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"Risky Business" on by mikepapke
Pros: This product looks like it has great potential.
Cons: This product is interfered with by its own power supply. Basic violation of circuit design 101. I was required to make immediate software and firmware upgrades. Upgrades are hampered due to auto shut off feature.
Summary: I received this product as a gift and it did not ship with all required parts. Customer service via Celestron's E-Mail SkyScout support seems non existent. Someday this may be a product worth its original asking price of $400. As it is, the current ask is too high given the odds that you will receive one with a problem.
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"I love it!" on by staryeyes
Pros: Wonderful and amazing product, everything about it is great!
Cons: The only bad thing about the SkyScout is waiting for it to be shipped.
Summary: I read many reviews about the SkyScout before buying one. Ever positive remark was true, it is a truely amazing device. The only negative feeback was battery consumption, which I was concerned about. I was pleasanty suprised to find the the batteries lasted a long time, MUCH longer than I was lead to believe. Maybe other people are using cheap or old batteries? Also, some people stated that it took too long to start up, finding satellites, ect. It takes less than a minute! And of course it doesn't remember the last location it powered down at, upon turning on it will most definately be in a different location! Ok, so I'm obviously completely satisfied with the SkyScout, If I could, I'd be a salesman for Celestron.
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"Lot's of potential" on by drasor
Pros: Easy menus; locate function worked perfectly
Cons: Unit was faulty out-of-the-box; unacceptable for a $400 product!
Summary: As a "novice" astronomer, I had high hopes for the SkyScout. Out of the box, the unit felt "hefty"...good sign of quality construction. As I powered it up though, the rubberized buttons had a ... well, rubbery feel to them. Sometimes I had to press multiple times to get the function(s) to respond. After power up, the unit found the GPS satellites in my area and initialized the unit with Lat/Long/Date/Time. So far; so good. I tried to locate the moon (easy first test). The blinking lights in the viewfinder guided me RIGHT TO the moon and when it was right in the middle of the "target" rings the viewfinder blinked red all around. AWESOME! I only had to move slightly away and the blinking stopped...obviously the sensors in the SkyScout are pretty sensitive!
Then trouble started; the main reason for this unit (for me) was to identify objects in the sky. I gave it a test run; hit the IDENTIFY button and was instructed to sight my object, then press the target button. I pressed target; nothing....pressed again....nothing....the display continued to say "Press the target button". Tried powering the unit on/off.....same response.
Last observation...after 15 min of using the unit, the battery icon showed only half-power remaining. Don't know how accurate this "battery gauge" is, but I have expected WAY better battery life.
So I'm conflicted about the SkyScout. I'm definitely returning this unit.....but haven't decided whether to get a replacement or a refund. Poor quality and battery life will probably move me to refund. Too bad....great concept!
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