Celestron Skymaster Pro 20x80 Binoculars

I went from being a naked-eye enthusiast to seeing 80+ stars of Orion's belt, where I saw 3 before. Seeing 4 of Jupiter's moons was mind-blowing and studying our moon's craters is a gift that keeps on giving. I can pick out a few galaxies also with this set.As a product, I am very impressed with the quality. They are heavy, but I am having great success with my entry-level videography tripod or simply using the roof of the car as a support for the elbows in a hurry. The ease of picking them up and walking outside is a luxury that is often overlooked by beginners who own heavy, cumbersome telescopes that never get taken out.The wide lenses let a lot of light in and the magnification is very impressive to me as a beginner. I really appreciate utilising both eyes to ... MoreI went from being a naked-eye enthusiast to seeing 80+ stars of Orion's belt, where I saw 3 before. Seeing 4 of Jupiter's moons was mind-blowing and studying our moon's craters is a gift that keeps on giving. I can pick out a few galaxies also with this set.As a product, I am very impressed with the quality. They are heavy, but I am having great success with my entry-level videography tripod or simply using the roof of the car as a support for the elbows in a hurry. The ease of picking them up and walking outside is a luxury that is often overlooked by beginners who own heavy, cumbersome telescopes that never get taken out.The wide lenses let a lot of light in and the magnification is very impressive to me as a beginner. I really appreciate utilising both eyes to take in the colour of each star.If you can afford it, the Skymaster PRO model might be worth the extra few bob. If I knew I was going to use them as much as I do, I would have gotten the fully coated lenses that the pro offers. Don't take this as meaning the image quality is anything other than exceptional with the standard set. KTec is a company I will certainly be going back to when I have the room for a Dobsobian. Highly Recommended

These Skymaster pro 20x80 binoculars appear very well built – well protected all round, waterproof and nitrogen filled, to prevent fogging. (I understand the cheaper "non-pro" version of the Skymaster 20x80s do not share these extra features, nor do some other similar looking 20x80s). (more review below)For the price, I think they offer good value for money. The large 80mm diameter lenses bring in a lot of light, great for observing the sky at night. The design has a built-in tripod mounting mechanism on the central "rail", which allows the binoculars to be adjusted on the mount to their centre of balance (and holds the two lenses nice and steady in relation to each other). Mounting on a tripod is essential, as 20x magnification and weight of the binoculars mean ... MoreThese Skymaster pro 20x80 binoculars appear very well built – well protected all round, waterproof and nitrogen filled, to prevent fogging. (I understand the cheaper "non-pro" version of the Skymaster 20x80s do not share these extra features, nor do some other similar looking 20x80s). (more review below)For the price, I think they offer good value for money. The large 80mm diameter lenses bring in a lot of light, great for observing the sky at night. The design has a built-in tripod mounting mechanism on the central "rail", which allows the binoculars to be adjusted on the mount to their centre of balance (and holds the two lenses nice and steady in relation to each other). Mounting on a tripod is essential, as 20x magnification and weight of the binoculars mean they are too difficult to handhold for any length of time, and the "sway" when trying to view things that are highly magnified with a narrow field of view is off-putting.These binoculars really come into their own for astronomy, revealing details such as faint stars that simply cannot be seen with the naked eye or smaller binoculars. Looking at the moon, there's an amazing amount of surface features to can be clearly seen with these and the moon fills up a decent amount of the overall field of view.Other bits- the binoculars come with two sets of interchangeable rear eye caps – including a more wrap-around style which is great for cutting out extraneous light at night. Front lens caps are attached, so they shouldn’t get lost. There’s also a bit of kit that fits on to the rail to allow a red dot sighting scope to be attached (which I have not tried). The case is more of a bag- OK, but nothing special.Downsides?The 80mm lenses really do let in a lot of light, and while fully multi-coated, I found the view has a bit of a yellow "tinge" to it, which I assume is caused by a degree of chromatic aberration. I don’t claim to be an expert, but other reviewers have commented on this. (I don’t have any similar lenses to compare them against but I imagine you get better the more you pay!)Other issues with using these big binoculars? Just so say that the field of view is very narrow, the depth of field quite shallow (if you are used to using lower magnification) and they do weigh a lot. So, binoculars of this size are not really suitable for birdwatching, if you are wanting to carry them around and try to find, follow and focus on anything moving at speed! They are however great for looking at the night sky when supported on a decent tripod.So, good value for money, in terms of what you get for the price.I hope this review helps you. (Tried but failed to upload a few moon snaps).

