When I bought my C8 in 1991, it was difficult to find a Meade dealer in Australia.
The prevailing opinion at the time was that Celestron were much better than Meade - not really sure where I heard this at the time, perhaps the Celestron dealer.
What really clinched the Celestron sale for me was that I walked past a Celestron dealer twice a day on the way to/from work - not the recommended way to choose a scope these days
