Lidl watch

Ok, well now you know where I'm coming from anyway.

I might go to the meeting, we'll see, if the forecast is clear I might be itching to use the telescope if I get it.

I will definitely come along some time though, if not on Thursday.

I recently sold my 8inch scope as it had become more of an ornament than an instrument, too much light pollution where I live and it was very awkward to transport. I am looking for something smaller and transportable.
I saw the offer Lidl are doing and thought it was very good, however, always the sceptic, I decided to ring Astronomy Ireland ( I recently became a member) and see what they thought and they said it is no longer made by Meade (and sure enough I cannot find it on meade.com) so it must be a discontinued model?? Does this mean no customer support in the future or parts if needed?

Astronomy Ireland said they have equivalent and better scopes at lower or same price! 102mm refractor on GoTo mount for 599 Euro including delivery anywhere in Ireland and full lifetime support and advice. They said they will match or beat Lidl prices every time. Nice!

I've been reading through the posts here and have noticed a few of you were unhappy with last year's Lidl scope, I was thinking of going for it but now I'm not so sure. I think the Astronomy Ireland offer may be better, in light of the fact that there is support and advice included in the price and also the promise to beat or match Lidl, they will also deliver it so no queueing outside Lidl.
I like the idea too of buying Irish.

Astronomy Ireland said they have equivalent and better scopes at lower or same price! 102mm refractor on GoTo mount for 599 Euro including delivery anywhere in Ireland and full lifetime support and advice. They said they will match or beat Lidl prices every time. Nice!

I think the Astronomy Ireland offer may be better, in light of the fact that there is support and advice included in the price and also the promise to beat or match Lidl, they will also deliver it so no queueing outside Lidl.
I like the idea too of buying Irish.

All good points. The after sales support and advice is especially worth it. If you bought from a supermarket, that would be limited/non-existent.

Personally, I'd be swayed by the offer from AI if I were comparing it to Lidl.

It might be worthwhile taking a look at other suppliers in Ireland (Andromeda, North Down) and possibly even the UK. Get quotes and given that AI have a price-match promise, you could get even more savings if you still decide to go with them.

Don't forget, Xmas is coing - there are lots of offers out there from Astronomy shops and dealers. Have a quick trawl before you decide and spend your wad!

Cheers
Dave

...

Astronomy Ireland said they have equivalent and better scopes at lower or same price! 102mm refractor on GoTo mount for 599 Euro including delivery anywhere in Ireland and full lifetime support and advice. They said they will match or beat Lidl prices every time. Nice!

... I think the Astronomy Ireland offer may be better, in light of the fact that there is support and advice included in the price and also the promise to beat or match Lidl, they will also deliver it so no queueing outside Lidl.
I like the idea too of buying Irish.

Well, I'm not sure about the "buying Irish" bit but that sounds like a top-class offer from Astronomy Ireland.

I'm a LIDL/ALDI freak so it's nice to see an "Irish" company responding to some of the recent European competition.

Truly competitive offers from Irish retailers (of anything) have been lacking for a long time. So, kudos to Astronomy Ireland and thanks to you Budz for passing on your experience.

I decided to ring Astronomy Ireland ( I recently became a member) and see what they thought and they said it is no longer made by Meade (and sure enough I cannot find it on meade.com) so it must be a discontinued model??

It is still made and sold : www.meade.com/lxd75/index.html

People that had problems last year were able to get replacement parts from Meade in Germany iirc.

Astronomy Ireland said they have equivalent and better scopes at lower or same price! 102mm refractor on GoTo mount for 599 Euro including delivery anywhere in Ireland and full lifetime support and advice.

What scope are we talking about? NexStar 102? Thats going for £299 in the UK, perhaps the Astronomy Ireland lads can shave another few euro off the price they quoted you If transportability is a concern then perhaps something more like a 4" or 5" mak might be worth considering. My travel scope is a 4" skywatcher mak that fits in hand luggage and I can mount it on a sturdy camera tripod (or an equatorial mount when needed).

Cheers,
~Al

The scope is still sold by Meade.

Also 102mm is 4" as opposed to the 6" of the Meade. I am not the best on the different types of scopes, but in this case would that make the Meade scope the more powerful scope?