Customer Reviews

Tele Vue 20mm Plossl 1.25" Eyepiece.

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This is a wonderful eyepiece by TeleVue and one of my favorite that I turn to for medium-ish power views of the night sky.

Pros: The eyepiece is very clear, offers very high contrast, no apparent distortion or aberrations, and is a great mid-power eyepiece (depending on the focal length of your scope in millimeters divided by your eyepiece focal length in millimeters--typically 300x power is considered max for atmospheric conditions, but be sure to check with your telescope's manufacturer). Although the field is about 50° with this eyepiece, the fact that it has less internal elements than wide-field eyepieces means that objects will be brighter (typically) with a Plössl like this. I own and use 11mm, 15mm, 20mm, 25mm, and 32mm Plössls by TeleVue and they outperform any Plössl out there. It is definitely worth a bit more to go higher-end eyepiece, especially since it is a purchase you'll only make once-- eyepieces don't really wear out if handled properly. :-) I've used this eyepiece for wonderful views of the moon and constellations. You can boost it's power with a Barlow, which is what I sometimes do, adding to it's versatility. I use this eyepiece often on a Orion XT8 and it is simply excellent.

Cons: The eye relief on this 20mm is pretty good. I don't wear glasses, but this eyepiece might be useable for those who do. If you do wear glasses, however, Plössls like this may not be right for you and you should probably go with a TeleVue Radian (or similar longer-length eyepieces). (The Radians are excellent eyepieces in their own right, but typically run about $180-$250. Other than that, it's hard to think of something that detracts from this eyepiece. It is not a wide-field eyepiece, but then again Plössls aren't wide field--it's just the nature of their design.

Overall: An excellent mid-power eyepiece that will blow away most any Plössl that came with your telescope and probably most Plössls in the aftermarket. To give you a sense of their value and quality, TeleVue includes a Plössl with their $3000+ refractors that they sell. :-)

Thanks!