Recommended Vendors - Revision history

Jmh921: /* Storefronts */

2023-11-30T15:47:51Z

‎Storefronts

Jgroub: /* Denver */

2022-01-19T05:38:56Z

‎Denver

Jgroub: /* Oceanside Photo and Telescope (OPT) */

2022-01-19T05:33:51Z

‎Oceanside Photo and Telescope (OPT)

Jgroub: /* Mile High Astronomy */

2022-01-19T05:33:35Z

‎Mile High Astronomy

Jgroub: /* Mile High Astronomy */

2022-01-19T05:32:05Z

‎Mile High Astronomy

Jgroub: Colorado

2022-01-18T10:13:31Z

Colorado

Jgroub: /* Nationwide Online Retailers */

2022-01-18T10:11:25Z

‎Nationwide Online Retailers

Jgroub: /* Nationwide Online Retailers */

2022-01-18T10:09:13Z

‎Nationwide Online Retailers

Jmh921 at 18:01, 24 June 2019

2019-06-24T18:01:05Z

Starmandan: /* Texas */

2019-06-12T20:31:49Z

‎Texas

← Older revision		Revision as of 15:47, 30 November 2023
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	===California===		===California===

−	~~====Carlsbad====~~
−
−	~~[https://optcorp.com/ OPT]~~
−
−	~~No storefront, online only~~

	====Watsonville====		====Watsonville====

@@ Line 98: / Line 98: @@
 [https://www.milehighastro.com Mile High Astronomy]
-Colfax Avenue, Lakewood, CO, 80215, 877-279-5280
+West Colfax Avenue #3vv, Lakewood, CO, 80215, 877-279-5280
 ===Texas===

← Older revision		Revision as of 05:33, 19 January 2022
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	==Nationwide Online Retailers==		==Nationwide Online Retailers==
−
−	~~====[https://optcorp.com/ Oceanside Photo and Telescope (OPT)]====~~
−
−	OPT has one of the largest selections online in the United States. Previously based in Oceanside, CA, they have recently moved to nearby Carlsbad. Their equipment ranges from low-end beginner stuff to some of the highest-end equipment available. They also have fairly knowledgeable staff. They are a reliable supplier of amateur astronomy equipment, if not the cheapest.
−
−	~~Their in-house brand is Third Planet Optics or TPO (which is, of course, OPT backwards). Most of the TPO stuff is made by [[Guan Sheng Optical Co\|GSO]].~~
−

	====[https://www.astronomics.com/ Astronomics]====		====[https://www.astronomics.com/ Astronomics]====

← Older revision		Revision as of 05:33, 19 January 2022
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		+
		+	====[https://optcorp.com/ Oceanside Photo and Telescope (OPT)]====
		+
		+	OPT has one of the largest selections online in the United States. Previously based in Oceanside, CA, they have recently moved to nearby Carlsbad. Their equipment ranges from low-end beginner stuff to some of the highest-end equipment available. They also have fairly knowledgeable staff. They are a reliable supplier of amateur astronomy equipment, if not the cheapest.
		+
		+	Their in-house brand is Third Planet Optics or TPO (which is, of course, OPT backwards). Most of the TPO stuff is made by [[Guan Sheng Optical Co\|GSO]].

	====[https://www.telescope.com/ Orion Telescopes & Binoculars]====		====[https://www.telescope.com/ Orion Telescopes & Binoculars]====

@@ Line 34: / Line 34: @@
 ====[https://www.milehighastro.com/ Mile High Astronomy]====
 Another reliable supplier of telescopes and astronomy equipment, based in Lakewood, CO, just outside of Denver.  MHA ships nationwide by UPS.
 ====[http://scopestuff.com/ ScopeStuff]====

