Stellina Telescope Review: The Amateur Astronomer's Antidote to Light Pollution

Get Stellina Telescope Here (aff link): bit.ly/2WJrPzr
Here are my thoughts on a brand new telescope for amateur astronomers that was released by Vaonis, a French company that has done something remarkable with the Stellina telescope, they’ve created a fully-automated, self-contained optical system that is unlike anything I’ve seen before. This telescope is a real paradigm shift for amateur astronomy, never before has getting into the hobby been easier.
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[@theastronomychild7895]

when he said "our dark skys are fading at a fast pace" that hit me hard

[@denispol79]

Hi! I'm an amateur deep space astrophotographer. I've seen this product before, and I'm not really understanding its target. All my astro-buddies agree with me that we enjoy the process maybe even more then the result. All the equipment, knowledge, special ways and techniques we acquire with time - that's what makes this hobby so attractive. And even the joy of understanding that there's much much more to learn and improve. While this product maybe gives acceptable results, but gives almost zero opportunities for self-improvement.

[@galaxia4709]

The point of the review though was that we are losing our night sky and this will be the (near) future's way of being able to see the night sky, even better than through classic eyepieces because it stacks images like professional (space) telescopes do if you will. In short, this is the Keep Looking Up telescope :D

[@denispol79]

@@galaxia4709 With that I totally agree! Don't get me wrong, I didn't mean to roast this telescope. This is some piece of amazing technology. And as Tony said, it could bring more people into astronomy. But not into astrophotography.

[@galaxia4709]

@@denispol79 That's what Tony said too, not astrophotography ;) Clear skies :)

[@denispol79]

@@galaxia4709 I don't know how you did it but please do it more! It's rare perfect skies here with almost no seeing right now :)

[@galaxia4709]

@@denispol79 Almost constantly raining last 2 months or so where I live, luckily the sun was out once today lol. You mean with irony and are laughing at me right? Yes I know what you mean and also that you don't mean to roast the telescope :) You are right, but sorry it seemed beside the point to me. The way I understood it is that it is primarily a viewing scope instead of photography

[@karlanovakova220]

Watching sky through PVC pipe telescope is infinitely more fun than "crab nebula appearing on my smartphone" from this gizmo.

[@nrv8013]

Buy a Takahashi won't find pvc.... Hahaha Now, let's talk seriously, it's good for showing to kids or friends. It's not for someone truly interested in astronomy at least for now. I 'll explain what I mean, for a visual astronomer nothing beats the feeling to look through the optic, the movement, the quality of the telescope, how it is corrected... For a astrophotographer the quantity of hours and optical quality brings a much better result. For both photographers and visual there is also the question of what telescope for a type of target. This is technologically advanced, ok for many things but not very good at anything. Will this change in the future? Of course... But the software can almost bend the laws of physics but not break them.

[@johnkasianowicz6536]

I think you missed the point of the instrument. It isn’t necessarily for hardcore amateur astronomers (visual or imaging), but it opens up astronomy to many others (who can afford to pony up $4K).

[@nrv8013]

@@johnkasianowicz6536 ok it's your point of view that I respect, but if you want good quality images of the cosmos there's the internet. The feeling of looking thru an eyepiece into the night sky is unique and you won't be able to get it with this type of devices. Again it's my humble opinion

[@harrison00xXx]

@@johnkasianowicz6536 Nope... astronomy is much more than just clicking at a target in a smartphone and wait until the image appears... and that even in super low quality!

[@aleksandersuur9475]

Something is in the air and it smells like bullshit. Lets be frank, this thing does not do visual astronomy, astrophotography only. And does it do 4000$ worth of astrophotography? The images presented answer with a clear NO. It does the focus automatically, then why is Orion nebula out of focus? And what's up with the compression artifacts? I don't think that's youtube video compression doing that, stacking software is cutting some corners there, probably because the onboard computer doesn't quite have the oomph needed to process raw. Fully self contained robo-telescopes might be the future of amateur astronomy one day, but it doesn't look like that day is today. The price is not there and the performance is not there. The biggest problem with this telescope is perhaps not the performance you get out of the box, but that what you get out of the box is all you will ever get out of it. You can't upgrade any of it, you can't reuse any part of it, you can't modify anything to work around a problem. Your only option going forward is to get a whole new kit that can do what stellina can't and then you are left with a 4000$ piece of junk.

[@BrianBaastrup]

Tell us how you really feel...

[@Robert08010]

They've just mis-targeted it - probably because they want to recoup developmental costs. No advanced amateur would want it. But this is ideal for beginners and students and outreach programs etc. To that end, its price needs to be well under $1000. In fact, WHEN this is lowered to around $500, the it will sell like hot cakes. And you know it will eventually. Because right now, the number of customers at this price point is very very small. But if they get it down under $500, they will sell 10,000 units at least.

[@lovemetender9979]

So basically... it's like googling for the image and you get the image from your phone? That's not exciting. What makes owning a telescope exciting is when you actually use it.

[@MisterMakerNL]

No it is about exploring the night sky.

[@robertsmith20022]

@@MisterMakerNL no......its about seeing with your own eyes. I dont want to see a picture, I want to visually see stars, planets, moons.

[@blschneider]

Robert Smith it’s designed for astrophotography.

[@robertsmith20022]

@@blschneider I get that, i just personally, want to see it with my own eyes.

[@juliano191]

Robotic telescopes WILL eventually replace dedicated setups. Looking thru an eyepiece was never a joy. Your cellphone becomes your eyepiece. Period. No more lugging out a huge scope, with cameras, tripod, mount, cables galore, filter wheel, polar scope, and the huge amount of setup time make the hobby unfullfilling most times. If they increase the size of robotic scope, and better sensor, traditional astrophotography will fall by the wayside. Good or bad, it's the way of technology.

[@vaonisdotcom]

Hi Tony, thank you for this review! If you want to keep it few more weeks, it's ok! But... send it back before June or we will activate the "return to home" mode ;) ! All the team wishes you a wonderful holiday season.

[@deepastronomy]

Fair enough :-)

[@DeathValleyDazed]

Vaonis Wow, congrats to your whole team for all of hard work and talent expended in your new product. Even though I can’t afford it now I do hope it sells like hot cakes as a reward for your efforts!

