| Brand: | Celestron | ||
| Average Rating |
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Celestron Nexstar 130SLT Newtonian Reflector Telescope lets you travel through our solar system and explore nearby stars and galaxies without leaving earth. It acts as a window to worlds beyond knowledge and imagination. With SkyAlign and PC connectivity, you become familiar with other worlds. If the many wonders of deep space fascinate you but you don’t know how to find those fascinating sights, why not let this Celestron telescope do the finding for you? The new SkyAlign easy alignment technology and Star Pointer red dot LED finder of the Celesctron NexStar 130 SLT 5.1 go-to reflector make lining up on the sky a breeze. Once aligned, the scope’s computer hand control will find more than 4,000 celestial objects for you and will track them unerringly while you observe at your leisure. With its pre-assembled adjustable height steel tripod and easy no-tool assembly, the NexStar 130 SLT can be up and ready to take you on a tour of the Universe in a matter of minutes. The 130mm aperture of the NexStar 130 SLT gathers well over two and a half times as much light as even an advanced 80mm refractor, for not much more money, giving you deep space images that are bright and well defined. With the appropriate high power eyepiece and a resolution 62% higher than an 80mm scope, it will give you lunar/planetary images that are crisp and detailed. Whether an advanced entry-level scope for the beginning astronomer, or a second scope for the more-than-casual backyard astronomer, the NexStar 130SLT takes you beyond. Adjustable height tripod Celestron 2-Year Warranty more info
{ 17 comments… read them below or add one }
Celestron NexStar
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
Very simple to install and simple to operate. This was a great buy for beginner and immediate users.
Great Scope
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I got my Celestron 130 SLT last month and am extremely happy with it. For the price, it’s a great scope and the goto software was pretty easy to get the hang of. The sky mapping software that comes with the scope is also a great help and easy to use. A few caveats: Buy the AC power cord….otherwise you’ll need new batteries every night. You’ll need to reset the date/time on the goto computer every night…..it doesn’t remember date/time between uses. It takes a few tries to get proficient with the three star align….it works pretty well, but you need to make sure you’ve setup your location and the date/time correctly. This scope isn’t weighted and is very light. This causes it to shake a LOT when you touch it (i.e. when you’re focusing). It takes a few seconds for it to stabilize after any adjustment. Some people weight the tripod tray to add stability. The focuser could have a finer adjustment. It takes a very steady hand to get optimal focus. The scope doesn’t come with a Barlow lens, which is a necessity for this scope. You’ll want to get one right away. The scope does have a 2″ eyepiece adapter, which is unusual and a really nice feature on a starter scope such as this. It’s worth buying a 2″ eyepiece for wide views. I didn’t find the NexStar PC driver software very useful (after buying the $15 cable to use it). Instead, I downloaded a trial version of the pricey NexRemote software, which allowed me to operate the scope from my laptop much more easily. These caveats are all very minor, as this is a solid scope with better optics and software than the alternatives. In short, the scope was way better than cheap toy scopes I’d used and all reviews I read said it had great optics for the price with very few problems/annoyances. I got a great view of Jupiter and its moons the first night I used it. After I got the hang of it, I started checking out Messier Objects, including the brighter galaxies and nebulae, which are easily recognizable with this scope. I’m extremely pleased with it and I’m very glad I got this scope instead of comparable competing scopes, which all seem to have serious issues per the various reviews I’ve read.
A great way to get started with amateur astronomy
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
If you want to view the night skies above with certainty on what object(s) you are viewing, this is a great way to get started. Definitely a first time ‘scope, experts will want something bigger. SkyAlign is a good feature, but you need to be careful in centering the star image. Buy an additional power supply, like the Celestron PowerTank or at least a 2000mA 12V regulated power adapter, unless you want the landfill to rapidly accumulate your used AA batteries. The supplied “The Sky” and “NexStar Observer List” software helps plan observations.
Michael Swanson’s “NexStar Users Guide” (Amazon currently has the best price) is an invaluable aid. See my review.
Sadly Disappointed
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
The optics are good, but the software and the tech service are terrible. I ordered the Celestron NexStar 130 SLT based on glowing reviews I had read. It arrived promptly and was easy to assemble. I was easily able to align the view finder with the main optics, which seemed to be very good. But I was totally unable the align the computer. I made a dozen attempts after entering and re-entering the necessary information and entering the position of various triplets of widely spaced stars, but the computer kept telling me that alignment had failed. I attempted one call to tech service, but was on hold for half an hour before I gave up. I emailed tech service regarding my problem, and received an automatic acknowledgement, but absolutely no further contact over a two week period. Amazon allowed me to return the scope as defective, and even paid the return shipping. So Celestron was terrible, but Amazon was great.
