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Best late Black Friday telescope deals 2023

Our pick of the best telescopes for astronomy featuring in the late Black Friday sales

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Published: November 29, 2023 at 11:00 am

While the official Black Friday and Cyber Monday dates have been and gone, you can still find plenty of late telescope deals around. Many of the UK shops that embrace the sale events are electronic retailers which means there are often discounts and deals on telescopes, binoculars and other astronomy equipment to be found. You'll also find plenty of late Black Friday camera deals.

If you're buying a telescope for the first time, however, it pays to know what you're looking for. Read our guide on how to choose your first telescope or our pick of the best beginners telescopes.

You can also browse our pick of the best Celestron telescope deals and best Bresser telescope deals.

Jump straight to:

Where to find late Black Friday telescope deals UK

  • Wex Photo Video - Black Friday deals ending soon!
  • Amazon - Home to popular brands such as Celestron and Sky-Watcher
  • Jessops - Telescopes for all budgets, and with plenty late Black Friday reductions still up for grabs
  • PicStop - Shop late Black Friday offers, limited time only
  • eBay - You may be able to get a good deal on a good quality secondhand telescope

Where to find late Black Friday telescope deals US

  • Orion - Reductions on beginner, intermediate and advanced models to suit all levels
  • Walmart - Browse popular telescope brands such as Celestron, National Geographic, Orion and more
  • B&H - Explore the photo and audio specialist's Cyber Week deals on optics
  • Adorama - Cyber Week ends December 3rd, grab a bargain whilst you still can!
Late Black Friday telescope deals Credit: Tony Rowell / Getty Images

Most telescopes come with mounts these days, too. Get all the info you need with our guide to telescope mounts.

Best late Black Friday telescope deals UK

Celestron LCM 114 Computerised, was £399.99, now £299.98

Buy now from Amazon

Celestron computerised telescope

The Celestron LCM 114 Computerised telescope is quick and straightforward to assemble, plus it really whets the appetite for beginners!

The LCM114 features a 4.5-inch primary mirror with a focal length of 1,000mm, giving you a focal ratio of f/9. We found it offered decent views with pin-sharp stars across most of the field of vision in the supplied 25mm eyepiece. Buy now for a 25% saving.

Read our full Celestron 114LCM computerised telescope review for more details.

Sky-Watcher Explorer-200PDS (HEQ5 PRO), was £1,548.00, now £1,458.00

Buy now from Wex

Sky-Watcher telescope

If you're looking for a computerised telescope, the Sky-Watcher Explorer-200PDS (HEQ5 PRO) is now on offer at Wex. Thanks to the user-friendly pushbutton hand control, you can effortlessly locate and view a specific object, or you can even tour the skies with just a push of a button. With features for both novice and more advanced astronomers to appreciate, including a dual-speed 10:1 ratio focuser for excellent focusing precision, we'd say this is a top late Black Friday find.

Celestron Inspire 100AZ refractor, was £299.99, now £249.99

Buy now from PicStop

Celestron Inspire 100AZ refractor. Credit: BBC Sky at Night Magazine

The Celestron Inspire range of refractor telescopes are arguably among the best telescopes for beginners and young astronomers. They are easy to set up, easy to use and are good quality instruments, as you would expect from a reputable brand like Celestron.

What's perhaps most appealing to this new generation of young astronomers is the included smartphone adapter, which means you can easily attach your phone's camera to the eyepiece, snap an image of the Moon or Mars and share online to your heart's content!

A number of retailers have discounts on the Inspire 100AZ model (see above), but there are also good deals to be found on the slightly-less-expensive Inspire 80AZ model from retailers like Currys.

Bresser Messier 5-inch tabletop Dobson - was £176.99, now £149

Buy now from Ebay, Amazon

Bresser Messier 5-inch tabletop Dobsonian: a good Bresser Black Friday telescope if you're after a model that can be used with little fuss.

Tabletop telescopes are a great option for beginners because there's very little set-up involved and no mount to fiddle around with.

Once it's removed from packaging, it's a matter of setting it on a tabletop or other flat surface, popping in an eyepiece and you're ready to go.

This Bresser 5-inch Dobson tabletop comes pre-assembled and will give you great views of targets like the planets of the Solar System, star clusters and galaxies.

It also comes with a Moon filter for observing our lunar neighbour, making it a good Bresser late Black Friday telescope if you're after a model that can be used with little fuss.

Celestron AstroMaster 76 EQ Reflector, was £199.00, now £165.00

Buy now from Wex

Celestron is perhaps the most famous brand name in amateur astronomy, and with good reason. The company was set up by US astronomer Tom Johnson in the 1960s, and since then has been producing simple telescopes for beginners and more high-end instruments for experienced astronomers and astrophotographers.

The AstroMaster 76 EQ would make a great first telescope for beginners and young astronomers, and is currently available as part of Amazon's late Black Friday offerings. The telescope comes with an equatorial mount and tripod, an accessory tray, 10mm and 20mm eyepieces and a finderscope.

No tools are required for setup, which makes it a good grab-and-go telescope, as well as one that can be packed away for transport and easily assembled at a dark-sky site (and one that won't take you too long to set up ready for Christmas morning!)

