[astroAJ]

The sky watcher 500c is a neat little scope. Never used one before, but I think it should be ok for the beginner. Once you learn how to use setting circles and the motor drive. Also the 500 is still heavy and possibly nearly as heavy as some dobs.
I’m still not sure how portable and easy it is to carry around in your car etc. Also the 500 has a smaller aperture then dobs so you won’t be able to see the huge number of stars and deep sky objects which an 8” would show you.
Anyway I personally suggest you get a 6” or 8” sky watcher Dob for around $400- $500. The advantage of the SW Dob is that you can dismantle the tube from the mount making it a lot easier to carry around. The sky watcher 8” has a total weight of 16kg but when you dismantle the tube from the mount it’s only around 8kg each. I’ve never carried a Dob down any stares my self so I’m not 100% sure how you would go. Another advantage of the Dob is that they are still portable, depending on the size of your car etc.
The Dob has the disadvantage of giving you a sore neck if you are looking through a finder for a while etc.
If you buy a Dob you have to learn how to star hop (find deep sky objects by star patterns) & learn how to align the mirrors.
Other wise that’s all I can tell you.

PS. I suggest you go to a astronomy club, they should give you more info.
Others on this site should give you more info.

AstroAJ