Reviews - Celestron C90 Maksutov Angled Black Spotting Scope Reviews - CI-SS-52268

Author: Lou (verified customer) from Maine on Dec 20, 2011
Pros:  Very cheap scope
Cons:  Unable to get a sharp focus thus far, tripod is far to light duty for the scope, shaking is a problem
Would recommend:  no

Lou wrote:

I Just got my Celestron 90 Maksutov Spotting Scope / Telescope and set it up, not impressed with it at all thus far. So far I've found it unusable because,.... #1. The tripod that came with it is not heavy enough to keep the scope from shaking badly while adjusting it. #2. I can not get a sharp terrestrial image no matter how I adjust it, it's always blurry and never in focus. #3. Tried mounting a Canon XSi to the scope and got the same results with the focus, always blurry no matter what. I will try this scope at night but so far I'm not impressed with it at all as far as it being used as a terrestrial spotting scope or used as a telephoto lens for a camera, it does not exhibit the quality that it is advertised as having. So far on a scale of one to ten I'd give it a rating of 1, pretty poor indeed and I would NEVER recommend that anyone buy this Celestron 90 Maksutov Spotting Scope / Telescope.

Author: Cheese , I love astronomy, I like hockey, from Suburbs of Chicago on Mar 19, 2011
Pros:  portable good aperture
Cons:  not enough magnification
Would recommend:  yes

Cheese wrote:

I'm adding on to the other review, I saw venus and its phase, Mercury seems like a brown star, Jupiter looks like a giant dot with several dots around it; those are its moons, saturn looked like a dot with rings around it and a faint dot; that is its moon titan. Still to small to see cassinis division, The orion nebula looked like a hazy cloud, the ring nebula looked like an eye a liitle but it was gray, still cant find andromeda galaxy. :( Tonight theres a perigee moon:)

Author: Cheese , I like astronomy, from suburbs of Chicago, Illinois on Feb 27, 2011
Pros:  light, portable
Cons:  not enough magnification
Would recommend:  yes

Cheese wrote:

I am adding on to the other review. I saw Saturn's rings. They were to small to see the cassini's division. I looked at Jupiter and saw no detail on it but I saw it's four moons. I'd probably buy a filter for this in order to see detail on some planets. I'll try to look at Mars, Venus, and Mercury when I can. I aimed it towards the Orion Nebula. (right below the farthest left star on Orion's belt) I couldn't see any detail because I live in the suburbs of Chicago.It comes with a 32 and a 12.5 mm PLOSSL eyepieces.

Author: Cheese from Near Chicago on Feb 19, 2011
Pros:  easy for travel,
Cons:  the tripod is hard to tighten when seeing an object
Would recommend:  yes

Cheese wrote:

Is this a spotting scope or a telescope? I think it's a telescope. It is very light compared to the other ones. I took it out one night and I saw Jupiter's four moons and Saturn's rings and one of its moons. Our moon is very clear and you could see mares, and craters very clear. I live in the suburbs of Chicago so I can't really see any detail on the Orion nebula or Andromeda Galaxy or Jupiter.

Author: Leon J. Makasjian (verified customer) from Los Angeles on Apr 7, 2010
Pros:  Dual purpose, portable, stellar quality with room to grow.
Cons:  Could use dedicated tripod, some glare in 32mm supplied lens.
Would recommend:  yes

Leon J. Makasjian wrote:

Quality is evident particularly with its Maksutov design. I had owned a reflector telescope in the past which was suited for astronomical use only. This scope can be used for terrestrial viewing as well as celestial. I viewed several landmarks from our Los Feliz Hills (Griffith Park) home and clearly located cruise ships departing from the Long Beach cruise terminal 32 miles away! Furthermore, the surf in the Pacific ocean is viewed clearly in the Marina Del Rey area as well as aircraft landing into LAX with great detail. As night comes, the planets and the moon are crystal clear. This is a quality product well suited for many purposes. Leon J. Makasjian

Author: Leon J. Makasjian from mariana on Apr 4, 2010
Pros:  Quality product and portable
Cons:  Can have a dedicated portable tripod, some glare in supplied 32mm lens
Would recommend:  yes

Leon J. Makasjian wrote:

I purchased this scope mainly for city viewing and general astronomical use. I have owned a large reflector telescope in the past which was suited only for astronomy. With this scope, I can view over 32 miles into Long Beach from my home in Los Feliz (800 ft. elevation). I clearly located the departing Carnival Splendor Cruise ship as well as many landmarks. Furthermore, I can clearly view aircraft types and airlines making the final touchdown into LAX. If you have a view home, this is the scope to have, the 32mm lens is pretty good. I also got incredible views of the moon and planets with great detail. This is a great scope to have and rivals dedicated astronomy scopes costing few hundred more.