Orion Telescopes
Are you looking for a good telescope? Are you confused about what telescope to buy? Don’t worry, we’ll sort it out together! This site is designed to help you make the right decisions when buying telescopes. We strongly recommend purchasing orion telescopes and accessories as this brand provides quality products for all levels of experience and all budgets.
Buying a telescope for the first time can be intimidating, especially when you don’t know what to look for. No worries! We’ll explain all the basics and point you in the right direction. No matter how much or how little you know about telescopes and their accessories, what’s important to us is that you buy the proper equipement that’s right for you.
Buying your First Orion Telescope Online
Don’t expect to get super high quality when your telescope is costing less than $100, even if you’re getting an orion telescope. While there are options available if that is your budget, increasingyour budget by 100% can increase your experience by 1000%!
Some people don’t want to spend much intially, and that’s understandable. Often, they want to get a telescope in the $100-$200 price range to see if they’ll like the hobby before investing hundreds of dollars. While this thinking makes sense, the problem is that you may end up up with a poor product (especially for $100), and you will probably be frustrated more than anything else. In other words, opting for guear that is “too cheap” won’t do justice to what backyard astronomy actually is. A $100 product is unlikely to give you a real appreciation of the hobby so we recommend you set your starting budget between $300 and $500 dollars as there are great Orion telescopes in that price range. Some people will want to spend even more than that, and that’s OK too.
The important thing is to get a good starter telescope that won’t frustrate you. That way, you can learn the basics of astronomy and determine if you’re really going to be passionate about telescopes in the long run. For many individuals, it becomes a lifelong passion. Remember, you can always upgrade to a better product in the future.
Some people like to start with something a bit better than the basics, and there’s plenty of options under $400. The most common Orion telescope we recommend is the Orion SkyQuest XT8 which is an 8″ dobsonion mounted newtonian reflector, commonly called “an 8 inch dob”.
Why do we recommend the Orion SkyQuest XT8 above other telescopes? It’s simply the best bang for your buck. This is a quality beginer to intermidiate level product that is easy to use yet is extremely versatile. An 8 inch dob will provide you with years and years of excitement as you watch the night sky and see planets, stars, clusters, galaxies, nebulas, and pretty much anything that’s out there. This scope is somewhat big, yet it’s still portable. Going bigger than 8 inches will make it more difficult to transport. If you don’t want to spend the money on a 8 inch dob, then go for a six inch, but no less.
We recommend Orion Telescopes for your first purchase because they provide good quality for the price, and Orion is a reputable company that offers outstanding client service. If you have questions, they’ll help you out!
Click here to see the best selling Orion telescopes
Buying Accessories and Telescope Eyepieces
While the telescope is going to be your main instrument, a key thing to consider when you buy a telescope is what are the included telescope eyepieces. You may need to get additional telescope eyepieces for a better experience. The telescope eyepieces allow you to view the sky at different magnifications, and this is important because it gives you flexibility in choosing the best magnification for the things you want to observe. Telescope magnification is overrated, and quite frankly not that important. Typically, your first question will be “how powerful is the telescope?”. While that’s a natural question to ask, it is also the wrong question to ask when you buy a telescope. Magnification is determined not just by the telescope, and not just by a telescope eyepice, but by both. The telescope defines the range of usable magnifications. If you see an ad that a telescope can magnify 600x, ignore that. Typiclaly, you’ll do most of your viewing at magnifications ranging between 30X and 200X. What matters most is not magnification, but aperature. Learn more by reading our telescope power page.
There’s all kinds of telescope eyepieces and accessories and they vary greatly in price. A single eyepiece can sell for from $40 to over $600.
To learn more about telescopes in general, see our telescope FAQ.
Recommended Telescopes
These are some of the most popular telescopes used by backyard astronomers, listed in convenient categories.
Budget Orion Telescopes (under $300)
Don’t want to spend too much? You can still buy a telescope for less than $300 and get a great product! The following telescopes are excellent options for those on a tight budget. Any one of these telescopes is also a good choice for buying your first telescope.
Orion SkyQuest XT6 Classic Dobsonian Telescope |
Orion StarBlast 6 Astro Reflector Telescope |
Orion SpaceProbe 3 Altazimuth Reflector Telescope |
Best Compact Orion Telescopes
If you need a traveling companion, buy a telescope that is higly portable and affordable. The options below are perfect for you! These can also make good “secondary” telescopes.
Orion StarMax 90mm Equatorial Mak-Cass Telescope |
Orion SpaceProbe 130 EQ Reflector Telescope |
Orion StarSeeker 80 GoTo Refractor Telescope & SkyLine Kit |
Best Bang for your Buck ($300 – $500)
Great beginner/intermediate telescopes for under $500 are listed below. If you want to buy a better telescopes without spending a fortune, these are good options.
Orion SkyQuest XT10 Classic Dobsonian Telescope |
Vixen R130Sf Reflector with Porta II Altaz Mount
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Celestron Nexstar 4SE Mak-Cass Telescope |
Orion Astrophotography Telescope Bundles ($1500 – $6000)
It is possible to do basic photography of the sky with virtually any telescope but if you want to get serious about astrophotography you’ll need to get some quality hardware. We suggest you look into the following telescopes.
We also offer a free ebook on astrophotography to get you started on the right track.
Orion Stars & Solar System Astrophotography Telescope Bundle |
Orion Deeper Space, Better Images Telescope Bundle |
Orion Deepest Space, Clearest Images Telescope Bundle |
