Celestron 31057 Omni XLT 150 Reflector Telescope, Dark Blue | Large Reflector, Outstanding Light Gathering, XLT Optical Coatings, German Equatorial Mount with Smooth Manual Tracking

This was my first telescope.The mount and tripod it shipped with are solid quality that strike the right balance between being sturdy enough and not so heavy that you won't want to pull it out for some star gazing. It's a good beginner EQ mount. Some would say this mount is a bit under sized for the weight of the scope. Out of the box, it's fine. However, if you throw some heavier eye pieces on it like a Tele Vue Nagler 22, or a Tele Vue Delos 6mm with a Powermate, then yes... things start to get a bit shaky when you're looking through the eye piece.The actual telescope is a blast! It's great quality; it looks great; it feels great! I upgraded the secondary mirror collimation screws with some thumb screws you can find at some of the big online astronomy stores. Aside from that, I have been using it stock and I've been enjoying looking at the planets and the stars.The 25mm plossl eyepiece it comes with is good to get started with.Note: if you plan to hookup a dedicated astronomy camera to this scope, you may not be able to pull in the focuser far enough to achieve focus. I found this to be the case with the ZWO ASI533MC camera. The scope can be modified with a lower profile focuser or the primary mirror can be brought forward, but out of the box, if you're planning on doing some electronically assisted astronomy, you may want to do some research before jumping in. There's a video reviewer named Ed Ting that gives this scope a great review and he managed to hookup his DSLR to it without issue. So perhaps your milage will vary depending on what you're trying to do.Overall, would I recommend this setup for a beginning Newtonian for visual astronomy? Absolutely! I love it.What would I do differently? If I knew at the time that I was going to end up buying a mount for astrophotography / EAA, I would have purchased the Celestron Omni XLT 150 telescope without the CG4 mount and I would have just started off with the mount I wanted. But that will push you into a much higher price point.These days, I use this scope on my ZWO AM5 Mount. It's much lighter than the CG4, and it handles much more weight -- but we're comparing apples to diamonds. The AM5 will cost you 6x the price of the CG4 mount (if you bought it alone). If you know that you're going to get into Astrophotography later, and you can afford it, I'd recommend you just spend the money up front to get the mount you want and by the Celestron Omni XLT 150 OTA without the bundled mount. If you do end up going this direction and you don't think you'll end up with a heavier telescope in the future, you might also look at the ZWO AM3 mount.

I had to go through about 5 telescopes to find the "perfect" one for me, including a few that I returned after purchase (I kept 3), ultimately finding that this telescope satisfies my observation objectives (viewing deep sky objects). The price was a deterrent at first so I did try a couple less expensive scopes. For comparison also purchased two 10inch Dobsonians (kept one). For me, the usability of this EQ-4 mount is the real winner for searching and tracking (over the Dobsonian), and using a range of higher quality eyepieces purchased separately I am able to view to my heart's content. Just purchased a carry bag, as this will probably be my forever go-to telescope for stargazing.

Great for amateurs wanting to get into astronomy for under $1000. Started with the PowerSeeker series but I should have skipped those and started with this one. It Is a manual control mount which is great for learning the celestial sphere and getting used to how an EQ mount works. The the XLT 150 OTA compared to the 127eq PowerSeeker is significantly better; the mirror is parabolic instead of spherical and it doesn’t have the corrective Barlow. Also, this telescope can be used with 2” and 1.25” eyepieces. The 1.25” adaptor is included. The adaptor can be unscrewed and used with a T-ring for beginner astrophotography, but you will need the dual axis motor kit for most objects. Overall I would recommend this for any new casual users who want a good telescope without spending $1000s.

What an amazing tripod and scope! I bought some higher quality eyepieces and a set of Barlows and it’s made so antsy to get out and see the stars every night!!!I have a 2” Barlow and a 2” Diagonal coming in this week, I can’t wait to test a 2” eyepiece for it!These photos were taken holding an iPhone on my first day with a pretty foggy and cloudy sky using only the kit lens and a ((Celestron 93529 X-Cel LX 1.25-Inch 2x Barlow)). Digital photos will never compare to the magic of seeing these celestial objects with your own eyes!

So far this scope has performed well. The weather has been my main complaint. It comes with a 25mm ocular which gives you 30X magnification. This is fine for viewing the moon but not the planets. I would recommend purchasing a second ocular or a good Barlow. Although Saturn was very small with the 25mm the resolution was great. It is a good scope for the money and comes with a very solid CG 4 equatorial mount. I have since purchased a 2x and a 3x Barlow with a 32mm Plossl. Now all i need is good weather.

Excellent scope, if it cost more than I would have given 4 stars instead of 5. Overall the image quality is quite good, and is fairly smooth in tracking. The tripod is quite solid once set up.My big point, not certain if this was a mistake at the factory, or in shipping, is that the secondary mirror (the one in front connected by the spiderweb) was way out of alignment, and had to be forced back into place by using a screwdriver rather forcefully. It then came out of alignment again the next two times that I had to use it, so I have to collimate it, with a screwdriver every single time that I use the telescope. The primary mirror is a cinch to align, but the secondary is not.

