My 4yo son is obsessed with space (his thirst for knowledge is quite incredible) so I'm planning to get him a telescope.
I don't want something from toys r us that is going to have such poor quality images that he's put off telescopes for the rest of his life.
I'm thinking one of the mini dobsonians might be a good starting point, as I don't want to spend too much as he's pretty rough and I don't want to be too gutted if he breaks it. So I'm thinking a budget up to around $150.
Due to our location I'll probably have to buy online, and I've found a few options. I'm reasonably technically minded but have no background in astronomy so some suggestions as to what would be the pick of these scopes would be greatly appreciated:
Hi welcome to IceInSpace
Sounds like you have a very advanced 4 year old.
They are all reasonable, and I know people have tried most of these.
I am sure they will chime in with their reviews.
But to go one step better, Do you think you could stretch to this one.
It is bigger but collapsible so easier to transport.
I reckon a small refractor, something like the Orion Ed 80 or similar, kids loose interest pretty quickly and unless the fist view is awesome you maybe left with a scope that only you can utilize.
I have to agree with Allan here go for the slightly dearer Heritage 130p. I have one and it's an excellent little scope and will be so much better than the others you have mentioned with its larger aperture. Many would normally say go for bigger aperture than that and I would normally agree. But this would be ideal for a 4yr old as it's shorter than bigger aperture scopes and is incredibly lightweight and easy to use.
There is one available here in the classifieds going for $150.
My $0.02 worth - the 100 or 130 will provide a significantly better image than the 76 mm, that even Dad might enjoy, but having used the Australian Geographic 76 mm, even it can provide a satisfying view of bright targets.
I think the table-top Dobs are ideal for little kids, because the eyepiece is always at roughly the same height from horizon to zenith, and they're easy for a little person to take outside and set up on their own. Small refractors on a tripod can be a real challenge for a little kid to handle.
I got my 2 year old a little refractor from Aldi for $30 hes at that rough stage and the scope really isnt all that bad for the price. Here he is enjoying a view of the street haha
Thanks for your welcome and all the replies so far.
Normally I would be happy to stretch the budget for something that would have significantly better quality, but the thing that's holding me back is this little guy is really rough - he breaks just about everything and to spend $250 on something that may not last too long if he drops it or is too enthusiastic with it would be painful to watch. He's a big kid for his age and doesn't realise his own strength a lot of the time (and he's going to want to carry it himself).
Would the 100mm orion sold by Australian geographic or the larger 114 national geographic scopes be an ok compromise? I'm not sure how the optics of these compare to the 76 mm celestron or skywatcher though?
Whatever you do, do not waste your money on any of those telescopes, unless someone here has actually used one and reports it as being okay.
I have the Celestron Firstscope - it is hard to use and the optics are extremely poor, despite hours of collimation and using good eyepieces. I can only get a half decent (still pretty poor) image if the planet is exactly in the centre of the field. I paid $19 for it on Ebay, and I still feel ripped off - especially as US Sky&telescope magazine gave it a great review.
Much better was a 50mm Celestron refractor I bought from Dick Smith for $36, when it was reduced from $50. It was still hard to use, but it did show the Moon and rings of Saturn nicely - which would amuse most kids.
If your son was really interested, a small 7X35 pair of binoculars might also be the thing, providing you explain that it is just two small telescopes stuck together.
I did have one unintended thing happen when I gave my nephew a small refractor. He kept looking at "all the naked persons" in their backyard on a property several paddocks away.
Regards,
Renato
Interesting that the firstscope didn't work well, as it does review well.
Sounds like binoculars might be the way to go in the first instance. Could anyone recommend a suitable pair of binoculars? Remembering it is for a 4 year old so nothing too expensive (say around the $100ish mark max) and it would have to be an appropriate size/weight for a child and not too much magnification so that it doesn't wobble too much as he doesn't stay still long :-).
If I were to go the telescope in a few months, could anyone suggest a suitable refractor that might do the job for a child?
I can't help thinking that he'll try looking at the sun.
If you do get a scope, make sure that you are there when he's using it.
I go with a small refractor.
Robust and easy to use.
I got a Skywatcher Heritage Virtuoso 114p for our 5 yo and I'm really impressed with it for what it is.
I was happy to pay a bit more for the tracking mount as it works quite well and it's far easier to keep his interest if he is not forever making adjustments.
Optically it's pretty good too.
My boys are rough as well but to be honest you will be with them when they are using it and they a really quite good with it.
Once Summer is in full swing & daylight savings is in, I doubt your 4 year old will be awake at 10:30pm waiting for the sun to fully set. If he does stay up, he's going to be one cranky boy the next day.
Hi, not sure if you have already picked something, but I can tell you that when I started out I bought a Celestron Firstscope and can give you a fairly good review as I used it non-stop for quite a while until upgrading!
To a 4 y/o, this scope would look "cool"; it's easy to store and carry (although sounds like you might need to keep it away from him whilest not in use!); I've had people look through it (at the moon) and said "wow!" At his age, to be honest, the moon is the only eye-catching thing for him to look at (and maybe Saturn - which, with the right eye-pieces, you can see through a scope this small - when I say you can "see Saturn", it is minute - but the rings are there!) The negatives: well, it's not an 8" telescope, so the views aren't wonderful and even though it's little, it's still hard to find stuff and would be quite difficult for a 4 y/o to work - but I imagine that would be the case with most telescopes to be honest! And that brings me to another idea:
if you are interested in astronomy too, a little kid could easily enjoy looking through a 6" or 8" Dobsonian with your help and you get the bonus of getting magnificent views yourself! Oh, and a 6" Dob is not really that much more than your budget either! Decisions, decisions!
Thanks for all your suggestions. I still haven't bought anything, I'm thinking a pair of binoculars first and if he keeps using them to look at the moon then a telescope for Christmas. Though he's already started requesting a telescope without any promoting :-)
It looks like my options will be a small refractor or small dobsonian. He's probably going to be mostly interested in the moon, so what will get me the most for my money, a $150 dobsonian or a $150 say 70mm refractor? And is one generally sturdier than the other? This little guy is really rough.
Binoculars are good, but it'd be hard for him to hold them unless they were very small and low power. All kids are rough to some extent and he's only going to learn to be less so by breaking things and learning that there are consequences, i.e. he doesn't just get a replacement.
Also if you are going spend over $100 - and I do recommend those tiny dobsonians - make sure he's aware that it's a "family" item. It's not his, and as such he needs to be considerate.
