David wrote:

I have decided on buying an Orion SkyQuest 4.5 dob. It is a compromise
decision as I got three kids 13 and under and the 4.5 is also fairly
portable. I was wondering if users familiar with this scope can tell me what
I can expect to see.
The only other telescope I have own has been one of those 60mm refractors
sold in department stores, actually mine was a Jason refractor I bought at
13 years old back in 1971. So the Orion 4.5" has got to
be a step up over that one. Can I see any deep sky objects like Orion Nebula
as an example. What about galaxies?? With my Jason refractor I was able to
see Andromeda , though it was a small.
Can i see the Mars ice caps at opposition?
How about Jupiter's red spot at times??

All of the above -- assuming reasonable viewing condtions.