Meade 114EQ-ASTR Reflector 4 5 31 42
Perfect Gift! After years of nagging my boyfriend to get a hobby, he told me he is interested in astronomy. So I decided to get him a telescope for his birthday. I knew absolutely nothing about telescopes, so I spent my free time learning what I could in a short period of time.After researching, it became obvious that this telescope is a good value, especially for a beginner. I gave it to him for his birthday, and he is absolutely thrilled with it! The first night he used it he was going on and on about how 'totally awesome' this telescope is - he was so excited!He has found this telescope to be very easy to use, the DVD that comes with it is very helpful for a beginner. This telescope is probably not as good as some of the $3000 telescopes I came across in my research, but for this price I would say it is an excellent value. 09/07/2008
Great value I looked for six months for a high quality telescope I could afford and this telescope is at the top of the list. It is a Meade- the only brand I'd want to buy- and a reflector (not just a refractor). I paid $116.58 with tax and site to store (took 10 days) shipping. It is Walmart so if there are any problems I knew I wouldn't be stuck! There were no problems. I know I'm sacrificing the "find it for me" computer and motor but that just means I don't have to think about a battery, orienting, the motor breaking, etc. I know where Saturn and Jupiter are just, let me at em.The equatorial mount is a little complicated, so watch the DVD first before assembly (I installed to tube backward but it was easy to flip, install the mirror end toward the large fine adjustment knob). I had to use Quickplay on the computer to watch it, the video didn't auto boot on my laptop. Maybe on a DVD player it would be different. Remember that the big eyepiece is the lower mag. That fooled me the first night out. The viewfinder scope is tinted making it difficult to get used to.I'm telling all the con's, but this is an adult's telescope, from the best company at an unbelievable price. 05/02/2008
good value After researching several telescopes, I picked the Meade 114EQ-ASTR Reflector, mostly because of it's decent size apature, with a low price.The first night we took it out we had a great view of the moon. Last night we saw Saturn and one if it's moons.The view really shakes a lot but once it setteles down, it is pretty good. I think I will probably get some good use out of it before I upgrade to a much larger one, with a better mount and tripod.The Walmart Site to Store shipping took forever, but hey, it's free! If you want it any time soon, it is probably much better to pay for the shipping. 06/14/2009
Excellent Telescope I expected a basic, cheap telescope with a few gadgets to make it look more expensive. I got an excellent telescope with high quality that should give me years of great use.I had a little trouble sighting it in but once I followed the directions everything went great.The first night we were looking at a clear image of craters along the terminator on the moon. 10/10/2009
