It's been a little while since we did a full head-to-head smart telescope comparison and with recent announcements, it's a good time to again go over what's in the market and offer a bit of advice about the best model for you. 

What's a Smart Telescope?

We generally define a Smart Telescope as an all-in-one portable telescope that includes a mount, camera, telescope itself in a single unit. Most include internal filters, and many come with an external solar filter.

Using all this built-in tech, they are able to automatically position themselves to observe the night sky.  You take them outside, connect to them using dedicated phone or iPad/tablet apps and then start observing and astro imaging. 

The key to Smart Telescopes are their ease of use and quick setup. This lets you start your astronomy journey without having to spend time fiddling about with complex gear or working out how to run multiple software programs. While they're quick to get going, nobody stays a beginner forever as I'm always keen to point out, so they all have advanced features you can learn to use as your experience grows. 

With the exception of some Unistellar models, there is no eyepiece on Smart Telescopes to look through.  

Are Smart Telescopes just for beginners?

Absolutely not!

There are a large number of our experienced customers who've been observing and photographing the night sky, often for decades, who are now happy Smart Telescopes owners. Ease of setup, lightness and portability are big factors. 

I've had more than a few of our regulars who said to me something along the line of "Earl, I've done more astronomy in the last three months with my new little scope than I've done in the last three years with my old gear..."

We're also finding them being used more and more at astro open nights and even training workshops. 

Are Smart Telescopes upgradeable?

Apart from the Celestron Origin, the hardware of Smart Telescopes is generally not upgradable. This is much like what you'd find with most modern phones. 

There are a small number of add on filters, tripods and EQ wedges. There's a growing cottage industry that are producing 3D printed lens shades and other accessories, however there's nothing we've seen so far that BINTEL has decided to stock. 

What are these Equatorial head or wedge things I hear about? 

An EQ mount, Equatorial Mount or "Wedge" all do the same thing. They tilt your Smart Telescope to allow it to not just follow your target but avoid the slight twist or "field rotation" that happens when they work in just up-down, left-right or Alt-Az mode. 

This allows longer exposures for even more detailed images. 

Using a Smart Telescope in EQ mode will need it to be "Polar Aligned" and pointed at the South Celestial Pole. This process used to be fiddly for beginners to get right, but their apps feature tools to do this in a couple of minutes.

Please note that having an EQ mount such as the ZWO TH10 Head is a nice upgrade, however it's in no way essential. We often advise customers just starting out to use their new telescopes without EQ accessories while they get going. 

Can Smart Telescopes be left outside?

Smart Telescopes often have extensive observation planning features that allow you to capture an entire evening (or even more!) of astro images across multiple targets. You can leave them outside, sleep soundly and see what they've accomplished the following morning. If they cop a brief shower or heavy dew during the night, they'll be ok. They're NOT designed to be left outside for multiple days and nights. 

Can I use Smart Telescopes to photograph the Sun?

Yes.

Make sure you have a Solar Filter installed on the front of your telescope before you do!

DWARF Lab

DWARF Lab were one of the early Smart Telescope suppliers. They currently have the   super compact DWARF mini, which holds the title of the smallest Smart Telescope.

(The DWARF 3 model has just been discontinued as of time of writing.)

We are quite fond of the DWARF mini as it has shrunk a full astrophotography rig down to the size of something you can carry around with you in a coat pocket or small bag. It's also only 840g or about the weight of midsized pair of binoculars.  

A DWARF mini at BINTEL during the week. That's the entire telescope, camera and mount!

It has a 30mm wide main lens and a Sony IMX662 sensor based camera, with a smaller wide-angle lens using a OmniVision OS02K10 based camera. For those used to traditional camera setups, think of the DWARF mini as having 1016 mm (telephoto) and a 45 mm (wide-angle) lenses. You can use it on a flat, solid surface or mount your DWARF mini on any standard photographic tripod.

Despite its small size the DWARF mini produces stunning images. 

You can check out more images from the DWARF Lab gallery here.

Who the DWARF mini is ideal for:

The DWARF mini is perfect for anyone after an affordable way to get into astro imaging or those who need an ultra portable little telescope for travelling. 

You'll find the DWARF mini at BINTEL here.

ZWO

ZWO kicked off the trend of amazing small Smart Telescope with the original Seestar S50 which was followed by the Seestar S30. We now have the Seestar S30 Pro, a significant improvement to the previous Seestar S30. 

The ZWO Seestar S30 Pro is one of the most popular and bestselling products we've ever sold here at BINTEL, with many hundreds going out the door.   

It combines a 30mm four element "APO" main lens with a Sony IMX585 based camera and a wide-angle lens using a Sony IMX586. These allow you to shoot the night sky in 4K resolution. 