[@Robert08010]

Jeez, Can't it just phone home? "E.T. Phone Hooooomme!"

[@borntraveller007]

I was looking for a compact set up to take away in my campervan and as a beginner this ticks all the boxes, Once House arrest is lifted (and stays lifted) I'll definitely be buying one of these 😁👍 Cracking review 👍 (only just seen it) 😉

[@sputniksam]

I wholeheartedly understand the negative comments this scope has received in this review and others. My setup has far greater aperture, and higher resolution imager, and was significantly cheaper. However I suffered a severe spinal injury eight years ago and my imaging rig has not moved from the under stairs cupboard since as I’m no longer able to set it all up. Something like this would have me back in the hobby again but the price is completely prohibitive. Maybe as the technology improves, bringing the price down, I may someday get to collect some prehistoric photons again. Regards Nidge.

[@sputniksam]

@@marekdurina2422 Great minds think alike. I pre-ordered the Dwarf2 at the beginning of December, along with the deluxe accessories. I think what’s being overshadowed by its astroimaging capabilities is its terrestrial usability, such as 4K video, intelligent object tracking, panoramic still, and with the ND filters it’s ability to shoot solar images. Something that neither the Stellina and Vespera, and the Equinox, smart scopes can do.

[@esbrasill]

"Connect to wifi to download images", i might as well download the images from the internet and save me $3999. The lack of eyepiece on these scopes just kills the experience.

[@fnersch3367]

Check out the Unistellar eVscope. It has an eyepiece and cost $1000 less.

[@LeMAD22]

...and it's garbage. I'm not saying the Stellina is any better though.

[@aggese]

@@fnersch3367 it have an eyepiece that let you look at a screen not the actual mirror's

[@fnersch3367]

@@aggese - the eVscope has a diopter correction lens that allows the eye to focus on the OLED screen. These two components constitute the "eyepiece".

[@pluto6383]

fnersch one question about the eVscope I have that I don’t think anyone, regardless of their stance on the controversial telescope, has really touched on is this: Why has unistellar said before that the eVscope is powerful enough to see Pluto? Pluto is magnitude 14.4 and I don’t think it is physically possible for a 4.5” aperture telescope with a maximum magnification of 150x to see an object that dim. If you’re wondering where they said this, Franck said it in a KZbin comment on one of Unistellar’s videos and I’ve also seen the claim appear on eVscope-backing sites.

[@ChrisTurchin]

This just popped into my feed though it's a little old, but I thought it was a fair and balanced review of the tech. Involved in software and mobile development myself, and having just started into AP maybe 18 months before this came out, this is absolutely how I expected AP to be. Clearly, reality of the current technology was rude awakening for me! That said, I'm glad I struggled through it, but anyone out there looking for a quick win rather than 18 months of debugging why ascom doesn't talk to my scope and what cable is loose and why the COM ports have changed and what is wrong with PHD2 and why the focus is off again and is it really polar aligned and why GoTo++ crashed and and and .... Should really seriously consider this as a stepping stone before moving on to larger things. It certainly is much more where I expected the tech to be today. I know lots of other's are catching up fast, but gotta hand it to them, what they've put out is very impressive. Love space junk, clear skies!

[@harrison00xXx]

Why so heavily relying on ASCOM? I tried it too (on windows) and failed all the time with 3 different PCs! So i decided to use the ST4 guiding port of the guiding camera instead of struggling with ASCOM. Just ST4 guiding is improving results a lot.... in combination i ALWAYS searched manually also with bigger binoculars for my targets and learned finding targets without help as bonus. As i got a 2021 MacBook Pro... i just tried for fun the (free, open source) astrophotography software "KSTARS"... WOW! very professional, complex appealing... but once into it... it automates your whole AP sessions COMPLETELY... so i bought a cheap 2000mm on dobson mount, some barlow lenses and now i have mostly 2 setups out there... the 750mm newton for AP automated 100% (except focus) via MacBook and my 2000mm newton with barlow lens or zoom eyepiece for visual observation for the "real joy". Some day i will also afford anything with 11" mirrors or bigger... the 8" vs 6" is already a huge difference for visual observation, 11"+ is just another world you can see with your eyes directly. I was going intentionally the "hard way"... but it was damn easy in my opinion... the biggest problems i had... old gear with failures and issues, calibrating and so i had to fix before getting the best possible image quality! Anything beside gear problems is damn easy... I luckily forgot ascom completely and at Mac OS there are different drivers, called INDI/Indigo for kstars. I would recommend if you are still into it... i solved all my connection/automation issues with a single "all in one" program like kstars (on Mac OS, no experience with windows)... the mount and tracking problems are anyways a different story and my fault by getting the cheapest possible newtonian set

[@edwardtupper6374]

Happily I live in NZ and enjoy watching everything wheeling overhead while fishing through the night, throughout the year. I don't catch a lot of fish but that's entirely beside the point.

[@craiglowery4427]

Awesome review Tony. Your review just popped into my feed. Vaonis now sells the Vespera which I've owned tor two weeks now. Like you I've bee an amateur astronomer for 50 years. My specialty is planetary imaging with a Celestron 14" Edge HD SCT. I love my Vespera. I never was that excited with deep space objects until now. Vespera is so easy and fun to use. It does have filters and you can manually post process the images. Amazing tech which I already have on my laptop controlling my 14" but Vespera's ease of use encourages scientific exploration of deep sky objects. I believe smart telescopes will continually to evolve astrophotography. Just look at the popularity of technology like the ZWO ASIAIR and the PRIMALUCELAB EAGLE mini computers. I also believe a new generation of kids will be inspired to pursue math and science in college and will change the world.

[@pedroantonio4316]

Do you think that this telescope may have preloaded images and that how is able to get so much detail no matter the conditions

[@stevezzag4511]

That was my first thought. You might as well download professional images. Could you do "on the fly" images of Neowise or Saturn. Doesn't sound like you can

[@bulldogbrower6732]

Are you preloaded ?

[@harrison00xXx]

SO MUCH DETAIL?! What is your definition of detail? pixel counting on an uncropped image?

