Celestron NexStar 130 SLT Computerized Telescope Product Description:
- Computerized hand control with 4,000-object database
- SkyAlign allows you to align on any 3 bright celestial objects
- Motorized Altazimuth mount
- Focal ratio: f5
- Focal length: 650mm
Product Description
Celestron NexStar 130 SLT Series Newtonian Reflector Telescope - 31145
Customer Reviews
Most helpful customer reviews
109 of 111 people found the following review helpful.Great Scope
By Maritime Research
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.
63 of 68 people found the following review helpful.This scope needs maintenance.
By Tom H.
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.
53 of 60 people found the following review helpful.Sadly Disappointed
By N. Lifshutz
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.
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