Orion SkyQuest XT6 Classic Dobsonian Telescope for Adults - High Powered Beginner Astronomy Telescope for Moon, Planets & Deep-sky Objects

Good scope but bulky. Everyone recommends a 6-10 inch dobsonian. Honestly if you are new to astronomy and want to see a very wide variety of objects, this is the way to go. The biggest challenge with this type of scope is the weight and mass. It’s heavier to move around and awkward to take in and out of your door depending on if you have sliding doors leading out to a deck or patio. The weight of this “6 isn’t difficult to lift but it’s not like picking up a refractor or a smaller Maksutov. So if you want to get outside quickly and easily without it being a real pain to lug in and out, you may want to spend more for something less awkward like a Schmidt, Cassegrain. They can have some weight also but more compact making it easier to maneuver through doors. If you don’t care to much about fainter deep space objects you can look at a refractor or something like the celestron C 90MAK. It is very affordable and portable. You will not be able to see some of the fainter objects unless you go to an area that has really dark skies and great conditions, but you will be able to see planets and brighter DSO’s‘s. This is a fantastic little stash for the money, and it comes with its own backpack, which makes it a great grab and go and very quick to set up without having to worry about collimation the mounting options are pretty easy as well. It will except a DSLR camera as long as you have the correct adapters and you can also use it for regular terrestrial viewing . Are used to scope most of the time just because of the simplicity and being able to grab it quickly to catch an hour of viewing I will be purchasing a 90° diagonal since it only comes with a 45 as a lot of people use it for a spotting scope as well. Anyway, I hope this helps anyone in making a decision to get a dobsonian telescope, or to try something different. The 6 inch dobsonian from Orion is a good quality telescope. If this is what you want I just wanted to try to inform people of some things I didn’t realize before purchasing. That said, I think if you take care of it this telescope will give you years of enjoyment and will allow you to see a lot of objects in the night sky.

This is hands down one of my favorite purchases ever on Amazon. I’ve spent countless hours outside stargazing, and it’s been such an incredible experience. I took all these photos using just my iPhone and this telescope! I did purchase a shorty eyepiece for close-ups of the moon, and the results were breathtaking.The value for money is unbeatable—I still can’t believe something this affordable delivers such amazing views. It’s very easy to use, even for beginners, and the manual alignment makes it a perfect learning tool. While it’s a bit heavy, it’s nothing I can’t handle on my own. The scope is sturdy, reliable, and delivers crystal-clear photos and views. This telescope has far exceeded my expectations, and I highly recommend it!

Great telescope for the beginner or novice!Assembly: Assembly was a breeze but definitely helps when you have a pair of helping hands. It states the assembled weight is roughly 35lbs. Moving and transporting the scope and mount assembly is a little nerve wrecking at first because the mount seems to be made of simulated wood instead of the real thing, and only has a single handle on the front mounting panel. I personally am an avid weight lifter so I don't personally have a problem moving this around, however, if you don't think you can handle the weight of the assembled product, you might want to look into something a little smaller.Quality: Aside from the mount, which although seems sturdy, I have to somewhat question how durable this is through frequent and time tested usage. Simply put, I can't let it lose a star because it hasn't yet been a problem. You're already moving a quite sensitive piece of equipment, so you already know to be gentle and take care!Lining up the view finder with the scope: It was simple. I preferred to use multiple objects at mid length range like smoke stacks on a building, a stop sign about a 1/4 mile out, and smaller objects as well in the DAYLIGHT to adjust the view finder properly. It really isn't difficult at all and once aligned, it is a BREEZE to go ahead and locate just about any object. I planned to originally use the moon, however, considering the moon moves relatively quickly across the sky, I opted for stationary targets.The scope comes with a 25mm lens, and that's about it. Decent for viewing the moon in full and easily, wider range views, and seeing SOME minor planetary features. I saw the rings of Saturn, and even FAINTLY saw cloud belts on jupiter and three of its moons. A slightly higher magnification lens will definitely be added to my arsenal in the near future, as well as a barlow. A Moon filter will be vital for looking at the moon for any length of time in its brighter phases as it can easily distort your vision and appears VERY bright. I do not have the best viewing conditions where I am located, but so far, I have been about as pleased as I could be with this purchase, without any additional accessories. My first night out was partly cloudy and I live within 50 miles of chicago and the city I live in is also quite bright and populated. I still found Saturn in decent viewing, Jupiter and its moons, our moon, mars, etc.Versatility: Versatility is ok for what it is, considering its tremendous size. The bolt on the bottom that allows you to move the scope on its azimuth can be adjusted easily to modify how easily or difficult it is to move it. I actually over-tightened it at first and it was difficult to move it without turning the entire assembly. On the flip side, under tightening it will allow it to move too freely which is probably even worse for alignment purposes. I wound up building a small table to mount the scope on. I am 5'11 and found that when viewing objects low on the horizon I had to bend a bit too much and it gave me a lower backache. My table was built to a height of 12.5" and it solved this problem. I even added a shelf for storage of my future lenses and the lens caps!In comparison/closing: This is a fantastic scope for it's value! Years ago, I purchased a tripod Celestron 70AZ scope and the mounting system was very unstable and horrible to keep aligned as the scope always dropped off of whatever I was viewing. I returned it that same week as defective as no matter how hard I tightened the thumbscrews it was never enough. If you have the extra money, you may want to consider the XT8, but then again, if you had that extra money you'd probably be considering the XT10 or larger. I definitely recommend a good barlow, some filters and also some various sized lenses, as much like a camera, the lens makes a huge difference!