[@mycarolinaskies]

I appreciate the review of the Stellina. I watched Galactic Hunter's video as well. The price tag will continue to leave this unit beyond the reach of the average amateur and newbie. An organization purchasing it for outreach... possibly. However for it to really be outreach friendly it should have better connectivity options than an app to up to 20 devices. Connectivity to one of today's smart TVs via shared networks, etc. would be preferred. Connection to an existing network, etc. I understand your appreciation for the software behind the device, coming from that side of things myself. But there are open source solutions which do much of the processes which Stellina has unified into it's design. Given that very real fact, it won't be difficult to emmulate this same process. Unlike 20-30 years ago, the tools to build applications to do these kind of things are much much easier. I note that you shared easy targets, even the Crab nebula is bright enough that with the average DSLR/Video camera you can get images without much fuss. I'll also note that while it does automate many processes, the results are generally out of the users control for real adjustments. Maybe you have done more imaging of less bright targets... how about a follow up video with examples of non-standard targets. The single device Stellina incorporates that most amateurs don't utilize is the de-rotator. This device can literally turn any Alt-Az into a better imaging platform... however the accuracy of the rotator and accompanying software to tweak rotations prior to stacking seems to be a bit of an issue in some of your images as noted by looking at the full field. This means that there is work to be done by Veonis still. This won't replace an eyepiece... sorry... looking at the moon through an eyepiece is still far more jaw dropping than watching a stacked image. And 80mm aperture cannot replace the resolution of 200mm - 400mm telescopes common in visual astronomy. Yes, EAA, which is essentially what this device springboards from, makes 80mm seem fantastic. If Veonis had made the Stellina from a 8" RASA or 6" SCT, then I'd be far more impressed though.

[@sao9995]

What a wonderful review. I love this guy. So knowledgable and enthusiastic. Thank you so much!

[@isaacjohnson8752]

You are so right Tony, I am extremely blessed to have bortle 1,2,3 skies within an hour in every direction and can only hope everyone gets a dark sky experience at least once in their lives. I think this is a really cool device however, I have one question. Can this device lock on to any portion of sky desired? Or is it just preset objects? I ask this because after a little over a year of visual observing I have decided to try some electronically assisted astronomy, mainly for outreach in downtown Boise. I also want to use EAA to search the skies for comets and asteroids in the hope of doing some real science with my hobby, I'm a physics undergrad so I am exited to do real science! If stellina could lock onto any section of sky via coordinate systems it could be used for searching for near earth objects. Thanks for this review, I absolutely enjoy the Space Junk Podcast and wait eagerly for new episodes as well as registering to older ones. I always enjoy when you have space artists on the show because I have combined my love for art and astronomy as well.

[@deepastronomy]

I assume you're asking if you can slew the telescope to any area of the sky by RA/Dec? That's a good question, I didn't see that option in the app but I'll forward that question on to Vaonis and see what they say.

[@ralph9563]

Isaac Johnson It’s possible because the software inside the Stellina can be updated in the future just like a PC.

[@sl-rt5kv]

You can enter in any RA and DEC coordinates you want into Stellina and it will take you there every time flawlessly. I track asteroids with Stellina using coordinates that I derive from an Ephemeris. Then I'll upload my asteroid images to plate solving web sites that quickly identify stars and other objects in the image.

[@conchobar]

Great review. I think visual astronomers have already made peace with the limitations of visual observing. Its the astrophotography group, who currently are the big spenders in the hobby, who will feel threatened. While devices like the Stellina arent cheap, the time and effort they save in setup is even more valuable.

[@Cake...]

Wow! I seriously want one of these!

[@zelodec]

Why? For 4000$ you can get a much much better imaging rig. Any sane person would avoid any kind of plug and play imaging rigs like this one.

[@hhduhjougstdgbg7383]

@@zelodec that's the effect of marketing for people who don't know much about astrophotography. So they did a good job on marketing the product lol.

[@zelodec]

@@hhduhjougstdgbg7383 I agree. When I was doing my research on astrophotography how to start. I was looking at those powerseeker telescopes and EQ3 mounts. You know the gear that looks like it's good but it's not. But I didn't stop there and reached CloudyNights where I learned the truth about good equipment .

[@hhduhjougstdgbg7383]

@@zelodec Yeah! Pretty much, I just moved from visual to astrophotography so I did lots of research. I already have a DSLR and a mount so now I only need a smaller telescope to carry not the 10-inch one. I think I will go with the Red Cat optics, it's so cheap compared to other astrophotography scope and get the job done. You should check it out, only $600 if you have a DSLR.

[@zelodec]

@@hhduhjougstdgbg7383 I have a 80mm f5.6 TS doublet and Samyang 135mm lens with DIY autofocus and a asi1600mm pro camera. Still after a year I'm learning stuff. The biggest issue of all of my equipment is taking flats. Over 1 year I don't remember I ever successfully calibrated my data with flats because they just over correct every time. Even the guys on CloudyNights Couldn't help me find the culpit. You can find my work on astrobin under username: BoskoSLO

[@StudioVoodooMusic]

For someone who has to drive two hours to get to dark skies, this looks like a dream. I can see owning both a Stellina for the home, and a regular telescope for when we get out to the desert. (Having a Stellina mount on the roof would be super cool!)

[@mikeries8549]

You do realize that my pet crow is going to roost on your roof telescope and what do crows do first thing in the morning?

[@fnersch3367]

I have been involved in this hobby now for 61 years and have owned dozens of telescopes over the decades. I delighted 300 children (and stunned their parents) last night at one of our school outreaches with the eVscope. With this scope spiral galaxies, planetary nebulae, and numerous other types of objects were picked out of the murk in Bortle 9 skies and gibbous moon. In several minutes I had some of the kids operating the scope themselves. There is no doubt to me that this is the best scope I have ever owned, bar none. Instruments like this will predominate the hobby in the future. Stellina is a sister telescope to the eVscope. Stellina has a higher resolution sensor but a smaller aperture (half the light gathering power) than the eVscope. With these two scopes astronomy can be brought to the masses.

[@fnersch3367]

@f lucifer At Canterbury Elementary School, Arleta, CA. In 3 hours we looked at NGCs 2342, 2420 ,3147, 2903, 2775, 2022, 1977,M41,M42,M35, and C/2017 T2. Not bad for 3 hours with the kids. I let one of them steer it to M42, the easiest of the objects. Doing this makes it worth every penny for me. We had about 10 other telescopes at this event. They looked at the Moon, Venus, and M42. One scope looked at R Leporus.

