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I guess the inference made by Mike is that the review article about the Northstar 90mm Maksutov-Cassegrain was ill conceived and somewhat unworthy. I disagree. If I'm wrong, I stand corrected.

This particular item, the Bushnell Northstar, is a re-brand of a Chinese tube assembly which is also used by Orion, and possibly Celestron, Mead and Ioptron coupled to a variety of GO-TO astronomical mounts and tripods.

The Bushnell Northstar may not be an Observatory grade telescope, but that budding amateur astronomers do need a starting point. The Maksutov design offers good visual quality in a compact package and at a reasonable price. Not everyone has the money and space available to purchase a large aperture, $1,000+, telescope.

I think that the idea of “If you can’t afford a BMW, you shouldn’t be driving” is rather snobbish. Some people can only afford an inexpensive car, sometimes not even a new car from the dealership.

If a person can afford a few hundred dollars, as opposed to the $99 special at the local Walmart of a 60mm refractor, then so be it. Lest we not all forget our history where Galileo observed the moons of Jupiter and other celestial objects using a more rudimentary device than what we all have today.

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