994 replies to this topic

[tarbat]

I wonder how good the new Seestar S50 from ZWO will be. I'm guessing the S50 indicates a 50mm aperture, and the feature set looks similar to others like the Vespera and Dwarf II.  Anyone know any more details yet?

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[fishnboat]

This is the first I have heard of it. Where did you see this? It looks very interesting.

[DarrylS]

Oooh, this might be interesting. I wonder what the price point will be…

[tarbat]

This is the first I have heard of it. Where did you see this? It looks very interesting.

It's being launched at NEAF 2023 today apparently. It was mentioned on ZWO's Facebook page.

 

 

Oooh, this might be interesting. I wonder what the price point will be…

 

I've seen two prices mentioned. ¥2,999 = $436 or ¥1,999 = $290. But I don't know if this is correct.

[alphatripleplus]

If it's going to be launched at NEAF, we'll probabaly get some real feedback shortly as to its EAA capabilities. 

[Tfer]

Once ZWO launched the ASIAIR, the next logical step was to mount one of their cameras and lens to it.

 

I’d be willing to bet that you’ll be able to change cameras on the Seestar…

[alphatripleplus]

Once ZWO launched the ASIAIR, the next logical step was to mount one of their cameras and lens to it.

 

I’d be willing to bet that you’ll be able to change cameras on the Seestar…

As long as it is a ZWO camera.

[Tfer]

As long as it is a ZWO camera.

The ASIAIR makes sure of that!

[tarbat]

Sensor: IMX462
Product size: 142 X 129 X 257mm
Focal length: 246mm
Focal length: F4.9

So Aperture = 50mm
Weight: 3kg

 

¥61,400 = $464

 

Calculating the FoV, looks similar to the Vespera.

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Edited by tarbat, 13 April 2023 - 08:49 AM.

[fishnboat]

In order to really compete with the likes of Vaonis, any competitor will really need to excel at software, and the total user experience, as well as hardware. The Vaonis products are similar to the Apple IPhone, a product where the whole is much greater than the sum of its parts. There will always be a market for price sensitive folks that don’t mind tinkering to save a few bucks, but there is a reason for Apple being the colossus that it is.

[Tricity14]

I literally just bought a Vaonis Vespera, luckily for a good price. I'm really excited to see the comparisons between these two, because the $500 price point is VERY attractive if it can match the Vespera in image quality. A $2000 difference in cost with potentially the only difference being CovalENS and filters means ZWO might be taking down Vaonis

[alphatripleplus]

At that price point, I'm guessing it is an f/5 achromat. If that is the case, I would be surprised if it can match the lack of CA in a similar size APO. However, once we see some raw images it should be clear how good the optics are.

[tarbat]

$399 price in US - https://astronomy-im.../zwo-seestar-2/

 

Equatorial mount - really?

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Edited by tarbat, 13 April 2023 - 10:03 AM.

[cmanley134]

At that price point, I'm guessing it is an f/5 achromat. If that is the case, I would be surprised if it can match the lack of CA in a similar size APO. However, once we see some raw images it should be clear how good the optics are.

They're claiming Triplet APO on the description page, so maybe it's something like the FMA135/FMA180? In any case, very interesting. I could see them selling a lot of these to people who are interested in the hobby but daunted by the cost of entry and technical skill needed.

Edited by cmanley134, 13 April 2023 - 10:00 AM.

[alphatripleplus]

Yep, I now see the reference to "professional grade triplet apochromat" in the link. Nice that they also explicitly reference "live stacking mode" so they are aware of its EAA potential rather than just  AP.

[steveincolo]

Yeah, I'm skeptical too of the equatorial mount claim, though maybe it's like the Dwarf II in that you can mount it on a wedge (or even just a photo tripod with an appropriate head) and polar align it.

 

I'm very curious about the filters and the use of a 462 sensor.  I don't think they could use a 462MM and squeeze an entire RGBSHO filter set in there.  And that would increase cost a lot.  So probably a 462MC, maybe they're including an IR pass filter??

[fishnboat]

When you are buying a product like a robotic scope, you are really buying the company as much as the individual purchase.  I got into the pre-order for Vespera because of the track record that Vaonis established with the Stellina. They have developed a reputation for excellent product support and service, as well as continual improvements to their products via software updates that include adding new objects to the database, and genuine improvements, such as CovalENS, and continual auto focusing. With the head start they have now, they should be in a good position to compete with newcomers, but they will probably have to start out-sourcing production to Asia.
Competition will hopefully bring out better products at better prices. I just hope some of the new products are not garbage, that turn off newbies to the hobby. Vaonis products are the Real Deal. They may be expensive, but at least they really deliver what they promise, at least that is how I feel about my purchase, so far. If you bought a Vespera, your wallet might be lighter, but I don’t think you will be disappointed by the product.

[tarbat]

I wonder if the reference to equatorial is the inclusion of a rotator on the sensor?

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[BobW55]

Comes with a UV and Black (darks) Filter

[Arunka007]

Looks like the ZWO website is crashed with all the extra traffic!

[gtrin]

A technical manual is available?

[tarbat]

So it’s definitely Alt-Az mount, but has “compensation for the earth’s rotation”, so presumably by rotating the sensor.

 

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Edited by tarbat, 13 April 2023 - 01:19 PM.

[Tfer]

Looks like the ZWO website is crashed with all the extra traffic!

It’s probably down to add the new product lines. Apple does the same thing when they announce a new lineup.

[Ryguy&thenightsky]

Well, I pulled the trigger on this; 3KG for a full rig is exactly what I need for my backcountry hiking trips. Hopefully the rotation software/hardware is good enough to compensate for the field rotation for some long exposure AP! 

[Stevemr2t]

$399 - very interesting but at the same time the pricepoint makes me curious about the quality of the final images... it almost seems too inexpensive (in this hobby go figure)