[@mikeries8549]

I'm having a hard time believing that a guy assembled 300+ ppl during a pandemic where churches and schools are closed. His timing must have been perfect and his star party was on the eve before lockdown..

[@251omega]

I guess I'm going to "want" one for a long, long time. PRICE TAG: $3999.00

[@aggese]

You can get hundred of times better stuff for less then half Might need some work to set stuff up but you will actually be able to see anything

[@aggese]

Look at the Sky-Watcher Go-To Skyliner-200P FlexTube 8'' if you want a good computer controlled scope for about 1000$

[@Ryuuken24]

With the image quality, I say set the thing for two years time, maybe the image will get sharper by then.

[@matthew2182]

Flex tube8" is definitely not the right search term in google.

[@DeathValleyDazed]

I enjoy your enthusiasm for dark skies and for this new sky gazing machine. Can’t wait for someone to bring one to our local star party!

[@shaunmichaels6801]

Absolutely brilliant review, love your delivery and honesty. You rationalise and explain your thought process. Thank you for this posting, you have another subscriber, 😊👍

[@teashea1]

excellent presentation. I have five Takahashi telescopes and this thing is powerful competition.

[@MarkoPola]

I really enjoyed this review. I love star hopping with a dobsonian but I also think the portable, packaged technology of the Stellina and eVscope is super cool. John Dobson loved to take out his telescope to invite others to peer into the wonders of the night sky. These electronic systems bring that same principle to new generations. At star parties everyone wants to put their smart phone up to the eyepiece to share their experience online. But the images that they could share from Stellina would be of much higher quality. As this technology continues to expand, I’m sure we will see more and more visual scopes incorporating these design principles. I’m just starting out with astrophotography and the ASIAIR is another piece of technology that helps make that hobby easier for me since it packages a bunch of imaging applications into one easy to use interface. Stellina is another way to introduce people to astrophotography. I’d rather spend my limited time observing and collecting data versus setting up and extensive time in post processing. Lots of exciting times ahead for astronomy and astrophotography. Clear skies

[@harrison00xXx]

Nope... stellina image quality is just poor! at best comparable to a cheap 150$ 80mm APO with a lower end color MFT astro camera.

[@karcoms]

How does this compare with the latest kickstarter Vespera? Same software but cheaper optics?

[@SPQR-Z]

Gee imagine that. A telescope manufacturer comes out with a automated, convenient, push button extremely easy to use telescope that works pretty well and everyone is surprised it’s selling like hotcakes. And that despite it’s high price tag. That’s surprising to people in the hobby? Really? I haven’t seen this much hate since the old-timers hating on GoTo back in the early 90’s. Sounds like a mountain of SourGrapes to me. And oh by the way the GoTo scopes won out. Most Astro Photography rigs look like a refugee from a cheap science fiction movie. Wires going all over the place, computers, cameras, expensive mounts and a pile of supporting equipment that all has to be carried out, setup, tinkered with, babysat, adjusted etc, etc. Not to mention a very steep learning curve and boatloads of aggravation to learn the craft. These automated cheater scopes are the future of amateur Astronomy so you geeks and traditionalist better get used to it. I’m a old timer telescope geek like this reviewer and I love the simplicity of this little scope. I still have my traditional Astrophoto and visual rigs but these days they sit gathering dust most evenings while I use my Stellina for a quick viewing session. Yes there are major shortcomings but your gaining max convenience giving up absolute control and peak performance. Hopefully more manufacturers see the light and start making these Robo scopes. The prices will come down and the functionality go up. Great review. It was your video that finally knocked me off the fence and buy a Stellina. One of my best/funnest Astronomy hardware purchases ever.

[@harrison00xXx]

Well - the "oldtimers" have a good point in my opinion which i share with them: GoTo... yes its nice... but as you are writing... i guess you never looked thru a telescope bigger than 6" mirror? visual observation and learning to navigate on the night sky is SUCH A NICE THING! I began with astrophotography and without GoTo... but i ended up with astrophotography automated "besides astronomy" since i am doing visual observation with a big 8" newton! Like this even if my AP gear had problems, bad seeing or whatever fked up the session partially or completely... whatever... i enjoyed visual observation Sometimes i dont even go out with the AP gear... just the big newton and enjoy the night sky... and soon i hope to find affordable 11"+ telescopes for more reach without barlow lenses.

[@MikeLikesChannel]

Absolutely, hit the nail on the head. This is a first generation "smart telescope", the first of many to come. It's expensive and therefore won't be found in every other garage on the street, but it will get there... AmazonEssentials will ship a Vespera clone for $999 soon enough. This is the future for amateurs when everyone lives in a Bortle 9. I know the old timers are upset, but this is a digital camera in 1994 or a cellular phone in 1986. A "taste of things to come soon."

[@Guanaalex]

That was an outstanding review. I would call it the iScope. As an Apple / Macintosh nerd, this is finally the one to get.

[@karensmith9577]

Many thanks for this excellent assessment of the Stellina. I have two Astro-Physics telescopes that I cherish, but I live in New York City and only occasionally get to dark sky locations to take full advantage of them. I don't think this needs to be an either/or situation, as some think. Of course the cost is an impediment--I'm trying to sell two other scopes to feel better about making this purchase! Thanks again!

[@marktuyet]

4000.00 is nothing . I spent over 3000.00 on my televue 85 with eyepieces and tripod . This is a bargain .

[@harrison00xXx]

but its hella lot for the poor (more like 300$ worth) image quality

[@AZD2169]

Great video, you have me almost sold on the Stellina. Have you ever looked at the Unistellar Optics smart scope? Thanks so much, great job, you answered all my questions.

[@billducas]

Great. Now I need another telescope.

[@fnersch3367]

Yeah.... tell me! In 60 years of doing this hobby I've owned several dozen and now I want a Stellina, an eVscope, and the Hiuni. All three are electronic.

[@pandemonium274]

Wow!!! My jaw dropped watching this. Incredible!!! The future of observational astronomy right before my eyes!!!! Beginner friendly. Star Party ready. I am shaking my head in wonder.

