Customer Reviews

Celestron 21088 Omni XLT ? 102

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I'm surprised this is the first review for this product! My wife recently bought me this telescope for Christmas. Here's the rundown...

1. Extremely easy to assemble, and I'm not a tech-minded person. Pieces just attach together in ways that are convenient and make sense. Even better, it's very easy to disassemble, making it more than capable of being taken from place to place with no real hassle.

2. Adjustment is a cinch. The instruction guide is shockingly GOOD, which is a rarity in and of itself. Just follow the instructions and you'll have it calibrated and ready to go in no time.

3. Using the telescope is amazingly easy once you get the hang on it. It might take you about 20 minutes to read the instructions and test out the adjustment knobs, but once you've got it, you've got it. Like I said before, it's built in a way that makes sense.

4. And last, but not least...looking at planets is AMAZING! I got to try it last night for the first time (Dec. 31st, 2009) and focused in on Jupiter. I didn't even know it was Jupiter at first, I just looked up and saw the brightest "star" in the sky, knowing that it had to be one of the planets. Aimed the telescope, made small tracking adjustments with the knobs, and there it was, with four visible moons in tow! To look at a planet so closely was nothing short of mesmerizing. Even looking at occasional stars was unbelievable, as they just look so bright and different zoomed in.

I want to note, as well, that I did this from my back yard in a subdivision with houses and streets (with streetlights) in every direction, with a very bright full moon, and fireworks were going off behind me. All this to say, you don't need to live out in the middle of nowhere, in total darkness, with no trees anywhere (as I have several around my house). Visibility was poor to the point where I could barely see stars in the sky. Anyone can use this at their home, no matter where they live.

One thing, though! If you want to look at the moon, a moon filter might be a good idea. The instruction manual warmed me that the moon could be overpoweringly bright for some, and it was right. A moon filter is cheap (a little over $10 here) so it's definitely wallet-friendly. I'm about to get the Celestron moon filter now.