SkyWatcher Flextube 300 SynScan Dobsonian 12-inch Collapsible Computerized GoTo Large Aperture Telescope (S11820)

Awesome scope! We have the 14" version as well but wanted this as it's more portable. Tracks great, GoTo is great, images with ASI camera great.

I had been thinking of upgrading to this scope for a year before I did it, and I wish I could get that time back and just buy the thing already! NO regrets! Previously I had a 4.5" manual dob; it was a great starter scope. What I love about this one: 1) The tracking! It's great to be able to keep observing without having to manually track an object, especially at higher magnifications. 2) The goto synscan system: setup is amazingly quick and easy (2-4 minutes!). 3) The ability to seamlessly switch between goto and manual moving; yes, you can at any moment just manually move the scope and then go right back to the goto system without resetting! 4) The collapsible tube; the scope can fit in my Prius when collapsed; a cloth light shroud keeps it as dark as if it was non-collapsible (this is NOT included, but is a highly recommended accessory. You can make one yourself or buy one for not too much.) The only thing I did not like was the focuser was in need of adjustment, but that only took me about 5 minutes with an allen wrench and now all's well!

Second order. Second telescope that comes incomplete. Just 1 box missing the other one.

Yes, it is big, yes it is awesome. Now for all you fans, something I did not know. Upon opening the box, the first piece of paper slipped out and indicated , "by the way your Sky-Watcher has built in Wi-Fi." I did not know they had started doing this. I almost bought the Wi-Fi dongle with the scope. I did not have a lot of time with the scope before skies stopped cooperating. I never even used the hand control, just my phone. Fantastic. The pic of the Orion Nebula was just with me trying to line up the phone with the eyepiece, we know that isn't easy, but time was an issue. In any case, the thing kicks butt and has its own Wi-Fi, not networkable, but just connect with phone. I love you Sky-watcher, you're my only scope.Edit. Many folks ask about tracking for astrophotography. Added last pic of Orion with my Pixel with 1:20 minutes exposure. So yes you can do some exposure, but probably not more than 30 sec.Re-edit. Has issues with the drive. Skywatcher support was quick and helpful and sent new base. Very hard to find that type of customer support. Good job!

Received my goto Dob and had a problem with the goto base. Tried resetting encoders, factory resets, but could not get it to get close to being accurate. Believing it had a bad encoder, I contacted Kevin at Skywatcher, and after explaining my problem he got a new base out to me quickly. That kind of customer service is rare these days.The telescope is an amazing light bucket, and comes with 2 Plossl eyepieces that are a good start for stargazing. The new goto base works amazingly well after a short two star alignment. All selected objects are nearly centered in the eyepieces after alignment.I have the Skywatcher wifi dongle and use Sky Safari 6 Pro as my goto software. It works great. I would highly recommend the 250p Goto for its cost, portability and light gathering capability. But the customer service is what will bring me back again for more Skywatcher equipment.

This is my first ever Telescope and I went up and back between this one and the Celestron StarSense Explorer 8 and I am sure happy that I made the right choice! This Telescope is simply beautiful! It took me 45 minutes to assemble and it was easy, I used the tools they sent. I don’t know why people are giving these bad reviews? Mine did t have a scratch on it, both boxes came with all the parts and the build quality is amazing! I will post an update in a couple of months. The only downside to this package is they send you 2 tiny wood screws for the controller holder and they do not work. I want two little bolts with nuts and washers and will stop at ace tomorrow. It is a quick easy fix! Otherwise I will definitely buy from Skywatcher again! And I paid 100% for this scope with my own money! If you’re thinking about a sky watcher, don’t listen to these bad reviews because mine is awesome. Go ahead and pull the trigger. You won’t be sorry.! Beautiful Telescope!

Delivered with no mirrors inside. They are missing in the box

The scope is amazing. For nearby planets you can see the bands of Jupiter pretty well and make the main ring features of Saturn out pretty well. To be fair, your naked eye view is going have the planets look a bit smaller than a pea. You will see Jupiter and a half dozen of its moons in your total view - so that's neat. Deep space options are great views to capture on this scope. You aren't going to see colors and such, but you will see great clusters. If you want the coloring and all, you'll need to also invest in photographic equipment for long exposures.Now the downside. The motors had issues. This of course is a big deal since you need them to move the scope around. They worked great for a first couple of days and then would die after moving for about 3 seconds. Nothing would get them moving against except a hard reboot. The other big issue I had was with wi-fi connectivity just dropping constantly. This was even with having one of my access points with in 20 feet and no obstructions. Needless to say tracking goes crazy or just stops working.Alignment with the scope is okay - as long as the App works or you can see and properly identify some of the brighter stars. Unfortunately planets cannot be used with the on board alignment - that only happens with the App.End of the day the technical issues with the scope and unable to resolve them caused me to return it.