New to amateur astronomy? Looking for a high-performance telescope that you can take virtually anywhere? Or perhaps you are searching for an easy-to-use, high-quality yet affordable telescope for your child? Look no further—you have found it!
The SkyWatcher Virtuoso GTi 130/650 Flex Dobsonian telescope is an extremely portable, ultra-compact, lightweight astronomical telescope with a price that is far from astronomical. The optical tube is collapsible, making its already small size even more compact. It is a true "grab-and-go" telescope, and its optical performance will impress beginner astronomers as well.
At the heart of the SkyWatcher Virtuoso GTi 130/650 Flex Dobsonian telescope is a precision-crafted 130 mm primary mirror. Unlike many entry-level reflector telescopes, it has a parabolic surface rather than a spherical one, delivering sharp, detailed images even at high magnifications. A telescope of this size already provides access to a vast range of celestial objects in the night sky. The Moon’s countless craters, Saturn’s rings and Jupiter’s colourful cloud bands are sure to impress, along with dozens of star clusters, nebulae and galaxies that this telescope displays beautifully under dark rural skies.
When collapsed, the optical tube is only 44 cm long. The telescope comes with 25 mm and 10 mm barium eyepieces, providing 26x and 65x magnification respectively. Naturally, the magnification range can be extended up to 200x by purchasing additional eyepieces or a Barlow lens.
The optical tube is moved by SkyWatcher’s latest tabletop single-arm Dobsonian GoTo mount, called the Virtuoso Gti MiniDobson. Thanks to the manufacturer’s "Freedom Find" technology, the telescope can also be moved freely by hand without losing its celestial position. This provides outstanding convenience and simplicity when locating objects.
The mount features built-in WiFi for communication with your smartphone. To use it, simply download the SynScan App from Google Play or the App Store, although an optional SynScan hand controller can also be used. The app or hand controller provides access to data for 42,900 objects, allowing you to find countless spectacular targets under dark rural skies within the limits of your telescope’s aperture.
Although the Virtuoso Gti Minidobson is best placed on a table for convenient use, it can also be mounted on a tripod with a 3/8-inch photo tripod thread, allowing the complete mount to be raised to any comfortable height. The StarAdventurer tripod, for example, is suitable for this purpose.
The unit can be powered by 8 AA batteries placed in the built-in battery compartment, or optionally operated using a 12V mains power adapter or a gel battery. The mount is not limited to moving your telescope: a digital camera can also be mounted on it for astrophotography landscapes or time-lapse videos, while the jack connector also enables timed shutter release.
