$130 Telescope vs. $600 Telescope vs. $1,750 Telescope 

WARNING: This video was comment-bombed by a scammer impersonating me. If you received a reply from someone about a package, that is NOT me. Do not engage with them. I am not on Telegram or Whatsapp, and will never run a giveaway through youtube comments or those apps. Sorry for the inconvenience. Hopefully RU-vid can fix this problem soon! ~Nico

I love my Svbony! It's been a great first refractor for me. I use the reducer/flattener and the Svbony guide scope and 120mini guide camera. Hoping to get a new main camera soon, mine melted in a house fire. Thanks for all the videos, you were one of the people that got me into this fantastic obsession.

Well done. It's the law of diminishing returns. Extra $500 gets you a lot of return compared to the extra $1k, but if you're going for perfection it's worth it.

Awesome job Nico! - I love videos like this, huge respect for the amount of work to do it right too my friend, awesome job! 🙂Clear skies!

Unless you need the results to win a contest, the results of the SV503 for $600 is the best bang for the money hands down.

What a great honest comparison of three different price ranges of scopes. I have the svbony 102ed, and it's so hard to break through this "it's cheap so it's bad" mentality with people. I'll be linking your video all over the place, thanks for doing such a great job.

Honestly, I'm impressed with the SVBony. I have a micro four thirds camera I'm planning to convert to full spectrum.

Now that SVBONY has released their SV550 APO triplet for around $800 it would be a great comparison to add to this. At half price of the Askar, the new SVBONY triplet seems a great value.

Definitely a case of you get what you pay for. It's all in the optics. Great set of tests. Thanks Nico.

Amazing video, Nico, extremely clarifying! Checking the images, it really shows that the Askar is a pretty good bargain at $1750.

I don't even own, nor have plans to buy a telescope. And I watched your complete video. Thumbs up for such an informative, excellent quality review!

Hard to beat svbony sv503 at that price range...

Who will pay 1750$ for the 80 mm Askar when an Svbony 122/854 mm FPL51 ED-triplet is just 1500 $ ?

And from where do we buy such a telescope? I saw the Best Buy website that does not have telescopes as good as the one you explain about in the video But I don't know where we can get a good telescope and get close to long distances, as shown in this video?😥

Great video That svbony 503 80ed was my first refractor and it exceeded all my expectations. With the field flattener it really is an awesome imaging scope for the price range.

Great video. As a photographer, I have the following question: how do these telescopes compare to a decent 500mm F8 mirror lens (e.g Minolta, Tamron or Nikon, not the el-cheapo mirror lenses) you can get for many cameras?

Hi, I started AP last year and have 3 scopes now and still use my ST80 to this day. A few notes about the ST-80: 1. My dew shield gets off of mine, but i think i have the older model 2. To reduce gradients, a good and easy tactic is to color the side of your lens with a black permanent marker. 3. I needed to add an extension to my camera to be able to get proper focus. 4. it's 100$ frikin dolla 5. I have been able to produce nice images, most problems can be treated in editing.

I wonder how the pictures would have looked like if the Orion would have been an 80 cm long F10 instead of 40 cm F5. With an F10 the chromatic aberrations would have been a lot less visible, right?

I just bought an SVBONY SV503 Telescope, 70ED F6 Extra Low Dispersion Refractor OTA and the associated SVBONY SV193 Focal Reducer and Field Flattener from Amazon. Will arrive this coming Thursday. It will be replacing my GSkyer short tube 80. Looked at the 80mm, but it was too heavy and the focal length was too long. I wouldn't be able to photograph everything I wanted with my ZWO ASI183 camera. Appreciate your videos. Informative.

Great review. I used to have a 12" Dobsonian and a small refractor for my children when they were young 25 years ago. I'm thinking of getting a hobby scope again and I think I'd like the option of dabbling in astrophotography. This has been a great help in narrowing in on what would be appropriate for me. Thanks again.