Two of the main highlights of the S30 Pro is its wide field of view, along with the sensitive widefield camera. This has made it popular for capturing wide portraits of deep-sky objects.

Here's a view of winter favorites, the M8 Lagoon Nebula and M20 Trifid Nebula captured with a ZWO Seestar S30 Pro and by Darren Rickett from Wyoming in NSW and posted to the BINTEL Society Facebook group here.

Apart from close ups of deep-sky objects, the widefield camera on the S30 Pro can stitch 180-degree Milky Way panoramas and star trails. 

 

Who the ZWO Seestar S30 is ideal for:

This is a great choice if you're after an affordable Smart Telescope that offers a range of flexible imaging options in a compact package. There are lots of reasons why these are so popular. 

Check out the ZWO Seestar S30 Pro at BINTEL here.

Special note: both the DWARF mini and ZWO Seestar S30 Pro can be used during the day for scenery and even wildlife photography. It's also well worth exploring both the ZWO Seestar and DWARF Facebook and Instagram accounts and user groups to see examples of what others are doing with these small Smart Telescopes. 

The ZWO Seestar S30 Pro and DWARF mini at Macquarie University Observatory during a recent imaging session run by BINTEL's Jess Gilmore. A handy way to compare their sizes!

Vaonis

Another pioneer in the Smart Telescope arena, French designed Vaonis Vespera telescopes are a big step up in terms of optical quality and imaging abilities. The three models in their current Vespera range all use a 50mm main lens and share the same general size and body shape, while differing in internal systems.  They are also small enough to be carried under one arm and would be easy to transport.

A Vaonis Vespera 3 observing in a city environment

Their Vaonis Vespera II was introduced a couple of years ago and uses a 4-element (quadruplet) APO 50mm f/5 lens with a Sony IMX585 sensor based camera. This is a significant jump in size from the 30mm class optics you'll find on the S30 Pro and DWARF mini telescopes. Larger optics reveal more details and produce better quality astro images. 

The Vaonis Vespera 3 released a couple of months ago keeps the same camera sensor, while bumping up the quality of the main lenses to a more advanced  3-group flat-field APO quadruplet + baffle. Memory moves to 115 Gb with an 11 hour battery meaning you can image throughout the night.  Imaging sessions can even be spread multiple evenings with 15 Multi-night slots. 

Moving up to the Vaonis Vespera Pro 2 will bring further refinements to same size 50mm optics while improving the camera sensor to a 12.5 megapixel Sony IMX676. The total size of the mosaic images doubles to 50 megapixels, along with onboard storage jumping to 225 Gb and 30 Multi-night slots.

Some images captured with a Vaonis Vespera Pro 2 and Vespera 3.  Head over to the Vaonis gallery for more.

Vaonis Design and Software Experience

Smart Telescopes are as much software as they are hardware. The Vaonis Singularity app for Apple iOS and Android devices stands alone in design elegance and functionality. 

There's also no doubt about the stylish, European design of the Vespera telescopes. We can't think of another piece of gear sold by BINTEL that, frankly, looks so bloody good! They're more like pieces of modern art that will stop people either when displayed in your home or out in the observing field. 

Who the Vaonis Vespera telescopes are ideal for:

The Vespera II at the current price of $3,499 is possibly the best value premium Smart Telescope available today. Its 50mm APO optics and 8.3 Megapixel camera combined with the Vaonis Singularity software suite are going to deliver some stunning images right from your first night out, while allowing you to further build and process your data as your skills grow.

Additional features and upgrades to the Vespera 3 bring further image details and capabilities. The main lens baffles shield the telescope from stray street lighting and the bumps to the memory and battery capacity expand your sessions under the night sky. If you want the best looking star clusters, nebulae or galaxies of any Smart Telescope, this might be the one for you, 

We'd probably point you towards the Vespera Pro 2 with its larger camera sensor if you'd like to go after more challenging astro targets or want to stitch together larger mosaic images either for printing or projection onto a larger wall display. 

Learn about Vaonis at BINTEL here.

Unistellar

Another Smart Telescope pioneer and also another French company, Unistellar have two ranges of reflector based devices.  They are also the only Smart Telescopes that have models with eyepiece that you can look through. 

Their ODYSSEY Smart Telescopes feature an 85mm reflector, with super easy setup and use.

The Unistellar evScope2 uses a 114mm main mirror, a Nikon electronic eyepiece with micro-OLED display meaning you'll see down the 18.2 magnitude stars, live in your backyard. 

Unistellar ODYSSEY Pro with Nikon eyepiece

 One of the major highlights of the Unistellar Smart Telescope range is the company's heavy involvement in citizen science programs. If you'd like to join with other Unistellar owners to observe and discover asteroids, observe exoplanets, and study supernovae and even publish genuine scientific research, this might be your perfect choice. 

