Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

In my opinion, the Celestron Nexstars are the best overall, general purpose telescopes money can buy (tripod, mount, and optical tube in a single package). I have used both the 4" and the 8". There are trade-offs with size. The 4SE is very light, more stable, easy to carry in one piece outside your house, adjusts to temperature differences rapidly, and has razor sharp clarity without ever requiring mirror adjustment (collimation). You can see pretty much every object with the 4 that you can see with the 8, it's just dimmer. The 8SE is bulkier, heavier, shakier, harder to carry in one piece, adjusts slowly to temperature differences (sometimes 1 hour), but everything looks a little bigger and brighter, and it requires occasional (a few times a year depending on how rough you handle the scope) mirror adjustment with a screwdriver which can be annoying if you are a perfectionist. The better your collimation, the better your clarity. You can't really go wrong with any size. Get what fits your budget. My advice if you get one, get a 8-24mm zoom eyepiece, a 32mm eyepiece, and you are good for years of enjoyment. Keep the legs low to minimize shaking, sit in a chair, and buy the anti-vibration pads (generic brand is just as good as the Celestrons). Once you master this telescope, you can upgrade the mount if you want to get into more advanced photography. Keep looking up!