[@Lens_In_Wonderland]

i wonder if it has an onboard gigabyte of saved images that "help" in the graphical processing of the exposures you take.

[@mikeries8549]

Ahhhh. This guy is a philosopher and uses his head. Great comment!

[@Robert08010]

I doubt it BUT I can certainly see how much easier it would be to fake output rather than actually do what it claims to do. I just think, if it were faking it, the images would be much better. In another review the host used it in 2 different sites, one excellent, one badly light polluted, and shot the same object. There was a noticeable difference which implies they weren't just copied out of a catalog. But I see your point and the fact that this has a tiny list of 145 targets might imply that they only had room for so many "helper images".

[@2001johngalt]

@@Robert08010 Take the scope out on a cloudy night. If it generates images, send it back.

[@Markinpuff]

They should call it “TheLazyScope”

[@jonathanhodge9684]

I’m sure that 16th century astronomers would have called my setup from the 1980’s the same thing. Just saying.

[@rickpaul9858]

Thanks. Great analysis as usual!

[@E_Stew]

Is there some space based telescope that allows for amateur viewers to login to it and view any part of the sky without the worry of the light pollution from Earth?

[@aggese]

No That is only for the really professional users as that is far to expensive and limited to even offer for a price

[@E_Stew]

@@aggese Ok ... Thanks.

[@juliano191]

If they were to tripple the size of the lens both in diameter and length and add additional hardware to support it, I think in a very few year's individual telescope component's would get phased out. Looks like its heading that way. Except for the most die hard astrophotographers. The thought of just pushing a button have have all that work, setup and post processing, is EXCELLENT. Say what you will, Id much rather forego all that and really enjoy the activity. Soooo much less expensive Sure, theres a limited amount of satisfaction from doing it all piecemeal and from scratch, but as stated, I much rather push a button and sit back and enjoy. Just my two thoughts

[@brianjones1272]

Great review. I'm curious about the phone connection: Can Stellina connect to an iPad (larger screen) or only a phone? Does the Stellina come with software that allows you to save the observed images? If it compiles such great shots, it would be a shame to not store them. Is storage on your local device (iPad or phone) or can you store images in the cloud also?

[@Alan_Clark]

You can output images to a usb stick to load onto your computer. They can be finished jpegs, or tiffs which need stretching in image processing software, or a fits file for each 10 second exposure which you can stack.

[@Elenduful]

Great review, you made some very good points! I never took the Stellina very seriously until now; I thought it seemed like an expensive gimmick for beginners wanting to jump right into astrophotography. But I agree with your assessment that it is the future of casual observing. Makes me wonder though about future generations with everything being experienced through a screen. Will life events never feel quite real for them unless it is uploaded to the cloud and shared with countless others?

[@galaxia4709]

This.

[@deepastronomy]

I know, I have the same reservations about experiencing life through a screen, but the reality is, these objects are less and less available via an eyepiece and to see them at all, you need something like this.

[@ChrisKoehn]

Would be interesting if you could save images onboard and add them to new imaging sessions of objects from previous sessions, building up tons of data per target. Even more interesting if you could connect with other Stellina units across the globe that are also capturing the same target for live time data acquisition and imaging.

[@dpalms24]

This is just a preassemble EAA package at a hefty price. EAA (electronically assisted astronomy) is a popular form of astronomy but it does not replace either AP (astrophotography) nor visual. Many EAA observers spend much less than this for the same results. This does make it plug and play which is why you would pay the premium price. EAA has been around for quite some time. It has not and probably never will replace visual astronomy.

[@jerryakamuadams6399]

ive been into astronomy since i was a teenager (about the last 10 years). I too been a visual observer and the only astrophotography i've done is using the smart phone mount up to the eyepiece. Serious astrophotography seemed too time consuming and expensive to me. However this does seem like a game changer to me, im seriously considering getting it to get into astrophotography

[@harrison00xXx]

I hope you didnt do it - any 600mm F4.4 newton or super cheap 750mm F5 on GoTO mount will deliver much better images for less than 1/4 of the price! Or a chinese APO with 300-400mm even cheaper than a modern newton and still better than Stellina. Also, with proper gear you learn astronomy at least properly (at best learning in the beginning without GoTo at all!). If i want stellinas capabilities... i look for a survey and have the "best image quality" ad-hoc from the whole night sky - no 4000$ needed to push some buttons for a poor result/image.

[@harrison00xXx]

did you had an equatorial mount or a basic mount like dobson or even on a regular tripod? Btw expensive in astrophotography is just stellina. I paid 300$ for a 2nd hand 750mm F5 newton on EQ3-2 mount. Absolutely not to recommend (hard to deal with this wobbly, annoying "poor mans" mount)... but still A LOT BETTER IMAGES than stellina with a 50$ DSLR. 300$, very hassle free and better results than "one click" solution for 4000$... I hope you understand the difference. You cant say astrophotography is expensive... but then consider Stellina, LOL! deep sky astrophotography beyond 2000mm is anyways very hard to do, and 600-1500mm is definately affordable and much better than stellina from the beginning, sadly. The idea is great... it just ended up as overpriced, nice looking hipster junk with barely benefits (except for "easy use")... but modern GoTo stuff, especially dobson mounts also work like a charme... no reason to pay that much for stellina!

[@andym4695]

What a sweet machine! I'm not into astronomy, but this is a seriously elegant solution.

[@Tommyr]

This is the future. I'm a backer of the eVscope. I'll be getting mine soon. These are more of an OBSERVING tool and not meant for serious astrophotography. Although they DO take very nice images. I hope the major scope makers take note and step up their game!

[@fnersch3367]

I wonder how the eVscope compares to Stellina in overall performance?

[@ummerfarooq5383]

Picture a million of these focused at one location for a single high res image.

[@harrison00xXx]

Picture this: It doesnt work like that. Light doesnt work like radiowaves by EHT...) Stellinas resolution is POOR! My 300$ 750mm newton got better details, is collecting more light with its faster aperture! Any "proper" telescope for 1000-2000$ will outperform stellina by lightyears! Also... modern dobson like GoTo mounts and SC telescops are just as easy to set up and control like Stellina... in case you didnt know! But they are cheaper and deliver incredible image quality. With just a single 1500$ telescope.. outperforms a million stellinas!