4 Stars, Please Read on. Not Real Happy !

The Binoculars Are Massive and Bullet proof. Collimation was spot on. The Clarity is second to none once i figured out the focus with the Right Diopter. Speaking of the Right Diopter. When i received my Bino`s, the right Diopter was not attached. It was just lying right there next to the Right eye piece in the box. I pulled off the rubber eye cup and could tell where it had been glued on to the splined gear like fixation point. So i lined up the glue marks and mixed up a little Epoxy Glue and dabbed it on 3 locations and gently pressed the Diopter back on the splined eye piece and all is good now. That is the Reason for the 4 Star Rating.............. Now that things are fixed, the View is so good i can see the Moon better than i could with my 20x90 Spotting Scope. ... MoreThe Binoculars Are Massive and Bullet proof. Collimation was spot on. The Clarity is second to none once i figured out the focus with the Right Diopter. Speaking of the Right Diopter. When i received my Bino`s, the right Diopter was not attached. It was just lying right there next to the Right eye piece in the box. I pulled off the rubber eye cup and could tell where it had been glued on to the splined gear like fixation point. So i lined up the glue marks and mixed up a little Epoxy Glue and dabbed it on 3 locations and gently pressed the Diopter back on the splined eye piece and all is good now. That is the Reason for the 4 Star Rating.............. Now that things are fixed, the View is so good i can see the Moon better than i could with my 20x90 Spotting Scope. Just wished Quality control was a bit Better !!!

Celestron 20x80 skymaster pro

The quality is good, very solidly built. The optics are good for price point. These are very large Binoculars. Too heavy and too great of magnification to use free hand, but work great on a good solid tripod. Hard to say if a telescope or binoculars are best first buy for new stargazers. Moon detail is very good, very bright, very clear. Other planet's the magnification is pretty week to see a much detail, but you can tell / recognize what you are look at for sure. Got mine at B&H. Price was good, service quick, and spot on. Would consider them for future purchases.

Great binoculars, especially if paired with Farpoint mount

The optics is very good for the price. For better ergonomics I also bought a Farpoint Far-sight binocular support kit. It also allows to rapidly change height without changing the aim between 2 or more users. The optional Farpoint Universal Binocular Mount Swing Hinge ($50 extra) is not needed because these binos include a built-in tripod adapter with a similar tilt function, but otherwise such adapter is useful. I put Farpoint mount on cheap Ravelli APGL4 tripod legs (along with Ravelli ACD Dolly for Prosumer Tripods on a hard, even surface), and store all this hardware in a BagMate Multipurpose Telescope Case (38x10.5x7.25 inch). The setup is heavy, but can be carried with a shoulder strap, say, for 500m. These Celestron binoculars are recommended for astronomy ... MoreThe optics is very good for the price. For better ergonomics I also bought a Farpoint Far-sight binocular support kit. It also allows to rapidly change height without changing the aim between 2 or more users. The optional Farpoint Universal Binocular Mount Swing Hinge ($50 extra) is not needed because these binos include a built-in tripod adapter with a similar tilt function, but otherwise such adapter is useful. I put Farpoint mount on cheap Ravelli APGL4 tripod legs (along with Ravelli ACD Dolly for Prosumer Tripods on a hard, even surface), and store all this hardware in a BagMate Multipurpose Telescope Case (38x10.5x7.25 inch). The setup is heavy, but can be carried with a shoulder strap, say, for 500m. These Celestron binoculars are recommended for astronomy and birdwatching, especially when viewing stationary and mounting on an agronomical binocular support.

