of some kind of stool to stabilise your body position and aid reaching the eyepiece.  Standing to observe is not really practical for serious observing.

I do not use WiFi and am happy using the plain old handset.  

In my opinion the Celestron Nexstar GoTo software is a little easier to use than the Skywatcher Synscan.

If you want to image anything, you will probably need to (expensively) re-mount your chosen telescope, though you might get away with using the mount it comes with for some planetary imaging.

[MarkusET]

Many Thanks guys for the quick and good advice....Now I'm excited...

So the Sky-Watcher Skymax 127 SynScan AZ GoTo ticks all the boxes.....could'nt resist...just bought a new one for £439.

I see the handset is not included so I will give it a go with the app first and see. Handset is just in case app fails.

Next I'll get a battery bank.

Out of interest - will it work with the app SkySafari 7 Pro?

So now I will have to google how to use SynScan.

Only issue I think is my wife will not allow me to use it until xmas. Maybe I can try it out to be sure it works ok.

Rear garden faces West.....any advice on what to look at?

Books or mags to buy.....or web site to read.

Thanks again....I hope I've made the right choice.

Kind Regards.

[MarkusET]

One last thing.....any advice on extra eyepieces....which one (s).

No hurry...just so I can google.

[Cosmic Geoff]

52 minutes ago, MarkusET said:

One last thing.....any advice on extra eyepieces....which one (s).

Replace the 10mm eyepiece with a decent one.  Plenty advice here on eyepiece choice. 🙂

And make, or buy, a dew shield. That's essential equipment for a Mak.

[Zermelo]

3 hours ago, MarkusET said:

Out of interest - will it work with the app SkySafari 7 Pro?

yes.

 

3 hours ago, MarkusET said:

So now I will have to google how to use SynScan

https://www.skywatcher.com/download/software/synscan-app/

https://stargazerslounge.com/topic/136314-skywatcher-synscan-goto-what-the-manual-doesnt-tell-you

https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/658474-skywatcher-synscanaz-gti-alignment-instructions/

 

3 hours ago, MarkusET said:

Books or mags to buy.....or web site to read

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/books/turn-left-at-orion-book.html

https://www.cambridge.org/turnleft/

https://www.skyatnightmagazine.com/

https://astronomynow.com/

 

3 hours ago, MarkusET said:

any advice on extra eyepieces

https://stargazerslounge.com/topic/43171-eyepieces-the-very-least-you-need

https://stargazerslounge.com/topic/375282-eyepiece-selection-based-on-exit-pupil/

 

3 hours ago, MarkusET said:

my wife will not allow me to use it until xmas

can't help you there

 

 

 

 

[Pixies]

4 hours ago, MarkusET said:

my wife will not allow me to use it until xmas

Mars is rapidly approaching opposition at the beginning of December, after that it will quickly diminish in size and won't be back again for 2 years. There - that's an excuse!