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Binoculars.com > Telescopes > Refracting Telescopes

Meade ETX-80 AT-TC Astro Telescope with AutoStar Bundle

Item#: MEAD332

Starting Sale Price: $279.98 SAVE: $347.97 (55%)

Starting List Price : $627.95

Q&A

Choose from accessory bundles for your observing plans
Our most popular automatic locating Go-To telescope
Great for astronomical viewing or land based viewing
For details of each bundle options see description

More Info

Components

Description

Meade ETX-80 Telescope Starter Bundle includes:

Meade ETX-80AT-TC Astro Telescope with AutoStar
Zhumell 1.25 Inch Eyepiece and Filter Kit

Meade ETX-80 Telescope Explorer Bundle includes:

Meade ETX-80AT-TC Astro Telescope with AutoStar
Meade Hard Case for ETX-80 Telescope
Meade #546 AC Adapter

Meade's brainy AutoStar computer solves the stargazer’s two biggest challenges in navigating the heavens with a computer telescope: aligning the telescope with the night sky and finding celestial phenomenon in the vast starry firmament right out of the box with a simple initialization, AutoStar makes finding the sky’s elusive jewels virtually as easy as pushing a few buttons. Observe land or over 1,400 sky objects in stunning high resolution, and learn about the sky with Meade's extensive astro-library.

The Meade ETX-80AT-TC has these new advanced features as standard equipment:

A built-in Barlow Lens flips into position when needed. This highly desirable feature provides more power when studying lunar and planetary surface features.
An internal Time Chip (TC) keeps precise factory-calibrated time and date.
A bubble-level/compass is provided to make initialization faster and easier.
Includes sturdy, adjustable, aluminum tripod.
Now includes two premium four-element 1.25-inch Super Plössl eyepieces (SP9.7mm, SP26mm) offering comfortable long eye-relief and an expansive wide visual field.
Bonus! AutoStar Suite Astronomer Software on DVD for PC, now with instructional DVD.

The AutoStar computer controller automatically guides your telescope to over 1,400 objects. View planets, stars, galaxies, and nebulae all at the push of a button. Don’t know what to see on a particular night? Don’t worry. Just select the Tonight’s Best tour and AutoStar will automatically take you on a guided tour of the best planets, stars, nebulae, and other objects out that particular night. Want to know more about what you’re looking at? The LCD display teaches you about what you’re viewing with details like distance, temperature, mass, and historical information. AutoStar is your guide to the universe.

More Power Than You’ll Ever Need. Any astronomer will tell you that light gathering - not power - is what matters. A small, crisp image is better than a large hazy one. Meade’s 1.25-inch-diameter Super Plössl eyepieces provide wider fields of view, allowing you to see more of the sky at greater magnifications. The Meade ETX80 also makes a fantastic land-based observing scope.

AutoStar Suite Astronomer Edition Software on DVD + Instructional Video AutoStar Suite Astronomer Edition software will help you learn the night sky. It displays more than 10,000 celestial objects including planets, stars, galaxies, and nebulae. You can print out star charts and even plan your observing sessions. It operates on any Windows-based PC.

Dimensions & Specifications

Recommended Usage

Astrophotography , For the Enthusiast , Viewing Planets , Viewing the Moon

Power Source

Battery

Battery

8xAA

Features

GoTo

Brand

Meade

Usage

For the Enthusiast

Weight Complete

13 lbs.

Lens Coating

Multi-Coated

GPS

GoTo

Yes

Good for Astrophotography

Yes

Telescope Series

Meade ETX Telescopes

Optical Design

Refractor

Aperture

80mm

Focal Length

400mm

Focal Ratio

f/5

Mount Design

Dual Fork Arm

Battery Included

Eyepiece 1

SP9.7mm

Eyepiece 2

SP26mm

Highest Useful Magnification

160x

Limiting Magnitude

Resolution

1.45

Resolving Power

1.45

Star Diagonal

1.25 Inches

Weight Optical Tube

7 lbs.

