best astronomy mag

[Polar Bear]

I stopped buying them a while ago and my money now goes to Classic and Sports Car !

[garethmob]

i have had PFK but since matt left it has gone downhill and luckly that year runs out in december.

i think i may AN and S@N see which of the two i like thanks for the help guys and thanks for moving it better place maybe every one can benifite from the fights

thanks guys this is one of the reasons why i like SGL the friendlyness and helpfulness it brings

Gareth

[Beyond_Vision]

I get both S @ N and Astronomy Now for the same reasons as most have stated already. The monthly guide and Disc in the S @ N and the detailed articles in Astronomy Now.

Regards

Kevin

[ollypenrice]

I have mentioned this before but the French mag Astronomie has two demon features. The four best readers' images are shown full page in black frames with title and imager's name only. It looks great and lets the images shine.

And their scope tests include a bench report with Ronchi test, sample flats and star shots on an off axis on three chip sizes. Tickety boo and some nasty surprizes in store for some!

Olly

[NickH]

Scope tests on a bench is good!

[You can't be Sirius]

I'm definitely in the "beginner" category, and I quite like Sky at Night. Maybe it suits me because it is more aimed at the novice, but there are some really good articles in there, the sky guide is great, and the letters page can be interesting too. Maybe it's because I don't live near to a decent WHS, but I have never seen an alternative on the shelf.

Got to say though, finding this site has been my biggest stroke of fortune, answers to all my questions at the click of my mouse and a friendly decent bunch of people too.

[Black Knight]

I have mentioned this before but the French mag Astronomie has two demon features. The four best readers' images are shown full page in black frames with title and imager's name only. It looks great and lets the images shine.

And their scope tests include a bench report with Ronchi test, sample flats and star shots on an off axis on three chip sizes. Tickety boo and some nasty surprizes in store for some!

Olly

Have to say I like the sound of this kind of in-depth testing. But it's probably not what you'd expect to find in SatN. Come on AN, you know you want to!

[Astro_Baby]

Olly that's interesting that the scopes get a test against something verifiable like a bench test rather that a purely subjective view ( ie "the view of Orion was superb")

Superb to a seasoned pro may be quite different to how a newbie may assess it.

Without wanting to get too far from the subject the problem with any review is that manufacturers can swizzle them by putting a prepared item into the mix ( I used to do it all the time when I worked with product marketing).

It's still though a more objective (pardon the pun) way of testing stuff.

With that said car magazines seldom test the bhp/max speed claims of manufacturers either

I think the advantage of web reviews though is that they are more likely to be without fear or favour. For instance when I review stuff I have actually paid fir it and short of being libellous I can say what I like about it without worrying that a vendor will stop advertising.

The links I give on my site I give because I choose to not because anyone is paying or I need to be matey with anyone. Though to be fair I would write something nice If someone was (for example) to hand me a nice telescope free of charge.......everyone has their price and I am a tart

[pete_l]

I think the advantage of web reviews though is that they are more likely to be without fear or favour. For instance when I review stuff I have actually paid fir it and short of being libellous I can say what I like about it without worrying that a vendor will stop advertising.

Yes, I totally agree. The only reviews worth reading are the ones from people who have paid their own money and bought the item "off the shelf" - though it's rare for people to admit to making monumental buying mistakes. I get really frustrated with reviews (from all sources, but esp. computing) along the lines of "... this is a superb product 10/10, we thoroughly recommend it" with no hint of criticism or adverse comment.

Money co-located with mouth says much more than any "professional" reviewer ever would.

One of the main reasons I stopped buying the astro mags was that after a year, all the sky-charts get repeated and they don't seem willing to put products through a critical review process. I know S&T have likes/dislikes, but these don't really cover it.

[You can't be Sirius]

I get really frustrated with reviews (from all sources, but esp. computing) along the lines of "... this is a superb product 10/10, we thoroughly recommend it" with no hint of criticism or adverse comment.

Very true. I always write a review when purchasing through Amazon, and once bought a digital photo frame which I was less than happy with, and left appropriate constructive feedack. Interestingly the manufacturer has been onto me since trying to resolve my issue on the condition I edit my review. Clearly some manufacturers do read these, so in my opinion always worth being objective and honest.

[rfdesigner]

hey guys, i not really sure if this fits in here i couldnt think though where else

i know this is probally a very hotted discusion, (im going from my other hobby marine fish keeping where there is practical fishkeeping mag but also fishkeeping and the better of the lot coral but only found in america )

is there one thats one above the rest? i watch sky at night every month and have skimmed the mag in smiths but i find at times it has catered for bringing the more younger generation into the fold. is there one thats as good?

sorry if its in the wrong place

Gareth

As my intro message said.. I'm returning after quite an abscence so my data is probably a little out of date.. but here goes.

I tried Astronomy Now, Astronomy and Sky & Telescope. I found the first two a bit noddy.. great for newcommers but I grew through it within about a year. The main advantage at the time was the classifides.. from which I got my 12".

S&T was definitely aimed a little higher, but once I'd found my area of interest I still found myself growing through it.

These days why bother.. there's always someone online who will know more about any subject that any of the mags tries to cover... and you get to download the pretty pictures so you can get to zoom in on them!

Derek

[E621Keith]

Sky at night is good for beginner, but for UK mag I perfered Astronomy Now. I found the articles in AN cater very well for people with range of experiences.

Sky and Telescope used to be the best, but I found the level dropped in recent years, nevertheless the quality of the article are still above average. I perfer S&T to Astronomy, and I if I were to choose between AN and astronomy, I'd pick AN.

On a footnote, I really like the binding on the pre-2007 S&T. Their glue bind was great for book shelves, because I can see the issue date/number without pulling it out. Shame they changed it in 2008, I'd be happy to pay a bit more for the better quality.

[Nexus 6]

I started with S@N about 3 years ago and still look forward to each issue. I have bought Astronomy Now and the american mag Astronomy on occasion, think there all pretty good.

Alan