Now, as always in life the rule is: you get what you pay for. BUT: it pays even more to critically evaluate low-, medium- and high-level scopes side by side; in the current case I would forget about the Orion, but the SV Bony and the Askar are fairly close to each other, but significantly different in terms of costs: the Askar is 3 times the SV Bony.... What would I do (and it is important to realise that this would be MY personal choice only)? I would buy the SV Bony and invest the saved money into a better mount. I also would get a used DSLR full frame camera, eg a Canon Rebel Xsi, which can be bought used for a mere 250 to 300 quids. Finally, I would heavily "invest" into image-processing software and learn how to use it to its full potential. "Invest" in inverted commas, as a ton of high-end imaging software is available either for free, or for very little money on the web. The distortion of stars in the corners of the full frame can be easily cropped away, the colour correction of the SV Bony is very good, and the better the mount the more you are prepared for future adventures. Once I'd have all this on deck I would start imaging the hell out of the equipment and see how far I can push all this. It probably takes quite a while until you have reached your limit, and then you can still decide if you really want to immerse yourself into astrophotography, and which area you want to work on - solar, lunar, planets, deep sky etc. Once you have IDed your turf get the best specialised equipment for the purpose you can afford. You probably don't have to worry about the quality of your mount, as you invested into this from early on. Myself I am a visual lunar observer, and with a 10-inch Newtonian and an EQ5 mount this is just wonderful. I may invest into lunar astrophotography in the future, but we'll see (I am severely vision-impaired, so there would be some benefits, just on a practical level, for me). I could also imagine to add solar observing to the mix - the real benefit would be that I can do this during the day (have to admit I like a good snooze...). Happy observing & imaging, and never cease to wonder about the glory of the heavens above !

Thank you so much for your Videos. Im looking since 2 Weeks for a first investment for astrophotography for beginners. You videos helped me so much. :)

I would love to see you do this exercise but compare one telescope (80, 120, 150, C9.25 ect) against a couple different size sensors (Full frame, ASPC, IMX533) . I am curious to see what effect different sensor sizes will have on the field of view. I think this could help with choosing my next camera. I have my eye on the 2600 right now because I would like to get a wider field of view for larger targets. I have a Esprit 120ed and a C9.25. I am also shooting with the asi533 mono and the asi294 One shot. Would my money be better place getting a good 80 like this ASKAR or is the camera the more versatile choice. I guess what I am asking is to actually see the effects of image scale.

I shoot mono and always wondered, if I focus each color separately can I get away with no chromatic aberration from an acrhomat?

So long story short: What you pay what you get. lol i need my time back

Awesome video Nico. I have the SvBony 80ed and I am totally pleased with it, even though it is only a doublet. I have a crop sensor camera, so it never disappoints for the price range.

Excelente video de información e imágenes... Muchas gracias máster!!!

Sir. Excellent video. Outstanding presentation and breakdown details about the scopes. Subbed and Voted. With that being said and on a personal note, I highly recommend you do something with your hair. I know it is the thing these days, but it is not working for you at all. Mid length or semi-close cut. Add some volume with styling. Maybe the swept back high top look. Total look changer. Ladies will like it even if it is superficial.

I feel like the Svbony made one heck of a showing here.

I am torn between the Svony 503 and 550 80mm now. I can get a flattener/reducer for the 503, I don't have to pay extra for the camera rotator, it's $300 less, but the 550 is a triplet! Right now Amazon's page for the 503 says there's a new version of the 503, and it links to the 550. Are they discontinuing it? It's $389 USD right now, and the 550 is $699. I think I know what I must do... They used to say money doesn't grow on trees.

It’s all about the mount. I’d take an $80 telescope with a good mount over a $1000 telescope with a crappy mount.

Very interesting. I already learned it’s absolutely not worth to me, spending way more than the €160. I just want to see the center for live object viewing. Mainly planets.

Was just looking at the SVBONY! Thank you so much for comparing these 3 so I know exactly what I'm getting

I spent $400 on a telescope Didn't realize I would want $1000 of lenses and filters lol, but it was a good time. I remember seeing the Andromeda galaxy for the first time. This was before you could hook up a laptop to it (I had find it all manually). Knowing how far away it was and being in the middle of some field 1 hour south of town on a brisk late fall night. I got SO weirded out. It just looked like a smudgy finger print, but dang. so cool. Best telescope night ever.

This was an awesome, educational video. I certainly understand this comment will be cringy... but as a complete novice.. I was like " but I like the cool blue and purple colors"...

