Celestron Zhumell ZHUS001-1 Z100 Portable Altazimuth Reflector Telescope, Black

Product Information

We’re in town with far too much light pollution (Bortle 7) so for us the moon and planets have been best. But for that you will need a more substantial telescope. Planets also have the advantage that they are relatively bright and on the whole you don’t need to get your eyes use to the dark. There was a lot of detail visible on the Moon, even with the low powered 17mm eyepiece (24x.) Features were sharply defined, with countless craters being clearly visible across the entire surface. There was also quite a bit of tonal variation visible (since there wasn’t any color visible, per se.)

Finding objects by star-hopping with a manual telescope mount will help you learn the night sky by doing. And then there’s the thrill of the hunt. Louis D is correct. I/we started out at the end of 2020 when my then 9yr old daughter started getting into astronomy and wanted a telescope for Christmas. I thought that this would be a great thing to do together, which it turned out to be. But it is was far from easy sailing. Someone on this forum said that “astronomy is a hobby that rewards patience” and this is very true. The Popular Science by Celestron StarSense Explorer DX 100AZ is a refractor, and offers similar or slightly better performance than a 114mm or 100mm tabletop scope apart from the chromatic aberration inherent in its optics. It also comes with a full-sized mount and tripod guided by Celestron’s StarSense Explorer technology to help you find your way around the sky.A subtle difference: SCTs and Maksutovs tend to have larger obstructions than Newtonian reflectors, which slightly reduces contrast and resolution. The optical tube is given a shiny, pearly red paint job. It looks great on display and is plenty bright when seen outside with a red light.

When the telescope tube is mounted directly to a photo tripod, the eyepiece is at the side in all orientations, which is better, but the tripod should be raised to the eye level of the observer, meaning sharing the telescope between people of very different heights (i.e., a parent showing their child) is uncomfortable. I’ll also spare a thought for the Orion SkyLine 6”. It’s a GSO-sourced Dobsonian like the larger SkyLines, but it doesn’t have any of the deluxe features of the other SkyLines, really being more comparable to the DT6. But since it is much more expensive than the Apertura DT6, which is nearly identical aside from the inclusion of an additional 9mm Plossl, I wouldn’t be inclined to recommend it. Only go for it if you can somehow find one cheaper than the DT6. The Eight-Inch Dobsonian TelescopeHowever, we think this attractive little red scope would look great on a bookshelf or displayed in plain sight. It would make a great conversation piece when it is not gathering starlight. According to Zhumell, the theoretical maximum magnification is 200x, but realistically it’s probably somewhere between 100x and 150x – and it should be noted that increasing the magnification will also increase the shaking when adjusting the focus. Target Audience Some observers ditch these mounts to convert their tabledobs to grab-n-go. At one point, Vixen sold this telescope tube on their Vixen Porta mount, and that solution worked fine, and it had better, given the price tag.

The Z130 has a big brother: The 6” f/5 Orion StarBlast 6, which is heavier and a LOT bulkier, stretching the plausibility of what you could put on a table or stool. The OneSky’s older brother, the Heritage 150P, is a seriously better choice at that size, the collapsibility and lower weight would then really make a difference. The 150P is also a better deal, as I’ve seen it go for cheaper than a full-size 6” Dobsonian. The tabletop Dobsonian mount is a joy to use, and it is sturdier and more intuitive than any tripod-mounted scope in this price and aperture range. You do have to make sure you know what you’re going to put the telescope on; finding the right surface isn’t trivial. This is not only a great beginner telescope, but something that could last you for a long time. You might want to upgrade to a bigger telescope eventually, but you won’t have to. Refractors are small units but at your budget as others have said, likely have a flimsy tripod that would be an unstable viewing experience. If you have a flexible budget, consider the Zhumell Z114, SkyWatcher Heritage 130P Tabletop Dobsonian (same as AWB OneSky 5”) or the StarBlast 4.5” TableTop Dobsonian. The StarMax 90mm is an option for higher magnification viewing.The great thing about a Dobsonian mount is that it’s one of the easiest to use, which makes it ideal for beginners. The base rotates horizontally while the scope itself swivels vertically, making it possible to turn the scope in any direction toward your target. Celestron NexStar 130SLT: A computerized telescope (I don’t like computerized mounts, but for a budget Go-To mount these are fine) with the same optics set and a souped up focuser. For the same price, you could get a bigger Dob instead. Celestron PowerTank Glow 5000 – a red flashlight is also essential if you’re using star charts and books as it will protect your night vision. The PowerTank has three brightness levels and a USB port to charge your smartphone or tablet. The Orion Nebula: As a very familiar deep-sky object, I know what to expect. I could see the four stars of the Trapezium at 40X with the 10 mm eyepiece that came with it. I was pleased with that result. Using my 2X barlow, I was able to move in closer at 80X. The telescope also uses a “Red Dot Finder,” which projects a little red dot through a small window out into the sky. Though I like red dot finders fine for smaller scopes, on a telescope with a focal length of 1200mm, a red dot finder isn’t really enough to reliably find many objects, which require star-hopping using asterisms that are too dim to see with your eye, and too large to fit into the field of view of a big telescope. The other 6″ Dobsonian telescopes use real optical straight-thru finderscopes instead, and though they’re slightly less pleasant ergonomically, they are better for star-hopping.

The scope could theoretically take up to 150-200x, but the mount is a little annoying to use above 100x or so, and the optics max out at around 150x from my experience. Thanks to its industry-leading optical components, the Z100 outperforms other tabletop telescopes of a similar size for a difference you can see and appreciate under the night sky. With the Z100, Zhumell has put your money where it belongs: into the telescope’s optical system. The Zhumell Z130 doesn't have a tripod so I would need to invest money in a tripod or table. Plus be able to carry that across campus as well for 15 to 20 minutes while walking. Would an alternative telescope like the Celestron Cometron 114az be a good alternative as it comes with a tripod? ..... My concerns about that scope is that it is F/4 which might require precision collimation? F/4 might have serious coma issues? Tripod doesn't have slow motion controls? I have also tested the SkyScanner 100 with other eyepieces, including my Explore Scientific 14, 8.8, and 6.7 mm 82-degree eyepieces. All worked well in the little scope.

Technical Specifications

Explore Scientific FirstLight 130: These are different optics, with a shorter focal length. Available as an OTA, or on their Twilight Altaz mount, or on their EXOS Nano Equatorial mount. The OTA is more affordable, but all the mounted options are more expensive. This OTA must be much lighter because it only uses a 2.2 lbs counterweight. (For the record, I tried my Z130 on my EXOS Nano EQ3--it needed more than 4.4 lbs counterweight. An additional 2.2lbs counterweight would do it, and it’d be more sturdy than the EQ2 mounts from Synta.) The bigger the front opening, the more light the telescope gathers, and the brighter the images will be. Fainter objects become more visible, brighter objects become more spectacular. The fact that Zhumell chose to use a parabolic mirror in this small, inexpensive reflector implies that the image will be correspondingly better too. The mount is 11 inches high and when the optical tube is pointed directly up at the sky, the total height is a little under 18 inches. This makes it a great option for smaller children, but adults might find it uncomfortable unless they have an adjustable chair or can put it on a higher surface. It starts with an introduction before outlining the basic steps for cleaning and maintenance. There’s also a limited list of specifications and a parts list before the instructions explain how to attach the finderscope.