Great casual telescope
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
A couple of negatives to start with. As others have indicated, once the electronics are turned off the current time is not kept. If you forget this important point aligning will not work. Next point. Double check that the tightening screw that secures the optical tube to the mount is tight every time you use the scope. I neglected to do this and the thing slid out of the mount and hit my patio. Unbelievably, nothing broke and the scope’s collimation was not knocked askew. The good news is you can be using this scope in a manner of minutes after just a little practice. The optics are good and the tracking is too when you consider how inexpensive this machine is. Adding weight to the accessory tray helps with stability.
My First Scope
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I’m still learning how to use it but so far the things I see with it are amazing.
Very Nice Telescope
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I heard great things of Celestron products, and this was dissappointment. This thing does it all! Computerized movement, easy to use keypad. A really nice telescope.
Fairly good scope for the money
Rating:3 out of 5 stars
I may have been spoiled by the Zhumell 10″ Dob, but I feel that this telescope will show me what I want to see and more as long as conditions are ideal. I have tried to get alignment by using the Skyalign feature but after 5 attempts I have never been able to get that to work. Auto two star alignment seems to work well. That is what I have been using in place of Skyalign but I feel that aligning on three objects rather than two would give me more accuracy so I am a little miffed about Skyalign not working. I may check for an software update for the handheld controller to see if this helps but I have to have the proprietary cable to hook it up to the computer to flash it so that will be another 15 to 20 smackers and they don’t tell you that you will need a usb to RS232 adapter if you want to hook it up to a USB port another 40 smackers or so. These should be included in the package. I am a little po’d at Celestron for that. So far, I have not been able to collimate this scope to my liking. Spider in the front of the scope does not have fine adjustment screws and manual does not say anything about collimating the secondary mirror, only the primary mirror and I believe that is where my problem is. Items look sharp up to about 120x and after that trying to get a sharp image is next to impossible. Anyway I suspect improper collimation is the cause. So far I’ve only tried collimation through a laser collimater so it is probably suspect. For what it is worth, I’ve seen nebula and star clusters and planetary objects quite good but not as good as my Zhumell 10″. I know, I know that is comparing apples to oranges. All in all a decent starter scope. I would like to get it out of town and into a dark desert to see what I can really see with it. And I would like to get it properly collimated. I think this would make all the difference. Still waiting on the power adapter. That is backordered for months.
Good but improvements required
Rating:3 out of 5 stars
It works well enough as soon as you get used to it. The family has been enjoying it.
But there are moderate and avoidable issues that Celestron should address:
o The clock necessary for tracking does not keep the time after powering off forcing one to set it each time. This is an annoyance. These days, that would be a simple function to provide but for some reason Celestron does not.
o The battery compartment is cheaply made and the cover tends to pop off.
o The software TheSky is old and certain functions cause the program to crash. The only way to fix that is to go the the publisher’s web site and pay for a new version. Celestron should provide a version that does not crash.
o As others have stated, the included lens selection is insufficient but that is an easy problem to remedy buy purchasing additional ones. Though I’ve not tried one yet on the scope, I recommend a CCD imager as a nice addition.
Great first scope
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
Easy to setup, skyalign worked on my first try, really liked it, except maybe for the eyepieces, they could be ploss ones.
Strongly suggest AGAINST this Scope
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
This may be a wonderful telescope. It is difficult for me to know since I have never been able to use mine. It was purchased, along with the Celestron eyepiece set and NexImage Camera for around $700.00 in September of this year.
The first scope had to be returned to Celestron because the tracking motor would not function on the day that I unpacked it.
After 4 weeks, I received the new scope.
The motor works but it will not track. I am unable to get the scope to align.
That covers the telescope. But the real problem is in the customer service. My first mistake was to send the scope in for repair. Because of the time involved, a refund becomes virtually impossible.
So now I am stuck with a $700.00 white elephant that Celestron wants me to send back to them again for further repairs and a further 4 weeks of waiting.
If you have to have this telescope, then buy it from Amazon so that you have the protection that I DO NOT have. I screwed myself on this deal because I trusted Celestron to be an honest company with quality products.
If you buy Celestron, make sure that you protect yourself.
Celestron’s lack of customer support
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
I don’t know how good the telescope is. I bought it for, and had it shipped to, my son who lives in Colorado. He had a problem with closing the battery compartment after the batteries are inserted. He sent an email to Celestron and it was never answered. He tried calling them (long distance, no 800 number) and they didn’t answer their telephone within 25 minutes.
As I said, I can’t rate the telescope, but Celestron gets only one star.
Great scope in general with a few caveats.
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I have now owned this telescope for 4 months, using it (so far) exclusively on upper Manhattan… yes, NYC! So my experience so far is with the moon and planets. For this, it’s a great telescope, bringing out many details quite nicely. Set up was quick and easy to understand. Once set up, I did notice a little tweaking on the alignment [mirror collumation] was needed, and after some indoor alignment, followed by “bright-star” fine tuning, this telescope’s fine optics came into full display.