[@harrison00xXx]

and as nice bonus, you can especially use the big SC type like Celestron C8 for incredible planatery images, even without barlow lenses. With barlow, you can take "hi res" images of saturn and its rings as well as all other planets! Saw once someone with a compact 8" SC at a gathering. He set the telescope up on a camping table super convenient and with 8" you see already very faint, small targets! my 6" 750mm F5 newton is also good, but not enough focal range for really enjoyment (despite having much more range than stellina ever can have)

[@robertYTB78g]

I would like it more if I could tweak images on the fly, or have settings for my personal image processing as I do for manual astrophotography. Otherwise great, but at this price I am going to guess rival companies will probably beat Veonis at their own game very soon. The elements are already there in near free open source software, but I don’t think it will be from the big manufacturers just yet, as the are still trying to milk their massive range of yesterday’s technology for as long as they can.

[@neddyladdy]

Can't use it without a mobile phone ? What's the point of it then ?

[@fnersch3367]

The Unistellar eVscope doesn't need a mobile phone.

[@neddyladdy]

@@fnersch3367 why, because it doesn't have the power of speech ?

[@fnersch3367]

@@neddyladdy - as far as I know these scopes have no speech function. This could be easily added if the demand is high enough.

[@enriqueboeneker]

I agree with you that this thing and the other ones to come will change the way we do visual astronomy. But I also think that this scope has to be installed in every school on Earth. It is a valuable instrument to teach about the Universe and, therefore, about us.

$3999 for an amateur device, when you have real great "profissional" "easy to use" devices for 1/3 of the price? No, thanks.

[@andym4695]

Can you list some of these? Not trolling, just interested.

[@aggese]

@@andym4695 Sky-Watcher Go-To Skyliner-200P FlexTube 8'' About 1000$ Large enough so you will actually be able to see stuff but not so large that it is impossible to move it.

[@TeamYankee2]

@@aggese Does it come with a camera and processing software ?

[@Hot_Sky_Astronomy]

@@andym4695 CGX 800HD, and an ASI 533 MC Pro.

[@nordic5490]

@@aggese add a tracking mount + tripod + laptop, and your set up is more expensive.

[@danedewaard8215]

Your review is compelling, but for me, I think that $4,000 is way to much and the experience is way to little! I enjoy seeing the fuzzy image in the eyepiece, knowing I have set up and found a deep space object. If I want a detailed view of the object, I can just go on-line and get an amazing image. I just can't see purchasing an expensive, camera based telescope! If it was MY hobby to take astronomical photographs, then I would probably have to have this item!!! I definitely understand and highly regard the amazing optics, motion control, camera, and software of this well designed and well made unit, but it just doesn't give ME any desire to purchase it. I CAN absolutely understand why many amatuer astronmers would LOVE to have it! Thanks for you great review!!!!

[@ssabykoops]

Pretty unreal. Thanks Tony

[@boyanfg]

Thank you very much for this review. I can well tell that this is done by a professional. But, what is the difference from identifying an object on an app of your phone and then downloading the best possible photo, possibly taken by the Hubble Space Telescope, from the internet? Isn't it much more fun to play with filters and different eyepieces or camera adapters to get the best out of a 'traditional' amateure telescope? As much as I understood, you are limited to observe the objects that are in the software catalog of the Stellina. How about if you would like to observe a new comet? Could you add filters to observer sun spots during the day? Could I take a series of shots of a variable star on a number of nights to see the variation of the brightness? Thank you very much for answering my questions!

[@beesod6412]

your solar garden

[@gitaryddcymraeg8816]

I'm not a fan of this. I think it would be a shame if astronomy went in this direction. It takes away the experience and learning ability that normal telescopes give. I love having to find objects by manually moving a telescope and learning the night sky at the same time. Star hopping is amazing when you successfully do it for the first time with the ability to identify the stars that you see. Also, there is no substitute for seeing a nebula through an eyepiece and then have the option to attach a camera to take an image. Being forced to only see a photo is a very bad thing in my opinion. Normal telescopes are a far better way to go and for a fraction of the price.

[@Upuauta]

5:50 I hear it doesn´t have an on board gps sensor and uses that of your mobile device.

[@MikeLikesChannel]

Just needs the lat/lon/elevation/current time... yep.

[@tiletipswalkerstile9941]

Great informative review

[@skyemac8]

Fabulous.

[@GoldSrc_]

Nope, it will never replace visual astronomy, and our beautiful Saturn will make sure of it lol. I would like to see how good (or bad) it does for terrestrial observations, or even have a crack at Venus.

[@robertsmith20022]

I agree. For 4 grand, I need to SEE the actual night sky. This only takes a picture

[@gitaryddcymraeg8816]

@@robertsmith20022 I agree completely. Also part of the beauty of astronomy is star hopping and learning at the same time with your eyes, not a camera. For 4 grand you can eliminate the beauty of astronomy.

[@fnersch3367]

I use a 7 inch Maksutov for Saturn. It works good.

[@ocelotMartinez]

great video

[@matthew2182]

I don't think an all in one alt/az mount is going to dethrone dedicated equipment. One day sensors will just be able to snap a 5 sec exposure and it will look like the results of an hour long one. You can already live stack with sharp cap so this product does little besides offer portability if you feel the need to go out to the middle of nowhere for the same results.

[@NatarajanGanesan]

Just an 80mm apochromatic ED refractor with GoTo capabilities. Just try pricing that with a good mount. Putting a reflection piece to direct it to the sensor doesn't make it a part-reflector, unless that forms the core light gathering component. Eyepieces tossed out. Add a built in imaging camera (6 megapixels max I guess), a filter and plate-solving (to know its bearings). When I package all these (limiting me to for purposes of imaging alone), the price is way beyond all things added together. With similar setup from known brands, I get to enjoy visual astronomy too. Just not enough to price it like a Mac (no offense of Mac 😊).

[@NatarajanGanesan]

With a 60mm apochromatic refractor on an EQ-1 mount I got better M42. Andromeda was just passable in the frame shown here.

[@NatarajanGanesan]

With NO eyepieces, this CANNOT be the future of 'Visual Astronomy'. A range of light filters still have their purpose. I do hear you on the light pollution thing and we are all there together.

