Celestron StarSense Explorer 8" Dobsonian Telescope with Smartphone App

This is a FANTASTIC DOB telescope! I recommend this wholeheartedly and without reservation. This is a great DOB telescope. I would like to tell you about it here. First things first - the StarSense application is tremendously fun and educational for exploring the sky (as is SkySafari - consider this app if you have a non-StarSense scope). I bought one the smaller StarSense reflector scopes to test the app. After using it, I was sold on the platform and looked forward to getting the DOB. The StarSense app is amazing. It will not only point out MANY celestial objects, but it will provide written facts and oral descriptions on the more commonly observed objects. It is highly educational and entertaining. It also provides an interactive map of the sky as you gaze. Think of it this way - you have a mini planetarium on your scope. How great is that? It helps you aim the scope while also providing information about the object you are viewing and the surrounding objects. You can pick from a star map or enter the celestial object you want to view in a search bar. The app has an option to go red to preserve the acclimated eye. It was easy to align and work. The StarSense app is an utterly fantastic way to enhance the stargazing experience!! (Note: I had one phone work PERFECTLY with the app, and another phone did not work on the first night out. Later, I turned location services on and that fixed my problem - both phones worked well. Celestron keeps a list of StarSense confirmed compatible devices on their website if you want more info. It looks like the StarSense app is widely compatible. Frankly, I would buy a phone just to use this app). The DOB is sturdy. It is super solid and I am sure it will last for years to come. I had no problems with assembly. If you go for the 12 inch (you Viking!), be sure to wear gloves or otherwise be very carefully when installing the primary mirror (from what I have read, the 8 and 10 inch come with the primary installed). But overall, it comes together easily. And, if you do go for this - a laser collimator is super handy. And this thing was a breeze to collimate. Images were crisp and clear! The base is surprisingly smooth. I was concerned, given the weight of the 12, that it would be difficult to control and move. That was an unfounded concern. It moves smoothly, and with the nicely placed front handle, you can keep objects centered easily. Slewing is a pleasure on this DOB. The scope is well balanced. But keep in mind, as you swap eyepieces and change accessories (starfinders, lasers, et al) the balance can change and become front heavy. This is no problem. There is a very well done tensioning knob that will keep you level and still. You can also purchase dobsonian weight magnets if you prefer to manually balance the scope. I do not think that is necessary right now - the tension system gets a chef's kiss from me. Image quality is fantastic if you have the right eyepieces (or filters if you are in to that). Physics dictates this result, given the light gathering power of the primary. It is amazing to use a 12 inch aperture. To me, it is worth lugging the weight around. If you are unsure you can handle the bulk of the 12, there is nothing wrong with an 8 or 10! The app is still outstanding and there are plenty dark sky objects to see with the 8 and the 10. You cannot go wrong with any size, in my opinion. I would invite you to treat yourself to some 2 inch eyepieces. These DOBS all accommodate 2 inch eyepieces, and I would recommend the extra money for a nice set. In sum, I highly recommend this DOB if you are in the market for such a telescope. And by using the phrase "in the market", I trust you are familiar with the size and weight of these scopes. But the size and weight are worth the price of admission. And please know, once they are set up they slew with ease. I could move the scope with a pinky and the scope rests firm when left to stand. These DOBs It is by far the best telescope I have ever owned. I would recommend some accessories to enhance your stargazing. I recommend some 2 inch eyepieces (40-23mm), a DOB fan (which Celestron sells for cheap and easily inserts) which will help with great temperature differentials, a laser collimator, a mount to raise the red dot finder up off the scope for ease of use (so you do not have to crane your neck to use it), and a 90 degree starfinder (handy extra - one person can look through the DOB, and another can view the larger sky simultaneously). Just as a sprinter needs quality shoes, your DOB can use some quality accessories, but that is not to suggest this thing is incomplete or lacking in quality. This is a tremendous scope worth every penny. Happy stargazing!

Im 55 and I thought it was time to start a new hobby. My parents bought me a small tasco telescope for Christmas in 1986. When I first got it I thought it was great, but the only thing I ever saw with it was the moon. What it promised and what it delivered was two different things. God it was a pain in the ass. Fast forward to the present and I've looked at every telescope known to man trying to decide which one to buy. I changed my mind a lot going back and forth because I didn't want my new hobby to be like my tasco experience. I decided on The 10 inch dobsonian, i really wanted the 12 but im glad I got the 10 because its really big. The 8 inch would of probably been just as good. Anyway these telescopes are nothing like what I grew up with you can just about point at anything in the sky and see it, you dont have to mess around tweeking it. This is a great telescope and does awesome. The only issue I have is I have 2 or 3 street lights and nowhere did I see when buying did anyone tell me the starsense doesn't work if you have a bright full moon or a few street lights. Again great telescope.

It arrived a few days early. I went through and inspected all the parts. Everything was there and in great shape. Put it together by myself. Took a couple of hours. Works well! Very satisfied.

