Customer Reviews

Tasco 30060402 Novice 402 x 60mm Telescope

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Hi,
I've been an amateur astronomer for over 30 years. Do not waste a dime on this scope. It is USELESS and will end up in a closet collecting dust.

Hope I've save you money and time.

Allow me to warn the prospective buyer beforehand that this telescope is not worth the $$--it is an old marketing scheme by low-end telescope manufacturers to sell a telescope based on its magnification. Any decent introductory book on astronomy will tell you that the most important trait of a telescope is to make images brighter, not larger. It is the size of the telescope's lens or mirror-its aperture-that is the important factor. Also, a telescope should not be used at magnifications above 50x per inch of aperture. For a 60mm telescope like this, which is 2.4", that translates to 120x. Any magnification above this will make the image dimmer and fuzzier and will not increase the resolution. There is a reason that the professional astronomical observatories use telescopes with apertures of 10 meters (about 300 inches!!)--bigger telescopes allow for higher magnifications and brighter images.

So here is my advice: look for an entry level telescope by Celestron, Meade, or Orion. These companies make excellent entry-level telescopes, and while they are more expensive than this scope, they will prove more fulfilling and less frustrating for the novice astronomer who wants to start exploring the night sky! Some great beginner telescopes are Orion XT6 Classic Dobsonian Telescope & Beginner Barlow Kit and Orion Observer 60 Altaz Refractor. The latter is just slightly more expensive than this Tasco, but its tripod is sturdier and its eyepieces are higher quality--and it does not offer outrageous magnifications!!

I have been an amateur astronomer now for 13 years, and started off with one of these 402-power Tascos. So I am not just basing this review on hearsay, and want to save you the two years of frustration that I had to deal with before moving to a better instrument.

Bought for my 14 year old astronomer, it gives him the ease of use needed with the expanded possibilities of additional optics choices.