Hey Nico, did you ever find out what is causing that vigentting at 20:55 on the Askar 80PHQ? I am using a Canon eoe 6D, I seems to have the same problem, but in my case the bottom is vignetted, and the top right left corners are too, the rest seems find? Pls let me know if you ever found anything!

Tanks Nico for your informative vid and tutorials. I just wish a dollar is a dollar regardless of where you are in the world. Here in Australia the ASKAR 80 PHQ sells for Au$2599 without any extras. I have yet to buy any gear but doing a lot of research before jumping into a new hobby. Cheers and keep up the good worl.

There is an app for android called Eagle image stacker which is great for stacking astro images, will be great if you did a video doing astrophotography using only smartphone for imaging and stacking.

Fantastic comparison review Nico! Would have liked to see a triplet like Astrotech, Skywatcher or Explorer scientific around $900 price point included. The SVBONY from Hong Kong is an emerging giant killer in this highly competitive amateur astro area. All their accessories also are very good from a price to performance ratio. SVBONY and ZWO products make a wonderful starter kit with a good GEQ mount thrown in. HEQ5 is my preference.

Thank you for this eye opening comparison. For an APS-C shooter the Svbony seems to offer very good results.

We are at a golden age to where you can buy a nice refractor for under a grand, only caveat is quality assurance may be off so be sure to purchase from a reputable dealer so you can return if you get a lemon. Not all scopes come out the same in mass production, two otherwise identical scopes may perform differently…. Higher priced scopes normally weed these out in the QA process while lower end ones may slip through. Try to educate yourself on basic star test so you can immediately tell the difference

Great video! Loved the different picture comparisons. Would love to see you do a similar video showing the difference between a doublet with FPL 51 type glass, a doublet with high quality glass such as FPL-53 or FCD-100, a triplet with low end ED glass and a triplet with high quality glass. I personally prefer doublets with high quality glass, (Stellarvue Access and AT72EDII), but would really like to know if it's worth the investment for a triplet. Thanks!

Rotation is essential I'd say even just for observational astronomy if balancing an issue though length weight dependant. Richfields can be small portable and a bargain

Which one would Galileo choose?

IF I had it to do over - simpler issues than this video - started with a ' department store (useless, primarily because of the tripod ) 3 inch, then a 4.5 inch Newton which was useable, spotting scope was not, tripod still shaken. then I finally got an 8 in. Dobsonian, great, steady base, 2 inch focuser, 50 mm spotting scope. problem, it's too big for me ( I'm 73 ) to easily move in/ out. IF I could start over, it'd be a 6 in Dob. with computer control of some sort.

Interesting to hear this. I have none, only my trusty Samyang 135mm f2.0 and Canon 90D

Awesome job Can you make a video on comparing different budget go to mounts like explore scientific exos 2gt

Awesome Review Nico,The Evoguide50Ed Is The Reason I Chose It,For The Glass,and For Solo Widefield..But Been Looking At That Orion 80..I See It For $199 Rings and 8x40 Finder,90* Diagonal And 2 Sirius Plossl EP,I Forget The Mm,And Already Have Everything I Need To Observe Or Image,And Thank You For Showing Me How To Finally Use My Eqm35Pro😂🤷🏼‍♀️Clear Skies Nico,and God Bless🙏🏻❤️🌏✨🔭…..Update….Santa Brought Me The Evostar80ed..Paired With My Evoguide,and My Eqm35Pro,Always Been A Big SW Fan,And Now Have What Is A Dream Deep Space Set Up For Me😇Havent Seen The Damn Sky In 4 Months🤨

I really enjoyed your presentation here. I was wondering instead of a Camera, would I be able to use a video camera (camcorder) with this?

I just wait for Hubble to go on sale :D

Your videos are incredibly informative and helpful, so thank you for all the great work! The Askar design seems great. I'm thinking about the 107 rather than the 80 though (I already have a WO Redcat 71. Trying to figure out what kinds of FOV the 107 would offer for galaxies. Anyway, outstanding content, thanks again!

Just a suggestion. I bought the Rokinon 135 MM F2 lens for my Sony. I'm curious as to how it compares with the SVBONY SV503 80ED Refractor Telescope. They are the same price. I know the focal length is different but for instance - is the Rokinon a doublet or a triplet? Also, is the lens as well multicoated as the telescope? You do great reviews, BTW.

