This is a great telescope in terms of light-gathering power. The large 130mm aperture is able to gather a ton of quality light from space. Light gathering is the name of the game for telescopes, especially reflectors and this one offers a lot of great power in that regard.

If you are a beginner or you are thinking about getting it as a gift for a beginner enthusiast, it’s a great choice.Never look directly at the Sun with the naked eye or with an optic (unless you have the proper solar filter). Permanent and irreversible eye damage may result. The Celestron AstroMaster 130EQ offers a simple experience of setting up and using a telescope, while getting a taster for what could be accomplished with more complex, more expensive telescopes. However, you will almost certainly want to upgrade on the eyepieces to make the most of the optical system.

The Zhumell Z130, like the Heritage, offers superior accessories, optics, and a simpler mount than the 130EQ but with a closed tube design.This is the last version of the Astromaster line of telescopes by Celestron. It is a quality reflector telescope that bridges the gap between novice telescopes and intermediate ones. It can be a great entry point into astronomy that will also deliver some great views and light gathering ability usually not seen by telescopes in this price range. The five-inch aperture is a decent size for a beginner’s telescope, giving the user sufficient light grasp and resolving power at their disposal to get good views of the popular targets – the Moon’s craters, Jupiter’s atmospheric belts, Saturn’s rings, the bright wisps of the Orion Nebula (Messier 42) or the fuzzy shape of the Andromeda Galaxy (Messier 31). The eq mount is heavy and not practical to use for a beginner. Thankfully I had the ressources to build a custom Dobsonian mount out of plywood, which greatly improved the observation experience.

Additionally, this telescope comes with a 20 mm eyepiece that provides a wide field of view and enhances the user’s viewing experience by making it easier to locate celestial objects. With its powerful magnification capabilities, users can explore deep space objects such as galaxies or observe details on planetary surfaces like Jupiter’s Great Red Spot. I would have much preferred to see this telescope with a simple manual altazimuth mount than the equatorial mount. The equatorial mount makes it harder to do more free-handed viewing and requires a more rigid approach which I feel does not mix with the specifications of this telescope. Beginner telescopes don’t offer the capability and versatility of more advanced models. But for the price, the Celestron AstroMaster 130EQ offers plenty. The Celestron Astromaster 130EQ Reflector Telescope is the largest and priciest member of the popular Astromaster line of telescopes. True to their usual form, Celestron is offering a great telescope for a great price. Geared towards the casual or novice astronomer the Astromaster telescopes have been a great starting point for aspiring stargazers for years. The Celestron Astromaster 130EQ Reflector is on the higher end of telescopes offering more power and more features for deep space viewing. One of the standout features of Starry Night Astronomy software is its real-time sky projection. This function allows users to see a live representation of the sky, showing which celestial objects are currently visible and their precise locations. This feature can greatly enhance the stargazing experience, making it easier to plan observations and learn about different stars, planets, and deep-space objects.This is particularly useful when observing planets or other objects at high magnification where any vibration or movement can cause significant image distortion. Not compatible with #93648 Off-Axis Guider, not compatible with #93519 2" Mirror Diagonal (discontinued) With that being said the core pros and cons of reflector optics tend to be fairly universal and that is what I’ll list down below. The 130EQ has an aperture of 130mm, a focal length of 650mm resulting in a reasonably fast and wide focal ratio of f/5. What this means is that theoretically the 130EQ should be able to achieve a max magnification of 307x although in reality due to the spherical mirror used and the lower focal ratio resulting in coma, the useable magnification will be closer to 200x. Es bastante estable lo probé con un poco de viento, y no se movía mucho, y el cabezal se ve de calidad. Ha estado nublado y no he podido probar las ópticas, pero mirando edificios (no al cielo), parece que son de calidad, ya que se ven las imágenes nítidas. Cuando sepa un poco más ya os contaré.