Celestron PowerSeeker 80AZS Telescope

August 2022: I arrived at this sub-$100 scope from the Astrobiscuit video on YouTube. Surprised to hear that this narrow refractor out guns some larger reflectors in the same price range. My telescope budget was limited so I opted for this one based on the low price and glowing review by Astrobiscuit where he captures Jupiter, Ganymede, IO, Callisto, and Europa. It’s $70, so don’t expect a rugged tripod or any useable accessories (seriously, the 4mm eyepiece and 3X Barlow are essentially useless). The tripod is fairly flimsy but even so, I was able to align the spotter scope during the daylight my first day with the scope. You have to make subtle movements (it helps to keep the lateral rotation nut completely loose, and learn to use the vertical adjustment knob rather than moving the entire scope for up/down). Jupiter was going to visible in the valley where I live from about 1:30am to 5:00am tonight, so I went outside and located the giant planet. It was cloudy (actually good seeing conditions if you can get a break in the clouds) and I had very limited windows of time between passing clouds. Just as Jupiter was passing through a narrow gap between my roof, a tree, and a heavy cloud, I was able to line up on him, focus, let the vibration die out, and BOOM! There, clear as day, was Jupiter and the Galilean moons. I could even make out the colorful bands on the giant gas planet. I was completely shaken up. Pictures are one thing; but viewing an object that is over 300 MILLION miles away from earth (over 4x further from us than we are from the SUN) AND being able to see its colored bands absolutely blew me away. Bottom line: this telescope is absolutely useable for viewing larger planets, the moon, and (so I’ve heard) Andromeda. I’m sold. I will be upgrading the eyepieces and getting a better Barlow lens. I probably won’t even bother with the mount or spotting scope until I upgrade to a bigger telescope. But if you want to see something out of this world in real life without breaking the bank, buy this telescope.