f/10, Go To Controller, 8×50 Viewfinder, Eyepieces 26mm Plossl, Standard Field Tripod.

I purchased the LX 90 Meade Telescope in June 2001 and my first impression of this handsome telescope was its ease of use. I had it set up in under 30 minutes with well written and easy to read instructions.

I am a lover of technology so I tend to gravitate toward the computerized Meade telescopes. The Auto-star has 30,233 celestial objects programmed into it, and once you have carefully aligned it using the two star method which I highly recommend, the telescope has no problem finding and centering objects.

The bonus with the auto-star object database is that you can update it over the internet.

These are great Meade telescopes if you don’t have a lot of time for viewing, you can see anything from 15 to 20 objects in around 10 minutes. You will be able to see more objects in one hour than you could manually, unless you’re an expert.

The guided tour is excellent, and you can program your own guided tour with up to 200 objects. The objects will stay in view for just over 1/2 hour. This is very handy when you’re showing your friends objects, each person has time to view an object before you need to make any adjustments.

I have tested the telescope on both planetary and deep space and can report excellent viewing. The Eagle Nebula M16 looked beautiful as did the Trifid Nebula M20 which was well defined and quite clear, but the globular cluster was the best. The diffraction-limited optics are top class and the resolution, contrast and brightness are superior on these Meade telescopes.

About the only problem I found, and it may not be a problem for some, it can get noisy when slewing on high speed.

With high resolution and the ability to track any object for over 1/2 hour, it is perfect for CCD imaging and astrophotography. I have seen some amazing photos that have been taken using this telescope.

 Meade Telescopes Recommendation

I would recommend these Meade telescopes to anyone at any level, especially those of you who are interested in CCD imaging and Astrophotography.

If you’re new to astronomy I would suggest you buy software called Starry Night. It will give you information on any object and help you learn about the night sky.

I own this software and use it quite a lot, especially for planning a night’s viewing. It can help you find out where an object will be at a certain time on a certain month, which is very helpful when planning your viewing nights.

Binocular Center has them at a great price so does the Discovery Store. But the best price I found for these Meade telescopes is at Vanns.