[@Mike-1000]

I think I'll wait for the Blackest of Black Friday Sales for this !!!

[@LaunchPadAstronomy]

Holy Cannoli, I need to get some of these for Towson Univeristy.

[@Hot_Sky_Astronomy]

Or get an HEQ-5 8" RASA, ASI 294 MC PRO, ASIair, and an Optolong CLS, and you've already blown stellina out of the water for only 200$ less, and you'd actually be able to see things in higher definition than 1080 x 720

[@convertibleken2516]

Would Stellina be for useful for variable and binary star observing?

[@harrison00xXx]

Nope, a big aperture newtonian (750mm F4 or F5 for example, or 1000mm+) is much cheaper and outperforming Stellina with a huge gap between Stellina is a hipster product... my 300$ 2nd hand 750mm F5 take A LOT BETTER images than Stellina ever could. and since a while i got in addition to my RF 800 F11 wildlife lens a nice star tracker... 6 kg astrophotography gear fitting into a small backpack, even outperforming my 750mm F5 newton easily when i have enough exposure time. But well... camera, tracker and 800mm lens cost also about 2200$ together, not 300$ excluded the camera. But i begin to question the purchase of my 750mm newton... yes, its cheap... yes its versatile for planatery stuff and so... But the convenience of a supertele lens and small startracker... ist just for different targets made, F11 is still very bad and the ISO is cranked up to maintain below 2 minute exposures so i end up with a lot more images and time invested to get the same image quality.

[@251omega]

I had trouble seeing very many meteors in August, under the city lights. 1) Would that scope work for meteor viewing or would a single-shot event like a meteor be insufficient time to gather enough light? 2) Could the scope be used for landscape photos of scenery at night?

[@NGC6144]

Telescopes aren't used for viewing meteors . They traverse too large a distance for the small field of view of a telescope. To image them one uses wide-field low focal length camera lenses. Also, one needs to be at a reasonable dark sight to view annual meteor showers and then it can be a hit or miss since they may not be very active one year to the next. It's mostly a game of sitting back and just watching with one eyes.

[@251omega]

@@NGC6144 Thank You for explaining. I'm (obviously) not an astronomer, but I am becoming interested. Recently I used my 70X spotting scope to look at Saturn. I find it very hard to express my feelings of joy, awe, and excitement when I saw the Rings of Saturn, for my first time! I'm retired with little or no money to spend. barely making it, getting by, by sometimes skipping meals, so I won't be spending $4K on a telescope, any time soon...but I can still enjoy some astronomy on the web! Thanks for your patience!

[@MikeLikesChannel]

When the price point on these "smart scopes" drop below $1000, they'll become very popular. The Vespera is already getting there at $2499 new, if it was $1499 new it'd already be there. I strongly feel the $1000ish neighborhood is a *magic number* for hobbyists, psychologically. Once you price something higher, the number of people with that kind of disposable income for something only used on a clear night... drops off a cliff. Serious amateur astronomers are another matter, $4000 to them is a steal ;) For those saying this is an abomination or destroys the hobby of astronomy? Not at all... this is just the 21st century reality of where this is all going. First generation product -- yes -- one of *many* to come. Even dumb visual scopes are leveraging smart phone apps with stuff like Celestron StarSense.

[@kevanhubbard9673]

I don't like the look of the bright white light on the on/off switch but I suppose that you could put some tape over it however I don't think much thought has gone into that aspect of it.other nearby,if say you where at a star party, astronomers using traditional telescopes wouldn't like the white light.

[@8wealthyone8]

Excellent!

[@zedvee2668]

Firstly... that lens is a dew magnet Secondly... that bright blue LED circle on the side is a great conversation starter.

[@MikeLikesChannel]

That lens is heated automatically. Dew/frost has never been a problem, it's got a thermostat and heater effective to below freezing...

[@fourtwenty5986]

Does this thing take pictures only and no real time viewing?

[@harrison00xXx]

Sure. You wont be able to use the sensor or optice anywhere beside this complete package. It will end up as e-waste or cheap 2nd hand childrens toys!

[@jmpattillo]

There are still enormous areas in the Western US with very dark skies, but you have to go out there. I guess visual observing will become a vacation activity more than something many people can do from near where they live.

[@DB-MH11]

If Capturing images of deep sky objects (without any effort) is your only requirement, I highly recommend ‘NASA images’ portal. No need to spend a dime.

[@lyricalleopard7585]

is this a branded video?

[@commentoilmondo]

i love astronomy, i am an amateuer of the field but....WTF IS THIS? is this astronomy? hell no. i prefer my Celestron Skymaster 25x100 to FEEL the sky, not print it.

[@harrybrill2922]

I have never owed a telescope (i intend to soon) and i am thoroughly interested in astronomy and to be honest I wouldn’t enjoy this at all you might as well just look up 4K image of m31 on google. Also the lens is tiny 2.5 inches maybe how would you get high resolution images of deep sky objects.And I’m pretty sure the app just shows you a photo of the thing you asked to see i mean how do you know its not a scam.

[@georgesaar9687]

CAN THIS BE CONTROLLED BY AN APP WITH MY BASIC IPAD WITH WIFI OR ONLY AN IPHONE APP?

[@8080408729a]

It costs more then twice the price of vespara..? Is it worth that upgrade..? If yes then what advantage it does have over vespara..?

[@harrison00xXx]

There is no "proper" smart telescope, they are all crap and overpriced!

[@scotthelmann5156]

Hi! What do you think about the EVscope?

