| | |  | Celestron | Home » » » Meade ETX125AT Telescope w/ UHTC, Autostar Controller (497) and Tripod (884) | | | | | | | Description: | | An impressive optical tool to observe continually changing celestial phenomena through effortless pushbutton electronic control.Level: Serious, Intermediate Amateur Users interested in a high-quality, versatile, easily-upgradable telescope - Also a great portable field tool for Professionals Optical Class & Design: Mirror-lens (Maksutov- Cassegrain) - BK7 corrector lens, Pyrex primary mirror and EMC super multi-coatings,and UHTC Aperture: 127mm (5") Focal Length: 1900mm Focal Ratio: f/15 Eyepiece Size: Uses 1.25" eyepieces Unique Features: Superclear BK7 Optical Glass for studies into the Ultraviolet Region, Portable, Flip-Mirror Optical System for "straight through" or standard viewing (Automatic Tracking also with Deluxe Field Tripod, Advanced Field Tripod or Table Tripod) Electronic Control: Included Autostar Controller Enables 9-Speed Electronic Slow Motion Control for Tracking, Slewing, Centering and Locating - Also with "GO TO" Object Locating and Automatic Tracking Mounting: Fork Mount with Dual Axis Drive System Included Accessories: 8x25mm Right-Angle Viewfinder, Super Plossl 26mm Eyepiece What You Can See: Detail of Jupiter, a wider extension of deep space objects, discernable structure of all 110 objects in the Messier listing, increased brightness levels and super-clear distant objects. Overall greater detail and resolution of all astronomical subjects over the ETX-90AT due to increased light collection. | | | Features: | |
• Includes AutoStar controller and deluxe field tripod
• UHTC coatings are on all optical surfaces for enhanced detail
• 500x maximum magnification
• Maksutov meniscus corrector lens of Grade-A BK7 optical glass
• Includes a Meade Series 4000 Super Plvssl 26 millimeter eyepiece for 48 times magnification
| | | Product Details: | | | Product Length:
| 31.5 inches | | Product Width:
| 24.5 inches | | Product Height:
| 12.8 inches | | Package Length:
| 30.8 inches | | Package Width:
| 24.2 inches | | Package Height:
| 12.3 inches | | Package Weight:
| 38.2 pounds | | Average Customer Rating:
|  based on 6 reviews |
| | | | Customer Reviews: | |
Average Customer Review:
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3 of 13 found the following review helpful:
 JunkFeb 27, 2008
The AutoStar is junk. Next to impossible to align. Totaly Impossible to stay aligned. I spent hours setting up to spend 5 seconds viewing. Absolutly no support either.
36 of 36 found the following review helpful:
 Very nice for a beginnerNov 22, 2004
I've bought mine when I did not know anything about astronomy. It is an amazing toy for an intelligent person. I thought that my 10 year old son will play with it, but it is over his head, I am actually playing with it. It is a completely automatic scope, i.e. after alignment is complete, it will guide you through the sky, and show you anything which is in it's database and above the horizon. The scope comes with a hand-held device "Autostar" which is a computer with a built database and 2-line alphanumerical display. It is menu-driven, and very easy to understand and operate after reading a manual for 10 minutes.
In order to complete an alignment, the telescope goes to where it "thinks" a bright start is and it tells you which start is it, and you have to align the scope to point to that start exactly. In order to do it, you have to have some idea about bright stars and constellations above you. The telescope was reasonably easy to drive from my lab-top, after I've got an Autostar software from Meade and a connecting cable. I had some trouble with the main mirror - when I focus the scope, the image moves somewhat, so I guess, for a higher quality one has to spend more money. What this scope is NOT good for is astrophotography. Even though I was able to mount my digital camera on it, and even take few pictures of Saturn, Jupiter and moon, results are not impressive, you need a bigger scope, more rigid mouts and tripod, and preferably, on German mount, not on a fork mount. But this 5-in scope is just not designed for that, so be realistic. However, when used as a beginner's scope, it is very good, and lot's of fun. However, one has to have lot's of patience, some knowledge of sky. Meade customer service is OK, easy to reach and helpful. I am now thinking about buying a bigger one.