This was advertised as a used very good Celestron omni XLT 150 with a cg4 mount however the claimed it was the telescope only which could be bought for 100. 00 less brand new from Celestron. The used very good was only 156.00 off the price of new with the cg4 mount. this item will be returned

Fortunately, the mount doididn't arrive. Returned, and bought a better Sky Watcher 200p from First Light Optics, for a little more money.

So i ordered this thinking Amazon would have sorted the 2 boxes issue by now (they state its 1box but its really 2 and it seems to baffle them), unfortunately i just got the optical tube not the tripod!Spent a good hour trying to explain what the issue was because according to Amazon "the product is sold in 1 box as per product description" so everything should be there and i would have to wait 48hours for it to be investigated before deciding whether or not they would provide a replacement. Anyway, rather disgruntled in the knowledge that could mean a whole week before i get a replacement (bearing in mind i was expecting it ready for the weekend), i decided to go on the customer service instant messaging where i eventually got my point across that regardless of the outcome i will have to send the tube back and get a replacement, so why not just send a replacement now whilst its being investigated. The guy on the other end was very helpful it is fair to say, and he managed to get the order sorted. So now i will recieve a replacement in 36hours. Good stuff!This 2box situation is a pain and I fail to believe that:a) they would put near 30KG in a single boxb) Celestron would package the optical tube with the tripod considering its size and potential for damage.The original package arrived by courier Yodel (useless, useless courier).Amazon delivery label on the recieved package states:Product weight 28.26KGPackage 1 of 1Yet the package itself is labelled (in quite large writting)"CELESTRON""PART1""31057-1""NET WEIGHT: 12KG"Now it doesn't take a lot of time, nor a genius, to work out that this product is not a 1 box deal!The fact it says part1 and the product number ends with "-1" usually indicates a 2 or more boxes.And if that wasnt enough the box is shouting "THIS IS ONLY 12KG" and the Amazon produced order label contradicts that saying its 28KGIf i worked for Amazon alarm bells would be ringing at that point.Bottom line, they havent fixed these issues and Amazon seem to refuse to believe there is such an issue, (it obviously must be Celestron's fault then for using more than 1 box)Don't order this product from Amazon, pay the marginal extra cost and slightly longer delivery to have it from a real telescope store.The product is great, ive had the fortune of using my friends and it gives excellent clarity, and has an excellent equatorial mount!I hope to God that the replacement isn't just a 1 part deal again and i get lumbered with 2 Optical tubes! It would definitely put me in a sour mood!Merry Christmas Amazon!

Delivered yesterday (Friday), I had the tube mounted, balanced and collimated by tea time today, bearing in mind that this is Saturday and family shopping trips still had to be done. The instructions were straight-forward and easily applied, meaning that by the time Jupiter was up above the roof tops I was ready and waiting. Having ordered a Barlow and a wider angle lens than the 25mm supplied I had an outstanding view of the Gas Giant, and the Jovian moons. I believe it has even impressed the wife, so much so that she's finally cooled down about the expense. The delivery was a few days late, but that was our fault for not checking our email the morning it was due to be delivered the first time around. Lesson learned, the second attempt was successful, both boxes banded together into one package. This is a first rate product for beginners and quality is near perfect. I'm already working out how to get T rings and adapters, and an EOS body past the missus.

Ordered this telescope for a birthday present. It comes in two boxes, a tripod and the actual telescope. delivery arrives on tome, but only one box the tripod. i call Amazon that evening to ask for a replacement. fine no problem we will send it out first thing tomorrow an confirm by email. Next day no email, so contact them again, no replacement ordered and sorry we will need to listen to the previous call, I will order it for you now, should all be okay in 2 hours. 3 hours later still no email, call again agent tells me only one left in stock ang gets authority to send itand at last a replacment is ordered (i then get 3 emails one from each of the agents telling me a replacement is on way~) then a stern email telling me to return the first part order. next day delivery arrives guess what only one part and its the part that is missing. Amazon only send complete orders so they want both half orders back, nice one amazon, happy birthday to you to.

I upgraded from a astromaster 130 which i thought was a great telescope for the money. But the omni 150 is a big step up. The big tripod is rock solid and a joy to use. The images are great to, Jupiter and its moons, the Orion nebula, beetlegeause,, and the moon all look great! The finder scope works great too! (Not like on the astromaster) this truly is a superb telescope, i doubt i will ever replace it. The build quality and materials used are top notch. I would recommend this to anyone who wants a top quality telescope. And mine came in 2 boxes banded together delivered with prime, so no problems there! Highly recommended.

I'm not sure if all celestron telescope,s are all this well built,the tripod is pretty weighty,that's before you put 7 kilo,s of counter balance weights on it.The optics are first class,even though you only get a 25mm eyepiece as part of the package,very easy to set up and move around due to the way the tube connects to the tripod.No problems with delivery,both packages arrived as one consignment,unlike some of the reviews I have read.Worth investing in a 2 x Barlow and a few extra eyepieces.