Celestron StarSense Explorer 12" f/4.9 Smartphone App-Enabled Dobsonian Telescope

2024-11-09T09:21:37

1- The telescope is great. For that reason, it deserves a 5-star review; 2- I have only one "not perfect" comment to make about this telescope; 3- In my opinion, the best component of this telescope is that starsense app! 4- However, the starsense app has one very simple flaw. When I try to find objects that are very high on the sky, the starsense app makes me go in circles in an effort to follow the arrows. Of course, you can get close to the object you are trying to find, but it just does not create the beautiful green "bulls-eye" it creates when you actually find the object you are looking for. 5- Still..., this is a great telescope and the starsense app makes it so easy to find objects. It was an excellent choice for a first-time telescope owner.

Francisco R.

2024-02-20T10:23:04

Amazing telescope. Great technology to find stars and nebulae in the night sky.

MARIBEL F.

2024-01-23T12:40:04

The 1st thing about this scope is that the tube is heavy. I padded my hand truck and used it's to wheel it around, and that took care of the heavy issue. 2nd with a great telescope comes great optics to get the most great viewing out of this 12" dob. Tele vue panoptic 24mm, delos 12mm, and delite 3mm and Barlow between them. Was my 2nd stop. 3rd it's one con that is the scope has to be realign every time you used it, Celestron engineers should figure out how to apply a lock screw/ nut to keep the alignment of the cell phone that you use. My fix I purchase a used Samsung note8 as a permanent phone.

Michael B.

2023-11-24T18:57:44

Unbelievable scope. Took it outside on a clear night and saw craters on the moon, the rings of Saturn, and the stripes of Jupiter. This is without any upgrades or special equipment - literally what I got out of the box. The app requires alignment with every use which isn't great, but it's worth the effort once you look through the eyepiece. I'm now going to upgrade the eyepiece and set up my DSLR to the telescope - I'm expecting some cool results! I know a lot of folks push the 8" for beginners, but we are not planning on taking it on long trips, so went with the 10". It's heavy, but worth the effort. Good luck!

Neer G.

2023-04-13T09:46:02

I have been doing Astronomy for 2yrs & Astrophotography for about 1yr. I wanted to get a Dobsonian Telescope to do more visual and being new to this hobby I'm still learning where everything is at. That is why I went with this Celestron StarSense Explorer 10" Dob. It is so awesome, easy to use and allowing me to see objects like never before. I have even used in my Social Media lives to give awesome live views of the moon.

LUIS F.

2022-11-10T15:46:13

The base came in a day before the optical tube assembly and was very easy to build. All tools were included and there were ample parts with spare screws. This worked out well because when the OTA arrived via UPS, I had it on the base within 10-minutes and the entire evening to view! The red dot finder scope slipped in easily and I sighted Jupiter using it. Without adjustment Jupiter was just outside of my field of view using my SVBONY 2? 70-degree 26mm lens. After fine tuning the red dot finder, I centered Jupiter again and attached the StarSense cell phone holder. I already had StarSense Ap installed from my Newtonian scope so I slipped it into the holder and did the plate solving alignment. From that point forward, I had no need for the finder scope. The accuracy of the application was surprisingly accurate. The optical quality of this telescope is nothing short of outstanding! With my SVBONY 8mm to 24mm zoom lens near 10mm, I was able to view 6-rings of Jupiter and Saturn was spectacular. I was able to view most of the Messier objects on the StarSense Nightly challenge quickly. What amazed me most was that in my driveway with streetlights not far off, the faint star fields between lower magnitude objects were numerous and breathtaking. Best first night with a new telescope ever!! Cons? like most Dobs, having to bend down to look into the eye piece caused me to come in much sooner than I wished to. I am planning to rest my back and go back out later when Mars is over the house. I wish they would come up with an optional ?tall base? for those of. Us nearing 70 with backs that are not cooperative. I also wish that the teflon strips on between the base plates were a little wider. There are three 1? strips to offset the friction for left - right movements.

JOHN R.

2022-11-09T13:54:09

Amazing telescope and very easy to put together and get set up. We have used it every night since we received it. Customer service has been awesome when we had questions about the starsense code.

LORI W.

2022-08-19T06:28:06

This is an awesome telescope. I assume it's fairly short for a 10" making it quite portable. Quality optics. The key is to do your alignments far enough away. I do my alignments at about a quarter mile or further away and everything I search for is in the eyepiece. Do your alignments close and nothing is in the eyepiece. I love the star sense! But this telescope is great even when not using star sense.

JAMES R.

2022-07-07T14:03:05

My daughter loved it

LEON T.