| The bigger the better, so get a 10/12/14" dobsonian. They're cheap, dumb, easy to set up, you'll be able to see a lot, and it will last forever. Refractor telescopes are extremely expensive to get a good one, otherwise the image quality is awful, and either way they are so limited in aperture and weight that you'll be able to see very little through them. Don't buy anything off Facebook saying they've used some computer technology to make an amazing telescope. Yes computer technology helps some scientific applications but consumer wise it's all BS. Reflector telescopes can be okay in theory and can be a good middle ground between the price/aperture of dobsonians and pricier options (my first scope was a reflector so I have a special place in my heart for the image they provide!) But you may as well save your money and get the dobsonian instead, because if you wanted to use a reflector for computer tracking and astrophotography you'll spend so much money on the mount and cameras and add ons that you may as well have bought the pricier option in the first place. Don't get a fork mounted Celestron CPC. It's the same issue; more expensive, not as good as a dobsonian, you get computer tracking but can't use it for astrophotography. That just leaves schmidt–cassegrain telescopes. If you want to do imaging you may as well jump here and try to buy a package that has it all including a really really good mount. The only downsides are that you'll be spending $10k-$20k. If you weren't interested in those things... may as well get a dobsonian. One thing I wanted to mention that everything bar the dobsonian is going to be extremely heavy. For the reflector and Schmidt's you'll be carting a 25kg mount, 25kg of weights, then trying to hoist a 25kg scope onto the mount with one hand and slot it into a tiny rail in the dark while your other hand fumbles for a tiny screw clamp that holds it in place. There's a reason people get into the hobby and then give up. A dobsonian you basically lift the tube and plop it anywhere onto the base and you're good to go. So unless you're fit, don't bother even getting started with anything except the dobsonian. As dobsonians are cheap, they're easy to buy and sell, and so if you don't hang around in the hobby then you'll be able to exit quietly and not feel much of a loss. If you do become an enthusiast and jump to the top end there's no loss either, because it'll be such a nightmare to set up, you'll still be using the much larger and better dobsonian for all of your normal viewing. |