Beginner telescopes worth buying

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If you want to look at the places we write about, aperture matters more than magnification. Ignore any box that brags about 600x. A 130mm mirror is roughly where Saturn's rings and Jupiter's moons stop being a smudge. Here's how we'd choose.

• Sky-Watcher Sky-Watcher Heritage 130 Tabletop Dobsonian (130mm reflector, tabletop)
  The most telescope for the money. Collapses to fit a closet. You need a table or crate, and you find targets yourself with a free sky app.
• Celestron StarSense Explorer DX 130AZ (130mm reflector, phone-guided)
  Same size mirror as the Heritage, plus a phone dock that points you to targets. Pay the extra if finding things is the part that would make you quit.
• Sky-Watcher Classic 200P 8-inch Dobsonian (200mm reflector, floor-standing)
  The one people tell you to buy so you never have to buy again. Bigger and heavier, much brighter views.
• Celestron AstroMaster 102AZ (102mm refractor)
  A refractor, so no mirror to align. Wide, crisp views of the Moon. A good pick if you want zero maintenance.
• Celestron FirstScope 76 (76mm tabletop)
  The cheapest thing we’d call a real telescope. Fine for craters on the Moon and Jupiter’s moons. Don’t expect much past that.

We haven't tested these ourselves. The picks reflect what experienced observers and long-running review sites keep recommending. Prices move a lot, so check before you buy.