The 2 eyepieces that come with the scope are quite good, but it was with my 7mm Nagler eyepiece that Saturn’s rings shone fine, and Jupiter’s cloud bands popped right out!
Now, the few caviats: This scope is not good on a windy day as it is prone to vibrations! Vibrations induced from touching the scope to focus quickly disappear so, for normal use, it’s quite tolerable. As to the “goto” system: If you’re going out just to spot the moon or planets, use the “solar system” alignment. It’s quick and only takes one planet or the moon to align. 3-star alignment for multiple object gazing is a bit trickier, but here’s the two secrets: The tripod comes with a built-in bubble level. USE IT! If your scope is not level, alignment will fail. Also, make sure your watch is accurate! If you enter the time and it’s more than 30-45 seconds off, again, alignment will fail!
Take the time to set up the telescope carefully first [yes, there’s a bit of a learning curve, but once you’ve memorized it, it goes quickly. Yes, you’ll have to “fiddle” with their battery compartment cover, but it will pop into place when you’ve got the 2 battery holders in the right position. Finally, get yourself a really GOOD eyepiece somewhere in the range of 5-8mm for truly spectacular lunar and planetary views. Be prepared to spend $150-$300 for that eyepiece, but then you’ll experience this scope’s full optical potential!
nice scope, esp w 2inch eyepieces
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
i have been watching the sky for a few months, and purchased this scope
through amazon, im in the middle of a large nieghborhood, with trees and fences all around my back yard, that said, i have not had much luck w the go to function,it has taken me to saturn and the moon, but some targets will make it point at the ground. so i was kinda disappointed, then i ordered the 2inch eyepiece kit by celestron also from amazon, it is a huge difference, i was using a galileo, the two scopes are not that much different, outside the motorized mount,and 2inch viewer.; so for watching the sky, this is a great scope, i must admit, i had thought maybe it would identify the stars im looking at, but now i realize that would be a tall order even for nasa, in new orleans, this scope shows the sky to be full of stars. i say this is a good deal and a good scope, not many scopes have the 2inch option, and celestron seems to get better and more reviews than ioptron, for beginners, telescopes like this will take sum time, but your patience will be rewarded(alton brown)
update, got the vixen 3856 3.5 eyepeice, ring of saturn was huge, and the moon was awesome, very cool eyepiece, makes my scope seem new again.
9-9-09, finally found juptier, with the vixen 3.5, it was very impressive, and its four moons were very bright, still enjoying the nexstar 130, looking into getting skyscout connect, which would connect my skyscout to the scope, making it gps, find a star with skyscout, and the scope w slew to the object w a touch of a button, for 99$ seems like the next step in my set up
Very disappointed
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
I was really excited to get this telescope, having spent years using my old, manual one. The first night I took it out, the motor didn’t work correctly. The telescope would move left and right and down, but wouldn’t move up. I thought maybe it was just rather stiff because it was new, but after several more attempts, it still doesn’t move up. Without the motor working, the telescope is impossible to align correctly, which makes the computerized viewing list of stars and what not worthless. I am returning it and thinking that I will purchase another brand of telescope next time.
This scope needs maintenance.
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I received this telescope about a month ago. It is easy to use and works well. The 2 lenses that come with the scope allow you to begin checking things out in the sky, but there are a few more things needed. 1- A filter kit (at least one filter for the moon. It’s too bright to look at without one). 2- 2X Barlow Lens. This will double the magnification of the lenses you have.
Also, this scope needs maintenance. The mirrors must be perfectly collimated (lined-up) on an F5 scope. (The lower the focal ratio, the more precise the collimation must be, and F5 is low.) My scope needed collimating right out of the box. The scope does not have to be shaken hard to knock the mirrors off of angle or alignment. This requires tools and some mechanical ability. Get info online or visit local stores that sell reflector scopes. I paid $200 for my set of collimating tools (Sight Tube, Cheshire and Autocollimator). For this scope to work properly, this maintenance must be done regularly.
PS- This scope is a Newtonian Reflector type.
Good Attempt
Rating:3 out of 5 stars
I’m a telescope newb, bought this for a family member as a gift as they aren’t as technically competent I was hoping the computerized bit would alleviate that issue. I also expected a scope at this price to have performed better. I couldn’t get it to align using skyalign. i got it to work on a two-star alignment but even then when i asked it to go to different celestial bodies it would be inaccurate. i had highly accurate gps coordinates and times as well as trying it in many places on many stars on quite a few nights. in addition the mount is wobbly, almost never calms down, and does not come with a collimation tool which would be a cheap part to add, leaving the images just slightly blurry. about the only thing this was awesome for was looking at the moon, easy to find, track and see. images were clear and very cool, but certainly not worth the money to look at the moon each night. cool idea, not ready yet, or mine was broken.