← Older revision		Revision as of 10:13, 18 January 2022
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	10555 S. De Anza Blvd. Cupertino, CA 95014, (408) 255-8770		10555 S. De Anza Blvd. Cupertino, CA 95014, (408) 255-8770
		+
		+
		+	===Colorado===
		+
		+	====Denver====
		+
		+	[https://www.milehighastro.com Mile High Astronomy]
		+
		+	9797 Colfax Avenue, Lakewood, CO, 80215, 877-279-5280
		+

	===Texas===		===Texas===

← Older revision		Revision as of 10:11, 18 January 2022
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	Their in-house brand is Apertura, yet again made by [[Guan Sheng Optical Co\|GSO]].		Their in-house brand is Apertura, yet again made by [[Guan Sheng Optical Co\|GSO]].
		+
		+
		+	====[https://www.milehighastro.com/ Mile High Astronomy]====
		+
		+	Another reliable supplier of telescopes and astronomy equipment, based in Lakewood, CO, just outside of Denver. MHA ships nationwide by UPS.

@@ Line 46: / Line 46: @@
 While Amazon does carry a large number of telescopes from various brands, caution is strongly recommended when purchasing via Amazon.
-First, a lot of the products sold on Amazon are sold by other vendors through the Amazon interface.  While Amazon regulates this to some extent, if you're not buying FROM Amazon themselves, you may run into trouble with shipping and fulfillment as well as quality.  Some buyers have reported issues with incomplete items (e.g. buying a Dob and either only getting the tube and not getting the base or only getting the base and not the tube). Others have had items damaged or lost in shipping. While Amazon typically works to make things right, often by refunding the purchase, this can be a serious hassle.
+First, a lot of the products sold on Amazon are sold by other vendors through the Amazon interface.  These vendors are known as resellers - they typically buy astronomical equipment from a reputable seller (listed here), and then sell it to you.  While Amazon regulates this to some extent, if you're not buying FROM Amazon themselves, you may run into trouble with shipping and fulfillment as well as quality.  Some buyers have reported issues with incomplete items (e.g. buying a Dob and either only getting the tube and not getting the base or only getting the base and not the tube). Others have had items damaged or lost in shipping. While Amazon typically works to make things right, often by refunding the purchase, this can be a serious hassle.
 Second, most of the stuff carried on Amazon is lower-end equipment targeted at a poorly-educated retail market.  In other words: lots of "department-store telescopes."  A good example here is the Celestron PowerSeeker line (which is nearly entirely poor quality) is promoted and shows up prominently in search results.
 Lastly, the reviews on Amazon are often a very poor indicator.  This is due to widespread abuse of the review system and outright fraudulent entries to boost search result positioning.  This leads to lousy telescopes like the PowerSeeker 127eq receiving very high ratings and, with them, a prominent position in search results.

← Older revision		Revision as of 18:01, 24 June 2019
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	This page is to provide a list of recommended vendors for telescopes and other astronomy and astrophotography equipment and software.		This page is to provide a list of recommended vendors for telescopes and other astronomy and astrophotography equipment and software.

−	I (John) launched the page with some links to vendors in the United States~~. We've had some contributions from others as well already~~. If you have helpful information, particularly about vendors outside of the US, please feel free to add them to this page. Also feel free to expand on other entries to add details (e.g. this site's prices tend to be higher than average, but they have better service, etc...).	+
		+	I (John) launched the page with some links to vendors in the United States. If you have helpful information, particularly about vendors outside of the US or specific to your geographic location, please feel free to add them to this page. Also feel free to expand on other entries to add details (e.g. this site's prices tend to be higher than average, but they have better service, etc...). This is a group effort, so the more we put in, the more helpful this tool is to us all.

← Older revision		Revision as of 20:31, 12 June 2019
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	1925A Richmond Ave. Houston, TX 77098, 713-364-0260		1925A Richmond Ave. Houston, TX 77098, 713-364-0260
		+
		+	====San Antonio====
		+
		+	[https://www.analyticalsci.com/ Analytical Scientific]
		+
		+	11049 Bandera Road
		+	San Antonio, TX 78250
		+	210-684-7373

	=Canada=		=Canada=