I wondered about that. I guess you would have a hard time determining that dew was forming on the secondary, due to it not being directly visible, other than a slow loss of contrast.
I guess the dew shield is still the way to go, as it cuts down on the heat chimney effect you would likely get with a heated secondary. It isn't like the dew shield really impacts portability or usability.
At this point I've found a Vixen SXD mount with HAL-130-SX tripod for $2785 (myAstro), and a VC200L for $1889 (astro-optical). The VC200L price compares very favourably to the Celestron OTA, with the obvious decrease in planetary performance. Maybe in a couple years when dealers have finally realized there is a free trade agreement in place the Celestron will come down in price and I will pick that or a Mewlon up for planetary, but until then the VC200L looks like the way I will end up going as it does what I need in the near term. While I wish I could throw a 14.5" RCOS and 150mm APO on a Paramount ME in a permanent observatory, my retirement years are still too far away
Thanks,
Eric