User Level

For the Enthusiast

Options

Components: ETX-80 AT-TC Starter Bundle, ETX-80 AT-TC Explorer Bundle

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Customer Reviews

REVIEW SNAPSHOT®

by PowerReviews

Meade ETX-80AT-TC Astro Telescope with AutoStar

4.2

(based on 176 reviews)

88%

of respondents would recommend this to a friend.

Pros

Quality lenses (97)
Accurate (83)
Strong construction (83)
Comfortable eyepiece (54)
Compact (49)

Cons

Difficult to use (21)
Difficult to focus (8)
Unstable (7)
Poor lens quality (5)
Sticky zoom (3)

Best Uses

Astronomy (118)
Bird watching (34)
Travel (25)
Bright conditions (11)
Hiking (5)

- Reviewer Profile:
- Casual/ recreational (113), Avid adventurer (15)
- Was this a gift?:
- No (11), Yes (11)

Most Liked Positive Review

Good first scope.

This is my first telescope used for both a spotting scope for target shooting and as a go-to scope to explore the heavens. Excellent introduction to the stars and planets as the pointing computer has a built-in facts on each heavenly body. Calibration couldn't be easier - point the tube north and level and center the suggested stars. The "night's best tour" is a fun start but soon you'll find yourself drawn into exploring on your own.

Using the 25mm eye piece the eye relief is very kind and the image is bright. The more powerful 9.6mm lens is a bit tougher to use as it's eye relief is less but it's still very bright. The telescope isn't the most powerful but the smaller size makes it easy to pack and take out to better sites. I took the scope out to the desert on a night without a moon and was able to see an amazing amount of stars. On another night the view of the moon was stunning.

The tripod feels really light and that's a bit of a concern for long term durability. There are two small screws that connect the scope's base to the tripod that look like they'd get lost in the grass if dropped. I bought and recommend the matching Meade case to house the scope it as it's not made to roll around in the back seat.

Overall a lot of scope for the money.

Most Liked Negative Review

Disappointing

1. The Autostar is not difficult to set up or use. Just remember to calibrate the motor and train the drive. After you get it set up, it's fun to use.2. In ...Read complete review

1. The Autostar is not difficult to set up or use. Just remember to calibrate the motor and train the drive. After you get it set up, it's fun to use.2. In your alignment, don't use the included compass to find north, try to eyeball Polaris. If you live in an area where the magnetic variation is significant, you can be off 10-15 degrees.3. If you decide to purchase it, invest in a power adapter. [$] They say the batteries will run for about 20 hours....yeah, right. After one night out it will become sluggish and slow.4. The chromatic aberration on bright objects is horrible.5. The focus knob/mechanism is very frustrating. The entire objective lens moves to get the target in focus. It will take 20-30 turns of the knob to get into focus. Change lenses, and another 20-30 turns will be required. Add a barlow, and another 20-30 turns will be required...you get the picture. If you get impatient and turn the focus knob too fast, you will induce backlash in the mechanism and the target will move halfway across the field of view, if not out of it completely.

Reviewed by 176 customers

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Displaying reviews 1-5

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Jan

2012

1.0

NOT Available on back order

By Christmas gift still not delivered

from Sacramento Ca

Comments about Meade ETX-80AT-TC Astro Telescope with AutoStar:

I ordered this product early December. Mid January it had not shipped. Called CS, advised this product was on back order, would not ship before March or April 2012.
Hayneedle CS said the Co refused to post items as, back order and unavailable. Dis service to the Meade Co.

Jan

2012

(1 of 1 customers found this review helpful)

2.0

Meade could do better!

By gwzap

from Clovis

About Me Casual/ Recreational

Pros

Compact
Lightweight

Cons

Difficult to Use
Documentation is lacking
Unstable

Best Uses

Astronomy
Viewing the moon

Comments about Meade ETX-80AT-TC Astro Telescope with AutoStar:

If you are wanting a scope that allows you to use the software provided to control the scope, you could be very disapointed. First off, the software, even the most current one on Meade's Web Site does not recognize the scope. I purchased the #506 Astrofinder which includes the correct serial cable for controling the ETX-80. It would not maintain the serial connection. Also, bear in mind, the ETX-90 and higher are much better scopes with auto-focuser capability. This is important as you can spend alot of your time turning the focus knob. However, if you want a scope that allows you to view the moon, ok, this scope does a good job with the lenses provided. However, I purchased this scope in November 2011--Two weeks afterward, I had to have the controller replaced. I had to get it from Meade, which took two weeks. A week later, one of the locking brackets for the tripod broke. I had to send the whole thing to MEADE for replacement. A month later, I got the replacement. By then I was eager to try out the software to move the scope to whatever point I wanted....does not work. After a lengthy conversation with MEADE, I need to purchase another cable....serial to USB to try that out....which costs another 50 bucks. I'm trying to be objective and save someone else some trouble here.....now this store was and has been fantastic to deal with. I was hoping my first telescope would not be so troublesome, but it has turned out to be a mistake.

Jan

2012

(1 of 1 customers found this review helpful)

2.0

Junk. Great ideas, poor execution.

By TJ

from Littlestown, Pa

About Me Avid Adventurer

Pros

Compact
Lightweight

Cons

Difficult To Focus
Difficult to Use
No finder scope
Poor Lens Quality
Unstable

Best Uses

Doorstop

Comments about Meade ETX-80AT-TC Astro Telescope with AutoStar:

DOES NOT DO WHAT ITS SUPPOSED TO.
The alignment system is a huge pain to set up and does not function as described. Partially due to cheap materials, (ie compass)this system has ruined every evening i've taken this scope out. I have futzed around with the computer trying to get it to align and eventually give up. There is no spotter scope or provision to manually find targets, just sighting down the tube. The focuser is cheap and feels like the knob may fall off at any moment. Oh, and that barlow isnt worth the $2 meade spent on it. I was given this scope as an Xmas present. I am very upset that Telescopes.com would reccomend this so highly. I feel my mother-in-law was duped. The quality is poor. Had my wife not thrown the boxes away at xmas, this would surely be returned. I am very upset.

Jan

2012

(1 of 1 customers found this review helpful)

5.0

AMAZING FIRST TELESCOPE

By New Astronomer

from South Carolina

About Me Casual/ Recreational

Pros

Accurate
Compact
Easy to Use
Lightweight
Price
Quality Lenses
Strong Construction

Cons

Best Uses

Astronomy
Astrophotography

Comments about Meade ETX-80AT-TC Astro Telescope with AutoStar:

I purchased this for my brother for christmas this year, 2011. He is brand new to astronomy and wanted to have a nice telescope to look at the moon and take pictures of the stars and so forth. This telescope allows for all that to be done at a reasonable price. This telescope is absolutely amazing at the quality it projects. Looking at the moon you can see details on the craters and the trenches that flow through the moons surface. I can also see Jupiter and 3 of its moons... this telescope is amazing and i highly recommend!

Dec

2011

5.0

Outstanding product. Would recommend

By Electricty man

from Walker, Louisiana

About Me Casual/ Recreational

Pros

Accurate
Compact
Easy to Use
Lightweight
Perfect for beginners
Quality Lenses
Strong Construction

Cons

Best Uses

Astronomy

Comments about Meade ETX-80AT-TC Astro Telescope with AutoStar:

My son and I spend quality time exploring the universe

Displaying reviews 1-5

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Customer Q & A

1 - 5 of 7

1 2

Q1: Does the ETX-80 come with a viewfinder?

A: No, the ETX 80 does not come with a viewfinder. Right now there is no viewfinder available for this specific model.

Q2: Do you have available a carrying case for the ETX-80AT-TC?

A: The hard carrying case for the ETX80 is sold separately. It is listed under Item# MEAD023.

Q3: How does the Meade series 4000 telescope eye piece and filter improve the Meade ETX-80AT-TC Astro Telescope with AutoStar?

A: The Meade Series 4000 eyepiece kit provides a more convenient viewing experience. It provides multiple magnifications and different colored filters you can apply. The different magnifications will expand what you are able to see and the filters will change the color skew of what you are viewing to make details "pop" out.

Q4: Does the ETX-80 come with a tripod?

A: Yes, this telescope comes with a tripod.

Q5: Does the ETX-80 show images upside down?

A: No, this telescope has a built in diagonal for right side up viewing.

1 2

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