The AstroMaster also comes with downloadable software featuring a database of 36,000 astronomical objects, printable sky maps and images.

Sky-Watcher Evostar-90 (EQ2) Achromatic Refractor Telescope, was £245, now £219

Buy now from Wex

Sky-Watcher telescope

You'll likely spot a number of Sky-Watcher telescope deals in the late Black Friday sales.

The Sky-Watcher Evostar-90 (EQ2) Achromatic Refractor Telescope has a long focal length, ideal for detailed Moon study and observation.

Read our review of the Sky-Watcher Evostar-90 AZ Pronto telescope and mount.

Celestron Travel Scope 70 refractor kit, was £99.99, now £79

Buy now from Amazon

Travel telescopes make a great option for many amateur astronomers, and not just those who like to journey to far-flung dark-sky sites. A travel telescope should by definition be lightweight, easy to carry and easy to set-up, which is probably what most people are looking for in a telescope anyway.

The Celestron Travel Scope 70 is really a 'telescope kit' as it comes with travel backpack, light aluminium tripod, 4mm, 10mm and 20mm eyepieces, and a Barlow lens. The telescope is suitable for observing the Moon, planets, star clusters and brighter galaxies and nebulae. It also comes with a CD-ROM that contains a database of 10,000 astronomical targets.

Bresser Refractor Telescope Taurus 90/900 NG, now £246

Buy from Wex

Bresser Refractor Telescope Taurus 90 900

The Taurus 90/900 NG comes with a mount and tripod and is suitable for observing planets in the Solar System like Jupiter and Saturn.

It can also be turned to deep-sky objects like galaxies and nebulae and features on the Moon.

Like many of the Bresser telescopes on offer, the Taurus 90/900 comes with a smartphone adapter so you can capture what you see.

The multi-purpose mount included enables both azimuth and equatorial positioning, and the telescope itself is lightweight and easy to set up.

The package comes with 2 eyepieces and a finderscope.

Celestron PS1000 Newtonian Reflector Telescope, was £249.99, now, £129.99

Buy now from Jessops

Save £100 on the Celestron PS1000 Newtonian Reflector Telescope. The sturdy equatorial mount is designed to help track objects in the night sky, making this late Black Friday telescope find a good choice for those wanting to study deep-sky objects like nebulae and galaxies. Plus, with no need for tools to set up, this is an effortless pick for those keen to explore the night sky.

Best late Black Friday telescope deals US

Unistellar eQuinox 114mm, was $2,999.00, now $1,999.00

Buy from Adorama

Unistellar telescope

We've noticed some fantastic savings from Unistellar this Black Friday, and the Unistellar eQuinox is still available with a hefty 33% reduction. There's plenty to get excited about with this model, including an automated tracking and pointing system for advanced accuracy and Autonomous Field Detection which lets you know what you're observing. Plus, this sleek piece of kit features a built-in, 12-hour battery, so you can explore the sky for hours on end.

Vaonis Vespera Observation Station, was $2,499, now $1,499

Buy from Adorama US, Amazon US

Vaonis Vespera Observation Station

The Vaonis Vespera is effectively an all-in-one astrophotography set-up for urban observers, although it's price point might normally put beyond of most beginners' budget.

The telescope is a Go-To 2-inch refractor, but in place of an eyepiece it has a computer and Wi-Fi connection.

You download the Singularity app to a smartphone or tablet, and you can decide where the Vaonis will point, and see the results on your screen.

The image sensor takes image after image (roughly every five or 10 seconds) during observation sessions to produce ever-better, clear images.

The Vespera is currently heavily reduced via US site Adorama, and Amazon US is offering it at the same price. If you're reading this from the UK, check out Clifton Cameras for a similar offer.

For more info, read our full Vaonis Vespera review

Orion StarBlast 102mm Travel Refractor Kit, was $309.99, now $249.99

Buy now from Orion

Orion telescope

Suitable for both day time viewing and stargazing in the evening, the Orion StarBlast 102mm Travel Refractor Kit is now on offer. The kit comes with a convenient carry case, making this a portable option, and a stainless steel tripod. This would also be a suitable model if you're just starting out!

We reviewed the Orion StarBlast 62mm compact travel refractor and found the little scope produced impressively sharp images when the skies were clear.

Celestron NexStar Evolution 8 Kit Bundle, was $2,299.99, now $1,899.99

Buy now from Walmart, Adorama

Celestron telescope

The Celestron NexStar Evolution 8 is an innovative telescope that makes astronomy even more accessible.

Hidden inside the mount is a built-in Wi-Fi network which lets you connect wirelessly with a smartphone or tablet to control the scope.

Read our five star review for more on the Celestron NexStar Evolution 8.

How to get a good deal on Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2023

It can be tricky knowing where to start, with such an abundance of deals and offers around. We’d recommend doing some research before diving into the sales. Note down specific models or brands you’re interested in, and take note of pricings pre-sale, to ensure you’re getting a genuine bargain. It's worth checking after the official sale event dates too, as you'll likely find some late bargains!

Downloading browser extensions such as CamelCamelCamel can also help, particularly for Amazon-related shopping. The tool monitors the prices of products on Amazon and notifies you if you're truly securing the best possible deal.

For more savings, check out the best Cyber Monday binoculars deals.

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