I've got a Celestron NexStar 114GT I bought at Costco. I want to clarify
that I'm not seeing circles but I meant dots (poor choice of words, sorry)

That's good to know...



I thought i could make out Mars' polar cap last December when it was very
close to earth and i could definately see Saturns rings but I guess i
expected to see larger images and more detail.

Expectations can be a problem, too many hubble photos can lead to
disappointment when viewing through any amateur scope.

Personally, the idea that I am actually looking at some light that may have
travelled millions of years just to get to my mirror is pretty exciting to me
than some glossy magazine photo.

Jon