Meade ETX-125AT (f/15) Maksutov-Cassegrain Telescope

First of all, let me say that I am to blame for most of what I am to write here, but I also feel that some blame lay on Beach Camera and Meade for what I'm about to write.I bought a Meade ETX-125AT from Beach Camera, and before I did I checked out the online reviews for the scope, and I checked Meade's website. The problem I have is that the scope is discontinued, and I cannot get a lot of the accessories for it. Beach Camera made no mention the scope was discontinued. I will be upgrading to a 10" or bigger scope this Summer or Fall, and you can bet that I won't be purchasing from a company that let me buy a discontinued item without any notice. But shame on Meade as well for not indicating on their website that the scope had been discontinued, at least not in a location that I could find while researching the scope itself. Only when you go to buy accessories do you find that you cannot, which I admit is something I should have checked, but I didn't assume that either business would be secretive about a discontinued product.The scope itself is fantastic. I cannot imagine why Meade discontinued the scope, I got very good clarity in horrible conditions when I used the included 26mm eyepiece to view Jupiter. By horrible, I mean horrible. The first night I got my telescope, I sat it up in my living room, looked West to the Rocky Mountains and checked out the terrestrial features. Amazing! I could easily see the struts on a radio tower I know is 7 or more miles away. That night I turned the telescope skyward toward Jupiter, it was in the NW sky and bright. Very bright. While I couldn't make out any surface details on the planet, the disc was there and so were three of the Jovian satellites. It was beautiful, and I was looking at it over the light polluted city of Colorado Springs, through a glass window, and out over my own yard where the garage lights were active due to the photovoltaic switches. The views of the moon were of astounding quality despite the same limitations. I can't wait to take this thing up into the mountains and see what is to be seen there. But I guess I won't be taking pictures or electronically focusing my scope.My next telescope will be a Celestron. I bought this Meade with the intention of learning astrophotography on it and then moving up to the LX200 10" or 12" and handing this one over to my teenage daughter. It is hard to learn astrophotography, however, when you cannot buy an electric focuser, as well as virtually all other accessories.So Meade, you've lost a customer for life. Beach Camera, you have too. I simply do not do business with companies that sell a product as new without labeling it as discontinued, and if I were another user reading this, I would be quite nervous about giving you my business as well.Last note: I have not taken this up with Beach Camera or Meade. I have not asked for resolution, so I cannot speak to what they would do if I were to do so. But the fact remains that if I weren't giving this to my daughter soon, and if I had no more money to spend later for a scope that actually still has products available for it, I'd be completely outraged. Instead, I'm just disappointed enough to write this review. Great scope, bad business on the part of both companies.

Its a fantastic scope, optics are superb,fit and finish is great also.😄. But because they quit making it the price is highway robbery.

The ETX series is incredibly durable and maintains allignment with minimum care making I an excellent travel scope. The clarity of deep sky objects is somewhat limited and the autostar is less than friendly. That being said it is a good value if your looking fr an under $300. The biggest draw back is Meade customer service. There is none. Once you purchase their scope you're on your own. No repairs No parts. This seems to hold true for even their high end models. If you care for them they will last a lifetime, but in that ETXs purpose is to be portable, not supporting you or even offering commercial parts or repair service after a $700 plus investment is a bit disheartening.

No power cord makes difficult to use Another expense

I am a person that is confined to a wheelchair. The weight of the telescope is so light that I have no problem working with them. The optics are just wonderful and I was extremely surprised with the clarity I had with this telescope. The setup of the unit is very simple and the setup of the Autostar computer system was very easy to setup. This telescope will provide me with many years of enjoyment with this system. I am looking to be able to do some astrophotograpy in the future.  Meade ETX-125AT (f/15) Maksutov-Cassegrain Telescope

I received this telescope as a Christmas gift and have owned it for about 6 months now. The optics on this scope are amazing, and the goto functions very precisely. Overall, I am extremely happy with this scope. The scope itself is very powerful, yet light and compact enough to easily be moved around. I highly recommend this telescope for beginners and novices alike, as you will not be disappointed.

I was very surprised that Meade discontinued this telescope because it seemed to fit a category that made it very portable yet able to view many celestial objects.I live in Michigan and have taken this scope to Florida while on vacation and it is just what I wanted.I think I bought this telescope about 7 years ago and have seen it being sold for $2,999.00 which is about 4X the price I paid for it?I wonder if I am seeing the same telescope if so I have a very valuable telescope that has increased in value.I also have a 8" Meade which I enjoy using at home.

Own multiple scopes including the ETX125, LX200 10" plus a 5" refractor etc. For the size and weight the ETX rules. Optics are amazing.