Hi Nico, your content just gets better and better. This really does make it clear what you are getting for your money and just how much of an improvement you get from ED glass compared to an Achromatic telescope. Looks like people will get great results from that Svbony without needing to break the bank. I honestly think this is a massive service to the community and in hindsight its a really simple idea, just show what each telescope does with the same target. I recently tried to do mono imaging on a skywatcher startravel telescope, rebadged orion so same scope, and I could just not get rid of halo's on blue filters so sort of solved the question of "Can mono imaging cure the deficiencies of acrhomats?" with a resounding no, even using narrow band OIII filters couldn't cure the blue issue. Would be nice to see what the Svbony could do in mono imaging too does that bring it up to the level of the Ascar? Welldone!

When you're at the point spending almost 2k on an 80mm refractor you might aswell go for a regular camera lens, Nikon Z 180-600mm for example I honestly don't see anything that expensive 80mm telescope offers me that Nikon lens doesn't, it's darker, it's heavier, it's longer, it's not as flexible (no zoom) and I can't use it outside of astrophotography I honestly see no point

Hi, what is the difference between this and just getting a 600mm lens for you camera? Besides difference in prices.

I just subscribed to your channel, thank you! 🙏

As with all things size and quality matter.... In this comparison all 3 have same 80mm diameter. Engineering, material, quality of components all make a big difference. You explained this technical topic is understandable terms and had good examples. I have been looking around for a suitable telescope and this video was helpful.

I've learned a ton of stuff from this video!

Brilliant comparison Nico! So useful for people to see side by side exactly what they're getting for their money. I think one take away is that you can get away with a relatively affordable ED scope if you keep to APS-C or M43 sensors (That Askar is stunning though!) I can't say I've seen anyone imaging with a Sigma FP before either, that was interesting, plus I'm trying to work out what camera you're filming on as the grade almost has that Black Magic look about it?

My takeaway is that the Orion is pretty bad and not worth your time, but the SVBONY is pretty good with a crop-frame camera. The ASKAR is worth the money if you want to shoot full-frame.

Orion offers a dublit ED and a triplet ED.The Orion 80 mm short tube is a nice telescope but does not compare with the other two. I feel this was a poor comparison. Thanks

I think you should use images of planets to demonstrate the difference. Nebulas and stars look pretty the same

I love your videos...please also include links for compatible and recommend tripod..since as an amateur person it gets confusing to search for the same

Please show difference between telescope and camera lens

Hi Nico! Great Video! Askar 80 is a great telescope! But 1750€... I have Sony FF A7iii with 5,6-6,3 200-600 Zoom. It has 17 groups with 24 glaselements 5xED, 1x aspherical. Nanocoating on all and Fluorcoating on front glass... What You mean, is it useful for astrophotography? I have a very good tripod, lens and camera. I ask bevor buying skytracker... Have You ever tried this lens by Astro? Thanks for answer! Dariusz

very good video!

This video cleared all my doubts!

Heyyy...very nicely done. Your comparisons were thorough and well explained. And your visual layout was super easy to follow. 10/10, will subscribe.

The # of ED glass DIRECTLY relates to the costs. The field flattener is essentially "built in" to the triplet so... if you have less $'s just buy a good doublet and then add the field flattener. Essentially, you get "what you pay for". Been an AP guy for a while now. My SW 100ED was $900 when I bought it but now goes for around $1,300 so it slots between your top 2. I picked up the SW .80 flattener, ASair Pro, 2 ZWO cameras and use an HEQ5 mount. Just found your channel and have now SUBSCRIBED

Thank you, you made me decide. I am gonna get Askar for my daughter as her first telescope. We will go out of the city, set it up, and take many beautiful pictures!

awesome! that was a really helpful and interesting video! thanks for sharing. I especially enjoyed the pictures compared (where you explained the details of the same frame used).

As usual Nico, great job of presentation video, when i watch your video i know i will learn and get the answer, no more of brands promoting hypes by some, or at least you don't much go that route and compare fairly, thank you very much

Compliments ! Your presentation is very informative and gives me the idea about the quality-span of the different refractors - thank you for sharing this! All the best & greetings from Switzerland & CS

Another great video by Nico Carver! It's interesting that you picked a full frame non modded camera for the comparison. I don't understand the point of using a full frame camera on an 80mm ED rather than APS-C on a 60 mm ED? You pay extra because the scope can handle full frame, you pay more for the longer focal length, the full frame camera costs more, the entire set-up weights more and you end up with the same FOV?