[@williamramey1959]

"Very few people have seen the Milky Way." I see it everyday. I can be inside my home, or I can be outside and in a dark cave, for all that we see every day and night with unaided eyes, is part of the Milky Way. Ask yourself, "If the stars that I see above me at night is THE Milky Way, then where does the planet Earth and all that it contains fit into the scheme? People are too lazy to learn the different bands of the Milky Way, and thus choose ignorance over the fact that every star and planet we see every night, and even the parts of the Earth during daylight, belong to the Milky Way. It is no different than to point to Jupiter and say, "That is the Milky Way," rather than saying, Jupiter is PART of the Milky Way. It does not matter where you are on earth and viewing the nighttime sky, without binoculars or a telescope, one is only seeing part of the Milky Way. The idea that we look up and see for example the Carina-Sagittarius bands (or arms) of the Milky Way, and call that THE Milky Way is showing one's ignorance. It would be no different than a person serving a small portion of a pie or cake and calling it THE (entire) cake or pie. Let's not be so lazy in our explanation of what we see in the nighttime sky. We only see a portion of the Milky Way at any given time, and not the (entire) Milky Way. People tell me, "Thank you for your explanation" during the star parties that I conduct, for they have been confused when people say that the stars above and many light years away is THE Milky Way. In truth, it is only PART OF the Milky Way. To really understand the ignorance of people, post a few daylight pictures that you have taken to social media, and add the caption, "These are some of the pictures of the Milky Way that I took today." Really, many, many people do not realize that the planet Earth is part of the Milky Way. My mantra is, "Wrong identification leads to wrong conclusions."

[@readysetterrible3278]

I’m getting one...

[@justinsteere9824]

It's hard to sell this as an "Amateur" telescope with a $4,000 price tag. How many Amateur's do you know that would look at telescopes and say "I think I'm going to start with the most expensive one". In my opinion, the only people that will buy this are people that are rich enough that just want something easy to use once in a while or an experienced astro photographer that wants a new toy to play with. Your everyday Amateurs will never buy this or it will be a very unwise amateur that will end up regretting it or selling it once they realize how much money they wasted on it. Cool technology, but it's a bit of a stretch to it an Amateur scope.

[@harrison00xXx]

even experienced astrophotographers will see 4000$ as much - just look at good telescopes/astrographs... they are anywhere around 2000-4000$... over 4000$ are mostly oversized, extreme focal ranges like 2500mm+ (which are completely unconvenient, hard to manange and a hassle to polar align, thats why they are mostly fixed mounted in a small observatory) The 4000$ price tag completely kills its convenience the beginners would look for, and so its basically for super rich, "alien to life" people.... Thats also why i still hesitate to upgrady my 750mm 6" newton on EQ mount to a schmitt cassegrain 8" on dobson GoTo mount... it would be easier to set up and no polar alignment needed... but its too expensive for my basic hobby usage!

[@Bushcraft-xz6xd]

Faint smudges, sometimes with a hint of colour under the best conditions about sums up visual astronomy.

[@fnersch3367]

With your background, I wish you could review the Unistellar eVscope. Is it inferior? If so, in what way? We need someone who really knows what this is all about. The eVscope is the most trashed product I've ever seen on the internet. Why? Is it too good to be true?

[@Jenab7]

Is that teeny-weeny circle of glass the primary aperture?

[@joeshmoe66]

80mm is pretty standard for entry level scopes I believe.

[@ralph9563]

joeshmoe66 Astrophotographers also use 80mm scopes as well.

[@pluto6383]

joeshmoe66 however, it is not standard for a $3,999.99 telescope.

[@nobody2021]

@@joeshmoe66 that's the issue. It has entry level optical capabilities for the price of what could be described as a rolls-royce ametuer telescope. I can get a 12 inch aperture for less than a grand. For something that costs $4,000 it sure as hell doesn't have $4,000 optics

[@nordic5490]

@@nobody2021 then, you need a tracking mount, a tripod, and a laptop to capture the same images. Ie your total $$ spend to captuure the same images is waaaay more than for this scope. Dont to forget to add the cost of the laptop

[@odenursey]

It seems a bit pointless, might as well just Google an image of the object. This completely misses the awesomeness of seeing something through an eye piece. It's like most things that give you the end result without the effort, unsatisfying. Not for me.

[@nordic5490]

Pointless ? I am one of those 10000s of photographers who also point their cameras and camera to the sky and take nice images. I was imaging objects at 400 to 800mm 8yrs ago, and I have never felt that I also needed to see that object though an eye piece. I can see far more without an eyepiece. I was stacking and using filters 10yrs ago.

[@thanutz]

When you do Astro do you have a visual on it with your eyepiece?

[@ProperLogicalDebate]

Sounds like one at a Star Party to show the kids and anyone else.

[@MainerBump]

Other than the moon, how is the astro imaging scope with planets or is it deep space only ?

[@gitaryddcymraeg8816]

I'm guessing it won't be good for planets because of the very short focal length.

[@danniles5256]

Cool scope.Bring on the future.

[@mikeries8549]

Jedi-mind-trick telescope for sale.

[@narrator69]

That's kinda cool, but nothing beats seeing an object with the eye

[@jasoncross5684]

Wow wow wow what an amazing gadget I want one. Thank you for the video I'm glad to have found your sight and now going to go through your playlist whilst trying to work out what I can sell to buy one🤔

[@rockeyrocket1224]

if it was sub 500 bucks I might take the plunge. This would be an awesome scope to leave setup and boot it up on an almost nightly routine for an hour checking out objects on a second monitor while youtubing/netflixing on the main screen. Hell I could send the pics to a live website for anyone who was interested.

[@aggese]

If it was 50$ I might get one to check if the night sky looks good enough to go to the house whare I have the real scope

[@gynowhere]

They should provide live raw video and build-in laser pointer.

[@gwzapo]

You make great points for this outstanding telescope. I can't imagine how wonderful it would be to test this out. Thanks for a really great perspective on this wonderful telescope!!!

[@sashacoe25]

For 4k I'd be more inclined to get a decent telescope buy a 3d printer and a raspberry pi and make something that does the same job for half the price. I mean it's pretty much just the software allowing this to take these images no?

[@juliahenriques210]

Ok. It'll have lens attachments to enhance magnification. And then it (or a similar design) will take high end small scale astronomy over altogether.

[@engizmo]

I'd rather google the images. Seeing the photons that left that distant object with my own retina id's where it's at. Technology in lenses / mirrors will fix both light pollution and portability issues... hopefully soon.

[@CyberiusT]

You can google random patches of 'dark' sky to see for yourself what's there? I wasn't aware of that trick.

[@Hazim-hw2ml]

can you see saturn with this telescope?

[@Daniel-ms2nz]

Do you need to be connected to a WiFi connection to use this?

[@harrison00xXx]

for GPS yes

[@mostafasaadinasab7284]

#sat