Any beginner telescope kit should be easy to use and come complete, with no need for extra purchases.
Sky-Watcher’s latest addition to its StarQuest line, the DX130P, offers new astronomers exactly that: a novice-friendly all-in-one solution that turned out to be a genuine pleasure to review.
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Unboxing and setting up
Unpacking the boxes, we discovered a smart metallic black optical tube assembly, tubular steel tripod with accessory tray, Sky-Watcher’s new StarQuest DX equatorial mount with counterweight and bar, and a box of accessories that included a red dot finder, two eyepieces, a smartphone adaptor kit and a crosshead screwdriver.
Also included in the package were comprehensive illustrated instructions that show you how to set up the mount and balance the telescope.
However, these could bear a little copy-editing; there were several typos, descriptions of the red dot finder that segued between an older version and this newer one, mislabelled components in diagrams, and polar alignment instructions that could leave users looking for crosshairs in the red dot finder.
Nevertheless, our immediate impression was how simple the set-up process was, and how tidy and robust the DX mount is compared to other equatorial mounts aimed at beginners.
The white enamel finish with green altitude, right ascension and declination scales gives it a clean appearance and, of course, the scales look almost black under an astronomer’s red-light torch.
The altitude adjustment scale is marked at intervals of 3°, which is adequate to set it for visual observation.
Altitude is adjusted by a T-bolt that bears against a tongue attached to the head; the adjustment range is 0° to 66°.
Wide, bright views
Sky-Watcher describes the 10mm (65x) and 20mm (32.5x) eyepieces as ‘photo/visual’.
We examined them and found that they’re a reverse Kellner design (in simple terms, this swaps the usual lens positions to give beginners a wider view than older eyepiece types), which was reinforced when we measured their apparent field of view to be 52°.
As spectacles wearers, we soon discovered that neither eyepiece had enough eye relief to enable us to see the entire field of view with spectacles on.
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We checked collimation and found that it needed some attention, which took just a few minutes with
our laser collimator.
If you don’t have such a device, the manual does provide very comprehensive instructions on how to collimate without one.
A star test indicated that the optics were free of image-degrading spherical aberration.
Excellent for star clusters
The eyepieces give reasonably sharp images almost to the edge of the field of view and have good colour rendition.
They don’t have anti-reflective coatings but, with only four glass-to-air surfaces, the image was suitably bright.
We didn’t detect any internal reflections, and the image quality was only very marginally improved when we substituted one of our own high-quality orthoscopic eyepieces.
We spent several happy hours revisiting old friends in the summer Milky Way and, later, Taurus and Auriga.
Saturn and Jupiter were far too bright, unless we used the included sub-aperture mask.
The telescope excelled on medium-sized open clusters, including the Owl Cluster, NGC 457.
We were well into the observing session before we realised the lack of vibrations when using the slow-motion controls – excellent!
Smartphone adaptor
The StarQuest DX130P Newtonian' phone adaptor was simple to use, but unless your camera shutter can be voice-operated, you’ll want to get a Bluetooth remote control for it to avoid shake.
If you’re new to equatorially mounted Newtonians, you’ll need to get used to rotating the optical tube in its rings when you change from observing objects east of the mount to those west of the mount.
This is best done with the tube horizontal so it doesn’t slip out of balance; you may wish to mark the balance point with a piece of tape on the tube, to make repositioning quicker and easier.
Overall, the Sky-Watcher StarQuest DX130P is a thoughtfully designed and impressively executed telescope that was an absolute joy to use.
We’d have been delighted to have had one of these when we were starting out in the hobby. If you’re in that position, this could well be the scope for you.
Testing the StarQuest DX mount
Astronomical instruments simply can’t perform well without a stable base and a robust head that moves smoothly.
Ones for beginners need to be easy to use too. We were delighted to find that the new StarQuest DX mount ticks all these boxes.
We found it intuitive to assemble, but if you’re less confident, the manual offers clear, illustrated instructions for assembly and use.
We recommend practising in daylight first; after that, you’ll find it easy to set it up under a dark sky.
The large clutch knobs on the right ascension and declination axes are easy to operate, even with gloves on.
The flexible slow-motion knobs turn the axes smoothly with almost no backlash or vibrations.
They’re secured with short crosshead screws (screwdriver included), which are less prone to snagging on things and working loose than the more common long thumb screws.
5 best features
Sub-aperture mask
The aperture cover has a removable cap which reveals a 45mm-diameter (1.8-inch) opening. This is useful for observing the Moon and bright planets: not only does it reduce brightness, but by changing the focal ratio from f/5 to f/14.4, it also increases the image sharpness.
Red dot finder
Sky-Watcher’s new, redesigned red dot finder seems distinctly more robust than its predecessor. The adjustment knobs and on–off/dimmer switch are chunky enough to be adjustable with quite thick gloves and it’s simple to use by following the well-written instructions.
Focuser
The 1.25-inch rack-and-pinion focuser operates smoothly with no backlash, making it extremely easy to achieve best focus. It has a useful T2 thread for optional accessories such as binoviewers. It was stiff enough to hold our DSLR, although it had insufficient travel to bring it to focus on distant objects.
Collimatable mirrors
After a period when Sky-Watcher offered only fixed primary mirrors in ‘beginner’ reflectors, we were pleased to see that both mirrors in this telescope are collimatable. The collimation screws for the primary mirror cell are covered by a removable metal plate, which also protects the back of the mirror.
Smartphone adaptor
The included smartphone adaptor is both remarkably simple and effective. It has a separate attachment for each eyepiece, so that the securing screws seat themselves in a groove in the eyepiece body. The foam-lined phone clamp attaches to the eyepiece attachment with a single large-headed thumbscrew.
Key specs
- Price: £279
- Optics: 130mm parabolic Newtonian
- Focal length: 650mm, f/5
- Focuser: 1.25-inch rack and pinion
- Mount: German equatorial
- Extras: 20mm and 10mm eyepieces, red dot finder, smartphone adaptor, accessory tray, screwdriver
- Weight: 11.4kg
- Supplier: Optical Vision Limited
- Tel: 01359 244200
- www.opticalvision.co.uk
This review appeared in the December 2025 issue of BBC Sky at Night Magazine