Great video Nico, although it’s quite frustrating to watch Astro videos when your mounts insides basically exploded the day before and your Astro season is over… :(

Good explanation. Very helpful. kind regards from Germany!

"I would do it [study UFOs], but before agreeing to do it, we must insist upon full access to discs recovered. For instance, in the L.A. case, the Army grabbed it and would not let us have it for cursory examination." J. Edgar Hoover-Director of FBI The security guard called and said, “Sir, there’s a glowing red object hovering right outside the front gate. I’ve got all the men out here with their weapons drawn.” We lost between 16-18 ICBMs (nuclear tipped Inter Continental Ballistic Missiles) at the same time UFOs were in the area… (A high-ranking Air Force officer) said, “Stop the investigation; do no more on this and do not write a final report. I heard that many of the guards that reported the incident were sent off to Vietnam." Captain Robert Salas, USAF, during a videotaped interview for the Disclosure program. "A few insiders know the truth...and are studying the bodies that have been discovered." -Dr. Edwin Mitchell Apollo 14..the 6th NASA employee to walk on the Moon. "Maximum security exists concerning the subject of UFOs.” CIA Director, Allen Dulles, 1955. "It's still classified above Top Secret." - Senator Barry Goldwater, 1975 “Behind the scenes, high-ranking Air Force officers are soberly concerned about UFOs. But through official secrecy and ridicule, many citizens are led to believe that unknown flying objects are nonsense.” Former CIA Director, Roscoe Hillenkoetter, public statement, 1960. “We’ll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false” -William Casey, CIA director, 1981 “Yes, there have been ET visitations. There have been crashed craft. There have been material and bodies recovered. There has been a certain amount of reverse engineering that has allowed some of these craft, or some components, to be duplicated. And there is some group of people that may or may not be associated with government at this point that have this knowledge. They have been attempting to conceal this knowledge. People in high level government have very little, if any, valid information about this. It has been the subject of disinformation in order to deflect attention and create confusion so the truth doesn’t come out. ” ― Edgar D. Mitchell, The Way of the Explorer: An Apollo Astronaut's Journey Through the Material and Mystical World AFFIDAVIT (1) My name is Thomas Jefferson Dubose (2) My address is: XXXXXXXXXX (3) I retired from the U.S. Air force in 1959 with the rank of Brigadier General. (4) In July 1947, I was stationed at Fort Worth Army Air Field [later Carswell Air Force Base] in Fort Worth, Texas. I served as Chief of Staff to Major General Roger Ramey, Commander, Eighth Air Force. I had the rank of Colonel. (5) In early July, I received a phone call from Maj. Gen. Clements McMullen, Deputy Commander, Strategic Air Command. He asked what we knew about the object which had been recovered outside Roswell, New Mexico, as reported in the press. I called Col. William Blanchard, Commander of the Roswell Army Air Field, and directed him to send the material in a sealed container to me at Fort Worth. I so informed Maj. Gen. McMullen. (6) After the plane from Roswell arrived with the material, I asked the Base Commander, Col. Al Clark, to take possession of the material and to personally transport it in a B-26 to Maj. Gen. McMullen in Washington, D.C. I notified Maj. Gen. McMullen, and he told me he would send the material by personal courier on his plane to Benjamin Chidlaw, Commanding General of the Air Material Command at Wright Field [later Wright Patterson AFB]. The entire operation was conducted under the strictest secrecy. (7) The material shown in the photographs taken in Maj. Gen. Ramey’s office was a weather balloon. The weather balloon explanation for the material was a cover story to divert the attention of the press. (8) I have not been paid or given anything of value to make this statement, which is the truth to the best of my recollection. Signed: T. J. Dubose Date: 9/16/91 Signature witnessed by: Linda R. Split Notary Public, State of Florida "There exists a shadowy government with its own Air Force, its own Navy, its own fundraising mechanism, and the ability to pursue its own ideas of national interest, free from all checks and balances, and free from the law itself. “ - Daniel Inouye Senate Select Committee on Secret Military Assistance to Iran and the Nicaraguan Opposition (Iran-Contra hearings) (1987) Genesis 19:24 Then the LORD rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven... As the Quran has it, Prophet Muhammad took a night trip to heaven aboard a trusty winged pony-horse-mule-ish creature called Buraq... We know. You know. We know that you know. MEANINGFUL congressional hearings, ala the Watergate hearings, including aerospace/defense contractors and Vice Admiral Thomas R. Wilson must be held to address a vital issue that transcends politics and we will never properly advance until it happens: The 75+yr ongoing-constitutionally illegal, EXTRATERRESTRIAL and associated TIME TRAVEL cover-ups. How can we truly believe anything our elected officials say? The dog n pony shows must cease