Who the Unistellar telescopes are ideal for:

Unistellar Smart Telescopes are great for their ease of use and if you'd like the experience of live viewing through a telescope eyepiece. They also have a vibrant citizen science community. 

You can find out more about Unistellar at BINTEL here.

Celestron

The Celestron Origin Intelligent Home Observatory Mark II is bit of a mouthful of a telescope name but it's also the largest and most capable Smart Telescope available today. 

It uses a large 152mm (6") RASA Optics running at f/2.2, along a mount with built-in battery and Wi-Fi. 

The Celestron Origin is famous for capturing large swathes of the night sky in fine details, and quickly too. It's also the only Smart Telescope that allows you to upgrade the hardware, with the main camera being at the front of the telescope. 

 

The Celestron Origin is larger and closer to more traditional telescope in size. It's portable, although will require a little bit more effort to transport the mount, the Origin and tripod compared to smaller, more portable options

The new Mark II version of the Origin features an upgraded camera that features a Sony IMX678C camera with significant improvements in image quality. This is the only difference. If you have one of the original Celestron Origin telescopes, you can upgrade it to Mark II specifications here.

Find out more about the Celestron Origin at BINTEL here.

Who is the Celestron Origin telescope ideal for:

If you're after a system that will produce best quality astro images, the Origin would work for you. As it captures the light from deep-sky objects quickly, it would also be ideal for anyone running an astro tourism business or carrying out astronomy outreach and educational activities. We have a number of Celestron Origins performing these duties nightly around the country and would be happy to chat to about them to you if you're interested. 

Do Smart Telescopes use AI to generate their images?

No.

The sophisticated software suites that are part of Smart Telescopes do not use generative AI to look at an image you've taken and then fill it in details either by using a library of existing images or using AI tools to simply make things up. 

Image processing is a central part of astronomical imaging at all levels.  

Experienced astrophotographers often use sophisticated software to reveal hidden details. What they will do is "tweak" a wide range of options as they combine multiple images into a single astro photo. We often have our customers go back to earlier datasets they captured once their skills have improved to mine and explore what details can be revealed with these new skills. 

The apps powering Smart Telescopes are now automating these processes to a growing degree. This lets even beginners extract more from their images without the need for expensive software or hours of learning and processing. 

You can turn these features off if you'd like. It means you can still process everything yourself and pull unprocessed data from your telescope. 

Can I control my Smart Telescope from inside my house?

Yes.

Smart Telescopes produce a Wi-Fi network that your phone or iPad/tablet joins. They can also join an existing Wi-Fi network, so if your backyard has Wi-Fi coverage, you can set them up outside, then head indoors and your app will find the telescope on your home network.

If you can cast or display your device's screen onto your big screen TV, you'll be able to see what your Smart Telescope has been working on your TV as well. A great way to share your astro images with friends and family.

Do I need Internet access for my Smart Telescope to work?

No.

Astronomers like to head into the middle of nowhere to explore dark skies.  If you don't have 4G or 5G phone access there, don't worry! All the data needed to run your Smart Telescope will be downloaded when you install their apps.  Some of the more advanced cloud based image processing tools will need Internet access, but these are not needed to control the telescope and image the night sky.

Will there be a new Smart Telescopes introduced and should I wait? 

The answer to these questions is yes and no! As I say to customers, unless a company has announced that they have sacked all the engineers and designers who produced their current models, these companies are more than likely working on new models that will be introduced at some point.  You can say pretty much the same thing about phones, TVs, cars and so on. 

One thing to remember about Smart Telescopes is that the telescope companies are very aware of the competition and in a race to introduce new features and capabilities via free app and firmware updates. 

The Smart Telescope you purchased a year ago is probably quite different to the same telescope you're using today despite looking much the same and not having spent a cent upgrading it. 

Wrapping it up

BINTEL has a wide range of Smart Telescopes that start at just under $700. These wonderful gizmos have opened up the world of astronomy and astrophotography to folks who thought they'd never be able to afford to use more complex equipment, as well as making it easier for experienced astronomers to simply get out under the stars. 

Smart Telescope	Ideal For
DWARF Lab mini	Budget focused astronomers, travelers
ZWO Seestar S30 Pro	All-around deep sky imaging
Vaonis Vespera	Ultra detailed astro images, superb design & app
Unistellar eVscope and ODYSSEY	Live eyepiece viewing, community projects
Celestron Origin	High-end, fast capture of astro images

 

The crew here at BINTEL are more than happy to go through the features of various models at length to make sure you'll be starting out with just the telescope for you and the family. If you've ever wanted to get into astronomy, Smart Telescopes have made it the perfect time!

Cheers,

Earl White

BINTEL 

25th July 2026