The Celestron SLT 130 is a perfect telescope for beginners like me. I had a cheap telescope that took the fun out of looking the sky. The better optics and Sky Align feature makes this telescope much more enjoyable.

How hard could it be, I thought. You buy a telescope that has a computerized mount so you can track stars so you must be able to mount a camera on it. Well no. At least not straight away. I bought t-piece adapter and the adapter for the Canon, and yes I can see stars ... with this blue halo caused by looking through lenses. Also to mount the camera in this way it sticks out close to 12 inches from the side of the telescope. As you adjust the focus with this leverage, there's a point you have to lift the camera up to get over a **** in the mechanism that jams the focus mechanism. Prime focus which is focus without lenses is just not possible with this supplied focuser You can just get to the prime focus by hand-holding the camera over the hole with the focuser adjusted so that no mounting mechanics are available which is basically useless. One guy solved the problem by shifting the lens further up the tube with bolts that I just haven't been able to find anywhere (female 4mm thumbscrews) but the solution sucks. The alternative is to buy a new focuser and self mount it. I was beginning to lose the will to live with all the cash I'd spend on lenses, but I bought the SkyWatcher Dual-Speed 2-inch Low Profile Crayford Focuser for Newtonians. This device comes in a box. There are no instructions. Your just supposed to know what its for and how it work it. It doesn't fit, because it's designed for scopes with a larger diameter tube, so I built a silicon gasket by layering silicon sealant between cling film. After a couple of days, when I was satisfied with the gasket, I put ******* through the focuser and the gasket and then worked out where the holes should be on the telescope. I used the plastic washer part from "Corrugated PVC 40mm Screw And Washer Pack of 20" (Screwfix) to secure the screws on the inside of the scope and it's now solid. Because the new focuser is low profile it brings the camera into primefocus for astro photographics. The new focuser has for screws two of which are difficult to get the heads in. I used a grinder to flatten one edge of the screw head to get it in. If you follow what I've done, don't touch the black screws on the focuser. I did this can caused the focus knows to grind against the mount. I got it fixed, but removing or slackening the screws don't give you any more access to the mounting screws.

This telescope alwleod me to look at Venus that enlarged it to the size of the moon with an 11mm 82 degree Orion eyepiece! I'm sorry that the other reviewers didn't find this telecope amazing, but I did. Maybe they are more experienced than me, but I feel I made the right decision buying this telescope. This is my second telescope I have owned. My first one was a cheap Konus, that got me started. I tried to do my homework before buying this telescope. Here are the features I think I paid this kind of money for: 1 Wide field of view. Because the scope is short tubed, it sees a wider field of view than a longer tube refractor. 2 Huge 102mm lens. I would like to someday own the Celestron 150mm longer tube refractor, but it would serve a different purpose. 3 GOTO computer. It still requires effort on my part, but it sure is a cool feature. I don't expect it to work like a government or NASA product, it is a home telescope, and it is as good as it gets. Buy it without regret and unlock the views of the solar system.