Celestron NexStar Evolution 8 203mm f/10 Schmidt-Cassegrain Telescope with Integrated WiFi

2022-06-01T11:06:45

The Celestron NexStar Evolution 8 is a great scope, very easy to set-up and use. I suggest taking the time to assemble the different parts - tripod, mount and telescope tube while inside the house while learning the mount and the Go-To feature. The Go-To mount made finding objects simple. The only thing I have a concern with is the attach point for the telescope optical tube. When it is closed it doesn?t clamp onto the mounting bracket tightly. I don?t yet know if this is by design or not, but it is a question I need to ask. Over all I am very happy with the telescope.

Virgil L.

Originally posted at

2021-09-30T11:51:28

The 'Swiss Army Knife' of telescopes. Others are better at some particular thing, this is good at everything but Astrophotography, which needs a better, bigger, Equatorial mount. What i have is inexpensive enough, transportable enough, big enough, simple enough, powerful enough, and configurable enough for visual and EAA astronomy for both Solar System and Deep Space Objects. Manual clutches, WiFi, and on-board power, are icing on the cake. With Barlows and reducers and HyperStar, it can go from more than f/20 down to f/2 with enough aperture and FOV to see most things, and a small wide-field triplet which would ride on the same mount and with EAA would almost everything else. I have yet to do more than observe the moon with it because of my heavy work and travel schedule. Celestron's documentation and hand control menu tree could be better. I'm glad YouTube exists. Arrived on time, well packaged and a day earlier than promised.

John P.

Originally posted at

2021-03-25T12:46:55

The telescope arrived only a few days after ordering. I was only able to use it once since it's been cloudy, but the view was great.

JOHN K.

Originally posted at

2021-03-10T07:48:25

This is a quality telescope. I was pleased to find the tripod to be a heavy duty, sturdy model. Being a beginner, I was advised to buy this scope and grow into it. It may be the only scope I would ever need. I found the scope to be easily set up, aligned, and easily operated. I added the Starsense option which really made it easy for me to get into this hobby quickly. So far, night one setup and viewing was great. Looking forward to many more nights of viewing.

ROSS H.

Originally posted at

2020-12-10T05:42:27

Absolutely love the quality of the telescope itself. The wifi and the skyportal app are terrific and a must have for someone learning the night sky however, the tri pod mount is less than quality. All three adjustment screws for raising and lowering the scope have stripped out in the first week of use. The thought of the telescope falling over, and tumbling has the potential of being a very expensive accident. I am having to use hose clamps to keep the tripod standing. What a pain in the beep to adjust and balance now. For the cost of this scope, I would expect the same quality in the tri pod stand as the scope.

ROBERT W.

Originally posted at

2020-11-25T08:56:19

Excellent telescope. I have a lot to learn about it yet. Much improvement over the SE product line.

TROY B.

Originally posted at

2020-11-08T07:35:44

Great scope. Arrived in good condition, no problems.

Randall W.

Originally posted at

2020-10-28T15:09:42

Still waiting for the clouds to clear in order to really try out the optics. However, the NexStar Evolution 8 came well packed and proved easy to assemble. The instructions were reasonable though they did seem to expect that you understand at least some scope related terms. Can’t wait for the next starry night to do the sky tour!

PATRICK G.

Originally posted at

2020-10-26T09:13:16

Great out of the box scope spying the planets/moon and beyond. Jupiter and Saturn are especially stunning! Everything came securely and nicely packaged with no problem assembling. After trying out the Celestron 8SE, the Evolution 8 certainly comes in a class of its own as the ability to manually move the mount without powering the scope is fantastic. I primarily control my scope from my laptop making the built in Wi-Fi a very nice addition vs needing the sky portal adapter. Along with 4 aux ports, there is no shortage for plugging in your accessories and not having to mess with a splitter or unplugging one accessory in favor of another. Since i have the GPS/Starsense/focuser/and the hand controller for back up purposes i make use of each port. I would also be remiss if i did not mention the built in lithium battery which does not disappoint with the advertised 10 hours run time. This additional upgrade over the 8SE not only makes it environmentally friendly (8SE takes 8 AA batteries, which does not last long while constantly tracking) but recharging only takes a couple of hours. For the cost I would have liked to have seen this kit include a x2 Barlow lens. I would recommend a couple of additional eye pieces, a Barlow lens, a moon viewing filter, and if budget permits an upgraded star diagonal to increase the enjoyment of your Evolution 8 and provide years of amazing views!

Daniel T.

Originally posted at

2020-10-17T07:34:28

Easy to assemble but instruction manual does not contain enough detail or clear descriptions get it working, this is an initial experience--I suppose I'll have to visit the local university and see if someone can help me get it operating...I'm not a computer geek.

GENE P.

Originally posted at

2020-10-16T05:14:18

Overall this is a great step up from smaller scopes and nearly fully automated. Assembly is pretty straightforward with the exception of step one - the accessory tray needs to be mounted UPSIDE DOWN or it won't attach properly (Celestron logo should point to ground as opposed to the diagram - took me ten minutes to figure this out). The Sky Portal app has some useful features, just be sure to power things up in specific order - scope power, connect mobile device to WiFi, THEN launch app or it will never connect. Included is a handheld controller holder which is not mentioned in the instructions, not positive where/how to mount it. Maybe on the fork handle? I have yet to get it aligned because of continual wifi dropout, if you're in heavy wifi traffic, be warned. I'll switch to handheld and try again. The rechargeable battery is the big seller, others take 8 AA's which go fast. If you don't care about batteries or wifi, save $500 with the Nexstar SE.

LARRY C.

Originally posted at

2020-07-06T02:27:33

This is my first telescope and I couldn’t be happier. I live in the Metro-Detroit area and even in the big city I get great views of the moon, Saturn, Jupitar and a decent view of mars, I have only had it out 6 times and cant wait to see more.

KEITH E.

Originally posted at

2019-01-14T12:42:27

I bought the Celestron Nexstar Evolution 8 as an upgrade from my 5 inch Newtonian. I'm glad I had a cheap manual telescope to learn the sky and pointing techniques prior to taking the plunge with an expensive computer controlled 'scope. I'm also glad to have my expectations tempered by the smaller 'scope. It's important to remember that you need Hubble to get Hubble images. At f/10, the SCT is a much "slower" scope than a Newtonian, so faint fuzzies will still be faint during visual observations. The beefy mount, substantial tripod, and impressive smartphone app control software allow for instant astrophotography if you have the appropriate accessories. The alt-AZ will cause field rotation if you take long exposures, but celestron offers an equatorial wedge for a few hundred bucks as a photography solution. PROS:Beefy mount, sturdy tripod, portable form factor, awesome control software, and astonishing opticsCONS:Alt-AZ mount can impose a limitation on deep sky photography.

ALEX W.

Originally posted at

2018-07-26T08:10:16

This telescope has met all my expectations as a beginning amateur astronomer over the past year including using it for imaging the inner planets.

Don

Originally posted at

2017-12-19T08:11:59

I bought this telescope because of the mount. I was not disappointed. I love the iPad connectivity. Once aligned the accuracy is great. Before I bought it I questioned why you would only have a red-dot finder. I would expect a better finder. After using it I found out you do not need a better finder. If you concentrate on a good alignment using the red-finder and the main scope you do not need a better finder. The scope will take you from target-to-target.

James B.

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