Telescopes (Meade ETX 70 & Skylux) in Lidl Monday 22nd N

Just been on to lidl.

They are getting a lot of enquires about the computer telescope, and they expect that it will be very popular.

At the moment they were unable to tell me how many will be in each store and consequently whtether you needed to queue up before opening to get one. They may have more information later in the week so I'll call back then.

Cheers,
~Al

From Terry:

Hi all,

Further to the last email on the Lidl Telescopes; some clarification of their website info may be helpful!

A. The ETX-70 Computer telescope.

1. It refers to 3 eyepieces, but only gives details for one - a MA25mm (MA = Modified Achromat - a fairly basic type)

2. The reference to "planetarial fog" should of course be "planetary nebulae" (the joys of translation!)

3. By a process of deduction & some simple maths the highest power eyepiece of the three must be a 4mm (type not known).

4. That then explains the odd description given under "Magnification" as: "14x -262, 5x". It should be "14x - 262.5x" the latter figure being the power of the 4mm eyepiece + 3x Barlow used with a 350mm FL telescope!

5. The other eyepiece must be a medium power one, say about 10mm, giving a power of approx. 35x, or 105x if used with the Barlow.

NB: Although I'm sure that the GoTo will indeed point the telescope, once it's set up properly, to any of the 1400 objects in the database, bear in mind that you may not be able to see all of them through that telescope! For example, if you input "M76", it will probably point to get it in the field of view, but as it's magnitude 11.5, you may not see it, unless you have very clear, very dark, skies! Some of the NGC objects will be even fainter, and even harder to see!

B. The 70mm Skylux Refractor.

1. It doesn't specifically mention it, but a 3x Barlow is also included.

2. Again, the website doesn't specifically mention it, but there are slow motion controls on both axes.

3. If the telescope package is exactly the same as last year, it will also include an accessory / stabilising tray on the tripod, and maybe an erecting (terrestrial) eyepiece too.

General:

My personal opinion is that for a reasonably competent & knowledgeable amateur, it's not worth paying the extra for the GoTo telescope. A telescope of that size will perform best on bright objects such as the Moon & major planets, & the Sun by projection or with a Mylar filter (but don't try observing the Sun unless you KNOW what ALL the risks are!), and bright objects such as the Pleiades, M31, M42, M13 etc. Most of you don't need 'GoTo' to find them! Also, with an F/ratio of F/5, it won't give as good images as the F/10 Skylux. It also has the benefit of powered tracking, but is that worth the extra €110? But that's just my personal opinion, and if you want the convenience of battery-powered drive, & GoTo to find your targets, then it's good value.

Clear Skies,

Terry Moseley

____________________________
IFAS, www.irishastronomy.org

Liam Said:-

I have seen an EXT105 close up recently and I think the control mechanism is the same on the 70. If so, it is well able to carry a larger scope (not an 8" mind!... are you listening Conor?) or to piggyback a camera.

Liam,

As you know I've been exploring ways to CHEAPLY get some sort of goto for my C8.

How about this...
Fit a red-dot finder on the ETX-70, use Auto-Star to locate the object and then just align my C8 to the Red dot. My C8 can then track from there.
Would this work...would two scopes put too much of an error and I might not find the object. Do red-dot finders actually project an Red dot that I could locate :

Just thoughts, but if it would work it would provide a sort of cheap GOTO for any scope.

Conor

Just been on to lidl.

They are getting a lot of enquires about the computer telescope, and they expect that it will be very popular.

At the moment they were unable to tell me how many will be in each store and consequently whtether you needed to queue up before opening to get one. They may have more information later in the week so I'll call back then.

Cheers,
~Al

if you do find out Al it would be great as it looks there will be a bit of a rush on them. in this country i don't think many people will be looking at this gift horse in the mouth. funny thing is the offer isn't available in the north from the looks of their site.
stephen.

I'm a student in Galway and I'd like to buy a telescope for here, mainly because I don't want to take my Celestron down on the five hour bus journey from home - would it be worth not eating anything but beans on toast for a few weeks to afford the more expensive telescope? I have to admit I quite like the idea of motorised tracking, but apart from that it's quite similar to the Skylux, isn't it?

Anyone interested, for example, in observing and/or imaging the ISS as it makes the next overhead pass, the software is already available and for free. I do not know to what extent the ETX-70 will allow for sufficient image scale but I will go and check the Meade site for specs.

At 70mm diameter and 300mm focal length its not going to be the best scope for high magnification detail. That siad I did see detail on Mars though Jim's ETX 70 last summer.

Cheers,
~Al

Hi Al,

It seems the focal length is 350 mm rather than 300 mm. However, there should an image scale problem with either focal length for the ISS etc.

It would seem to be a good buy for a youngster just getting into astronomy. There are pros and cons to both scopes being offered.

Anthony.