So I have been looking for a new Dobsonian for a while. Either 10 to 12 inch. This one as a just the telescope is really good. I have had it for a month at the time of this writing. I had it fully assembled in an hour, hour and a half. Setting up for observation is very easy. This is a bit heavy but it is a 10 inch, so it will be. It has handles for easy pick up and short carry. It only comes with 1 single eyepiece, a 25 mm. It will get you started but you might be disappointed as just a novice going, well that's it? And be pretty underwhelmed. I highly recommend getting the Celestron – 1.25” Eyepiece and Filter Accessory Kit to go with this. With the eyepieces and filters in this kit you can see the rings of Saturn and polar ice caps on Mars. Also deep sky objects like nebula will appear. So the Scope itself is great in that regard. The Star sense software, honestly I have given up on it. never really got it to work. I get everything aligned and it says point to a patch of sky and it will figure out where it is. Never did for me. I even tried pointing it right at the big dipper and nope has no idea where it is. Sometimes the software glitches out and all I get on my phone is a white screen. I figure out how to solve it. Delete all the application data, which is a very large database. Then redownload it. However, then even though you must log in to the app you still have to enter your license code. Which, if this happens when your at a dark sky park or something your SOL. Again I never got it to work to find anything I did enjoy the explanations and so on of object in the night sky you can just use search feature in the app. So while the scope is very good. I wouldn't necessarily buy it for the Starsense software though. It comes with another software for your desktop or laptop. This software has a lot of potential but is very clunky. It really needs a lot of refinement to be useful. So in end, just to reiterate the scope, and the quality of the scope is great. I will honestly be using it for decades. It is a great 10 inch Dobsonian. You do need some lenses and filters. Which again, any telescope in this price range your going to need some better lenses, this is where they save money. The stand is great and actually built to last a while. The software, not the greatest. However, software can be updated and upgraded. It may get way better, or it may never improve again. Time will tell on that. To me though, I have just as much fun finding the objects up there. So just as a functional Dobsonian, It is great.

Most astronomers will recommend you start with a 6" or 8" dobsonian. I've had refractors before, but this is my first reflector. I cannot stress enough how enjoyable this scope is to use and view the heavens with. It comes with a decent Omni Plossl in 25mm focal length. I recommend purchasing two additional eyepieces, an 8-12mm, and a 36-40mm. I have a 12mm, a 40mm, and 2x barlow in Omni Plossl fashion to match the 25mm. There are a wide variety of magnifications with these 3 eyepieces and the barlow, for not a lot of money. From 30x, to 200x, I can view a wide range of objects including planets, moon, sun (with a proper filter) and several deep space objects with an apparent magnitude of 10 or lower, quite clearly. Objects higher than 10 will be difficult if you live with city light pollution, but that still leaves thousands of viewable objects. It's not too heavy when carried in two pieces (roughly 25lbs/11kg for the tube, and the mount, each). The starsense app works very well, and on clear dark nights, it is very accurate. With a full moon or cloudy skies, it can be a bit tricky. I highly recommend this scope to anyone that wants a well built telescope, with a helping hand finding objects. It includes a red dot finder if you want to find objects the old fashioned way as well. But for someone like me with astigmatism and poor night vision, the starsense is extremely handy and convenient. Seeing the 8" mirror in the bottom of the tube is a sight to see, I'll include pictures of the scope, as well as several photos I have taken of the moon and some planets. Yes, you can actually do minor planetary and lunar imaging with this scope, even with your phone! In fact, every photo I've included in this review was taken with my Samsung S23, the Nexyz phone mount, and the various eyepieces I mentioned earlier. Take a few videos of the object, turn the videos into an .ser file with PIPP (free software) and stack the frames in Autostakkert (also free) to reveal a stacked image ready for sharpening and color enhancement. I hope this review will help people decide if this scope was right for them, because it was certainly right for me!

Absolutely a great telescope. This is my first telescope purchase. I bought this size because I figured I could grow into it. I wouldn’t have an itch to get a bigger one. Once we built it we were able to look at stars right away. Celestron makes great quality products. Looking forward to many nights under the stars.

$1000 for something made with particle board. Not even real wood.

This telescope exceeded my expectation. I'm new to the hobby. My fist telescope was a Meade LX-90 8" SCT goto telescope. Its awesome but it takes me 30 to 45 min to set up level the tripod home position the telescope etc. The Celestron 8" dobsonian was a breeze to set up. The starsense software worked great and it was pretty easy first time set up. The starsense software is pretty accurate but as my viewing evening progressed it got further off. I'm sure with experience I will be better able to use this software. Its great for beginners like me who don't know the night sky. It gives you "tonight's best" objects that can be found and viewed easily. I see such bad reviews on the 25mm lens included with the telescope. I have a top of the line 31mm Nagler. The 25mm Celestron plossl to me looked every bit as good as my 31mm Nagler! Stars could be focused to pinpoints and the clould layers of Jupiter easily seen equally as well with both lenses to me as a beginner. No the Plossl didn't have the 82 mm field of view as the Nagler but still impressive to me. The 8" dobsonian has 1200 mm focal length and was not so sensitive to vibration compared to the 2300 mm focal length of my 8" Meade LX-90. Manually I could easily point to stuff and keep it centered much better than I expected. I could also move my new Dobsonian Telescope and the the starsense software compensated and didn't have to be recalibrated unlike the LX-90. You will not be disappointed if you buy this telescope.

Es un telescopio tipo Dobson; y es muy fácil de armar porque el instructivo es detallado e intuitivo. El hecho que traiga para instalar celular y usar una aplicación de sky map para visar objetos celestes, lo hace muy propio para personas principiantes en Astronomía. El aparato es muy bonito e imponente. Tks.

Excellent value for money. Easy to set up. Very good quality. Comes with only one 25 mm eye-piece. Because of the height of my balcony railing, I couldn't bring the optical tube to horizontal position. So, I had to keep the base on a 1 foot high table.

It's one of the best thing i have purchased so far. It's a good buy if you are looking for a nice telescope. Thoug little big but 10inch worth it. I can forget the very first sight of moon watching with this. Mesmerizing...!!!