Awesome Nico! I like the William Optics Zenith Star 61 as well. Keep up the great work dude!

Just bought my first at 61🇦🇺🥰

Greetings from the Upper Midwest.

I assumed that telescopes cost a lot more than this. I was guessing $10,000+

Looking at the far away stars, I see no benefit opting for $1750 telescope. You can't see anything anyway... Just specs of lights.. lol. If you show close objects on the other hand, like planets in our solar system, that would be more persuasive, cause you get benefit in clearer image.

Fantastic video Nico. I'm currently testing the PHQ80 for Sharpstar and completely agree with everything you have said. I've been using it with the 2600mm which is an APS-C camera and the stars in the corners are absolutely fantastic. That SvBony seemed to produce some great results as well. Excellent video as always.

Thanks. These telescopes are all 400mm, I have a 600mm zoom lens. What’s the difference between a lens and a telescope? Can I take similar photos with zoom lens?

Very helpful video. Thanks

All life in water, on land, and all these planets out there!!!! Wow God is amazing

Is this type of telescope usable for direct observation ? Astrophotography is super nice but really time consuming. Is it going to work for direct observation?

Very good review. Drawing analogies to conventional camera optics: 1. Two elements corrects chromatic aberration (color fringing) for two out of three colors to be “achromatic” but adds no correction for coma (triangle effect near the edges) or field flattening. The SVbony does an amazing job of bringing the third color into correction. 2. Add a third element, and you add correction for flatness of field. With the “field flattener” the SVbony becomes in effect a three-element lens. 3. Four elements gets you spherical aberration correction, a fully-corrected achromatic or something approaching apochromat with ED glass, depending on who is in charge of the definition. Limiting maximum aperture and keeping focal length in the normal-to-long range for the format minimized spherical aberration and field flatness issues for the simpler camera lenses back in the day. Seems like Orion did a pretty good job with the test scope considering the wide aperture. Better for direct viewing with a decent eyepiece than photography, clearly.

I am surprised you did not include an 80mm triplet like the Orion ED80CF, which would slot in nicely between the 2 higher priced models.

Thank you for this breakdown. Very helpful video.

Since I am an amateur I will prefer 600 dollars rather than 1700 for minor improvements

Thank you so much! This is one of the best, most thorough reviews I have seen in a long time. Great job!

One the best comparison I ever saw. Thank you. I know now what I paying for. Good Job

What a very informative video. Thank you so much!

Hello. Thanks. For same budget, is a bigger better? Thanks.

I have a question not related to any of the refractors. Did you use any computer to control the Sigma FP? Did you try to synchronise your guiding and dither with it? I have been seriously considering this or FPL for my future camera. Thanks!

I love the Iris Nebula

Thank You! Excellent comparison.

Nice vid. Thorough analysis and thoughtful conclusions. I love that (glass?) hex table! Could you share the specs of the product?

I really like that Askar scope... a bit slow natively at f/7.5... but that's pretty much my only gripe with it. Quadruplet design... good rings / bars with plenty of mounting points... beefy focuser... brings a lot to the table for a $1750 price tag that _includes_ the 0.76 reducer. I own a GT81 and it requires a flattener of some sort. WO sells the 6AIII which is a combined reducer/flattener. They do not sell a non-reducing flattener, so you'd have to get something like the Stellarvue if you wanted to run the GT81 at its native focal length. I like the simplicity of being able to use the Askar scope without any additional components or having to worry about whether you got the spacing right. If I were looking for an imaging scope in the 80mm aperture range, the Askar would be pretty high on my list.