Astrophotography is also possible if you order this telescope with an optional smartphone mounting system. The included tripod is a great tool for adjusting the viewing angles to find distant constellations and follow stars as the Earth moves. This program can be used on a smartphone or computer, and it presents over 10,000 celestial objects that you and your kids can find and observe together. This telescope is compatible with the “Starry Night” software, so the learning can continue at any time after packing the scope away. The knob has notches that are clearly marked to track the movements of stars in the night sky.

However, it’s designed to be friendly for kids, and it’s a great place to start for a newbie.Ī good example of this is the “Star Pointer” – this is a red dot in the telescope that helps the new astronomer to find objects in the sky. The Celestron Astromaster 130 EQ Reflector Telescope has a lot of features that may deter parents of younger potential astronomers. 'add': '/collections/best-telescopes-for-kids?filter.p.Aperture: 114mm | Focal Length: 1000mm | Focal Ratio: f/8.7 'add': '/collections/best-telescopes-for-kids?filter.p.vendor=Explore+Scientific' 'add': '/collections/best-telescopes-for-kids?filter.p.product_type=Telescope' 'add': '/collections/best-telescopes-for-kids?filter.v.availability=0' 'add': '/collections/best-telescopes-for-kids?filter.v.availability=1' 'remove': '/collections/best-telescopes-for-kids', The 130EQ provides bright, clear images of the Moon, planets, star. Readĭiscover our Solar System with the Celestron AstroMaster 130EQ! You'll be ready to observe in minutes thanks to the quick and easy no-tool setup. All you need is a sturdy table and these will open the night sky to you. They are extremely compact for their mirror size and are easy to take camping.

These are bigger aperture telescopes that can deliver very bright views. They're also great for nature or bird watching, and they're very easy to connect a DSLR to for some basic astrophotography.įinally we have the Heritage 150 and 130 models.

These are excellent options for visual astronomy. The SkyWatcher Star Travel telescopes are very nice optical tubes on sturdy mounts. It's an inexpensive telescope that delivers better views than the price suggests. This is a short tube telescope that's widely used for visual observing, and as an accessory on more advanced astrophotography rigs. The best value in this collection is the PowerSeeker 80AZS.

These are great telescopes that help you to navigate the night sky by leveraging a cell phone to tell you what you're looking at and to help you find other planets or stars in the sky. Our top recommendations are the Celestron StarSense Explorer telescopes.

The FS2 filter set includes an ND25 filter for looking at the moon, and three colour filters that can be used on the planets and other night-sky objects. Using an ND25 filter on the moon will give reveal much better detail and contrast on the lunar surface. For example, using a blue filter on Jupiter will highlight the cloud bands and red eye. Planetary and lunar viewing are dramatically improved when contrasting filters are used. For most of the telescopes on this list that means a 5mm eyepiece like this. For example, a 100mm (4 inch) telescope will give ideal planetary views with 100-140x magnification. As a general rule of thumb we recommend 25-35x magnification per inch of aperture. In order to get the most out of these telescopes we recommend a good quality high-power eyepiece. The Celestron FirstScope is an exception in this group, this is a great scope for very young children that will deliver nice views of the moon. They're also great for looking at the Messier objects (a list of 110 interesting objects in the night sky). These will give incredible views of the moon and, in good seeing conditions, the planets in our solar system. We've put together a collection of telescopes that are quick to set up, and easy to use. We are parents of young kids, and we know how important it is for them to have a good experience when looking through a telescope.

Kids telescope reviews