This telescope is the perfect choice for kids and beginners and has the following specifications: It has a carbon-fiber body, which is an excellent feature among telescopes because it helps significantly reduce the instrument’s weight. It gave good views of the stars out to 85-90 per cent of the field of view with the supplied 25mm eyepiece, with only minor distortion towards the edge.National Geographic NT114CF is a Newtonian carbon fiber reflector telescope that uses mirrors to produce images instead of lenses (refracting telescope). The 90mm (3.5-inch) Maksutov-Cassegrain optics have a focal length of 1,250mm, giving a focal ratio of f/13.8. They include 25mm and 12mm eyepieces, a Moon filter, a Bresser planisphere, a bubble level and compass for levelling and lining up the system, a CD with the Stellarium planetarium software and a multi-language instruction manual. AccessoriesĪ good selection of accessories helps to make this a complete system. The mount can also be powered by six AA batteries and there is a useful carry handle. There are ports for the hand controller, power from an external tank and an aux port. The mount is sturdy and easily attaches to the tripod via two bolts. It can be adjusted for height and features a useful spreader tray for eyepieces and other accessories. The tripod is a little flexible – on touching the system, it takes a few moments for any vibrations to die down but otherwise it does its job. It has an eight-line red light LCD display with a multitude of options, along with an integrated red light torch at the top. The hand controller has a database of 272,000 objects, including those in Messier, NGC and Caldwell catalogues, planets, named stars, double stars, variable stars and more. Simple yet effective design choices such as these add to the value and usefulness of any telescope. We also liked the two slots either side of the hand controller slot, which can take two 1.25-inch eyepieces, and indeed we found we kept the two supplied eyepieces in those slots during the review with dust caps on them for protection. There is also the slot in the mount in which to keep the hand controller, so you don’t have hold it all the time. The mount has several conveniences, such as the carry handle at the top of the arm allowing you to pick it up easily to transport. The scope, mount and tripod weigh in at a relatively lightweight 8.2kg fully assembled with accessories, and if you want to ditch the tripod and use the scope and mount on a table top the weight drops to 6kg. This telescope features in our list of the best telescopes for kidsĪny telescope will only get used if it is convenient and easy to set up, and this instrument meets both requirements easily. The mount and telescope can be used either on a table or attached to the basic tripod, and although we did find the latter to be a little more flexible than we would have liked it does an adequate job.ĭespite the flexibility, we found using the tripod to be the better option as it can be adjusted to suit your height, a critical consideration if it is going to be used by both adults and children.Īssembly was straightforward – you do not need any tools, which makes this scope ideal as a quick ‘set up and go’ system.Īll you need to do is add the finder and an eyepiece, along with connecting the hand controller, and you are almost ready to start all that’s left is the alignment routine. Power comes from by six AA batteries (not supplied) the battery compartment is set into the mount near the locking lever for azimuth motion.įor experienced users the telescope could be considered relatively basic, but to someone just starting out on the adventure of discovering the night sky then this is a good starter system that provides Go-To functionality.īy following some basic steps in the instruction manual, anyone without much prior knowledge of astronomy can soon be up and running, touring the night sky and exploring the Solar System. It is attached to a single-arm mount atop a basic tripod and has a large computerised hand controller.Īlso included are 25mm and 12mm eyepieces (1.25-inch fit), a red-dot finder, instruction manual, a Moon filter, a bubble level and compass, and a CD containing planetarium program Stellarium.
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