13 of 100 found the following review helpful:
Meade EXT125EC /uhtc w/ autostarApr 18, 2004
A novice to astronomy i bought this unit with extra bells and whistles, thinking it would be a good intro to astronomy. I am completely disappointed and would never recommend it to anyone for any purpose other then a door stop. Unless you already have some knowledge of telescopes avoid it at all costs. Set up is difficult to impossible, and what eventually appears is not much better then what you can already see on a clear night. As far as i am concerned this purchase was a waste of money.
38 of 38 found the following review helpful:
 Awesome Telescope!!!!! Beginner or Expert!!!!!Feb 10, 2004
This is an awesome scope that is so much fun to use and makes it easy as can be to learn about astronomy. It comes with everything you need to see some of the most amazing outerspace objects, nebulas, other galaxies,and more. I can not say enough how easy and fun you will have with this scope. You can use it for terrestrial or space exploration. The only negative to the scope is do not expect to get many hours out of the AA batteries. Some things to do: first is buy an electronic focuser or a focus extender (flexible kind), I have the electronic focuser because it was just easy to use. Next, buy rechargeable batteries NiMH, or build you a 12volt power supply like I did with a lead-acid battery and small battery box. It will last you for several weeks of viewing and plenty of power. The price is not cheap, but remember you get what you pay for these days. I started with a lesser scope and had to upgrade a month later to this one. Just do it right the first time and get the ETX-125 now instead of wasting your time and money with other smaller scopes. Again, this is an awesome scope you will be proud you purchased and impress your friends!
96 of 96 found the following review helpful:
A Great Versatile InstrumentOct 10, 2003
This is a great instrument for beginners and amateurs alike. Highly portable and easy to set up, which is important in light polluted areas such as Natick, MA. This allows me to get up and go to dark sky areas for fantastic viewing. Even in light polluted suburbia, the Moon, Mars, Saturn, Jupiter, Andromeda Galaxy, and the Orion Nebula are clearly visible as well as many other Messier objects. If you're a beginner, don't expect to see the flag on the Moon, Hubble Space Telescope can't even see that, or canals on Mars. Do expect to see amazing craters during crescent Moons and polar ice caps during Mars opposition. Jupiter is impressive to look at due to it's shear size. You can make out cloud belts and the famous eye of the 300 year storm. Jupiter's four largest moons show up as small points of light and they change location each night. It's as if you're looking at a miniature solar-system. Saturn and it's rings are among the most beautiful objects to observe. On very clear nights you can make out the Cassini division in Saturn's rings as well as it's largest moon, Titan. Andromeda Galaxy is viewed as a fuzzy cloud with more detail observable in darker skies. Use a CCD camera to overcome your eye's limitation by capturing the color and detail that are shown in pictures. The Autostar is an excellent educational tool with detailed information on each object. It allows you the hands-on experience of learning which makes it fun. Follow the instructions carefully for configuring the Autostar. The more accurate the motor calibration, the easier it will be to align to the stars. It helps to set your watch to the atomic clock which can be found at www.time.gov and use that for the time entered. This will give an accurate position of the stars according to the Earth's rotation. Make sure your telescope is pointed "True North" and follow the instructions for the fork arm location on the telescope. Learn the locations of a few stars during the different seasons in order to make the alignment procedure simpler. I found that if I placed the telescope slightly to the East of "True North" then each time the star it was aligning to was in my 26mm eyepiece. Don't be afraid to pick up the tripod and move it clockwise or counterclockwise until the star your aligning to is shown in the eyepiece. Then you can use the motor to center the star in the eyepiece. The less you use the motor for aligning the more accurate it seems to be and the faster it slews to the object.
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