Great for long distance curiosity

Mounted on a tripod with integral mounts these are great for watching the world from my deck over Encinada Bay. Container ships, Cruise ships, Fishing boats and panga's. Along with unusual bird life, pelicans, herons, gulls, terns flying by. Watchful eyes open for Whales, porpoises and dolphins spotted of schools of rising bait fish, spouts and a rare breech. These quality high-power binoculars offer year 'round entertainment during the day and moon watching and star gazing all night long. Loaner Celestron's just upgraded to StarMaster Pro!

I like big binos and I cannot lie

I use this to complement my telescopes as it?s often nice to just scan the skies and appreciate the wider views. Absolutely brilliant views of the Pleiades and Perseus clusters. In the daytime, it's handy with distant birds. Only a tinge of chromatic aberration on the bright planets and along the lunar limb, but easily ignored. Bring a tripod! The built-in adapter feels secure and is great. I added a red dot finder using the included rail and it helps me aim the tripod (though I?d recommend a parallelogram style mount and a lawn chair!). I enjoy using them and they?re simple enough for kids to handle. Big objective lenses gather A LOT of light to eke out those faint fuzzies.

Really good quality

I was choosing between Skymaster and Skymaster Pro. Went for Pro because of better build quality. These are not ED glass but purple fringing is well in control.I was suprised that I can hand hold 20x binos with same amount of shake than 10x binos - I think that large weight calms your shake, but because of weight you also need tripod.

Superb Optics, Well-Designed. Excellent Value

A great product changes how you perceive opportunities you never imagined every time you use it. The Celestron Skymaster Pro 20x80 is a Great Product! I purchased these binoculars primarily for stargazing. The exceptionally clear night sky where we live on Cape Cod is perfect for stargazing, and I figured I would treat myself to a big step up from my 8x50 binocs. The latter served me well, but the Skymaster treated me to details of the Milky Way my older binocs only hinted at. Thousands of distant stars and galaxies now burst forth from what was previously black space. Better still, our grown children have taken up serious stargazing after spending a week of stargazing with the Skymaster. My only regret is I didn't have another pair of Skymasters, or two, to keep ... MoreA great product changes how you perceive opportunities you never imagined every time you use it. The Celestron Skymaster Pro 20x80 is a Great Product! I purchased these binoculars primarily for stargazing. The exceptionally clear night sky where we live on Cape Cod is perfect for stargazing, and I figured I would treat myself to a big step up from my 8x50 binocs. The latter served me well, but the Skymaster treated me to details of the Milky Way my older binocs only hinted at. Thousands of distant stars and galaxies now burst forth from what was previously black space. Better still, our grown children have taken up serious stargazing after spending a week of stargazing with the Skymaster. My only regret is I didn't have another pair of Skymasters, or two, to keep everyone happy!The balance on the Skymaster Pro is quite good, enabling these binocs to be used without a tripod.With these binocs tipping the scale at almost 5 lbs.,I recommend holding the binoc close to the objective lens to minimize vibrations once you have set your focus.One small detail we find really convenient is the design of the dust caps. The rubber objective lens dust caps are hinged to a rubber ring that fits snuggly around the binocular barrel:. The rubber eye piece dust caps can be attached to the binocular strap. No more fumbling when removing (and possibly losing) dust caps!All in all a superb optical instrument!

Very good for the price but don't loose winged eyecups

First of all, the optical quality for the price is very good. The binoculars arrived collimated. Yes, large and heavy, but expected. I found I much prefer the winged eyecups over the standard ones. The former have soft, comfortable rubber and cut on the stray light. But they can be easily knocked off and get lost (Come on, Celestron!). I ended up using standard eyecups paired with the Alpine Bino Bandit eyeshields. I also invested in FarPoint Far-Sight mount on a sturdy tripod for more comfortable viewing (users of different heights can view with minimal adjustments). I use Ravelli tripod legs, and include tripod dolly on even surface.